Simon and Garfunkel "Bridge Over Troubled Waters" MOFI UD1S


I’ve had my copies for awhile now and have had a chance to listen to it several times. This is the newest Mobile Fidelity "One-Step", (UD1S) that was just finally released.

While this is on par with the first three UD1S reissues, it just falls a little short. I think maybe I was expecting too much?

It’s a fantastic recording and sounds superb, but it left me puzzled. The first side is excellent, very quiet and dynamic. Side 2 with the song "Cecilia" is just SUPERB! It’s hard to say that the track "Cecilia" alone is worth the price of admission, well, because $100 for one song is kinda silly, but WOW, this track is really, really good. Side three is kinda weird and seems to vary from song to song. This can be said to a much lesser degree for the whole album, but side three is inconsistent. This could just be the way the tapes are now, many years later.

I did compare this to my US first pressing and my UK first pressing and this UD1S is better in every way. Quieter, more dynamic, deeper bass, cleaner vocals and way more open sounding.

Don’t get me wrong, this is a WONDERFUL album and recording and I highly recommended it, but not as highly as the first three...
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Showing 1 response by 6t5-gto

I picked up my pre-ordered through my local record shop copy last Saturday and have about 5 spins thru it. 
Overall it is A.) a phenomenal performance, just a totally great record, B.) the clarity, detail, separation, dynamics, and output are incredible but C.) not perfect, which for $100 retail copy I get to voice my comments after the entry price, and one could expect near perfection for the price. 
I too noticed that there seemed to be some issues with the levels changing during playback. Side 3 seems the most noticeable.
I also found the highs to be a bit bright and almost overwhelming due to the dynamics of the record. The beginnings of certain songs, like the title track, and The Boxer, start off pretty mellow and end in a big crescendo, which depending on where the volume started at the beginning of the track is almost too much at the end. Mainly in the sharpness of the high end of the register.
Cecelia is a phenomenal track due to the dynamics but I also enjoy Baby Driver much more than ever along with Keep the Customer Satisfied. I have to admit I alway thought that Frank Lloyd Wright was kind of a corny song but it sounds so amazing on this Box that I really enjoy it.
Overall I think this pressing is worth the money and worth picking up. Nit picks aside, the dynamics and clarity are worth the price of admission. And the packaging and overall product is very well done.