I Leveraged My MoFis to Improve My Record Collection
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- Опубликовано: 5 окт 2024
- Wow so do I look like I'm tripping balls in that thumbnail or what? Might as well be...this is my longest non-interview episode ever!
I talk here about getting out of owning most of my MoFi LPs just in the nick of time and using the proceeds to improve my collection with OG and early pressings.
I also do some sleuthing on Discogs and Masterdisk's workflow in the 80s.
Plus, at the end, a channel update.
Records I'm still selling:
www.discogs.co...
I did a video on the "audiophile releases" and got a lot of hate, but it was probably just my personality. Glad to see someone else calling this silliness out. Even the name "Aja". lol I got a couple MFSL's from the late 70's years ago (one was "Abbey Road") and a cd (The Wall) from the 90's. I was not impressed with the sound at all and never bought more. I just used my ears as my guide. "The Wall" just sounds like cranked up bass. Really nitpicky, but I'm into visuals and I never liked those generic looking MFSL white labels. I really appreciate this video.
I second the label, I hate the ugly blank MFSL white label. At least DCC had some great visuals going on.
Happy Friday! I still enjoy my MoFi records but you can never go wrong with originals. This MoFi fiasco I think has renewed the desire to have the original, know for sure it's analog and move on. I commend you for selling your records at a profit without gouging other collectors.
I'm in a similar situation of not having a record store in my hometown so I am at the mercy of Discogs sellers as well. It's definitely a mixed bag and you called them names that I might not say but definitely agree with. Lol.
It's tough to come up with new ideas for making videos sometimes. I get it. Hopefully, we will see you sooner than the vinyl tag. Enjoy your new (old) records. Take care.
Thanks for stopping by, Melinda! Discogs is a seller's market, no doubt about it. That probably would have been a more diplomatic way of putting it than how I actually put it in the video! I tried keeping the cussing in check for awhile, but I felt like I wasn't really being myself. Fortunately I don't need that crutch when it comes to the written word.
Re: MoFi, to each their own. They generally sound great and I don't begrudge anyone that likes them and wants them. I feel fortunate that I was able to leverage them to get versions I prefer. In a way, the MoFi fiasco is the best thing that could have happened: it made me realize that there are other versions I prefer and I might not have investigated that possibility had all this not happened.
I rejoined the VC back in Dec 22 after a 20+ year hiatus! I did what you did and started mass clearing what I felt I was not going to play much and we have three kids so whatever they can hear too lol! First move was to sell a sealed Ritual De Lo Habitual for $270 that I bought in 1991 and never opened...that kicked off my Discogs account. I have sold and upgraded multiple pressings that I knew I wanted to keep spinning...I will most likely continue doing this.
I play tested the UHQR (45) vs Mofi Kind of Blue and it was not even close! I enjoy an all analogue like The Cars Heartbeat City from MoFi but will most likely upgrade their Rock and Soul Pt 1 Hall and Oates for an OG.
I just found your channel thanks to Robert Fithen. Thank you for the great content!
Thanks for the video! I'm going through a purge of records myself and thought about throwing in some MOFI. Not because I don't like them but because I might still be able to get some other records I'm after. Hope to see you on from time to time. I've always appreciated your enthusiasm! Thanks for the heads up on those Kevin Gray cut Clash records! I'll look for that Coltrane too!
Thank you for this. It makes me feel better that I never got the R.E.M. mofis which then skyrocketed on the used market. The originals are indeed better (as they are in most cases) and for the IRS era in particular no other versions come close. I too think the LRP and Document releases were likely digital and the older releases of Murmur and Reckoning while analog suffered from heavily bloated bass.
I’ve never seen a double RL Pageant. The earliest ones all seem to be a single sided RL. It took me years to find one to replace my double Masterdisk. The only other iteration I’ve seen is a single sided Masterdisk stamp. All of them sound essentially the same.
