Need a GREAT version of SGT PEPPERS

[Ronflugelguy]

I need to know what are the best versions of SGT Peppers are. any help out there? :)

[John Carsell]

Originally posted by Ronflugelguy
I need to know what are the best versions of SGT Peppers are. any help out there? :)

Opinions differ but here goes....

Sgt. Pepper in Stereo, Mo-fi UHQR , original UK or German pressing

In mono the original UK or German copies as well.

The bootleg CD (Original Monural Recording) of the mono Pepper sounds pretty darn good to me. If you can find one it'll certainly be alot cheaper.

Hope this helps.

[RicP]

On What format? Vinyl? CD? Cassette? :)

[Steve Hoffman]

Just buy the Capitol/EMI commercial CD. Cut pretty much flat from the safety. Close enough...

[Paul L.]

The boys at Abbey Road were, no doubt, saving the original tape for you, Steve : )

[Andy]

The best one I ever listened to was a UK mono version. Had more "feeling" to it. The problem was it was priced at 180GBP, never did do the conversion.

[Pinknik]

A writer at TAS said he owned an HDCD CD-R from a once removed 1/4" copy (I guess not unlike the commercial CD) that blew away every version he'd ever heard. I contacted him via email, and while pleasant and informative (about other things, mind you) he wouldn't give up a copy. Damn.

[Uncle Al]

I've heard 'em all - gotta agree with Steve, the commercial CD is pretty good. Maybe a 2db cut a 12khz makes it mellower, but you really won't loose anything.

The monaural "boot" mentioned is the opposite - a 3db BOOST around 10khz seems to work. Overall - it's very clean. Just don't expect to hear a sonic revelation - just sit back and enjoy the show!

Good album, ain't it? Try the mono mix like I said - brings tha sonics closer to the stereo mix, with all the "pump" that was missing from those early stereo mixes....

But Luke MAY dissagree....... (lol)

[Grant]

Yup, Luke WILL disagree!:D

I have a custom-made CD-R of the mono US Capitol pressing. anywhere I can find one from the British Parlaphone tape or LP?

[lennonfan]

The best version hands down is the japanese red vinyl mono edition from the 80's. Incredibly powerful, clean and warm, it knocks every other version I've heard out of the water! I also have the British and Dutch monos, but they're still not nearly as good (and the British is a true first press!). For Stereo, I vote the individual MFSL release which, IMO, is even better than the MFSL UHQR. I've heard that the Nimbus version is even better, but have yet to locate that one.
So, for the very best version closest to the Fabs original intent, the mono Japanese red one. 2nd runner up is the Mofi individual release.

[vinylrec]

Originally posted by lennonfan
The best version hands down is the japanese red vinyl mono edition from the 80's. Incredibly powerful, clean and warm, it knocks every other version I've heard out of the water!

Check out the Dr. Ebbetts mono Pepper CD. It was taken from the '80s Japanese vinyl. The best mono pepper I have yet to hear...:)

[vinylrec]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
Just buy the Capitol/EMI commercial CD. Cut pretty much flat from the safety. Close enough...

This might have been touched on before...but what happened to the original master tapes for Pepper? What were the source tapes for the MFSL vinyl?
Thanks,
Grant

[Sckott]

The MONO version that's been "mirrored" on many bootlegs of Pepper is very good. Compliments the normal Parlaphone Stereo CD quite well.

The MFSLS supposedly were taken from 1/4" masters that Capitol had hand-delivered. From what I've heard, they weren't the real msters, but safeties and such. A lot of the Beatles stuff is from generations far from what we would call "master". This is not the norm, just the exception. The MFSLs do sound quite spectacular, but sometimes like a MONO Parlaphone original pressing of "Rubber Soul" will totally blow you away.

The rest is kinda up to how you like to listen to the fab four. Yes, the MONO japanese Reds are quite nice too!

[Matt]

Does anyone know the exact length of "She's Leaving Home" on the mono Sgt. Pepper? I want to try fixing the speed on the stereo version to match the mono version.

[John Carsell]

Originally posted by Pinknik
A writer at TAS said he owned an HDCD CD-R from a once removed 1/4" copy (I guess not unlike the commercial CD) that blew away every version he'd ever heard. I contacted him via email, and while pleasant and informative (about other things, mind you) he wouldn't give up a copy. Damn.

I remember that article. The writers name was Dan Sweeney if I'm rembering correctly. I also believe that he acquired a copy off the master tapes in 1975 and didn't play it back to "master" it some 20 years later.

[Dave B]

Originally posted by Matt
Does anyone know the exact length of "She's Leaving Home" on the mono Sgt. Pepper? I want to try fixing the speed on the stereo version to match the mono version.

Matt - I have a copy of the mono Sgt. Pepper CD on Odeon. It shows the time for "She's Leaving Home" as 3:24.

[Ronflugelguy]

Steve, thanks for the suggestion to buy the capitol CD. It will work fine for now until I can find good vinyl.

[Shoes4Industry]

Is the current CD the same mastering as the one that was first released in the 80s? It isn't too bad, but the 90s EMI vinyl (DMM/Digital mastering) I own sounds better to me...

[Chris Desjardin]

Actually, that's a good question. Since the real master was missing when the first pressing of the CD was released, is it possible that it was very quietly remastered with the master when it was located? My CD was bought the day it came out in 1987, but someone must have a later version to compare it to.

[Shoes4Industry]

Yes, I should clarify that the only CD I've heard is the very first US issue...

[Matt]

Thanks, Dave!

[Matt]

The first time I heard the Pepper CD was back in high school, and I remember that the CD was white with red letters. When I went out and bought my own CD, it didn't have the white printed on it, just the red lettering, and I was surprised to hear the repeated end-loop chatter because I didn't remember hearing it on the CD my friend lent me.

This was awhile ago, so my memory may be off. Can anyone confirm this? If I'm right on this, I'm wondering if the CD WAS remastered after the original tape was found.

[Ronflugelguy]

The new one I bought yesterday has the chatter on it.

[Ronflugelguy]

I also remember that the Japanese pressing I owned in the seventies had studio chatter at te end of a Day in the Life, but not as much as the cd Ijust mentioned???

[Steve Hoffman]

As far as I know, the Pepper CD of today is still being manufactured from clones of that original British 1610!

Like it or not, it sounds very close to the tonality of the analog tape!