Hi,
Am new to vinyl. I listened to only vinyl in my school and college days in the 70s and 80s, and then completely lost all connect with vinyl. Now I've just bought a used turntable and have collected some vinyl, and am encountering all sorts of info about vinyl album versions.
First question: about the ABBA Live at Wembley vinyl. Why is the 2014 issue so much more expensive than the 2020 reissue? Is a reissue LP stamped from the same metal master as the original, or do they start from mixing and mastering, etc? If they are both from the same metal master, and I am presuming that a good record label like this one, plus metal masters made with 21st century technology will be... well... long-lasting, does one expect to hear significant audible differences between the 2014 version and the 2020 one?
Second: I bought a sealed new LP from a shop in Singapore: it was Harry Belafonte's Carnegie Hall concert. The cover art was not the same as the familiar RCA album photos, and the record label was unfamiliar to me, but I paid it no need, since it was four years ago and I had not heard stories of the corner-cutting new-age vinyl makers. I've attached two photos of the album. I wanted to know: is this Vinyl Passion label similar to Wax Time Records, who pick up CDs or any other questionable masters, tinker with the sound, and then make vinyl to sell to buyers who don't know the difference?
As a novice getting into this field again, should I be careful about these things?
(I know that CDs too are released in various versions, often remixed and remastered, but I never encountered stories of CDs manufactured by questionable companies using material of unknown provenance. Maybe I just bought well-known labels.)
Am new to vinyl. I listened to only vinyl in my school and college days in the 70s and 80s, and then completely lost all connect with vinyl. Now I've just bought a used turntable and have collected some vinyl, and am encountering all sorts of info about vinyl album versions.
First question: about the ABBA Live at Wembley vinyl. Why is the 2014 issue so much more expensive than the 2020 reissue? Is a reissue LP stamped from the same metal master as the original, or do they start from mixing and mastering, etc? If they are both from the same metal master, and I am presuming that a good record label like this one, plus metal masters made with 21st century technology will be... well... long-lasting, does one expect to hear significant audible differences between the 2014 version and the 2020 one?
Second: I bought a sealed new LP from a shop in Singapore: it was Harry Belafonte's Carnegie Hall concert. The cover art was not the same as the familiar RCA album photos, and the record label was unfamiliar to me, but I paid it no need, since it was four years ago and I had not heard stories of the corner-cutting new-age vinyl makers. I've attached two photos of the album. I wanted to know: is this Vinyl Passion label similar to Wax Time Records, who pick up CDs or any other questionable masters, tinker with the sound, and then make vinyl to sell to buyers who don't know the difference?
As a novice getting into this field again, should I be careful about these things?
(I know that CDs too are released in various versions, often remixed and remastered, but I never encountered stories of CDs manufactured by questionable companies using material of unknown provenance. Maybe I just bought well-known labels.)
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According to Discogs the 2014 ABBA issue is "limited edition"...the 2020 isn't...
You have to be careful with fakes & various sub-standard recordings...
Vinyl Pasion on Discogs here:-
https://www.discogs.com/label/100805-Vinyl-Passion
That LP looks like a reissue of a remaster..
https://www.discogs.com/release/939...lafonte-At-Carnegie-Hall-The-Complete-Concert
"Sound factorty B.V." is an actual company & appears on Discogs website here:-
https://www.discogs.com/label/859453-Sound-Factory-BV
Their actual website here:-
https://sound-factory.nl/
Discogs has the info you need in the future to help you...
You have to be careful with fakes & various sub-standard recordings...
Vinyl Pasion on Discogs here:-
https://www.discogs.com/label/100805-Vinyl-Passion
That LP looks like a reissue of a remaster..
https://www.discogs.com/release/939...lafonte-At-Carnegie-Hall-The-Complete-Concert
"Sound factorty B.V." is an actual company & appears on Discogs website here:-
https://www.discogs.com/label/859453-Sound-Factory-BV
Their actual website here:-
https://sound-factory.nl/
Discogs has the info you need in the future to help you...
I didn't know that Wax Time was iffy. What about Not Now records? I have a few jazz or blues records of theirs.