For these sometimes Ludwig signed his cuts and other times he didn’t. I don’t know why this is or why some albums have different matrix variants with and without the signature like Synchronicity. The only way to really guess is to look at the credits if Ludwig is shown to be the engineer. (As on Duran Duran’s Notorious) Otherwise it would have to be going through old Masterdisk paper records and following rumors. It is now thought that Ludwig cut the US DMM original pressing of The Joshua Tree. (Which would make sense as it’s the best sounding version I’ve ever heard in spite of being a single LP)
Shame the Grundman Nevermind is disappearing. It’s been the biggest deal in vinyl since the Pallas reissue appeared. I’ve recommended or bought copies of it and the Unplugged reissue for people so many times.
You were probably smart to sell your Mofi's when you did. I am sure they'll bounce back over time. In my opinion it all boils down to our own personal sonic preferences and honestly, I think Bob Ludwig is a far better mastering engineer so I am not surprised by the results. I hear you on the interviews. I had a project profiling minority record collectors but it's falling through because no one has committed even though they verbally said yes. Having done the VC thing for several years now, my personal take is that I'll do a video when I feel inspired...and when work doesn't get in the way. I hope you keep it going but just do it when you feel inspired. I got to a point early on when I felt compelled to make something but the quality suffered and I hated doing record 'drive by's.'
On the cleaning points, yes, the pressing itself does play into it. If you have a defect in the pressing, there is no fix for it. Outside of that, I have found one of the biggest thing is avoiding friction and allowing an LP to air dry after being rinsed. Vinyl is a natural attractor of electrical charge and friction will just deposit and electric charge on the surface. That's the last part of my cleaning voodoo. Everyone seems to have their own process.
Bob Ludwig is very highly regarded, yet I think he might still be underrated. The guy just made great-sounding records, day in, day out, for decades. I'll take his cuts over someone cutting, recutting, and overthinking it (which is what it seems like the MoFi team does) any day.
Regarding cleaning, I have to admit, I'm pretty disillusioned with it. Based on my experiences, cleaning helps with surface noise on maybe 1 in 10 or 1 in 20 records. Yes, it does get the music sounding better (it "lifts the veil"), but, for the vast majority of noisy records, the noise doesn't go away no matter how many cycles you run in through with the Kirmuss. I wanted to believe that surface noise is mainly a cleaning issue. I now believe that it only very rarely is. I've thought about making a video about this, but it's such a contentious topic and I really don't feel like fielding a bunch of tedious responses. Cleaning makes non-noisy records sound better. It (usually) doesn't make noisy records less noisy, at least in my experience. The former gets a lot of emphasis, the latter is rarely talked about.
Quite late to the party on this one, but new to your channel and combing the archives. Something you said in the midst of this really resonates with me - the phenomenon of a highly respected album that is critically acclaimed, worshipped in the vinyl community, that you buy because you feel it may be essential to your collection.... but you don't enjoy actually listening to it. In the 3 years I've been back in the vinyl collecting mode I have to fight off that condition; I have to ask myself how many times am I really going to listen to that Original Master album? By its very nature of being selected for special high quality, pain in the ass 45 RPM get up every 3 songs to flip sides, it is an album that is a proven entity. Your video has opened my eyes and ears to really questioning what I choose to buy and what I am ready to sell-off since it will never find its way on to my turntable.
Damn, thanks! I had to rewatch this because I couldn't remember what I said. I think you're referring to the MoFi Bitches Brew that I sold for stupid amounts of money but decided not to replace because there's other stuff I'd listen to more. That's definitely something I got out of that whole process, understanding what I value and what I want to have in my collection. If anything, I've gotten pickier about what is and is not worth having. One think I'll note is that all those MoFi's have since been re-pressed...I was so fortunate to have sold them when I did, because they're all available at retail price now (or at least have been over the last few months).
I really liked your theory/process flow around Masterdisk & Ludwig! Your Mofi “bet” is interesting, we will see what happens after the dust settles but you have me seriously thinking about selling several Dylans and replacing with the KG’s. I’m glad I don’t have any of the R.E.M. MoFi’s- I just checked and they are still conspicuously absent from the website. I have all of the R.E.M. (and Rush) Originals and cherish them! I actually thought of you today when I shot my Denver Record Show video - found a pristine ‘80 Underwater Moonlight, in shrink, never played….fucking glorious! Yep, I name checked your comparison video RE the crappy YepRock. Honestly Ian, this video is one of the best I’ve seen this year, preach preach preach the Originals……I’m with you man. I recently found an original Warehouse, Songs & Stories Du LP and it blows that RSD yellow/green reissue out of the water. Hang in there and enjoy the music!
