revelation

Hot Stamper pressings can come as quite a shock to their new owners.

Hearing a record with sound they had no idea was possible drives some of them to help others understand what that very special experience was like.

It happens to us regularly — it’s the nature of our business to find amazing pressings — and we love hearing that our customers are having their minds blown the way ours were when we played that same copy in one of our shootouts. These, then, are their stories.

Letter of the Week – “Today, sitting at home, I felt like I was at a concert.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of Beethoven Available Now

One of our good customers had this to say about some Hot Stampers he purchased recently. (Emphasis added by us.)

Hi Tom,

I finally had a chance to listen to the Super Hot of Beethoven’s 5th I bought from you last month.

Tom, I am feeling really grateful to you. With your guidance, and your records, I have something I simply assumed I could never have – a stereo that can do full justice to orchestral music.

I picked this record, along with Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, as my first foray into full orchestral music on my reworked stereo assembled following your recommendations – Dynavector cartridge, EAR phono stage, Legacy speakers.

Today, sitting at home, I felt like I was at a concert.

This is saying something. I had come to believe this was just not possible. I still remember the sound and the feeling of hearing Beethoven’s 5th performed by the SF Symphony, conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas, about 20 years ago. Seeing it performed for the first time, I was struck by what a small number of musicians the piece calls for. Nobody needed a score, MTT didn’t hold a baton – the whole performance just had a sense of mastery, control, and passion for the music. The sound from that relatively small orchestra was overwhelming. It is this sound I’ve been longing to hear at home. Today, I heard it.

About four years ago I had the opportunity to hear the Berlin Philharmonic play Tchaikovsky’s 5th from a really good seat. Hearing orchestral music performed unamplified in a venue with good acoustics has always led me to believe that it’s not possible to create that on a stereo.

I had come to believe that all stereos distort. When live orchestral music gets loud, it coheres. The sound of a symphony at full volume is just something no stereo or recording can provide. Or so I thought. I figured it was just one of the realities of musical reproduction.

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Letter of the Week – “What a mind-blowing experience!”

Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of Jimi Hendrix Available Now

One of our good customers had this to say about some Hot Stampers he purchased recently (emphasis added):

Hey Tom,    

Well, you found another INCREDIBLE Hot Stamper with “Axis: Bold as Love.” What a mind-blowing experience!

This was at least my fifth copy of this album and it shamed all other sad sacks I had bought.

I really don’t know how you do it, but I’m infinitely grateful that you do. The notion of a “great sounding Hendrix album” almost sounds like an oxymoron, but again you struck sonic gold and unearthed one of those rare few that offer a deeply satisfying listening experience – to put it mildly!

My appreciation for Hendrix’s towering musical achievements has doubled, maybe even tripled, from hearing this Hot Stamper. That’s quite a feat for an artist I already considered to be one of the best ever! All this because of those magical Hot Stamper grooves. This goes to show what a difference amazing sound can have on the ability to appreciate an album or artist.

Oh, and I once owned a copy of the abysmal Classic pressing. Among its many other failings is the decision to re-release it in mono. Mono!? “Axis” is one of the creative examples of stereo mixing known to man! Reducing this album to mono is a travesty, but I guess that didn’t bother Classic Records.

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Letter of the Week – “No record I own ever did that.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of The Who Available Now

This week’s letter came from Dan, a long time customer of ours. When he ordered this album he left the following note in his order comments:

This is one of my favorite albums of all time!! One of my personal desert island discs. Can’t wait to hear it!.

I’m not sure his ears were prepared for what was about to happen though. Read on to see what Dan thought of his Very Hot Who’s Next.

Hey Tom,

Just listened to the Very Hot Stamper of “Who’s Next” and thought I’d drop a little note: Holy F**K that was POWERFUL!

No record I own ever did that!

