MMJ vinyl quality.

[rincon2]

Got back into vinyl a few years ago. Everything I have purchased since then has sounded awesome except my MMJ stuff. Circuital is all pops and crackles, both copies they sent me. (remember the warping issue?) I just got Z, a double LP 180 gram. It sounds like my old Batman album from 1966. I am expecting it Still Moves, and Chocolate and Ice in the mail this week. I hope they don't sound like this, and it is all just a coincidence. At least I get to return Z to Amazon. Hopefully the replacement is good. Any similar experiences?

[oistheone]

Got back into vinyl a few years ago. Everything I have purchased since then has sounded awesome except my MMJ stuff. Circuital is all pops and crackles, both copies they sent me. (remember the warping issue?) I just got Z, a double LP 180 gram. It sounds like my old Batman album from 1966. I am expecting it Still Moves, and Chocolate and Ice in the mail this week. I hope they don't sound like this, and it is all just a coincidence. At least I get to return Z to Amazon. Hopefully the replacement is good. Any similar experiences?

The 45rpm pressing of Circuital that I have sounds great! Maybe your vinyl just needs a little cleaning? My Z sounds pretty bangin' too! AD and TTF don't sound much different than the digital versions, though the pressings are clean and flat, at least. ISM and Okonokos are what you want for aural MMJ heaven. Okonokos was mastered by the legendary Bob Ludwig, and sounds HUGE, crisp and spacious. For ISM you'll want to track down one of the original numbered pressings. Those sound fantastic and it's a completely different listening experience than the CD. The later pressings of ISM that came with a CD are garbage. The whole thing sounds flat, has no life and worst of all, there are digital pauses in between each track. EEEUUGH!!

[rincon2]

Got back into vinyl a few years ago. Everything I have purchased since then has sounded awesome except my MMJ stuff. Circuital is all pops and crackles, both copies they sent me. (remember the warping issue?) I just got Z, a double LP 180 gram. It sounds like my old Batman album from 1966. I am expecting it Still Moves, and Chocolate and Ice in the mail this week. I hope they don't sound like this, and it is all just a coincidence. At least I get to return Z to Amazon. Hopefully the replacement is good. Any similar experiences?

The 45rpm pressing of Circuital that I have sounds great! Maybe your vinyl just needs a little cleaning? My Z sounds pretty bangin' too! AD and TTF don't sound much different than the digital versions, though the pressings are clean and flat, at least. ISM and Okonokos are what you want for aural MMJ heaven. Okonokos was mastered by the legendary Bob Ludwig, and sounds HUGE, crisp and spacious. For ISM you'll want to track down one of the original numbered pressings. Those sound fantastic and it's a completely different listening experience than the CD. The later pressings of ISM that came with a CD are garbage. The whole thing sounds flat, has no life and worst of all, there are digital pauses in between each track. EEEUUGH!!

It looks like I can expect the ISM that you say is garbage. I would love to hear the original pressing you are talking about. My Mike Cooley album probably sounds the most pristine sounding of any vinyl I have ever owned.

[tippitoes22]

First of all,
oistheone is ABSOLUTELY CORRECT about cleaning your records, and I don't mean with just a brush. Any new record (regardless of the pressing plant it came out of) has dust, grime, dirt, etc, on it. Any NEW record has to be cleaned with some sort of a "record cleaning solution" to really get in the groves, then properly dried with a lint free cloth of some sort (most cleaning kits come with some drying clothes, lint free cloth diapers work great too. You just gotta wash em first, then let records dry for at least 30 min. And clean your stylus between every record.

You can spend $1000's of dollar's on a vacuum record cleaner or just buy a
 
-SPIN CLEAN (about $75 bucks, and worth every penny) and order a bottle of stylus cleaner $10, and will last for years

I promise you'll notice the difference, and you only need to do it around every 25-30 plays.

P.S. Vinyl is worse than "Crack"! It's a total addiction, and it'll chew through your $ faster than poster collecting :) But there are worse hobbies...like crack I guess? Is crack a hobby?

P.P.S. There is definitely a difference in the sound of some MMJ records. I've got 1 copy of Acoustic Citsuoca (blue vinyl copy) that has the worst "scratch" sound with every revolution of the record but my other copy "draws me in like a Bermuda Highway"

P.P.P.S. Hopefully Jacket starts getting their vinyl mastered by Bernie Grundman and Pressed at RTI. Then that vinyl's gonna SING!!!

P.P.P.S. Carl's solo album sounds awesome     

[rincon2]

Z had what looked like scratch marks on disc 2. Disc 1 was fine. Listening to Cooley now. Acoustic guitar, and vocals, the worst kind of music for hearing noise. Silent. I will try washing some in a foot soak pan with Dawn. That got good recommendations on the net, as long as it is rinsed and dried properly. I have about 300 albums I collected up until 1990. Most sound incredible, never been washed, and 80's albums were frequently REAL THIN.Not clear why my MMJ stuff is the worst I have purchased.

