Couldn't sleep.....( I hope my writing on PPM came through).
"With The Beatles" & "A Hard Days Night" were both pressed off center. Not just a teeny bit either. I reamed out the spindle hole in order to get them to tracking properly. And yes, they are not perfectly flat either. They all can clamp flat. If you don't have a clamp, you'll be frustrated. On (AHDN), the last two songs on side one seem to be a notch lower in terms of sonics compared to the rest of the lp.
I'm still impressed. One thing I've noticed with all three so far is the sound is up front & present. (Also, the vocals are easily distinguishable when more the one person is singing.) Some may take this comment to mean bright and annoying. That is not what I mean. I'm really enjoying listening to the Beatles for, really, the first time on these three lps.
"For Sale" is a different animal. To my ears it seems slightly muffled by comparison to the first three. The bass guitar and drums take a back seat, the soundstage is a notch lower in height,(more on side one). On "Words Of Love" the lead guitar is a little to "hot" for my taste. My only other comparison for this lp is my US mono re-issue. This new one blows that one away. For me, the stand out track, sonically, is "Honey Don't". Somehow, I believe side two is sonically overall the best sounding of the two. "Everbody's Trying To Be My Baby" reminds me quite a lot of Paul's lp "Run Devil Run".
"Help" is another lp that is pressed "off-center". "You're Going To Lose That Girl" was noticeably inferior to all of the other tracks on side one. Side two, "Act Naturally" was an instant stand out track for me. "Yesterday" was really an ear-opener for also. I've never heard it this clear with each individual instrument so descernable. At one point there is a fade or something on Paul's voice that I've never noticed from my years of hearing this tune in the past. Overall, for me, this lp is a slight improvement in terms of sonic quality and consistence of such. Maybe it has to do with improved equipment, acoustics, recording technique, etc. Up until "Help", I'm still slightly more impressed with (PPM), being it was their first and the separation of vocals, dynamics, ambience, and sustain I heard.
"Rubber Soul", again, another off-center pressing. However not as much as the previous lps I've mentioned. The first song, "Drive My Car" really woke me up! If this is the sound I'll hear throughout this lp, I'm even more impressed. A notch above "Help". I just want to crank the volume forever on this cut. I'm hearing a more full expression of every individual instrument and vocal. It really stands out to me. On, "Norwegian Wood", we get perhaps the first glimpse of their later, more prominent middle eastern musical influences. My best reference to compare is my Japanese, stereo lp. Absolutely no comparison. This new mono lp, blows that one away! Side two: "What Goes On", (first track again), This song just makes you want to get up and boogie. Sounds fantastic! On "I'm Looking Through You", something has happened I never thought possible? An early Beatles lp with really enjoyable bass reproduction. While whole lp has it, this track just really stood out to me. This is probably their most "rockin'" lp so far. I could play this one all day and never want to change the record.
(As of now, I'm extremely pleased with the decision to purchase this set. Frankly, if it was offered at twice the price, it would be worth it,IMO. I'm now glad I never spent the big bucks to search out the "best pressings" of the Beatles).
(I feel I should note that of the lps in this box set, I own the following MFSL stereo lps):
"A Hard Days Night"
"Revolver"
"Sgt. Pepper's .."
"White"
"Yellow Submarine", EU, 1999 re-issue on yellow wax
"Revolver": "Taxman", it doesn't "jump" out at me like the first cut on (RS). Listening to this mono version, I'm struck as to how much, (what I refer to as SOUL), this lp has compared to the MFSL. So much more enjoyable, while not as open as (RS), still very, very good. "Here, There And Everywhere" is somewhat a standout, although the lead guitar is a little too hot. "Yellow Submarine" has some nice bass, however the rest of the frequency range is slightly behind (not as open), so the bass stands out more. (An interesting comparison may be made with my (YS) on yellow vinyl from around 10 years ago? Side two: Yes it is slightly off-center. This happens quite a lot. One side will track perfectly, while the opposite side is off. Somehow, we muddle through? "Good Day Sunshine", I get the feeling that this could really be a dynamic number, however it falls short. We get what is there. Again, the sonic comparison between "Revolver" & "Rubber Soul" could not be more stark! Night & day my friends.
I think I'll stop here. I'm sure others will have expressed their opinions on the other lps by the time I do. I will finish, for my own sake.
Keep in mind, I'm evaluating on my stereo set-up, with limited Beatles lp experience. This has been a lot of fun so far. I look forward to finishing at some point.
