Joined
Mar 2008
| Tuesday Feb 10, 2009, 01:25 AM GMT | [Post1872513] |
I was just listening to a 1987 CD rip of "It Won't Be Long" compared with the Purple Chick re-master, and if anything, it sounds like it is quieter and maybe even a bit muffled...or maybe not? Are the Purple Chicks the best re-masterings or not really?
Edit: While I'm on that, I've been trying to find out which versions of Beatles albums I should get. So far, this is what I've gathered:
Please Please Me - Mono
With The Beatles - Mono
A Hard Day's Night - Mono
Beatles For Sale - Mono
Help! - Not sure
Rubber Soul - Not sure, but leaning towards Mono
Revolver - Not sure
Magical Mystery Tour - Not sure
Sgt. Pepper - Not sure, but leaning towards Mono
The White Album - no idea. there are tracks like revolution 9 that are specifically for stereo, i'd imagine. but i'm just not sure.
Abbey Road - I'm assuming stereo, but again not sure.
Let It Be - Assuming stereo, again not sure
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Joined
Dec 2004
Community Mod
| Tuesday Feb 10, 2009, 01:24 PM GMT | [Post1873145] |
Good question.
I downloaded the Purple Chick re-masters hoping for some amazing improvement but ... I can't really hear it. Maybe my ears aren't what they used to be?
Regarding the 2nd half of your post --- the only recommendation I'd make is getting the mono version of Sgt. Pepper. It's a lot different from the stereo mix. Both are good but the differences are worth hearing.
Mono vs Stereo --- Copied from wiki:
The Beatles were present during the mixing of the album in mono and the LP was originally released as such alongside a stereo mix prepared by Abbey Road engineers led by Geoff Emerick; the Beatles themselves did not attend the mixing of the stereo version. (The mono version is now out of print on vinyl and was not officially released on CD.) The two mixes are fundamentally different. For example, the stereo mix of "She's Leaving Home" was mixed at a slower speed than the original recording and therefore plays at a slower tempo and at a lower pitch than the original recording. Conversely, the mono version of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is considerably slower than the stereo version and features much heavier gating and reverb effects. McCartney's yelling voice in the coda section of "Sgt. Pepper (Reprise)" (just before the segue into "A Day in the Life") can plainly be heard in the mono version, but is nearly inaudible in the stereo version. The mono version of the song also features drums that open with much more presence and force, as they are turned well up in the mix. Also in the stereo mix, the famous segue at the end of "Good Morning Good Morning" (the chicken-clucking sound which becomes a guitar noise) is timed differently and a crowd noise tape comes in later during the intro to "Sgt. Pepper (Reprise)".
Other variations between the two mixes include louder laughter at the end of the mono mix of "Within You Without You", as well as a gush of laughter between the coda of the title track and the beginning of "With a Little Help From My Friends", and a colder, echoless ending on the mono version of "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!".
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Joined
Mar 2008
| Tuesday Feb 10, 2009, 05:18 PM GMT | [Post1873530] |
Well, I swear I heard some improvement on early releases. On later releases, holy crap, Tomorrow Never Knows in Mono sounds awful with Purple Chick, at least. Thanks for the information.
Anyone have any other info? Preferably, opinions on Purple Chick, masterings of the albums, and which albums sound better in Mono?
Last edited by ComicMaster on Tuesday Feb 10, 2009, 05:19 PM GMT
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Joined
Dec 2004
Community Mod
| Tuesday Feb 10, 2009, 05:23 PM GMT | [Post1873544] |
This might be helpful -> Purple Chick.
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Joined
Nov 2002
| Tuesday Feb 10, 2009, 09:08 PM GMT | [Post1873981] |
I haven't heard the Purple Chick remasters. I've got the Dr. Ebbett needledrops of the MFSL Stereo LPs instead. They're all an absolute improvement and unlike the official CDs Help! and Rubber soul have the original stereo mixes, not the remixed 1987 versions.
