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Best Pressing Shootout *Revisited: Sgt. Pepper — 1981 Blue Box vs. 1983 Canadian vs. 2017 Giles Martin remix
Let me apologize in advance for what is an overly complicated, utterly indecisive shootout. Burdened, like so many Beatles fans, which a bunch of Pepper pressings, I wanted to know which of them sounded best. Instead, I found that they all sound okay, and quite different — but, shockingly, none sound quite as good as…
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Best Pressing Shootout *Revisited: Charles Mingus, Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus — 1968 ABC Impulse! vs 1979 MCA Japan
Surprise, surprise (surprise, surprise, surprise): Mingus, an early Impulse! pressing, a later Japanese reissue… My Best Pressing Shootouts are already stepping on their own toes. I revisited this many months later in a much better setup… and the results were overturned! Sorry, those of you who rushed out and purchased bargain Japanese pressings of this…
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Best Pressing Shootout *Revisited: Charles Mingus, The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady — 1963 Impulse vs. 1963 Sparton vs. 1972 Impulse Japan (Toshiba) vs. 2019 Vital Vinyl
Yes, this is one of the big, massive, ridiculously oversubscribed Best Pressing Shootouts I’ve been planning for months. (There are a couple of others to come!) Four copies of one record! What am I thinking? Let me break it down for you. I’ve revisited this comparison with my fancy new loudspeaker setup… and the results…
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Best Pressing Shootout *Revisited: Eric Dolphy, Out to Lunch — 1977 King Japan vs. 2015 Music Matters 33
Japanese pressings in general, and King Records pressings in particular, have been faring very well so far in my Brest Pressing Shootouts. Now it’s time to bring in another of the vaunted “best reissues” series: the recent Music Matters pressings. They’re expensive as hell, they’re hard to get into Canada — but no less an…
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Best Pressing Shootout *Revisited: The Ornette Coleman Trio, At the “Golden Circle” Volume One — 1966 New York USA Blue Note vs. 1977 King Japan
In the first of an exciting new series of “Best Pressing Shootouts,” I compare two pressings of an amazing-sounding live disc: the Ornette Coleman Trio At the “Golden Circle” Volume One. See red text below for the “revisited” account of this BPS! Why am I starting here? Three reasons. First, I love the music. No,…
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LP12MF Listening Test: Naim Aro and Greenstreet Subchassis
In the latest edition of the LP12 Modification Frenzy, I put the Dynavector XX-2 cartridge onto the legendary Naim Aro tonearm and mount them on a Greenstreet subchassis. You can read about the process of installing the Aro here. You can check out my listening methodology here. Full listening impressions are below. Digestible, numerical summaries…
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LP12MF Listening Test: Dynavector XX-2 on the Javelin Tonearm
In the latest edition of the LP12 Modification Frenzy, I put the Dynavector XX-2 cartridge — first seen on the Nima, last seen on the Ekos — onto the Javelin tonearm. You can check out my listening methodology here. Full listening impressions are below. Digestible, numerical summaries of all my listening tests are here. tl;dr…
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LP12MF Listening Test: Tiger Paw Javelin Tonearm
In the latest edition of the LP12 Modification Frenzy, I listen to the effects of swapping my Linn Ekos 2 tonearm for a Tiger Paw Javelin tonearm. I’ve yet to write my post about installing the Javelin, since it was quite complicated and I don’t yet feel like I really have a grasp on it;…
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LP12MF Listening Test: Linn Troika MC Cartridge
In the latest edition of the LP12 Modification Frenzy, I listen to the effects of swapping my Dynavector XX-2 MC cartridge for a retipped Linn Troika. You can check out my listening methodology here. Full listening impressions are below. Digestible, numerical summaries of all my listening tests are here. tl;dr Isn’t it nice when something…
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Best Pressing Shootout: Eric Dolphy, Out There — 1969 Prestige Blue Trident Stereo vs. 1968 Xtra UK Stereo vs. 1975 Toshiba-EMI Japan Stereo vs. 1977 Victor Japan Mono
Yes, that’s right, my friends. I have gone to absurd lengths to find you the finest (stereo) pressing of this very very fine record. Actually, I’ve gone a little further than even the title suggests. Time for the Best Pressing Shootout I’ve been planning the longest… Background Some time in the winter of 2018, when…
