The Beatles Remasters: Each album which is best the Mono or Stereo version?

I compared Come Together on the remaster against Giles mix of the song on Love. I like his mix better. The remaster goes really low but I just think it a bit too much through the whole track.. Giles mix doesn't go as low but is well balanced.
I still think the sound quality on Love or Yellow Sub Songtrack betters these remasters. Bring on the remixes!(though I don't think that will happen in 2012.
Listened to PPM, SPLHCB, and White album in mono yesterday.
Eevn though I hate the wide separation of music and voices on the early stereo stuff, they sound better to me than the Mono's.
Overall, I thnk the stereo versions are a lot more punchy than the mono versions.

 

I haven't heard anything special about the stereo mix of BFS compared to AHDN or Revolver but I reckon the reason it gets so much praise is because it's so good in comparison to its mono mix. SPLHCB is a bit of a mixed bag in stereo but we have remixes of all of the worst ones (title track, LITSWD, FTBOMK, WISF) so this album could be great if it received a nice modern stereo mix IMO. RS is obviously horrible in stereo.

 

for me, Mono is the way to go....

 

Other than BFS, that's how I feel.

 

yes, but BFS is also nice in Mono.

 

Listening to the mono Revolver now, and I have to say, on the whole, I think I prefer the stereo. I'm only familiar with the 1987 CD, too! A lot of Beatles stuff has more power or a better mix in mono, but to my ear, most stuff on Revolver just sounds narrower and more compressed in mono. Guess I'll have to check out the stereo remaster, then.

 

With all due respect, I don't believe this mono cd version should be used as a benchmark as to how this sounds in mono. Clearly, Revolver has been previously issued in mono in far better quality than this 2009 cd.

 

Please Please Me: Mono for headphones, Stereo for system
With the Beatles: Mono for headphones, Stereo for system
A Hard Day's Night: Stereo
Beatles for Sale: Stereo
Help!: 1965 Stereo
Rubber Soul: Mono for headphones, 1965 stereo for system
Revolver: Mono
Sgt. Pepper: Mono
Magical Mystery Tour: Stereo
The Beatles: Stereo overall, many individual tracks are better in mono.

Can't really compare Mono Masters and Past Masters, but I love the mono singles.

 

bump for now, will vote when I can.

 

I tend to agree. I prefer mono so my opinion will always be biased. However, I have to say that the remastered BFS is awesome. The sound is great. I have always liked AHDN and BFS in stereo as they are nice balanced stereo records without all the trickery later associated with stereo (panning, etc.). For my money the mono Rubber Soul, Revolver, and Sgt. Pepper can't be beat.

 

On CD?

 

bump

 

I voted for all in Stereo and Mono, its all good and each version has something to offer, now if the songs were the same but just in Mono instead of stereo it would have a different opinion, but often the differences between Stereo and Mono is not the sound but the performance so IMO youi can't vote them against each other!

 

Interesting turn of events...throwing headphones into the discussion!

I LOVE this thread!

 

I'm pretty much all about the mono through Sgt. Pepper, and stereo from Magical Mystery Tour on.

For the singles, I also prefer the mono until the "Lady Madonna"-"Hey Jude" era. I prefer "Revolution" in stereo (blasphemy, I know).

 

White Album stereo is smoking his counterpart mono. Who guessed?

 

Please Please Me: stereo
With The Beatles: mono
A Hard Day's Night: mono
Beatles For Sale: mono
Help!: stereo
Rubber Soul:stereo
Revolver: mono
Sgt. Pepper: mono
Magical Mistery Tour: stereo
White Album: mono - but I've got sentimental issues with the stereo
Past Masters Vol. one: mono
Past Masters Volume two: Stereo

 

What happened to your grand plan? Another dud...

 

Apart from Sgt Pepper, The Beatles in Mono is my first discovery of these albums in their original mono mix. I think that's why I'm so completely blown away by them. It really is a stunning revelation to my ears.

For the voting, I clicked "mono" on everything, largely out of principle. However, I enjoy the stereo mixes for Revolver and all the following albums. It seems that Revolver was the first very good stereo mix, as the engineers are slowly coming to grips with the medium. Same for Sgt Pepper; the UK stereo LP is pure musical bliss, even though I prefer the "legendary" mono.