Damn, thanks Tim! I feel like when I let myself be myself (i.e. let the cuss words fly), the point gets across better.
It would be neat to talk to someone like Ludwig to see whether there's any truth in my theorizing. It would help explain why original pressings sound best. I think band involvement (approving/rejecting test pressings) and higher level of expertise across the board in the old days are also important components.
Good for you on scoring an original Underwater Moonlight! One "good" thing about having had a lousy version of it is that the original sounds so incredible in comparison. The guitars especially are so vibrant and alive.
There's a guy who likes to pop in whenever I say how much I like the KG Dylans and say that they actually aren't very good. I think he's full of shit, but thought I'd pass along that there are other opinions out there.
Original Warehouse is DMM and I think it serves the music well. I have the same reissue but I'm selling it and am on the lookout for an original of that and also Candy Apple Grey.
Great job Ian. I’m doing the same thing with my Mofi’s at the moment. Hope you stick around on RUclips!
Just found your channel and it seems you're shutting it down. I'm from NE Iowa myself, Clayton Co. Hope to see more videos from you.
Solid process and sound advice for record collecting. Good luck to you. Hope you return.
Thank you!
Very interesting video. Really cool idea to sell the MoFi copies and replace them with an original. In my experience as well, original pressings are far superior to any audiophile version you can find, so long as the condition is decent. Usually because people you’re getting the album as the artist intended it to be heard.
Great video. Keep speaking the truth!! The hard part is actually finding the originals. But it’s worth it in the long run.
Thanks for the video. What I find sad, is that so many reviewers championed the superior sound of MoFi. Sure, it was pushed by the Mobile Fidelity folks, but shady business practices to make more money is not new.
But that so many reviewers said how awesome they sounded, that is almost more concerning to me.
And now, those same reviewers are saying how those very same records are not good now.
I certainly was under the spell of their reputation for a long time. My whole life, really. Part of it is because their releases do generally sound great...in a vacuum. I just had never thought to compare to originals or early pressings. I personally don't think MoFi releases sound bad. I just don't think they generally sound better than originals, don't think they're worth the premium price and I regret just assuming that they were. I do agree that it's pretty lame for the same reviewer to have advocated for them and now claim that they don't sound good.
The GBV beanie is back!!! I have a devil's advocate question Ian & I hope you take this the right way. Were you happy with the sound of your Mofi's before you became aware of the digital step in their process? I think what they did as far as transparency goes was a shit thing to do and therefore they had no right charging the prices they do. I won't buy anymore of their records, but I think the one's I have still sound decent to me and in lieu of not being able to find originals they'll do. Also I don't want to get into the whole thing of rebuying records I already own that sound good to me. Maybe it's easier to find a lot of these "F#@%in" OG records in the States than here too. It would have to be my absolute favourite records to want to go through that process.
I have the Dylan Mono box set & the Bowie box sets and they sound fantastic to me. Anyway interesting vid and a lot of food for thought. Cheers...Ben
Nothing I do or say should be construed as "I think you should do this." This is what I've decided to do and, frustrations with knobular Discogs sellers notwithstanding, I'm very glad I did it. If I were in Melbourne, it'd presumably be a different story, but with the amount of money I was able to get for some of these, it might still be worth it for those.
My attitude is definitely not "actually, these MoFi are bad." They do sound pretty great! They're just not better than originals or, in the case of the Dylans, not better than the Kevin Gray cuts... they're about the same but I prefer 33 over double 45s.
I think there's absolutely nothing wrong with just keeping the MoFis and nothing wrong with seeing them as great-sounding versions of these albums. They are. They're just not as great as their reputation and I regret not having questioned that. But, I'm glad I could still get sh*t tons of dough for them so I could afford originals (or other early pressings) and still have money left over.