And I’m talking bone-rattling, earth-shaking, sock-you-in-the-gut POWERFUL. I’ve always known that The Who were one of the most intense bands in the history of rock n’ roll. Hell, everybody knows that and it’s part of the reason we love ’em so much. But with this record, I experienced the sheer physical force of their music like I NEVER have before. I couldn’t believe I heard bass notes hang in the air and resonate for long stretches. Bass notes never just hang like that! No record I own ever did that. (more…)

Letter of the Week – “I have heard this music a zillion times but it never ever once sounded like this.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of Five Star Albums Available Now

One of our good customers had this to say about a Hot Stamper pressing he purchased many years ago:

Hey Tom, 

I just listened to Bridge over Troubled Water that arrived while I was on my trip to India. It was really spectacular. I have heard this music a zillion times over the last 40 years but it never ever once sounded like this. Amazing. I have to get Bookends and PSRT also. 

John R.

John,

We love it when customers tell us that our Hot Stamper pressings are a revelation. At these prices they’d better be!

This album has been remastered many times, but as far as we know you just cannot beat the right 360 Label pressings, which is why those are mostly the ones we sell, with an occasional Red Label pressing rarely, and barely, making the grade.

We’ve auditioned many pressings of the album, including the Mobile Fidelity from 1984, the CBS Half-Speed from 1980, and the Classic Records Heavy Vinyl pressing from 1999.

No doubt there have been many more remastered since those three came out, but we don’t see any reason to expect them to be any better than the consistently second- and third-rate records currently being made these days, so we haven’t bothered to audition any of the newer pressings and have no plans to at this time. If one comes our way, naturally we would love to hear it.

Would we pay good money for whatever crap pressing they’re stocking the bins with these days? Not a chance. If any of the labels currently making records start to make some that sound as good as the ones we sell, please drop us a line with the titles that impressed you.

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Letter of the Week – “I never thought I’d spend $600 on ‘it’s only a record.’ But it is worth every goosebump.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of Steely Dan Available Now

One of our good customers had this to say about a Hot Stamper pressing of Aja he purchased recently:

Hey Tom, 

You bastard! You did it again. GREAT pressing of AJA Steely Dan – promo album.

This is by far the best recording I’ve heard. I am a freak listener. Everything has to sound perfect, I hear everything.

I savor every note, every instrument, every vocal. The separation and presence of each sound is amazing.

Well done. I wish you continued success. I never thought I’d spend $600 and more on “it’s only a record.” But it is worth every goosebump.

Rocco

Rocco,

By far the best recording you’ve heard? That is high praise indeed!

So glad you liked the record as much as we did. We heard 600 bucks worth of sound and apparently so did you.

Goosebumps are indeed expensive, but you could spend $1,000 or $10,000 on Heavy Vinyl and not even get a single one, so, money well spent.

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Letter of the Week – “What a revelation compared to every other copy I have heard.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of Led Zeppelin Available Now

One of our good customers had this to say about some Hot Stampers he purchased recently:

Hey Tom, 

Just had a chance to listen to my new hot stamper.  Wow! What a revelation compared to every other copy I have heard.

Quiet vinyl, huge soundstage, great tonal balance, amazing level of detail. Sounds even better when cranked up as you know : ).

Been waiting for this one for a while and it has been so worth it! Thanks again!

Rob

Rob,

So happy to hear that you enjoyed it as much as we did. Like you say, the louder the better, and only a top quality pressing will let you turn up the volume as loud as your system can play.

One reason the turn up your volume test is such a great test is simply that as the problem gets louder, it doesn’t take long until it is painful to ignore. Records that are full of phony detail — especially those of the audiophile variety — cannot be played at realistic levels without their artificiality inducing discomfort, even pain, in the listener.

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Letter of the Week – “I heard things on there that I never heard before.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of Pink Floyd Available Now

One of our good customers had this to say about some a Hot Stamper pressing of Meddle he purchased a while back:

Hi Tom,

Got the Meddle album already.  I sat down as soon as I opened it and listened to both sides with the volume up.

Absolutely blew me away. I heard things on there that I never heard before. Or I just heard them better.

I didn’t have to listen to my other copies. I knew right away this one was IT.

Listening to a record like this just gets me thinking what the other Hot Stampers sound like.

Steve

Steve,

Thanks for writing.

You are completely right. Some pressings are so obviously superior that no comparisons are necessary. Going back to your old copies would be shocking — how could I have put up with such substandard sound quality?

In 2007 we discovered the Hottest Stampers of them all, a reissue pressing if you can believe it — something we have no trouble believing as we much prefer to let the evidence be our guide when it comes to which are the best pressings, not theories, preconceived ideas or conventional wisdom. From that point on there was no going back.