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Joined
Nov 2002
| Tuesday Feb 10, 2009, 09:12 PM GMT | [Post1873997] |
Let me add that Abbey road and Let it be were never mixed in mono.
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Joined
Jun 2004
| Wednesday Feb 11, 2009, 03:48 AM GMT | [Post1874639] |
Stick with the Dr.Ebbetts releases re: The Beatles. Purple Chick put out a pretty good version of 'Smile' by The Beach Boys, which I would recommend, but regarding the best sounding Beatles albums, I would stick with the good Doctor. I grabbed FLAC copies of all of his releases and for the albums that were released in Mono/Stereo you can fit both versions on one disc, pretty much like the officially released remaster of Pet Sounds, so you have the best of both worlds.
The Black Triangle 'Abbey Road' is THE very best 'official' Beatles release. It was a flat transfer released in Japan and sounds amazing. I also like the Mirror Spock 'White Album' release, although it's unofficial. Either way they all sound leaps and bounds better than the rubbish official releases.
I just hope that when the catalog receives the eventual remaster, they don't go the route of David Bowie's 1999 Virgin remasters and boost up the volume and present rubbish sounding albums. For Bowie stick with the Ryko releases if you are not an audio nut, as they do the job and have interesting (for the most part) bonus tracks. If you are an audio nut you might want to look into grabbing the original RCA cds that were released, but that's another animal that I won't tackle in this thread (PM me for details on which ones to look for if interested).
j.
Last edited by TheGregWitul on Wednesday Feb 11, 2009, 03:48 AM GMT
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Joined
Sep 2005
| Wednesday Feb 11, 2009, 04:35 AM GMT | [Post1874681] |
Motherfucking GregWitul! What up man
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Joined
Jul 2003
Admin
| Wednesday Feb 11, 2009, 04:39 AM GMT | [Post1874683] |
How is it that no one has been C&D'd and sued over these types of releases? I can't imagine actually paying for them with cash. Downloading them seems reasonable, but I didn't notice a great improvement when I've tried a PC version. I am content to leave it in the hands of the people who legally have a right to remaster the music.
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Joined
Jun 2003
| Wednesday Feb 11, 2009, 05:33 AM GMT | [Post1874732] |
Every album except The White Album, Abbey Road and Let It Be is better in mono. The White Album is actually probably better in mono too, except Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da doesn't have the handclaps at the beginning, and Helter Skelter doesn't have "I've got blistas on my fingers!"
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Joined
Jun 2004
| Wednesday Feb 11, 2009, 05:51 PM GMT | [Post1875493] |
What's up, noiiiiise? It's been a long time buddy!
As for these bootleggers not being sued, I've never really understood it myself. A part of me wants to think that the artist respects the care put into these remasters, but c'mon, let's get serious, a bootleg is a bootleg.
I personally do not own any of the Beatles bootlegs. In fact, the only ones I actually own are Bowie and Prince bootlegs (I have several hundred of each) and I've bought most on Ebay and a few have been located in used bins at my local record store. I've downloaded the Beatles Ebbetts cds mostly from membership sites, but your average public torrent site usually has them in packs to be downloaded all at once.
Anyways, trust me with the Ebbetts cds. Just about any torrent site has perfectly ripped FLAC rips that will have you putting away the rubbish sounding official copies in place of these fine sounding master works. If you want to stay official and have some cash to spend, look for the Black Triangle Abbey Road, which is a legit release that was pulled from the market shortly after it came out. That is by far the best sounding Abbey Road and you won't feel bad about spending the money on a legit product.
But c'mon, it's the Beatles. You can't stop at Abbey Road, give the good doctor a download, it won't hurt, I promise...
j.
Last edited by TheGregWitul on Wednesday Feb 11, 2009, 05:53 PM GMT
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Joined
Mar 2008
| Thursday Feb 12, 2009, 11:20 PM GMT | [Post1878101] |
Is the dr's version a better version than the black triangle, though?
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Joined
Jun 2004
| Friday Feb 13, 2009, 03:46 AM GMT | [Post1878458] |
ComicMaster said Is the dr's version a better version than the black triangle, though?