I'm also very happy with White Album in stereo - my Japanese LP sounds fantastic. The differences between mono and stereo are pretty small here, but I'll have to spend more time with the new mono version. Ringo's "Don't Pass Me By" is a big surprise in mono, that was great. If I could only edit the stereo ending from "Helter Skelter" onto the mono version - I got blisters on mah fingers!!

Magical Mystery Tour sounds great on my turntable (the stereo version). But I'm so completely blown away by the mono mix of Strawberry Fields Forever...this song is menacing!

In the original mono, the Beatles sound like a rock band, a loud, exciting rush of adrenaline. I'm reminded of Kurt Cobain on many occasions, and maybe that's just me, but that's how my brain is processing these songs. The instruments gel perfectly in mono, they just fit right, instead of being scattered to the four winds in mono.

I'm also shocked at the level of polish and shine on the mono albums, especially the early albums and Mono Masters. I never knew there was so much double-tracked vocals and reverb. Maybe I wasn't ever paying attention all these years, but the stereo mixes feel drier, more stripped-down, lacking the professional polish. Early Beatles sound weak and light in stereo, like a happy pop group. In mono, they ROCK. It's enough to inspire me to blow out my vocal chords screaming out "Twist and Shout."

So, anyway, I am seriously loving Beatles in Mono right now. I'm still in shock over these 2009 remasters, heh heh. Why can't all CDs sound this good?!

 

Until you get to Sgt. Pepper, I believer there is a decided advantage of the monos vs. the stereos. Also the '65 stereo version of Help and RS are better than the '87 versions IMO.

 

I am trying to appreciate the mono mixes on the post-'65 albums, I really am. Alas, I am a stereo boy.

 

I have heard very few of the PM vol 2 tracks in mono before. I had no idea what I was missing! Almost all of the "rocker" singles kill in mono.

 

This is a very interesting poll. Thanks for starting it. Listeners comments aside, the poll numbers are very interesting and I think a good indicator of public opinion -- which is going to lead me to listen to certain albums and compare them based on this poll. It seems to be following a very definite pattern with statistically meaniful results. I'm sure there is something in these numbers that speak the truth.

 

i didnt grow up with the mono versions. but in the end i pick mono for the early stuff . even my BFS mono sounds best to me lp speaking. for cd though the BFS stereo has brought a different life to this album in the new remaster. it seems to combine the livliness of the mono and the aspects that we love about the stereo. so maybe stereo for BFS ( remaster)

Help ! is hard for me as its got good and bad aspects to both mixes. ill never choose. but most likely mono.

Rubber Soul.. mono. unless i want to stand 30 feet away and turn the stereo version full up.

Revolver is the first album i can say i enjoy both versions equally.

Peppers i use to be hard core mono. but the stereo does serve psyhadelia so they are
becoming closer aligned as equals. for now mono still.

mmt is all over the place so hard to say. mono i suppose and i enjoy the spacing that they did instead of cramming every song together as on the Capitol mono lp. never gave me a rest to savor the song before.

white album. mono all the way. it serves its intimacy in the same way abbey road in stereo serves its granduer.

 

I finally "get it". Now that I have the Mono box set I understand the hype. The two best examples I've heard thus far are "Please Please Me", and "Rubber Soul".

Compared to the stereo, PPM in mono is far above the former. "I Saw Her Standing There" hits you right in the gut, with pure energy. The stereo version diffuses that impact. The rest of the album is no exception.

As for Rubber Soul, this is where the mono version truly shines. Sonically, the stereo version is better, but not on the emotional level (the most important). I found myself involuntarily tapping my foot to "Drive My Car" in mono, I've never done that with the stereo version, and it's one of my favorite Beatle songs. "If I Needed Someone" sounds so rich in mono with Harrison's guitar in your face, vs. the weakly diffused stereo version ('86 or '65 mix; doesn't matter). You may have a wider sound stage in stereo with more instruments to be heard, but again the emotional impact is missing.

For the stereo's defense, I'm still a fan of "With the Beatles" over the mono. Since the stereo version captures some of that "air" that the first two Capitol LP's had, I think that's my reasoning.

So from what I've learned so far, the stereo version is more than likely sonically superior to the mono, but it fails to move me emotionally as well as the mono mixes. It's truly like listening to the Beatles for the first time all over again.