Beatles Mono LPs?
- Thread starter madfloyd
- Start date
Got them and played most of them already. I hate to say this, but I literally sat there for half-an-hour debating as to whether to open the box or not. I know that sounds silly, but this box set is a limited edition.
Well, I cracked her open and played Please Please Me. Pardon the pun, but I was very PLEASED! I then skipped to Sg. Peppers and back to Rubber Soul and Revolver and so on and so forth. I haven't played Magical Mystery Tour yet.
I am VERY pleased with the quality of sound. It is the best I have ever heard the Beatles on my system. Period.
Well, I cracked her open and played Please Please Me. Pardon the pun, but I was very PLEASED! I then skipped to Sg. Peppers and back to Rubber Soul and Revolver and so on and so forth. I haven't played Magical Mystery Tour yet.
I am VERY pleased with the quality of sound. It is the best I have ever heard the Beatles on my system. Period.
Are you playing them with your stereo dynavector or using a Y cable?
Try the Y cable to sum them to mono, and releive that brightness
and/or plug in your Alexia's again
Mike Lavigne
Member
my mono Beatles box will arrive on Monday. I had the shipping delayed since I'm out of town this week on vacation and did not want the box sitting outside in the heat until I return.
I have a dedicated mono-cart-arm-phono stage (Miyajima Premium Be Mono, Durand Telos, darTZeel NHB-18NS), and some Beatles pressings (a few mono OP's, and a few of the Stereo box sets) to compare. once I listen I will share my thoughts including how they sound in comparison on my stereo rig.
my opinion is that a stereo cartridge, whether summed with a 'y' connector, a mono button on a preamp, or simply played straight thru as stereo will all sound 'essentially' the same......and will not answer the question whether a mono cartridge will sound better. not that it won't sound great in and of itself, but it will not tell you much about the mono cartridge question.
I have a dedicated mono-cart-arm-phono stage (Miyajima Premium Be Mono, Durand Telos, darTZeel NHB-18NS), and some Beatles pressings (a few mono OP's, and a few of the Stereo box sets) to compare. once I listen I will share my thoughts including how they sound in comparison on my stereo rig.
my opinion is that a stereo cartridge, whether summed with a 'y' connector, a mono button on a preamp, or simply played straight thru as stereo will all sound 'essentially' the same......and will not answer the question whether a mono cartridge will sound better. not that it won't sound great in and of itself, but it will not tell you much about the mono cartridge question.
puroagave
Active member
Mike, do you have the Japanese red wax monos from the early 80s to compare to? i'm interested in your thoughts, keep us posted.
My box should arrive next week. I'm also inclined to think that a good stereo cart either straight thru or summed up down the chain will sound essentially the same given the lathe cutting.
If I crack open the box & I probably will, I'm confident that the GFS will do a splendid job like it does playing other MODERN mono pressings.
If I crack open the box & I probably will, I'm confident that the GFS will do a splendid job like it does playing other MODERN mono pressings.
Mark Jones
Member
Y'ed or summed will make no difference. The reason a Mono cartridge is better is because it eliminates the problems caused by antiskate distortions, Crosstalk and channel imbalances that can create an unstable image and increased distortion.
Wow....mine sound terrific....not bright at all. Not even close. In fact, very smooth. I was most impressed with the "weightiness" of the albums. Comparing to the CD's or stereo versions is a bit of a giggle to be honest. The monos have superb bass and a full sound, it's just not as wide imagining as expected, but what it is to me is much better focused. As Fremer said, the stereo versions are a bit of a mess.
If I'm going to listen to any of these albums, from here on out it will be the monos.
Dre_J
Member
- Joined
- Feb 5, 2014
- Messages
- 198
Ian,
What LPs are you playing and what tracks from the box set are you having difficulty with?
Does it matter which LP and track from the box set or are you saying they all sound that way?
Could you provide an example of an LP (any LP) that is more common (Jazz, Classical, and Rock) that sounds closer to optimal reproduction for comparison?
Dre
madfloyd
New member
- Thread Author
- #13
Dre,
I first played Rubber Soul, then a couple of the ones preceding it. I think I have found the culprit though. Late last night I unplugged my Shunyata Typhon and the bright, hard highs toned down immediately. I listened to Rubber Soul again and it sounded great.
So the problem is not the LPs - it was my system (which I was pretty sure it was).
Thanks for the help, everyone.
