New Beatles remasters

I thought you were me for a minute. I bought the same six you did, and I bought them at Target b/c the giftcards help offset the cost of at least one.

Thoughts on sound? None yet. Haven't had the chance to put them in my system, only the computer.

Ringo is a much better drummer than I thought, and Paul is a much better bass player than I ever dreamed. The early albums have kick drum and bass line that I never heard. Also, I am listening to She Loves You, and I can hear both guitars for the fist time ever.

I can't wait for the vinyl version, these actually sound better than the vinyl that I have. Not quite as warm or full, but the clarity and range of the music is absolutely head and shoulders above any versions I have ever done.

George Martin and his sons have done a great job. I appreciate my 10, 7 and 5 year old learning to love this music with me, as I did with my uncles even though it was very uncool in the 70's and 80's.

Mozart, Beethoven, Gershwin, The Beatles.

Listening to the stereo set now. Very nice job remastering. Every disc has sounded at least good, if not superb. The later albums, in particular, sound like good vinyl. Very pleased with this purchase!

I also bought at Target. I picked up the ten different titles that they had. Definitly the best deal that I saw even without the gift cards. Havn't got to listen yet though.

Truly jaw dropping!

Macdadtexas: "Mozart, Beethoven, Gershwin, The Beatles"

Where's the Duke? Your "white list" would be a little more credible with one of the most influential musicians in modern music. Come on, Ellington deserves it.

Point of correction. George Martin had nothing to do with this project.

Narrod, didn't he produce all of the albums originally with the expection of "Let It Be"?

He produced the original recordings but had nothing to do with the current remaster project.

That's correct. He had nothing to do with this project. Good thing as he is suffering from a significant hearing loss.

Is there going to be a remastered vinyl version? I read that in the CD remastering process they removed tape clicks, microphone pops and excessive sibilance so there was some digital manipulation. If this is done on the vinyl versions this would not be a pure analog remaster. Also read about possible blu-ray audio version. Anyone know? I am reminded of the film Men In Black where they showed a new alien technology that was going to replace the CD. Tommy Lee Jones's character then says: "Now I have to buy The White Album again"

I bought 4 of the stereo cds today. I did a comparison of the Sgt Pepper's vs the orig EMI cd pressing and a Japanese Toshiba import 1993 vintage. The remaster is a big improvement over the original EMI, but after several listenings of "She's Leaving Home" and "a Day in the Life", I definitely prefer the Japanese import. The remaster is louder than the Toshiba pressing at the same vol level, but the Toshiba pressing sounds much lusher with the same detail (maybe even more so) Unfortuneatley, this is the only Beatles import I own. If I could find others I'd buy them! But the remasters are close in sound and available.

I just ordered the mono set from Amazon for $230 after seeing that Best Buy wants $563 for it! Amazon is predicting shipment in 3 to 6 weeks.

Bruce_1, the boxset that Best Buy has for $563 is the IMPORT version, not the domestic release.

Merganser
"Truly jaw dropping"

Yup, I just got my first cd (Rubber Soul) and that's the word for it alright - "jaw-dropping".

I also just got done listening to Rubber Soul, (my favorite Beatles album) and...WOW! My guys have got to hear these new releases. Just excellent.

all i can say its like waxing a 65' vett. they took great stuff and made it sound about as good as it gets. lps would be the cats ass. i only hope . white disc real close to the uk first press mono lp ,lackin in that ol lp body of tone . buy em an jus groove.

What is the difference between the import and the domestic version that explains the $333 price difference?!

the most rewarding cd purchase i've made this year. they pretty much exceeded my expectations(which were high) , and i think they've set a new standard for the old standby silver disc.....the songs have 'never' sounded better. eleven on a scale of ten.....haven't opened the mono box yet.

i purchased both the Stereo Box Set and the Mono Box Set yesterday; but did not start listening till later tonight. So far i've listened to Revolver and Rubber Soul in Mono (my fav early Beatles) and right now i'm listening to Abbey Road in Stereo.

i was truely impressed with the naturalness and dynamics of the monos; much more listenable than my 80's Cds. The Abbey Road (my fav and easily most played Beatles) is blowing my mind a bit so far. Come Together was supercharged......and......

I did just now go in the house (from my listening barn) and retrieve my Abbey Road cd disc from my B&O house system (my wife listens to) so i could A/B it with the new disc to make sure i wasn't placebo'ing. no need to play THAT again ever.

i've not yet pulled out any Beatles Lps but i will over the next week or so.

i'm looking forward to some fun 'investigations' over the next little while.

The mono box is lovely. What's the verdict on the stereo versions especially Rubber Soul and after, cuz I'm going to end up buying them ?

Those of you who have made the comparison so far: Can you be more detailed about the ways in which the new versions seem better than the old? Ie, what about the sound is better now?

