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Re: [ARSCLIST] My response to--Re: [78-l] Viva vinyl
I bought the first reissue that Classic did, Also Sprach. It was so bright
that I didn't buy anything else without listening first, or on
recommendation from friends I trust.
As far as Japan is concerned, I'm speaking specifically of the time from the
mid '70s through the early '90s. It's pretty remarkable about the rise in
quality in Japanese goods from post WWII to the '70s. I know that issues of
Mercury stuff would be inferior to US pressings if done in the '60s. But
from what I've seen reported, the red wax mono Beatles records from the '60s
are very special. Anyway, if Piros' wax had been sent to JVC in its heyday,
it'd been the best of both worlds.
Phillip
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom Fine" <tflists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, June 09, 2006 8:56 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] My response to--Re: [78-l] Viva vinyl
Hi Phillip:
Well first of all, I'd say the phool is the one who does business twice
with outfits like you describe. Perhaps you should invest your cash in a
really good CD player ;) -- actually, I'm serious.
Also, about your statement regarding Japan. Do some research on the state
of the Japanese economy circa late 50's and early 60's. There was NO hifi
industry nor a market for stereo records nor audiophile pressings. You're
10 years too early. The Japanese miracle happened after the Mercury Living
Presence heyday.
I very much agree about our friend Stan's work. His Miles Davis reissue
box from Analogue Productions is something to behold.
-- Tom Fine
----- Original Message -----
From: "phillip holmes" <insuranceman@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, June 09, 2006 9:33 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] My response to--Re: [78-l] Viva vinyl
Well, you'd find out when you tried to return your $30 POS reissue that
customer service is very poor. The worst offender is Classic Records.
The sound is usually worse than the original (bright enough to strip
paint) and I've seen multiple pressing defects (warps, scratches,
bubbles, etc..). That's not to say that all the audiofool, oops, I mean
audiophile pressings are crap. Anything mastered by Stan Ricker or Steve
Hoffman will be as good or usually much better than the original. Steve
has a museum like collection of tape decks and other equipment to get the
right sound on every reissue. If it was recorded on Ampex, it's played
back on Ampex. If it was recorded with tube or transistor, he can
duplicate that on playback too. His mastering is like a period recreation
on steroids. After the mastering engineer, it's a crapshoot as to
whether or not you'll get a good pressing. The guys out in Nashville (is
that right?) do a great job pressing good flat centered vinyl. For all
the bologna, RTI is iffy sometimes. I did have very good results from
the 220 gram reissues from Mobile Fidelity. I can't remember any that
were off center, warped or bad vinyl. Now, the very best pressings ever
done were JVC. Those were the guys who pressed the first Mobile Fidelity
productions, and did many great jazz reissues from the '80s. Perfect
pressings in my opinion. Flat, durable, translucent virgin vinyl. They
were 140 or 160 grams, but are the best I've ever seen. Some other
Japanese plants were nearly as good. Trio/Kenwood were killer. Sony was
so much better than the Columbia pressings as to be preposterous. It's a
shame that Robert and Wilma Fine didn't have all their stuff issued in
Japan as well (although Piros was probably better than his Japanese
counterpart). OH, I shouldn't forget guys like Nimbus in England.
Phillip
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom Fine" <tflists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, June 09, 2006 6:17 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] My response to--Re: [78-l] Viva vinyl
Guys, are you talking about old/out of print off-center records or new
purchases? I'd damn well demand a refund for that $30 "audiophile virgin
200g pressing" if it were off-center! As for old records, better to not
obsess and look for another copy in the stacks. Most reputable plants
back in the day pressed most records OK. Some smaller labels had
constant quality issues, but then I'd call most of those records a lost
cause anyway due to one or more of the following: