Excellent video. thank you for the deep dive. Some great choices and finds. I want to provide you and your subscribers with some information on the "two mythical" special pressings of Sgt Pepper that you mentioned. 1) The UK Nimbus Super Cut, the "Nimbus Pepper", issued in 1982 as a mail order only promotion to Practical Hi-Fi and Hi-Fi Today magazine readers. Approx.2000 were pressed. 2) the Australian EMI, "Audiophile Pepper", issued in 1983 and available for sale to ticket holders at the 1983 Sydney Audio show. Approx. 500 were pressed. As you mentioned the prices are extremely high given the importance of the album and the rarity. In December 2023, a copy of the Nimbus Pepper sold on Ebay for £5500. I am lucky enough to own a Nimbus Pepper that I ordered direct from the UK magazine in 1982. The sound quality is incredible but part of that is because the vinyl in NM and only ever played on properly set up turntables. Close behind in the SQ stakes to my ears and on my setup are the Pepper UK 1967 original in Mono and the Pepper UK 1976 repress in Stereo.
Hey neighbor, great job as always👍. I always admire your German. Yes, the two Hör Zu editions are really great. As far as Hör Zu is concerned, it was and is a weekly TV magazine that offered these editions at a special price for subscribers to the magazine, but also sold them at the normal price in regular stores. The story about the girls' records is a widespread myth. There are still some good-sounding Hör Zu records. Greetings from Lower-Saxony🇩🇪
Thanks, VERY nice video, you are so full of enthusiasm for the Beatles! - I have the two German pressings from the 70s, as I was around already and in Germany, too! When I collected the Beatles then I happened to get an Italian stereo pressing of A Hard Day‘s Night. Believe it or not, it‘s one of the best sounding Beatles LPs I have. Every now and then I check it because I can’t believe it by myself - but every time I have to say: Yes, great, fantastic. The soundstage is wide, the sound itself clean and warm and very balanced. Not even the 2014 mono LP sounds as good and warm as this one. - Greetings from Berlin, Harry
Very good TOP, I know some of those and I agree with you, especially Please Please Me by Horzu. My sonic favorite is a 1973 Argentine reissue of the White Album that sounds as good as that German Magical Mistery Tour. It has the same warmth, the same punch, that width, those deep bass tones and the presence of the drums... each sound seems to have a different texture, it's mind-blowing.
Love the list! I do have a German pressing of the Magical Mystery Tour but my copy has the Apple logo in the upper left corner. The Matrix Number for Side 1 ends in A-1/ Side 2 B-3. Thanks again! J
@@rjaraneta913 Same here. Congrats! I would say it’s in very good condition. Funny thing is, I haven’t played it yet. I bought it about 8 years ago at Reckless Records in Chicago. I worked about four blocks away. Apologies…sort of went off on a tangent.
Love you vids, this one is one of your greatest. My friend has become a somewhat German pressing Magical Mystery Tour expert. He has compared many different versions and realized the German pressing with Apple Label is actually the best sounding. I am also lucky enough to have this version, and it’s simply an astounding Beatles sound 🤯
Great video , I picked up a mono rubber soul just this week a unusual pressing being -1 side 1 then -4 on side 2 , sounds great I think this was between the stages of-1 being replaced with -4
Ok my choices for your Top 5/10. 1981 German DMM on White Vinyl Stereo, 2014 Mono reissue, and 1987 first CD, fat boy, flat transfer Stereo. The one I do not have that is supposed to be special is the BC13 blue box, Dutch pressing, Stereo. I look forward to your list. I have 6 of the albums on your Top 10 including 2 versions of the Horzu MMT. Thanks
Yes, I can absolutely vouch for the 70s stereo pressings of For Sale and Rubber Soul. They are stunning, especially For Sale (which is mixed so much better). You know what? I am going to play them now, haha. I may not be a little girl, but I need those Horzu pressings!
My favorite Beatles album, sound-wise, is the German mono Direct Metal Master of the white album. To me, it is like hearing the album for the first time all over again. I have not heard these, except the Beatles for Sale you list, but will search them out.
I'm a Dutch-American living in Groningen, and I wanna be you when I "grow up" lol. my collection is much more modest than yours, but I still have some absolute gems. Thanks for the videos!
@@top5records796 I'm probably a very similar age haha that's why i put "grow up" in quotes. I am 25 :) born at the end of 1998. My collection is about 200 LP's and maybe 150 singles. Your shelves look much more extensive!
Sorry, next comment as I go along, re PPM. Firstly, the HörZu version appeared in mono and stereo in 1964 as a first release of the PPM album in Germany. It was remastered in stereo from the original tapes in 1972, which is the version you're talking about. It was reissued then with the conventional PPM sleeve but still the same matrices, albeit a generation or two down on stampers. So the one you're showing (with the original sleeve but the new HörZu logo that looks like a crossover of a turntable and a television screen) is the best pressing you can get. And one thing more on HörZu: HörZu was one of the most popular weekly print media in post-war West Germany which featured radio and later TV programmes. Leading German abels such as Columbia and Electrola (by EMI) or Decca released some of their records via HörZu (which gave them wide publicity) and even paid a price for it. HörZu records were licenced from the big record companies and available in any record shop at standard (not cheaper!) prices. HörZu were eclusive retailers for PPM. Revolver, SPLHCB of the Beatles, Ringo's Beaucoups of Blues and George's Wonderwall, Monkees' Pisces etc., several Elvis and Rolling Stones albums and many more until that branch of their business folded in the seventies.
Sorry again, third and last comment: I believe you missed one stellar pressing (apart from the Australian or the Nimbus pressings of SPLHCB, which most of us will never have a chance of evaluating). That's, alas, another German pressing, and it's a pilot pressing of the White Album within a concept EMI was testing at the time. EMI's sister in Cologne had the better pressing machines at te time, but they also had contacts to Teldec's (in Hamburg) new DMM (direct mastering) facilities. As a result, EMI Germany (Electrola) did a lot of mostly undeclared DMM pressings of Beatles and other artists in the course of time (the DMM process was protected by patent), but some official. ones in cooperation with Teldec were made. the WA being one. It's on white vinyl , look it up on discogs, it's labelled DMM and it's so incredibly detailed and, I should say, spacious, that I could for the first time love a track that I had been found boring: Long Long Long. What a masterpiece of dynamics and of space and nuance on this cut.
Dear Top 5, How come you did not have any copies/versions of The Beatles (The White Album) in your shootout. Some pretty special sounding versions of the White Album for those who are up for some crate digging or paying top $$$ on Discogs. Thoughts?
Thank you for your question! I love The White Album! I have about 10 different copies in my collection and it is just one of my favorite all time albums. Thing is though; sonically it wasn’t that well recorded like some other Beatles albums are so I didn’t find a copy that could match soundwise with this top 10. I would love to however make a top 5 with best sounding white albums in the future!
The 70s reissue of RS? It's a two-box label but the sound is determined by the matrices. Could you give the details of the stampers in the dead wax? Much obliged!
Revolver is my favorite album and I agree that sound wise it's not great, It lacks highs more than any other Beatles album (maybe with the exception of the white album) It must be a result of experimentation, bouncing down tapes to make room for more tracks I have 4 pressings, the best sounding I have is the mono from the 2022 revolver box set, but still has problems. Any other recommendations?
I agree! I love Revolver! and 2022 pressing is amazing, I just slightly prefer the original (I was lucky enough to find a NM one some weeks ago). And although it is stunning to hear that record in a good pressing it is not the sonic treat Magical Mystery Tour is.
I have an old pressing of white album ,maybe the 80s , other than that I have none and want a complete album collection but don’t want to spend a shit ton
It is! Let It Be is not bad! But I think there are other versions which are better. What would you like to spend for a single album? And where do you live? Perhaps I can give you some advice on which pressings to find.