It turns out that there is one and only one set of stampers that consistently wins our shootouts for  Meddle.  This link will take you to other titles with one set of stampers that always come out on top.

The Prelude Record Cleaning System had a lot to do with that breakthrough, and we have been big fans of the system Mr. Walker developed ever since. In addition to getting them clean, we know of nothing that does as much for the sound of records.

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Letter of the Week – “When I reached moderate hearing loss and faced the crossroads of giving up audio and my beloved music, by divine grace I serendipitously encountered Skeptical Audio.”

Hot Stamper Pressings that Sound Better Loud Available Now

One of our best customers — and one of our nicest, as you will see — wrote to tell us of his hearing loss and what it has been like to discover Hot Stamper pressings so late in life. (Emphasis added.)

Hi Tom,

I am honored and surprised to have received an apology email directly from Tom Port, whom I respect for saving me from a religious world of preconceptions and labeling.

P.S. I dream of writing to you someday about music, equipment, cleaning, and other topics. For the past six months, I have been shooting out items purchased from Better Records, and although the number of shootouts is small, I am finally beginning to understand what you mean by a good press. I sincerely appreciate you showing me the truth of this world as an elderly person with little time left to live.

I can only thank God (the Source) that my encounter with Better Record came in time for the end of my life.

However, around the time I discovered Better Record, I began suffering from hearing loss.

Yet, even if I can’t catch the subtle nuances in detail, I’ve learned to judge sound quality by a simple method: whether I can immerse myself in the music or not.

Without exception, the records that allow immersion are Hot Stamper editions.

Your body sways, you never get bored, you listen to the entire side without preference, you turn up the volume even more—that’s what Tom is saying, right?

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We Get Letters – “…the parallax on Autobahn that lets you feel like you are physically moving through space necessitates a full 3D soundstage.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of Art Rock Albums Available Now

Our good customer Aaron thought his Hot Stamper pressing of Autobahn was pretty special. He writes:

Good morning Tom,

I’m catching up on some work and sipping my coffee this Sunday morning, way too cold to go outside.

I’ve got my NWHS of Autobahn playing. The room is absolutely filling up with sweet sound. I had always thought of Kraftwerk’s music as cold and distant, intentionally, but this copy is bringing out a whole different character to the music. It is organic and warm and really humane.

Isn’t it funny to think that of all the bands, it is Kraftwerk who is done a particular disservice by digital formatting? On the surface, their music seems like it would be so amenable to digital, but it’s all the play and joy that’s less on the surface that really makes it music, and digital strips that right out.

I bought this one as part of pushing my envelope during the 12 days sale.

My other copy is the 1985 Parlophone repress. It’s not bad, but I’ve only played it a couple times before, which says everything you need to know.

Whereas the hot stamper is currently one of my go-to records to put on. The hot stamper fills my room with sound.

It’s more somatic than auditory, you can feel it. That’s always true for white hot stampers, but it makes all the difference for this album – the parallax on Autobahn that lets you feel like you are physically moving through space necessitates a full 3D soundstage.

That effect of actually moving just does not happen when you’re playing the 1985 pressing.

So, I would say Autobahn is another one of those albums where it’s essential to have a hot stamper pressing to actually appreciate the music.

Digital won’t do it, and even a different good pressing doesn’t convey the magic – the organic nature and the three dimensional experience – that the hot stamper gives you.

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Letter of the Week – “… even my 65 year old father, with no musical background at all, was amazed when I play your Beatles stampers.”

Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of The Beatles Available Now

One of our good customers had this to say about some Hot Stampers he purchased recently:

Hey Tom, 

I have enjoyed your records since I got a “Sgt. Peppers” hot stamper in 2011, and you guys have never disappointed me!

Every time I play one of the hot stampers for my musician friends, I don’t tell them “it’s a special pressing” but just play the record – they always comment on the sound quality, almost always saying “that’s so clear, so clean, etc…” – even my 65 year old father, with no musical background at all, was amazed when I play your Beatles stampers. He said, “in my time, records sounded scratchy and noisy.” What a revelation the Hot Stamper is.

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