Abbey Road: Remastered At Half Speed
A slew of classic albums are reissued on 180g vinyl, with replica first-pressing packaging and stunning half-speed remastering, undertaken at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London. Bona fide rock classics such as The Rolling Stones’ Exile On Main St, Cream’s Disraeli Gears and Free’s Fire And Water are being re-pressed alongside The Police’s iconic Ghost In The Machine, John Martyn’s folk-rock masterpiece Solid Air, and Simple Minds’ evergreen New Gold Dream.
Arguably the finest vinyl pressings that these albums have ever received, the half-speed remastering, cut from the original master tapes, has resulted in “superior high frequency response (treble) and very solid and stable stereo images”, ensuring the best-quality sound available. Further care has been taken to create packaging that adheres to the same high standards, from giving each album its own individual obi strip, down to creating detailed artwork reproduction. Additionally, Exile On Main St comes with 12 original postcard inserts taken by Norman Seef, art director for the original 1972 pressing of the album, while The Police’s Ghost In The Machine features a replica of the original vinyl’s colour inner sleeve.
These albums mark career-defining moments in each band’s history, and still stand as landmark releases in the history of music. Fittingly, the new Abbey Road remastering only further enhances their legacy, with the studio’s name alone acting as its own trademark of quality.
It’s no overstatement to say that Cream’s psychedelic blues-rock always sounded best on vinyl – and now sounds even better than ever before – while this particular pressing of John Martyn’s Solid Air only serves to bring that album’s hidden depths back to the fore.
Check out the range of Abbey Road Half Speed Masters in stock at uDiscover here:
UK English
Marc
November 30, 2015 at 6:13 pm
Please do something about your way of shipping to Holland. By courier is way to expensive.
thanks.
Mike Newby
February 13, 2016 at 10:48 am
Just ‘pre-ordered’ (ie: ordered) ‘Exile on Main Street’.
Just one thing: why a password? I try to imagine going into a shop on the High Street and being asked for a password at the door before being allowed in! Crazy and irritating – particularly because you want it twice! – since I now have to remember it.
What is this pointless obsession with passwords!?!
Sandro Busetto
November 26, 2017 at 7:25 pm
The Abbey Road Studios RIP OFF
I have bought a copy of Free Fire and water and compared to the original Island ILPS9120 that it was going to replace I have found it to be Compressed lifeless dull and distorted
The hi frequencies that the super duper A4 certificate so much brag about is not there
And the hi quality of that piece of paper whit the nice gold stamp preclude any more practical use for it.
The record run off is about 3 times larger than in the original and this is a clear sign of poor mastering.
This is what Michael Fremer have to say about the Rolling Stone Issue
https://www.analogplanet.com/content/new-exile-main-street-%C2%A0using-original-analog-master-tape-doubtful
Quote :
First, it’s obvious that an advertising copy writer has gotten his hands on a list of audiophile vernacular and he (or she) is sprinkling it liberally and thoughtlessly.
The claim made here is that the original master tapes have been used to produce these half speed mastered cuts. Is that true? I very much doubt it. I think what’s being used are digital files sourced at some point from the tapes. That would be very different from what’s being claimed. Different enough in my opinion, that if what I think is happening here is true, it constitutes at best deception and at worst outright fraud.
Quote:
I bet what’s being used here are 96/24 files made at some point from the master tapes. Which files? And made by whom? Are these the same files used to cut lacquers for a truly horrible, dynamically squashed Exile On Mainstream box set issued a few years ago? If so, it doesn’t matter if the cut is 1/2 speed, full speed, double time, 800x or whatever. It will still suck.
Until we get an Exile on Main Street cut from the tapes and without dynamic compression, we should not be supporting this kind of project—even if it was truthfully, not deceptively marketed. That goes for the entire series in my opinion.
It is sad to see the great Abbey Road Studios name get muddied.
End quote :
Beresford du-Cille
April 8, 2016 at 1:39 pm
Just another way of getting music lovers to part with more money for a minimal improvement in sound – seems to me only dogs will hear the difference!
Dave
April 29, 2016 at 3:45 am
Beresford .. .. I can tell the difference in a half speed album verses mass produced…. I can’t help it if your using a Emerson all in one stereo system..
gianluca
May 10, 2016 at 4:41 pm
Postage is way too expensive even if you discount by 50%
Mike
August 23, 2016 at 12:40 am
Would love to see Half Speed Masters of Journey’s Escape and Frontiers albums.
Sandro Busetto
November 18, 2017 at 7:51 pm
I am very disappointed by the Free Fire and water
It is dull and compressed and distorted
Record run off is 3 times larger than the original
It Is mi impression that those have been mastered from digital copies
The old Island issue ILPS9120 that it was going to replace sound much better
A very poor marketing exercise