[Santo]

I have had similiar luck with MMJ vinyl. Just like Oistheone, my 45 rpm box set of Circuital sounds great. You can get it on Popmarket for around $70. On Ebay, most are trying to sell it for $90+ but occasionally you can find it significantly cheaper.

I have a recent pressing of Acoustic Citsuoca on black vinyl and it is one of the worst for surface noise. I have the blue splatter Chocolate and Ice, the first side is fine, but the Cobra side has some noise, but after a few listens it does not bother me now. ISM is not the best, but it is better than the poorly converted mp3s that I had previously, so it doesn't bother me that much. Z and Evil Urges are fine for me, although I bought EU from ATO and the gatefold came damaged.

The reissue problem is not limited to MMJ. A lot of the grunge releases have the same problem. They are using digital masters for some of the more recent pressings. I would guess sometimes original vinyl masters are lost, or in the case for late '90s early 2000s albums were never made, or maybe the record companies are lazy and just want to make a quick buck.

As much as I appreciate a quality sounding vinyl and am disappointed when I notice surface noise on the first play, that is not the sole reason why I am returning to vinyl for the first time since I was a kid. I don't have the same connection to my digital collection as I do with my small but ever increasing vinyl catalog. Sure digital is more portable and I probably listen to it more, but  there is nothing like buying, opening, holding, smelling, and reading the notes of a new or used record. I will always listen to an lp all the way through, so I get a better sense of the whole album. Its too easy to skip on digital or cd. My point is, even when the record quality is mediocre, I still enjoy the lp.

[rincon2]

Cleaned disc one of Circuital. Did all the recommended shit. My vinyl of Honkey Chateau, which was my first LP in 1973, sounds better, surface noise wise.

[tippitoes22]

That's the great/bad thing about vinyl, Rincon2. There are different places where records get mastered & pressed. Plus, are they going to the original analog source (if it was ever recorded in analog), or using a digital (what's the point in that?) source for the master? Vinyl's tricky and it takes some investigating. There's all kinds of reissues, reissues from original analog masters, etc...The thing about newer bands is a lot of the stuff was recorded on a digital board or somebody's Mac, I really don't see the point acoustically of having a digital source pressed on analog. Just buy the CD. Don't get me wrong I LOVE VINYL, but I've definately made some mistakes in some of my purchases. And some of them have been MMJ records. But like your "Honky Chateau" buy, I've also scored some amazing sounding records, on the cheap. Good luck and hopefully when you "drop the needle on the record" you always have a smile on your face. Nothing like that warm sound and hearing shit you never heard before on the CD.

P.S. Apple has ruined more good music than anyone on the planet...but mp3's are convenient, especially if you only wanna hear about 1/3 of the actual sound that was recorded.

[Woldie]

Got back into vinyl a few years ago. Everything I have purchased since then has sounded awesome except my MMJ stuff. Circuital is all pops and crackles, both copies they sent me. (remember the warping issue?) I just got Z, a double LP 180 gram. It sounds like my old Batman album from 1966. I am expecting it Still Moves, and Chocolate and Ice in the mail this week. I hope they don't sound like this, and it is all just a coincidence. At least I get to return Z to Amazon. Hopefully the replacement is good. Any similar experiences?

The 45rpm pressing of Circuital that I have sounds great! Maybe your vinyl just needs a little cleaning? My Z sounds pretty bangin' too! AD and TTF don't sound much different than the digital versions, though the pressings are clean and flat, at least. ISM and Okonokos are what you want for aural MMJ heaven. Okonokos was mastered by the legendary Bob Ludwig, and sounds HUGE, crisp and spacious. For ISM you'll want to track down one of the original numbered pressings. Those sound fantastic and it's a completely different listening experience than the CD. The later pressings of ISM that came with a CD are garbage. The whole thing sounds flat, has no life and worst of all, there are digital pauses in between each track. EEEUUGH!!

How is the sound on the ISM picture discs released in 2011 (I believe)?

[CountSA]

Got back into vinyl a few years ago. Everything I have purchased since then has sounded awesome except my MMJ stuff. Circuital is all pops and crackles, both copies they sent me. (remember the warping issue?) I just got Z, a double LP 180 gram. It sounds like my old Batman album from 1966. I am expecting it Still Moves, and Chocolate and Ice in the mail this week. I hope they don't sound like this, and it is all just a coincidence. At least I get to return Z to Amazon. Hopefully the replacement is good. Any similar experiences?

The 45rpm pressing of Circuital that I have sounds great! Maybe your vinyl just needs a little cleaning? My Z sounds pretty bangin' too! AD and TTF don't sound much different than the digital versions, though the pressings are clean and flat, at least. ISM and Okonokos are what you want for aural MMJ heaven. Okonokos was mastered by the legendary Bob Ludwig, and sounds HUGE, crisp and spacious. For ISM you'll want to track down one of the original numbered pressings. Those sound fantastic and it's a completely different listening experience than the CD. The later pressings of ISM that came with a CD are garbage. The whole thing sounds flat, has no life and worst of all, there are digital pauses in between each track. EEEUUGH!!