I have both and they are probably the same in terms of sound quality, in my opinion. I don't really give the Ebbetts 'Abbey' much of a spin, partly due to the fact that the Black Triangle is an official (albeit very rare) release, and the album itself was only recorded in stereo. The same goes for 'Let It Be'.
As a side note, stay far away from the bootleg label, Quarter Apple. At one time they were touting a mono 'Abbey Road', which was really a fold down of the stereo mix. I don't know if they are around anymore, but their sources were pathetic (scratched / dirty vinyl, fake boots like the mono Abbey, etc). I only use Ebbetts and Mirror Spock, and I only use Spock for The White Album, which I think is superior to Ebbetts.
Either way you slice it, you owe it to yourself as a Beatles fans to listen to these recordings. They really make a difference in regards to their sound, plus you can listen to both the mono and stereo mixes (which can be quite different).
j.
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Joined
Mar 2008
| Friday Feb 13, 2009, 05:16 PM GMT | [Post1879241] |
Okay, thank you SO much for all the info. That was the type of response I was looking for. I posted this topic on three different sites and you were the only one who came close.
The one thing I'm still a bit iffy on, are a few of their middle albums with stereo/mono
Stereo Or Mono for:
Help!
The White Album
Revolver
Rubber Soul
Magical Mystery Tour
Everything else I'm good on.
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Joined
Jun 2004
| Sunday Feb 15, 2009, 06:07 PM GMT | [Post1882359] |
What I did when I made definite copies of all of my Beatles albums was combine the two best Ebbetts Stereo/Mono versions on one album. I did this for all of the albums, with the exception of:
White Album: I used the Direct Metal Mirror Spock edition. (Non-Ebbetts)
Abbey Road: The Black Triangle is perfect as it is, being the only non-bootleg (although long out of print) edition of the Beatles albums that is currently worth seeking out on the marketplace.
Let It Be: I used Ebbett's UK Blue Box Stereo Remaster and I had enough room on the disc to include 'Get Back'. For 'Get Back', which was the working title to 'Let It Be' and included a slightly different mix and tracklisting, as well as different artwork (referencing the band's first album), I used the Dr Ebbetts Glyn Johns 2nd Mix.
Past Masters Vol. 1 and Vol. 2: I used Ebbett's Past Masters - Volume One (US Mono/Stereo LP - Capitol) and Past Masters - Volume Two (US Mono/Stereo LP - Capitol). Since both albums are a compilation, some tracks are in mono while others are in stereo.
All of the other albums (including 'Yellow Submarine') I made for myself included Stereo/Mono versions, similar to that of 'Pet Sounds' released by The Beach Boys, so that I could have the best of both worlds available on one disc. Here is the simplified breakdown:
For the following albums I used the Ebbett's (UK Stereo) Blue Box Remaster and (Japanese Mono LP) Red Wax versions so that I could have stereo on the first half of the disc, and mono on the second half. The albums that were sourced from the Blue Box and Red Wax:
Please Please Me, With The Beatles, A Hard Days Night, Beatles For Sale, Help!, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Yellow Submarine.
Magical Mystery Tour: Ebbett's (German Stereo LP - HörZu) (2005 Upgrade) and (US Mono LP - Capitol) (2005 Upgrade).
All of these fine albums are available on the usual torrent sites, both public and private (what), and all of them are well worth downloading to enhance your Beatles experience.
Here is a tool that helped me out in the past when I was searching for the definite Beatles albums. This site is an archive for various bootlegs and specializes in Beatles. You can view all of the Ebbetts versions available, although you'll find that I used the latest and greatest (Blue Box for stereo and Red Wax for mono) when it came time to make my, um, backups.
http://www.bootlegzone.com...=0&filter=
The above link directs to the Ebbetts section of the site, which also contain reviews, track breakdowns, and other resources.
I hope this helps everyone out in terms of listening to the RIGHT albums when it comes to one of the all-time best (if not the very best) band on the planet, The Beatles!
j.
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