Mono mix of abbey road is from communist czechoslovakia -SUPRAPHON label released in 1972 with picture and text book-in stereo released in 1972 and 1978
Hi brother. If you love the first press UK let it be you WILL LOVE the 1976 3U 4U pressing. I have the original UK red apple box set (the bloody packaging and book are terrible ha ha) and the 1976 3U 4U definitely has more detail and clarity 100%
It doesn't matter if the mono is played over two speakers or a pair of headphones...it's a matter of those being dedicated mixes that are different. You may prefer the mono mix over the stereo mix of a given song or not, but the system its being played on is unrelated, though some will argue for playing mono over a single speaker.
Excellent video. thank you for the deep dive. Some great choices and finds. I want to provide you and your subscribers with some information on the "two mythical" special pressings of Sgt Pepper that you mentioned. 1) The UK Nimbus Super Cut, the "Nimbus Pepper", issued in 1982 as a mail order only promotion to Practical Hi-Fi and Hi-Fi Today magazine readers. Approx.2000 were pressed. 2) the Australian EMI, "Audiophile Pepper", issued in 1983 and available for sale to ticket holders at the 1983 Sydney Audio show. Approx. 500 were pressed. As you mentioned the prices are extremely high given the importance of the album and the rarity. In December 2023, a copy of the Nimbus Pepper sold on Ebay for £5500. I am lucky enough to own a Nimbus Pepper that I ordered direct from the UK magazine in 1982. The sound quality is incredible but part of that is because the vinyl in NM and only ever played on properly set up turntables. Close behind in the SQ stakes to my ears and on my setup are the Pepper UK 1967 original in Mono and the Pepper UK 1976 repress in Stereo.
Loved reading this! Thanks!
Hey neighbor, great job as always👍. I always admire your German. Yes, the two Hör Zu editions are really great. As far as Hör Zu is concerned, it was and is a weekly TV magazine that offered these editions at a special price for subscribers to the magazine, but also sold them at the normal price in regular stores. The story about the girls' records is a widespread myth. There are still some good-sounding Hör Zu records. Greetings from Lower-Saxony🇩🇪
Great profile pic dude. Uriah heep are awesome
Shouldn’t this video be in two parts per the name of this channel?😂❤
Thanks, VERY nice video, you are so full of enthusiasm for the Beatles! - I have the two German pressings from the 70s, as I was around already and in Germany, too! When I collected the Beatles then I happened to get an Italian stereo pressing of A Hard Day‘s Night. Believe it or not, it‘s one of the best sounding Beatles LPs I have. Every now and then I check it because I can’t believe it by myself - but every time I have to say: Yes, great, fantastic. The soundstage is wide, the sound itself clean and warm and very balanced. Not even the 2014 mono LP sounds as good and warm as this one. - Greetings from Berlin, Harry
Very good TOP, I know some of those and I agree with you, especially Please Please Me by Horzu. My sonic favorite is a 1973 Argentine reissue of the White Album that sounds as good as that German Magical Mistery Tour. It has the same warmth, the same punch, that width, those deep bass tones and the presence of the drums... each sound seems to have a different texture, it's mind-blowing.
Love the list! I do have a German pressing of the Magical Mystery Tour but my copy has the Apple logo in the upper left corner. The Matrix Number for Side 1 ends in A-1/ Side 2 B-3. Thanks again! J
Yours is the same as the 2nd Horzu pressing. Has the same great sound. The 1st Horzu pressing has the fake stereo tracks.
@@rjaraneta913 Excellent. Thank you for the information. I’m going to listen to this tonight along with my German DMM White Album. Happy days!
@@williampowell6067 Enjoy! I have the German DMM White Album on white vinyl, it sounds magnificent!
@@rjaraneta913 Same here. Congrats! I would say it’s in very good condition. Funny thing is, I haven’t played it yet. I bought it about 8 years ago at Reckless Records in Chicago. I worked about four blocks away. Apologies…sort of went off on a tangent.