@@brokewithaudiophiletaste6076 Knobular! 😂I thought about it, but for me when you add in the international postage to find a lot of this stuff I don't think it would be worth it for me. Although you've got me thinking a lot more about how easily some OG's I might be able to find once I start travelling O/S again next year.
On another note. I know that you're leaving/reducing your YT presence, but if you're going out for good this vid was a ripper. I've enjoyed all your vid's in the past because you have always come up with an interesting angle. You're like the VC philosopher. I watch these sort of vid's above anything else out there. You speak eloquently to get across the fun & frustration of this whole record collecting/music thing. I will miss your vid's, especially the ones when you get angry & swear a lot. I for one think your stuff stands alone and probably makes me think too much about this stuff 😂Anyway all the best & don't be a stranger....you know my contact details 👍
This is a very interesting 38 minute video. Nice to see you made some sales to reinvest. Every time I part with a record, I regret it. My OG Canadian Hemispheres sounds great. I love that RL Moving Pictures too. I guess I benefitted from not investing in MOFI to begin with. I still have all of my original Eno records. You certainly did a lot of deals. I find your channel to be very informative and entertaining, but I see how interest and could wane over time. It may happen to me at some point too. 🙂
I meant to mention you in conjunction with the Ludwig Moving Pictures! I hadn't been aware of the fact that he originally cut it and you hipped me to that. It's what made me reconsider the reissues that I had, so thank you! Signals was the first album we had in our household as a kid, so I never heard the originals. The reissues were accessible when I got back into vinyl in 2017, so I just got them and didn't question it too much. So glad I have all those originals now and it's been a joy rediscovering those albums. Fly by Night is all I'm missing and that's a pricey one...I assume because it's before they got big so there just isn't as many out there.
Anyway thanks for the kind words! Regardless of how many videos I make moving forward I'll still be watching your stuff and popping in on the comments from time to time.
Thanks Ian. You’ve obviously got a lot of insights and your interviews were always informative. Maybe your enthusiasm will return at some point. Cheers.
Thanks Mark, I appreciate you saying that and you watching!
Interesting stuff mate. I bought all those REM’s as they came out, & always thought they sounded good. Actually the one time I have considered buying the vinyl remaster is ‘Isn’t anything’ I have the original from 88..It was a cheaply recorded album anyway..but I always felt the pressing was average at best..& by 88 record companies didn’t want you buying vinyl at £7.99 when they could sell a CD at £15.99..so the actual vinyl quality from 88 onwards was often poor imo.Are you saying ‘Isn’t Anything’ remaster is worse than the original?
Hi Harris! I had a 90s pressing of Isn't Anything in my previous collection when I was in my teens and 20s. But the version I recently sold was a bonus version from when they first put out the analog cuts in 2018. They had it cut by two different engineers. They went with one cut for the official release, but they pressed a certain number of the other cut and included it as a bonus disc for the first few thousand orders. I had bought that bonus disc off someone a few years ago, then recently sold it now that I've got a copy of the official release.
So, to compare the recent remaster with the original, the best I can do is rely on my memory of that 90s pressing I had a couple decades ago. My impression when I got the new one was that it wasn't much different or a massive improvement. Sometimes, for me, hearing something in analog after being used to digital is revelatory. Not so with Isn't Anything, for me at least. Then again, I hadn't heard the album in forever at that point, so I'm not the most reliable source on this I'm afraid.
@@brokewithaudiophiletaste6076 no that's cool! Is probably the only album I would consider for an upgrade. Those 2021 remastered are still available quite reasonably priced, I might go for it! This is irony you've sold your mo-fis...I've turned audiophile!
It’s REM ….of course it sounds great
I have that MBV digital copy because I wasn't sure I would be able to get an analog copy. Ended up getting both, but not sure I want to let go of the digital. I have the original US Ludwig of Moving Pictures as well, bought it when it came out, I was 12. Rush is awesome. Great vid!
Thanks man! Yeah, the Ludwig cut of Moving Pictures sounds incredible. The reverb on Peart's drums makes it sound like they're in a huge room, yet they sound so punchy at the same time. I also got the digital Loveless as a failsafe, but I got an analog cut from Germany not long thereafter, so I personally no longer have interest in the digital. Trimming as much fat as I can from the collection for now.
