I don't know if you're around 11 years later, but is your yellow MMT the Parlophone U.K. issue from the 70's? I have that one; the sound is quite a bit less than great. It uses the Capitol U.S. master with the duophonic tracks and doesn't even sound as good.
You are correct. I believe it has been confirmed in this thread itself, maybe, that this yellow pressing is from the inferior Capitol-assembled collection. I was hoping for better sound, when I bought it. I vaguely remember being disappointed. Still, it was part of a set, so I wanted it.
Kinda wished they had knocked out the White Album on white vinyl for the 50th anniversary edition, Sgt Pepper & Abbey Road both got nice picture disc releases shame old whitey missed out.
I thought I found a UK white White Album a year or two ago at the store and was excited based on this thread until I opened it and saw the purple labels. NOPE.
The German White DMM is exceptionally good-sounding. Great bass, trebles and intricate details, while still sounding natural (unless later German DMM cuts). Though that's not without issues, too. I didn't quite like some weird pumping loudness effects on Yer Blues, and the missing pause before Cry Baby Cry is quite unusual. Actually, that very same cut of the album has been used well into the 70s, so no reason to pay surplus for that SMO. Just get a 1973 1C 192 version, same result.
Steve, one of the members mentioned in another thread that the UK White LP is authentic to what John Lennon wanted in terms of sound and EQ. Do you know anything about this?
Yes, different metal plates were required but it was pressed by EMI at Hayes, intended as a smaller production run for export. If you look at the label area you can see a different record profile was used, the same for the white vinyl Let It Be album, green vinyl Abbey Road LP and yellow vinyl MMT, all one-off bespoke offerings. They were pressed on the older machines at Hayes rather than the high speed fully automatic presses. This was because any individual machine that was used to press a coloured record had to be isolated from the usual vinyl feed lines coming from the vinyl pellet storage silos that ran throughout the plant. It was then a matter of setting up a new coloured vinyl feed and extruding some 40 odd pounds of waste vinyl in order to get a clean strain before pressing the actual coloured record. It wasn't a process that EMI was overly fond of. By contrast EMI in Australia farmed out their coloured vinyl production to Festival Records.
I just picked up a white UK copy of "The Beatles." It sounds amazing (beats my black UK vinyl copy from 1978). Although we're talking small increments here.
Interesting. For the price surplus on the white vinyl UK, I would have expected an acoustic revelation.
Really? It’s not uncommon at all - with records and many, many products - to have to pay a significant premium for a small incremental gain in quality/performance.
A friend has a French white vinyl copy that sounds fantastic. Beautiful cover and glossy band photos. I have a MFSL issue myself that sounds amazing to me. Haven't ever seen or heard a UK white copy. Maybe some day.
This thread prompted me to have breakfast with The Beatles - choosing from among my many copies, the MFSL pressing. It seems to get a bad rap around these parts and I don’t know if it’s because it’s the first time that I’ve played it since acquiring a Hana ML 18 months ago, but to these ears this rainy December morning it sounds quite superb.
I’ve since changed my view on this (which prompted the response you responded to). The White Album UK on white vinyl is the very best stereo pressing I’ve heard. Better than any US and better than a standard UK from that same era. It’s not a small increment in sound.