Love you vids, this one is one of your greatest. My friend has become a somewhat German pressing Magical Mystery Tour expert. He has compared many different versions and realized the German pressing with Apple Label is actually the best sounding. I am also lucky enough to have this version, and it’s simply an astounding Beatles sound 🤯
The German pressing with the Apple Label is from the same Metal Plates as the Hör Zu Version, only pressed later.
Great video , I picked up a mono rubber soul just this week a unusual pressing being -1 side 1 then -4 on side 2 , sounds great I think this was between the stages of-1 being replaced with -4
I have a french 1979 pressing of the White Album on white vinyl, and that's my preferred copy. Sounds incredible.
Ok my choices for your Top 5/10. 1981 German DMM on White Vinyl Stereo, 2014 Mono reissue, and 1987 first CD, fat boy, flat transfer Stereo. The one I do not have that is supposed to be special is the BC13 blue box, Dutch pressing, Stereo. I look forward to your list. I have 6 of the albums on your Top 10 including 2 versions of the Horzu MMT. Thanks
Great channel..Keep it up...
Yes, I can absolutely vouch for the 70s stereo pressings of For Sale and Rubber Soul. They are stunning, especially For Sale (which is mixed so much better). You know what? I am going to play them now, haha.
I may not be a little girl, but I need those Horzu pressings!
A very informative video 👌🏻👏🏻
My favorite Beatles album, sound-wise, is the German mono Direct Metal Master of the white album. To me, it is like hearing the album for the first time all over again. I have not heard these, except the Beatles for Sale you list, but will search them out.
I'm a Dutch-American living in Groningen, and I wanna be you when I "grow up" lol. my collection is much more modest than yours, but I still have some absolute gems. Thanks for the videos!
Oh wow thank you! How old are you if I may ask?
@@top5records796 I'm probably a very similar age haha that's why i put "grow up" in quotes. I am 25 :) born at the end of 1998. My collection is about 200 LP's and maybe 150 singles. Your shelves look much more extensive!
I had that German MMT and the import SPLHCB from U.K. A red apple Let it Be. And a WTB from 1963, and a paste over YAT. Forty years ago.
German DMM White Album is a killer.
YES!
Sorry, next comment as I go along, re PPM. Firstly, the HörZu version appeared in mono and stereo in 1964 as a first release of the PPM album in Germany. It was remastered in stereo from the original tapes in 1972, which is the version you're talking about. It was reissued then with the conventional PPM sleeve but still the same matrices, albeit a generation or two down on stampers. So the one you're showing (with the original sleeve but the new HörZu logo that looks like a crossover of a turntable and a television screen) is the best pressing you can get. And one thing more on HörZu: HörZu was one of the most popular weekly print media in post-war West Germany which featured radio and later TV programmes. Leading German abels such as Columbia and Electrola (by EMI) or Decca released some of their records via HörZu (which gave them wide publicity) and even paid a price for it. HörZu records were licenced from the big record companies and available in any record shop at standard (not cheaper!) prices. HörZu were eclusive retailers for PPM. Revolver, SPLHCB of the Beatles, Ringo's Beaucoups of Blues and George's Wonderwall, Monkees' Pisces etc., several Elvis and Rolling Stones albums and many more until that branch of their business folded in the seventies.
yes, the A-1 B-3 is the best, I think, MMT.
Did you notice how strong the groove definition is?
Sorry again, third and last comment: I believe you missed one stellar pressing (apart from the Australian or the Nimbus pressings of SPLHCB, which most of us will never have a chance of evaluating). That's, alas, another German pressing, and it's a pilot pressing of the White Album within a concept EMI was testing at the time. EMI's sister in Cologne had the better pressing machines at te time, but they also had contacts to Teldec's (in Hamburg) new DMM (direct mastering) facilities. As a result, EMI Germany (Electrola) did a lot of mostly undeclared DMM pressings of Beatles and other artists in the course of time (the DMM process was protected by patent), but some official. ones in cooperation with Teldec were made. the WA being one. It's on white vinyl , look it up on discogs, it's labelled DMM and it's so incredibly detailed and, I should say, spacious, that I could for the first time love a track that I had been found boring: Long Long Long. What a masterpiece of dynamics and of space and nuance on this cut.
Is that stereo 70’s rubber soul the Harry T Moss cut?
Dear Top 5, How come you did not have any copies/versions of The Beatles (The White Album) in your shootout. Some pretty special sounding versions of the White Album for those who are up for some crate digging or paying top $$$ on Discogs. Thoughts?
Thank you for your question! I love The White Album! I have about 10 different copies in my collection and it is just one of my favorite all time albums. Thing is though; sonically it wasn’t that well recorded like some other Beatles albums are so I didn’t find a copy that could match soundwise with this top 10. I would love to however make a top 5 with best sounding white albums in the future!
Yeah, the UK Hey Jude pressing is unbelievably perfect. All those early UK cuts for the single’s tracks. Will never part with my copy
The 70s reissue of RS? It's a two-box label but the sound is determined by the matrices. Could you give the details of the stampers in the dead wax? Much obliged!
Revolver is my favorite album and I agree that sound wise it's not great, It lacks highs more than any other Beatles album (maybe with the exception of the white album)
It must be a result of experimentation, bouncing down tapes to make room for more tracks
I have 4 pressings, the best sounding I have is the mono from the 2022 revolver box set, but still has problems.
Any other recommendations?
I agree! I love Revolver! and 2022 pressing is amazing, I just slightly prefer the original (I was lucky enough to find a NM one some weeks ago). And although it is stunning to hear that record in a good pressing it is not the sonic treat Magical Mystery Tour is.
For stereo I recommend either the German (A-2/B-2) or the Dutch (3Y/2-Y) pressing for Revolver. Great dynamic and tight bass.
I have an old pressing of white album ,maybe the 80s , other than that I have none and want a complete album collection but don’t want to spend a shit ton
Is it not even worth me trying to get a let it be album ?
It is! Let It Be is not bad! But I think there are other versions which are better. What would you like to spend for a single album? And where do you live? Perhaps I can give you some advice on which pressings to find.
Am I going crazy but didn’t you just do a video on this subject awhile back? Is this a repost of that older video??? Just curious!!
I don't think I did... I did do one about the announcement of the 1964 mono box a while ago.
Mono mix of abbey road is from communist czechoslovakia -SUPRAPHON label released in 1972 with picture and text book-in stereo released in 1972 and 1978
But that’s a fold down, so not really worth looking into. Right?
The Portuguese pressing of MMT was also brilliant. Far superior to the mediocre stuff churned out at the Hayes factory.
That is interesting! I have never heared a good Portugese pressing so I am very curious?
Hi brother. If you love the first press UK let it be you WILL LOVE the 1976 3U 4U pressing. I have the original UK red apple box set (the bloody packaging and book are terrible ha ha) and the 1976 3U 4U definitely has more detail and clarity 100%
Thank you! Sounds very interesting! I'll hunt one down!
You're still using non-poly lined inner paper sleeves?
I have poly lined inner sleeves but I haven’t replaced them all.
If you think the sound is sonically better on a stereo why would anyone want the mono ?
It doesn't matter if the mono is played over two speakers or a pair of headphones...it's a matter of those being dedicated mixes that are different. You may prefer the mono mix over the stereo mix of a given song or not, but the system its being played on is unrelated, though some will argue for playing mono over a single speaker.
I agree! The mix of the mono ones are different, sometimes even with different takes being used.
Please do a video on George being more influential than George or ringo
Thanks, I will!
Sounds like you don’t like George Harrison!
I love George Harrison! I only think George Martin had a very big influence! I’ll do a video about it!
love your content! do you have ins or x acc?
Thank you! I only have a youtube account.