Dre_J
Member
- Joined
- Feb 5, 2014
- Messages
- 198
Ian,
That's good to know you were able to get things sorted out.
Although off topic: did removing the Typhon partially help with the bass balance issues at higher SPLs you were having with S5s in your system?
Dre
Last edited:
Would be interested to know why removing the typhon improved things. One would have expected the typhon would remove even more grunge and lower the noisefloor of (triton) connected components. Interesting result here and a reminder to check our expectations!!
Not surprised.
madfloyd
New member
- Thread Author
- #18
What I'm about to describe is just an impression that is still forming, so please keep that in mind.
I started going down the Shunyata route earlier this year by changing over to the new Alpha series of power cords. I noticed deeper, tighter bass and some reduction of midbass (which with my Alexias in my room was very much welcomed).
I then added a Typhon, plugged into the duplex/circuit of my amps. Over the course of that day, the bass got leaner and more articulate. The presentation in general went up a notch.
Some weeks later I added a Triton and Typhon for my front end components. I don't remember any instant change, but have felt that my system sounds ultra-clean with great timbre. All of this was with the Alexias.
I then switched to the Magicos and have been playing around with speaker positioning trying to get more quantity of bass without sacrificing quality. It's easy to screw up quality of bass on the Alexias, you have to work a little harder on the Magicos, but it can be done.
I had been wanting to remove the Typhons for a while to see what the effect was, and while the effect is immediate upon removing them, it takes up to 4 days or so for them to charge up again. So before leaving on a trip over Labor Day, I removed them and listened. It was a dramatic change. The most noticeable change was tonal - less highs, more warmth, but by comparison the sound seems somewhat colored - almost like going from SS to tubes. I have no doubt that it isn't as clean and that instruments aren't as separated but I didn't spend that much time - I plugged the Typhons back in, packed my suitcases and left for my trip.
Recently (last Sunday evening in fact) I had to move my rack by about 5 feet or so to allow furniture to be removed out of the room. This meant unplugging everything. When I set the rack back up in the new location I didn't bother with the Typhon on the amps, nor did I use the Triton. I did plug on Typhon into the outlets for the source components. I didn't hook up my digital source - just my turntable.
I was in heaven for the first few days. Then the Beatles Monos arrived and I started listening and, as mentioned, found them to bright and forward sounding. Given the reviews I suspected this was a sign my system wasn't right, but of course these are old Beatles recordings so perhaps I was expecting too much.
So what I think is happening is that the Typhons DO an amazing job at cleaning up the line. Instruments seems to have wonderful timbre and separation. The presentation is hyper focused, but I think the more the presentation gets focused, the tighter - and thinner - and more articulate the bass becomes. In most situations this will be very welcome. But somehow it seems to create more energy in the high frequencies - or so I perceive. I had the same perception when I went from Transparent cabling (which emphasizes the midrange to my ears) to MIT.
Again, just my perceptions thus far and further experimentation is needed.
Ian - very interesting. Since you are down the path of MIT, you may want to try the MIT Super Z-Duplex wall outlets instead of the Shunyata stuff. Sometimes we can add too much Sh!t and it changes the sound - but usually not for the better.
I put the MIT Super Z Duplex's in all my outlets and haven't looked back since. With my Entech Line Noise analyzer, I can MEASURE what they do vs a regular outlet.
This is Nelson showing you how it works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FRDw1XWNcU
The other change I made was to sell all my Alpha HC power cords. The Alpha Analog and Alpha Digital work brilliantly, but I just couldn't get the Alpha HC's to sound anything but muddy and slow in my system. I gave them 1000's of hours of break in and still no real change. My amps have come to life with the Tara LABS and/or Ansuz power cords.
I put the MIT Super Z Duplex's in all my outlets and haven't looked back since. With my Entech Line Noise analyzer, I can MEASURE what they do vs a regular outlet.
This is Nelson showing you how it works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FRDw1XWNcU
The other change I made was to sell all my Alpha HC power cords. The Alpha Analog and Alpha Digital work brilliantly, but I just couldn't get the Alpha HC's to sound anything but muddy and slow in my system. I gave them 1000's of hours of break in and still no real change. My amps have come to life with the Tara LABS and/or Ansuz power cords.
Mike Lavigne
Member
Rob,
no.....no Japanese red wax monos. I do have a few 'Pro-Use' Beatles stereo pressings.
the only mono Beatles pressings I have are the few Parlophone early mono pressings....sorry.
I never went gonzo on Beatles pressings.....but have my fair share.