Just saying they're better doesn't help promote dialogue or understanding.

Jimjoyce,

sorry to be so general.....just trying to focus on the musical enjoyment. but to list a few things specifically on the Abbey Road new stereo disc compared to the 80's CD;

--much more separation of musical lines for a number of reasons. better dynamic contrasts. blacker backgrounds. bass lines are more distinct; with more slam and articulation. even though the vocals were at exactly the same level on the new disc and the 80's disc the other musical lines were much more alive and energetic. the 80's disc must have been EQ'd to death.

--better sense of space and bloom. this might be a bit system specific, but on my big rig there are some very nice things happening soundstage-wise on the new disc.

--less digital signature by far. none of that 'rough at the edges' early 80's CD signature. (i am concerned that what i'm hearing might have been a bit 'scrubbed' in the mastering and could be missing some of the 'life' and 'air' of the 80's CD's. i will need to listen more to really be able to tell one way or another; but it's possible. i'm a listener that 'likes' tape hiss in his music because it almost always means that 'all' the music is still there to be retrieved from a recording. i also am big into Lps (3-tt's, 10,000 lps) and love RTR tape. so i'm not into having big brother scrub my classic rock.)

--more a sense of musical flow and energy; the music pulses more with life. this is a very big deal as this is at the heart of things. of course; dub it down to MP3 and the life will leave.

--tonality is more real and the vocals are fuller and more textured.

i hope this helps somewhat; again.....it's only my limited viewpoint of Abbey Road.

Thanks Mike. That is what I am looking for. For me, the most important aspect is the realism of the sound. I found, for example, that the sound of the Rolling Stones re-masters is a good deal less real than the sound of the originals.

Some reviewers have said that the re-mastered Beatles CDs are louder than the originals by a noticeable amount. Is this something that you corrected for in your listening?

The mono box set, so far, just sounds "there." It is so dynamic and clear and exciting to hear the bass, different guitar parts, and Ringo's drumming, where before the vocals were SO prominent and at least to me the stuff each of the Beatles was playing just didn't stand out where you could really hear each of them like you can now. It is now quite easy to hear what George, John, Paul, and Ringo are each doing on every song. Besides the better bass and drums, it is the little riffs and percussions you can now hear that are great. Plus, there is NO compression on the monos. I confess I haven't heard the stereo versions yet.

for the guys who have mono and stereo,if you had only one choice would you go mono or stereo?
al

Some reviewers have said that the re-mastered Beatles CDs are louder than the originals by a noticeable amount. Is this something that you corrected for in your listening?

again; i've only compared new to 80's CD with Abbey Road. in this example the overall level of gain of the vocals was possibly slightly higher on the new remastered CD, which is really of no real consequence. what i did was level match the vocals. the difference is that while the vocals are quite similar in level, everything else is more alive and dynamic....mostly somewhat louder. but it's way more than that. since there are blacker backgrounds and more separation between musical mines, you simply hear farther into the mix, and things are both more prominent and you hear things that were previously obscure.

i don't want to guess about how these CD's compare to my Lp pressings, but i won't be surprised if they don't get into that level of detail.

so the answer to your question is that yes; they are louder but the main reason is the compressed and homogenized mix of the 80's CD's. if you A/B the old and new you will notice that the vocals are similar in level but everything else seems louder.

i think the degree of diference might be affected by the quality of one's playback system. maybe the 80's CD's were appropriate to the early crap redbook players.

for the guys who have mono and stereo,if you had only one choice would you go mono or stereo?

i bought both but have only started listening.

buy the mono box, and the individual later Stereo discs missing from the Mono box. that will get you closest to the real thing.

caution; my mind may change as i spend more time listening.

I bought two of the mono boxes and the three stereo only albums (Yellow Submarine, Abbey Road and Let It Be). I've always preferred the original mono albums to the ping pong stereo of the early records. Unless they release on SACD I can't imagine better sounding digital versions.

I have the mono and think it is great as described above.

Does the stereo version of Rubber Soul (and some others) still contain the voices on one side and the instruments coming out of the other channel? I have always hated that - George Martin blew it on those original stereo mixes - did they fix it on these new stereo releases?

Mikelavigne,

Excellent points you made on Abbey Road.

I have the mono box but haven't started on that. Bought Abbey Road and Let It Be and started in reverse chronological order (I guess). I played "Let It Be" a couple of times in a row and enjoyed the improvement. There are some lovely songs there - "Across the Universe" was so inspired. And "Get Back" just powers along.

But when I put Abbey Road on it did not get off the CD player until about 6 spins. What a fantastic effort. Although slightly lifted, it is nothing like the modern loudness you see on contemporary CDs. Nothing to concern one's self.