It's been alleged that some LPs are just LP transfers of the CD master, so you're paying for the convenience of an LP with sound which isn't up to CD quality...
With vinyl being so expensive - most LPs in Australia are $40-50 - it pays to do your research before buying. For example, some companies will assert that premium priced 'heavyweight 180g vinyl' will sound better than thinner pressings, which is, as far as my collection goes, utter rubbish. It might make the LP less prone to warping, but the stylus doesn't care how heavy the record is. Lower weight issues of those albums aren't available anyway.
If you're looking at a particular album, e.g. Miles Davis' Kind of Blue or Hendrix' Electric Ladyland, you'll find several discussions about which issue is 'best'. Read carefully and with a bucket of salt, then decide what to order, or not.
Happy hunting!
Geoff
With vinyl being so expensive - most LPs in Australia are $40-50 - it pays to do your research before buying. For example, some companies will assert that premium priced 'heavyweight 180g vinyl' will sound better than thinner pressings, which is, as far as my collection goes, utter rubbish. It might make the LP less prone to warping, but the stylus doesn't care how heavy the record is. Lower weight issues of those albums aren't available anyway.
If you're looking at a particular album, e.g. Miles Davis' Kind of Blue or Hendrix' Electric Ladyland, you'll find several discussions about which issue is 'best'. Read carefully and with a bucket of salt, then decide what to order, or not.
Happy hunting!
Geoff
This +100....
Same with many so called "Hi-res" digital files...some are from LP.....some are done using proper equipment to extract the most from a pristine LP....others are worse than a compressed MP3 file!!
Got to look at the release dates & the licencing & the record labels...i.e. who owns the rights...do they have the original master tapes??
To take a few examples from our collection:
Bruce Springsteen 'Born to Run', Columbia "half speed master" LP c/w original Australian CBS pressing: no contest, the 'half speed' is a US pressing which has more depth and clarity and less surface noise;
The Beatles 'Abbey Road', 1970 Australian pressing c/w "Original Master Recording" Mobile Fidelity half speed master; no contest, the Oz pressing has slightly clearer sound , albeit with a little less bass but the MF disc has a sort of overall dullness to the sound and it was about three times the price!
Jimi Hendrix 'Are You Experienced', 1970s Reprise US version and import c/w original Oz pressing of English version. Apart from the different track listing, no contest; the US disc is excellent with much fuller sound. The Oz LP sounds like someone turned off all the bass when cutting it. They've both been played to death, there's a new and very expensive Bernie Grundman remaster which is supposed to be great although there are mixed reviews.
The Who, 'Whos Next', Oz LP re-cut from late 70s c/w English pressing from same era. No contest, I bought the English LP after listening to the Oz for one play, the local version had thin sound and had been cut with a very narrow groove which finished about an inch before the label. Everything about the U pressing was better.
However, none of these is the current LP issue(s): they would only be available used but I've listed them because they will around various places and web sites. They all pre-date the arrival of CDs.
Geoff
Bruce Springsteen 'Born to Run', Columbia "half speed master" LP c/w original Australian CBS pressing: no contest, the 'half speed' is a US pressing which has more depth and clarity and less surface noise;
The Beatles 'Abbey Road', 1970 Australian pressing c/w "Original Master Recording" Mobile Fidelity half speed master; no contest, the Oz pressing has slightly clearer sound , albeit with a little less bass but the MF disc has a sort of overall dullness to the sound and it was about three times the price!
Jimi Hendrix 'Are You Experienced', 1970s Reprise US version and import c/w original Oz pressing of English version. Apart from the different track listing, no contest; the US disc is excellent with much fuller sound. The Oz LP sounds like someone turned off all the bass when cutting it. They've both been played to death, there's a new and very expensive Bernie Grundman remaster which is supposed to be great although there are mixed reviews.
The Who, 'Whos Next', Oz LP re-cut from late 70s c/w English pressing from same era. No contest, I bought the English LP after listening to the Oz for one play, the local version had thin sound and had been cut with a very narrow groove which finished about an inch before the label. Everything about the U pressing was better.
However, none of these is the current LP issue(s): they would only be available used but I've listed them because they will around various places and web sites. They all pre-date the arrival of CDs.
Geoff