How is the sound on the ISM picture discs released in 2011 (I believe)?

I can't speak for MMJ picture discs, but the couple of picture discs I do own (Tool - Lateralus & Rage Against the Machine - s/t) don't sound great.

[rincon2]

Just got ISM, the double LP, and Chocolate and Ice. ISM sounds pretty good, but C&I has what looks like some substance or corrosion on the second half of Cobra, and it crackles like a MFer. I cleaned it several ways, but it did not change anything. I think I am done purchasing MMJ vinyl. 3 out of 4 have sucked.

[Santo]

What version of C & I did you get? My blue/purple splatter disc has the same thing.

[johnnYYac]

Most picture discs and colored vinyl will have subpar quality.  I believe they are more about collecting limited editions.  I have all the picture discs and all versions of Chocolate & Ice, but rarely play them, if ever.  I have black vinyl versions of the studio albums, though not all pressings are created equal.  The yellow/brown and blue/white C&Is seem to get damage from the heavy plastic sleeves.  I've tried cleaning them, to no avail, but also moved them to paper sleeves.

[timescaper]

Tennessee Fire is amazing on vinyl!!   

[rincon2]

What version of C & I did you get? My blue/purple splatter disc has the same thing.

It is a blue and purple splatter. It came in just a piece of plastic. When I ordered it it said nothing about not having a proper album cover, or being a "souvenir" issue. I don't give a crap what a record looks like, I buy them for sound.

[Crispy]

Most picture discs and colored vinyl will have subpar quality.  I believe they are more about collecting limited editions.  I have all the picture discs and all versions of Chocolate & Ice, but rarely play them, if ever.  I have black vinyl versions of the studio albums, though not all pressings are created equal.  The yellow/brown and blue/white C&Is seem to get damage from the heavy plastic sleeves.  I've tried cleaning them, to no avail, but also moved them to paper sleeves.

I think the knock on colored vinyl is mostly unfounded, I have plenty of non-black vinyl that sounds great. It's almost always true about most picture discs, though, because the material used for the picture can limit the amount of vinyl available above it for the grooves. I think the deal is that (originally clear) vinyl for records was made black by adding graphite or dark fairy dust or whatever to make them slide better underneath a stylus, and some colored vinyl may not include such an agent.

The shit and pee C&I pressing is mostly regarded to sound like shit and pee, while the recent ones sound much better.

[headhunter]

Most picture discs and colored vinyl will have subpar quality.  I believe they are more about collecting limited editions.  I have all the picture discs and all versions of Chocolate & Ice, but rarely play them, if ever.  I have black vinyl versions of the studio albums, though not all pressings are created equal.  The yellow/brown and blue/white C&Is seem to get damage from the heavy plastic sleeves.  I've tried cleaning them, to no avail, but also moved them to paper sleeves.

I think the knock on colored vinyl is mostly unfounded, I have plenty of non-black vinyl that sounds great. It's almost always true about most picture discs, though, because the material used for the picture can limit the amount of vinyl available above it for the grooves. I think the deal is that (originally clear) vinyl for records was made black by adding graphite or dark fairy dust or whatever to make them slide better underneath a stylus, and some colored vinyl may not include such an agent.

The shit and pee C&I pressing is mostly regarded to sound like shit and pee, while the recent ones sound much better.

    Does sounds like shit differ from sounds like pee?

[Crispy]

Most picture discs and colored vinyl will have subpar quality.  I believe they are more about collecting limited editions.  I have all the picture discs and all versions of Chocolate & Ice, but rarely play them, if ever.  I have black vinyl versions of the studio albums, though not all pressings are created equal.  The yellow/brown and blue/white C&Is seem to get damage from the heavy plastic sleeves.  I've tried cleaning them, to no avail, but also moved them to paper sleeves.

I think the knock on colored vinyl is mostly unfounded, I have plenty of non-black vinyl that sounds great. It's almost always true about most picture discs, though, because the material used for the picture can limit the amount of vinyl available above it for the grooves. I think the deal is that (originally clear) vinyl for records was made black by adding graphite or dark fairy dust or whatever to make them slide better underneath a stylus, and some colored vinyl may not include such an agent.

The shit and pee C&I pressing is mostly regarded to sound like shit and pee, while the recent ones sound much better.

    Does sounds like shit differ from sounds like pee?

Yes. However, the brown and yellow C&I pressing sounds like shit and pee mixed together, which sounds even more terrible than the two sound separately.

[Fully]

Shit is a muddier sound than pee which is more fluid.

[johnnYYac]

Cloacal!