The musical lines present themselves as separate entities if you focus on them, but become part of a beautiful whole when you back off the concentration and it just envelopes. The richness and tunefulness in the bass lines and the drumming are outstanding and are immediately noticed as a vast improvement. There just seems to be an accuracy in the presentation, a feeling of being much closer to what they intended us to hear - and I am left marveling at the sheer ability of the songwriting. The second half medly made more sense to me than I can recall. The whole thing is just so lovely, and so well structured - and this is what I hear.

Regards,

To Cam3366, these releases have been remastered. They have not been remixed which would be required to alter the stereo presentation.

Ok so far, I am surprised nobody asked the all important burning question - what is the sound quality like on the Beatles Rock Band edition? (That will likely be my first purchase! I've always wanted to play along with the Beatles...)

does anyone know where to get those mylar outer sleeves in the mono set .

BTW, they did an excellent job on the boxes for both the Mono and Stereo. The boxes are high quality and classy. If anyone is on the fence about buying the box, and you love this music - go for it!

Rubber Soul update - I received the stereo set today after listening to the mono for 2 days. The mono version of this album absolutely kills. As stated above, the stereo version has voices in only one channel for most songs which is annoying and just does not sound as good as the mono.

I'm sure it will be the same for many of the other early albums. I'm a completist so I wanted both sets however I will most likely never listen to the stereo version of anything pre Revolver if they are all channeled like Rubber Soul.

"I will most likely never listen to the stereo version of anything pre Revolver if they are all channeled like Rubber Soul".

Oddly, they're not. "Beatles For Sale " Stereo has the vocals channeled to the center. I had the same impression and ordered a Mono set from eBay. I might have held-off if I had known, but I'm really looking forward to hearing the Mono.

My boss (young guy) asked "are you sure it's not all geezers who long for the Victrola that are touting the monos?"...

I hope not!

I've just gotten three stereo re masters. Abbey Rd,White Album, and Peppers well, right off the bat the music is much more dynamic. All the bands voices and be heard when they harmonize. Paul's bass playing is unbelievable! Much richer and the music can be enjoyed at 90-95 dbs for the first time. I can't wait to get the mono versions.

Cbucki - Correct, it's just a few albums where the vocals are on one side only. Unfortunately, one of them is Rubber Soul. Another is With the Beatles. ANd most of the first album.

Lennon's vocals sound fantastic on these sets.

As much as I'm blown away by these cds. The Sgt.Peppers is the one I'm most impressed with the sonic improvement. Abbey Rd is better but not to the extent of Peppers! Just unbelievable. What blows my mind is that we as music/Beatles lovers had to put up with the old BS for the last 40 years! I mean what if we took all our music in existence and make it this enjoyable. It's just amazing what can be done with today's technology. Pepper's is recorded(the re master) better than most recordings today!

"Just unbelievable. What blows my mind is that we as music/Beatles lovers had to put up with the old BS for the last 40 years! I mean what if we took all our music in existence and make it this enjoyable."

Here, here!

The best way for me to sum up the quality of these remasters is that they are not just fantastic sounding for the time they are some of the most fantastic sounding pop Cds in my collection.

The natural warmth and glow of the vocals with the solid foundation of the bass and drums is just magic.

Favorite improvements:
Clarity of musical lines integrated as a whole.
Solidity and Pace and Rhythm of the bass lines.
Clear and articulate Drums...Ringo sounds good!

Anyone notice that the mono's are made in Japan :-) I haven't bought any of the stereo's are they US pressings or UK and are the singles a different manufacture from the stereo box set discs? In any case the monos are freaking amazing, just need to light some incense and twist one up....

In any case the monos are freaking amazing, just need to light some incense and twist one up....

Yes I posted on another thread - the Monos are the ones to go for unless you need audio compression to hear things clearly (if you are using an iPod or in a poor listening environment like a restaurant or bar then get the Stereos.)

Look at the plots on this article - compression is pretty obvious on the Stereo remasters despite what the article says - good news is that MONOS look great.

No matter what, they are never going to sound like the master tapes. The remasters sound great in both the mono and stereo versions. Stop relying on articles and let your ears decide!!

To my ears, compression was not intrusive on Abbey Road and
Let It Be. That's the only stereo versions I have. I prefer the Beatles in mono.

I just finished listening to all 6 last night. Wow! I think the greatest differences for me are on Sgt. Peppers and the White Album though all are noticably improved. Listen to Getting Better on the old and new version on Peppers and Blackbird or Julia on the White Album. The new masterings allow me to appreciate each individuals talent as it relates to the group better and the vocals have much more presence on the new mastering along with much better "wholeness" or density of the images.

Do the monos have the quicktime movies?

Synthfreek, the quicktime movies are not on the mono discs.

Ok, I ordered late and am now stewing and waiting. I am wondering how Rubber Soul sounds. This to me was just a wonderful album. How does the mono version sound?