I believe Rush moving pictures by RL the original recording is digital.
Congratulations for the prices for the mofi stuff.
IMO most of the OG's sound better or just as good. Most of the time the Mofi's just sound different. The prices for these things when you buy them new are way too high.
Wie spricht man den Titel von Steely Dan's Aja im deutschsprachigen Raum aus?
@@brokewithaudiophiletaste6076 "eyja"
@@theheepster Eben! So finde ich's richtig!
@@brokewithaudiophiletaste6076 Genau ! Gruß aus Hannover, Deutschland
Great video, Ian! I could listen to you talk about this for 38 more minutes!!! Bring on those dickheads from Discogs! 😂 Didn't know you were a Rush fan?!- Me too! ( Got to see them twice in the early' 90s). The sweet spot for me is Farewell to Kings '77 through Power Windows '85. Always thought about selling on Discogs, but there is so much rigamarole both ways , I just stick to buying and constantly honing my skills to not get duped by someone. Every once in a while it happens. Good advice about those " neutral" ratings ; because they don't effect a seller's GPA . So a person with 100% can have half their ratings be neutral!
I had that Miles Davis KOB UHQR I wanted to get rid of and I just ended up taking it down to my local. Sure, I didn't get as much for it , but they took it off my hands right away w/o back and forth and photo requests and also, there was some non- fill between the first and second track that I would've felt the need to be transparent about and give a discount for.
I saw Rush only once. Counterparts tour, must've been 1994, Primus opened. The sweet spot for me is one album earlier on both ends: 2112 through Grace Under Pressure.
Discogs is a seller's market. Great for sellers, difficult for buyers wanting transparency. And there's not enough incentives against bad actors. If I lived in a bigger city with good record stores, I would use it way less.
I appreciate you chiming in from time to time with your thoughts! I enjoy connecting with people on here...to the degree that is possible via the internet.
@@brokewithaudiophiletaste6076One of my more recent Discogs adventures was buying a 3 x CD , one of those chunky two jewel cases put together contraptions. It had been on my wantlist and always available for around $30 - $40 . Then I get alerted someone puts a copy for $10 Media: NM / Booklet: VG+ condition. Seller has a 100% . I think wow! Great . Snag it. Few days later upon getting it , the CDs look great, but I realize there is no 16 pp booklet in the case that it's supposed to have.
So I reach out and say "hey this is missing and you graded it specifically... so where is it?"
They said " Oh, by "booklet" I meant the J card. There is no actual booklet" . And I was like Why didn't you just say
" J card" ! A booklet is a booklet! WTF!!!
Then they had the audacity to admit that they had 500 CDs for sale all listed with the same wording! So they weren't about to go through the effort to change them all. AND she had the cheapest price in the world... So basically I need to deal with it being incomplete! A deal does not exonerate mis- information. Ridiculous!
@@rainbowheart2728 yeah and there's basically no recourse, pretty much a wild west.
I've been contemplating doing the same as I have a few Bob Dylan 45 rpm MoFi that I love to listen to because they sound awesome, but I don't listen to them all that much because of having to flip the record more frequently. And there are some collectable releases in anime I'd love to own but can't afford. I'm very slow at decision making on these matters. I agree prices will come back because regardless of sourcing, the MoFis sound brilliant (most of them) and that will be the reason to own them.
Some sellers can be complete assholes, I ordered an OG Frank Zappa pressing from a vendor who sent me a repress on the Reprise label rather than the OG on Discreet. After we settled via email, he blocked me from ever buying from him again, which was too bad because I had bought from him before and everything was accurate and smooth, and I was willing to buy from him again.
I was excited about 45 rpm cuts when I first got back into vinyl 5-6 years ago because of my experience with increased fidelity recording on cassette at higher speeds. But, yeah, I find that I just don't reach for them. Sourcing and mastering expertise are more important factors in the sound than rpms imo, so I'd rather have something well done at 33 that I'll actually listen to than something at 45 that I'll almost never spin.
Discogs is a seller's market, no doubt about it.