Alvis

I'm getting my stereo box from Amazon on the day of release for only around $8 shipping. I wouldn't mind if it came a day early, though.

IronWaffle

Another review worth a read, this from the UK's Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009...in-mono-review

I will be fiscally responsible and not cave and buy the mono set if it becomes readily available...
I may be fiscally responsible and not cave and buy the mono set if it becomes readily available...
I hope I'm fiscally responsible and not cave and buy the mono set if it becomes readily available...

reubs82

Unboxing photos from All Songs Considered.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/20...atles_box.html

Supermallet

That's a negative. But you can slot it into one of the spots for Yellow Submarine (the compilation) or 1 or Love.

kstublen

I'm holding out hope that I will be able to walk into Best Buy on Tuesday morning and find a Mono Set.

auto

Not if I buy the stereo albums indivdually and the mono box.

Another question, since Revolver includes the mono and stereo, if you're picking up the mono box, no reason to buy the stereo release, right?

MBoyd

It's the original stereo on Revolver and not the re-mastered, right?

Supermallet

I'd have to re-read the press release, but I thought it was Help! and Rubber Soul that had the stereo mixes included, and those would be the 1965 stereo mixes, not the 2009 stereo mixes.

Also, I believe the guy who does the Box of Vision said he'd be offering extra pages for people who bought both sets. Probably for a small fee, but that way you can fit in both.

TomOpus

A day early would be very cool. My stereo box is arriving the day after the mono. Nice one-two punch.

Supermallet

OK, so I got a chance to hear some of the stereo remasters tonight, and to compare them against the 1987 discs. There is no comparison. The remasters blow the old discs away in detail, richness, and clarity. I tried out A Hard Day's Night (the song) and it was like night and day (no pun intended). I was hearing things in the remaster that were only hinted at in the old disc. Not every single song is as dramatic of a bump, the I don't think anyone would ever confuse the two versions, nor prefer the old 1987 discs. Wednesday is going to be a joyous day for all of us.

Now all I can do is wait impatiently for the mono discs!

Edit: However, due to budgetary concerns, I ended up canceling the stereo box, and instead ordered The White Album, Abbey Road and Let It Be separately while maintaining my original order for the mono box.

JAA

Sorry, I couldn't help it. Don't forget a prayer to go along with your hope.

reubs82

I'm trying to decide which ones I'll pick up. I've got Abbey Road, White Album, Sgt. Pepper's, Magical Mystery Tour, and Revolver. Looking at the Target deal, I'd like to take advantage of that to the fullest extent. However, I can't afford all 14 right now! I'm thinking I'll double dip on the ones I've got now, but that leaves one more to grab since it's "Buy 2, get a $5 card".

Thoughts on the sixth one to complete it?

cosmosis

I've had the stereo box for a week now.

I will say, the sound on certain titles will blow people away. Certain songs on "The White Album" have actually startled me with their clarity.

The mini-documentaries, on the other hand, are nothing special. They are brief -- three or four minutes -- and use A LOT of recycled quotes from "The Beatles Anthology" series. They basically weave those quotes with bits of videos and animated archive photos (it's quite similar to the "Watchmen" animated comic). I watched them all once on the DVD and can't imagine ever doing so again -- although I've watched, say, "The Beatles Anthology" numerous times over the years.

So, in other words, anyone who is thinking of buying the stereo box just to get that DVD -- it's NOT worth it. However, if you think you are going to end up buying all the titles anyway, you might as well get the box. It's pretty sturdy and it's held shut by magnets.

Since I got the stereo box for free, I'm very tempted to buy the mono box on Wednesday. The practical side of me thinks it's crazy to spend $200-plus on this, but the collector side of me thinks I'll regret it if the mono box does become a collectible.

Oh, and I've spoken to a publicist from Capitol's reissue department. They are being very cagey about what "limited" means and she refused to reveal an actual number. Actually, it won't surprise me if whatever few land in B&M stores Wednesday disappear, but then suddenly in the coming weeks, they'll just randomly show up here and there, as Capitol can get more pressed.

Supermallet

Rubber Soul.

Alternatively, A Hard Day's Night sounds fantastic in stereo. The space offered by stereo works well with the natural buoyancy of the songs and performances. Seems like you're more into later Beatles rather than earlier Beatles, but personally I think A Hard Day's Night is a masterpiece of pure pop songcraft.

WMAangel

I'd get either Let It Be or Rubber Soul....

Supermallet

I'm now doing comparisons between the mono and the stereo. The differences are, at times, startling. Paperback Writer and Lady Madonna, as examples, feel much heavier and tougher in mono. On the other hand, something like Daytripper seems to benefit from the more open sound that stereo provides. I seem to prefer the mono for a lot of the songs, but not all of them. I'm about to jump into The White Album to see how I feel about that, since it's the only album The Beatles mixed in both formats themselves.

MooMooMooMoo

It is Help & Rubber Soul that require buying the mono box to get the REAL stereo mixes. I find this situation ridiculous.........

MooMooMooMoo

Must be nice to be a reviewer!!!! (-:

Supermallet

Well, the 1965 stereo mixes, yeah. George Martin did the 1987 stereo mixes, too, so I'd say those are pretty authentic. Either way, both of those albums sound better in mono.

Edit: By the way, it's worth it to get the mono box for A Day In The Life and Hey Bulldog. Hey Bulldog is a total beast in mono, it feels toothless in comparison in stereo. And A Day In The Life becomes much more intense, the orchestra runs are practically bearing down on you. Really powerful stuff. The rest of the material is great, of course, but those two songs impressed me so much I listened to both multiple times, just in awe of how much better they are in mono.

Oh, and Ringo's drums become far more prominent in all the mono mixes, and Paul's bass sounds beefier. It really is like hearing these songs for the first time.

Mike86

I'm probably gonna jump on the Target deal this week and hopefully pick up all 14 cd's individually. I wouldn't mind having the box set but since it sounds like the bonus dvd is nothing too great and the only other advantage of the set is the nice box it comes in I'll just live with having them separate. Plus $35 in Target gift cards is a nice bonus. Hopefully at a later time I'll pick up the mono set as well. Still kind of on the fence if I want to get The Beatles: Rock Band though. If I do I'll likely just pick up the game alone and not the instrument set.

IronWaffle

A long, but worthy review of the remastered discs up to Revolver (pt 2 is coming soon). http://www.musicradar.com/news/guita...1963-66-219124

Also, anyone in the Baltimore area: Sound Garden is selling the discs @ $12.99 and offering $3 "discount" if you trade in old Beatles discs in exchange.

brokenhanger

I picked up "Magical Mystery Tour" at an indie that is notorious for breaking street dates - I wanted to pick one to tide me over until I could get them a little cheaper on release day and went with the sentimental favorite.

At first I wasn't so impressed but by halfway through 'The Fool on the Hill' I was totally sold. These sound great and I can't wait to get my hands on more on Wednesday.

I will say, though, I think it's totally ridiculous that there are typos on these things. The disc label lists the 'Let It Be' mini-documentary rather than the 'MMT' one, but the back sleeve is correct. Nonsense.

slop101

Seems like that reviewer mostly prefers the new stereo remasters to the monos.

Drexl

After debating over whether or not to wait for BDs which could take several years, I think I'm going to try to get the mono set when they produce more. I'll get Abbey Road and Let It Be in the meantime.

SuperBatMan

According to my local channel, Beatles on itunes available soon.