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Reissue Record Labels
10 years ago
General
So, as you all know, many new pressings of old catalog music are being released. So many different labels doing it. So, HOW does one know WHICH pressing to get? This is a list of fantastic reissue labels so you don't have to think or research. These label go through painstaking processes to give the consumer the BEST quality LP they can deliver. In most cases, they sound identical to the originals. In some cases, they actually sound BETTER than the originals. This is great if you can't afford to pay obscene amounts of money for original pressings. Most also are pressed with exact replicas of the original labels, jacket art and inner sleeves.
All will remaster from the original analog 2 track master tapes, or best possible source, usually on modern analog equipment. This gives you as close a sound as if you were there, in the studio, listening to the band as the music is being recorded. The other way is they'll take the original 2 track master tape and digitize it uncompressed. With todays equipment, they can clean up any kind of anomaly that might impair the quality of sound. They call these pressings 'Digilog'. Digital done right will produce amazing results. Doxy Records has proved that. Ryko records started using both techniques back in the 80s. They were the first official reissue label. They started with the entire David Bowie back catalog.
Okay. As for modern labels, I'll start with the Parlophone 180g MONO reissues of the Beatles catalog. I've owned original copies of Beatles LPs. Both Capital and Parlophone. I will say this, the new remastered German pressed reissues actually DO sound better than the originals. So much so, I sold all my originals. Beatle LPs were not recorded with the best sound quality in mind. They were made to be cranked out as fast as possible for consumer consumption. The originals had a high end screech in the vocals. It was piercing if you wanted to listen to your album at high volumes. The new remasters all but eliminated that for a nice, smooth, even sound across the board. Even pulled up some of that bottom end that was lost. I'm not a collector. I'm more about the best quality audio. If you are in the market for The Beatles, go with them. You won't be disappointed.
Rhino Records is well known for cheaply pressed compilations and reissues. In the mid 2000s they jumped on the bandwagon and started licensing rear, hard to find records and pressing them on 180g vinyl. They did it right. Look for the HQ or HD sticker on any Rhino reissue. The sound is stunning. I own copies of Ray Charles, Charles Mingus and John Coltrane reissues and played them side by side to my originals. They held up. It was nearly impossible to tell the difference. The fidelity on the Ray Charles LPs was actually better.
A few more great labels you will love are below. They all institute the remastering techniques I described above.
Analog Productions
Music On Vinyl
Classic
Friday Music
4 Men With Beards
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MoFi) (MFSL)
Universal
Doxy (Digilog) - Look for a source. If not clear, avoid.
Original Recordings Group
Wax Time - Look for a source. If not clear, avoid.
Ryko
HAPPY HUNTING!
All will remaster from the original analog 2 track master tapes, or best possible source, usually on modern analog equipment. This gives you as close a sound as if you were there, in the studio, listening to the band as the music is being recorded. The other way is they'll take the original 2 track master tape and digitize it uncompressed. With todays equipment, they can clean up any kind of anomaly that might impair the quality of sound. They call these pressings 'Digilog'. Digital done right will produce amazing results. Doxy Records has proved that. Ryko records started using both techniques back in the 80s. They were the first official reissue label. They started with the entire David Bowie back catalog.
Okay. As for modern labels, I'll start with the Parlophone 180g MONO reissues of the Beatles catalog. I've owned original copies of Beatles LPs. Both Capital and Parlophone. I will say this, the new remastered German pressed reissues actually DO sound better than the originals. So much so, I sold all my originals. Beatle LPs were not recorded with the best sound quality in mind. They were made to be cranked out as fast as possible for consumer consumption. The originals had a high end screech in the vocals. It was piercing if you wanted to listen to your album at high volumes. The new remasters all but eliminated that for a nice, smooth, even sound across the board. Even pulled up some of that bottom end that was lost. I'm not a collector. I'm more about the best quality audio. If you are in the market for The Beatles, go with them. You won't be disappointed.
Rhino Records is well known for cheaply pressed compilations and reissues. In the mid 2000s they jumped on the bandwagon and started licensing rear, hard to find records and pressing them on 180g vinyl. They did it right. Look for the HQ or HD sticker on any Rhino reissue. The sound is stunning. I own copies of Ray Charles, Charles Mingus and John Coltrane reissues and played them side by side to my originals. They held up. It was nearly impossible to tell the difference. The fidelity on the Ray Charles LPs was actually better.
A few more great labels you will love are below. They all institute the remastering techniques I described above.
Analog Productions
Music On Vinyl
Classic
Friday Music
4 Men With Beards
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MoFi) (MFSL)
Universal
Doxy (Digilog) - Look for a source. If not clear, avoid.
Original Recordings Group
Wax Time - Look for a source. If not clear, avoid.
Ryko
HAPPY HUNTING!
wildbilltx
∞wildbilltx
You have to be careful with the reissues by Wax Time and Doxy. I have read that the quality of the recordings and vinyl is hit and miss with some of them. These are Public Domain reissues made in France and Russia because the copyrights for pre-1964 recordings has expired in parts of Europe and Canada. Most of them are using CD's as their sources, but some are using disc dubs.
The only stuff I've heard from both labels have been licensed reissues. I look for who, how and where they were mastered. If I don't see a source, I avoid them. OH, Castle records out of England is a great reissue label. I forgot to mention them.
