This is a needle drop of "Die Beatles" (Please, Please Me) Stereo on the Horzu label SHZE 117(matrix # A-2, B-2).
The Beatles first album was recorded on a twin track machine and existed in two stereo versions:
1. The copy tape from the twin-track work parts with final EQ and compression. Marked MASTER and used at EMI,
UK to cut copies of stereo LP's in UK. The mono master tape was made from the two track (a fold-down) and it was
compressed 2:1 and 6 db added at 3,000 cycles before cutting on to LP when it was squeezed some more. Also dubbed
for export (USA, JAPAN, etc.) and used by MFSL for their box set. All subsequent versions of this album including
all CD's were made from this tape. They sound compressed and thin with not as much bass and more top.
The radical compression also makes the echo stand out more. When you compress something that has echo on it, you get
a lot more of the echo as the dynamics flatten out. They did it because they wanted the record to sound good on the small
cheap record players around at the time and for AM radio, especially the pirate radio stations such as Radio Caroline
broadcasting from International waters off the UK.
(They used to put coins on the tone arms to keep the stylus from skipping in the rough weather!)
2. The copy tape made from the twin-track work parts without final EQ and compression marked 'Do Not Use'.
This tape was never meant to be released in the wild but a copy was sent to Horzu in Germany by mistake when they requested
the master to make their album. This is the only version of Please, Please Me without EQ and compression ever released and as such is unique.
To this day EMI will not allow this copy tape to be used by anyone. You owe it to yourself to hear this stereo version.
Please Please Me was recorded on a two-track tape recording machine, with all of the instrumentation on one track and the vocals
on the other, allowing for a better balance between the two on the final half-inch tape mix-down in mono. Some people think Die Beatles
is fake stereo but listen and you will hear instruments bleed through the vocals microphone.
Before converting this excellent copy to FLAC the record was cleaned on a Loricraft Pro cleaning machine using L'Art du Son cleaner.
It was transcribed on an SME20/2 turntable with SME V arm and Koetsu Rosewood Platinum Signature cartridge to a Krell KPE reference phono amp
and on to a Steve Huntley modified Audio Research LS22 tube pre amp. The ADC was an e-mu 0202.
All cables are Grover Silver reference. Monitoring was via an Audio Synthesis DAX Discrete DAC, Krell FPB400cx power amp and Wilson Benesch and speakers.
This LP has been recorded 24/96 with no post processing. Tracks are split and fully tagged..