Very best sounding Vinyl


So first I did search back to 2014 to see if there was a thread on this subject but only found threads that dance around the topic but not directly on point. If I missed then copy the link here and I’ll delete.

Started building my record collection and have about 20 so far but clear and away the two very best recordings are Joni Mitchell’s Blue and the infamous Come away with me Norah Jones. Of course its the vocals and the acoustic instruments but no denying the top notch quality recording.

So what else is out there on that level - any genre? To show off your system....similar to the home theater bluray lists. 

aj523
"Am I the only one who thinks Dire Straits "Brothers In Arms" album is too hot? I wanna love the recording, I love the music, but it’s too sibilant for my taste....maybe its just my copy. On the other hand, Dire Straits debut album, "Dire Straits" is an incredible recording in comparison IMO"

I have the debut album, sounds pretty good. Never got into their music after that.

Wiki:

"Brothers in Arms was one of the first albums directed at the CD market, and was a full digital recording (DDD) at a time when most popular music was recorded on analog equipment. It was also released on vinyl (abridged to fit on one LP) and cassette. Producer Neil Dorfsman says the digital multitrack was mixed on an analog board with the resulting two track mix re-digitized via a Prism A/D converter and recorded on a DAT machine."


May as well play the CD but on better gear.

Just IMHO I feel BIA sounds better on cassette tape than it does on record, at least to my ears in my system.
Do not care for the CD at all though.
UJQRs of Supertramp Crime of the Century and Earl Klugh Finger Paintings are amazing as are the others (Dark Side, I Robot & Sgt Pepper). I have to say though, I never bought the Cat Stevens one (got all these back in college) and recently got the Acoustic Sounds QRP one and it sounded great to me - maybe UHQR level.

I had the regular MFSL Finger Paintings and Dark Side and own the Beatles MFSL collection, (which of course has Sgt Pepper) and I would say the UHQRs are noticeably better, but I am not as critical a listener as Miller Carbon or Mike Lavigne and haven't gone out to look for a better sounding copy of an album I already own that I like (except back in the day with the UHQRs).

The only exception to that is Kind of Blue, which I owned on 200g Classic Records and then bought the MFSL 45 box set (second release which supposedly sounded better than the first) which I like more. In general the 45s are better, but you have to get off your butt twice as often. It's worth it. My brother in law has the 4 LP single sided version of it which I haven't asked to borrow to test, but I've heard that is the best one.

I am not a collector looking for investment gains - I listen to all of them, but I did sell the Kind of Blue one to a record store and the owner was just going to keep it for his collection. The records should be enjoyed - they are not stamps or coins or baseball cards!
  
I do have the occasional regular release and I am sure several of those are white hot stampers (maybe they were the first pressings off the plate) Pat Metheny Offramp and Earl Klugh/George Benson - Collaboration come to mind. Some Japanese pressings are great too, but they vary (as I guess all do).
So in my role as the OP, I took the Better Reords plunge and tried out A Night at the Opera, Super Hot Stamper A++ both sides. Original 1975 pressing. $150.

All I can say is Wow! Dynamic, raw, clean. Freddie came alive in my living room. Loud. I can barely turn the volume up. 45 year old record kept in great shape by its previous owner(s).  I can not imagine what a White Hot Stamper of this vinyl sounds like. 

Thx @millercarbon

I won’t be buying many of these but will pick and choose my most favorites for my birthday or other special occasion/gift certificates. And to look out for special pricing, I was told.

"So in my role as the OP, I took the Better Reords plunge and tried out A Night at the Opera, Super Hot Stamper A++ both sides. Original 1975 pressing. $150."

Not surprising.

I've mentioned a few times(like a broken record) that my local store would have Better Records scouts going thru the bins for that $400 copy of Steely Dan's "Pretzel Logic."

I have many copies of recordings that are at least "super hot" and maybe a few "white hot" keepers.

It's just a matter of wanting to put in the time. Or in this case, depending where you are, it's the ONLY way to get a stamper, since stores are closed.