What are your go to LP's for evaluating new gear or new tubes?

One re-master definitely worth listening to is Steve Hoffman’s version of Joni Mitchell’s Blue. Lovely!

@billpete

- The Crosby track is good because it has that great Bill Weir bass to test the bottom, Jerry Garcia’s pedal steel for the high end, Steven Stills and Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash and Paul Kantner in the chorus to test separation, and Crosby out front, with a large acoustical space.

- I personally look for original or second press in NM or SS condition over remasters. With the exception of Rino, I find almost reissues and remasters to be inferior, sometimes decidedly so. I was particularly disappointed with the MoFi 45rpm remasters if Fleeteood Mac and the Airplane’s Volunteers.

@bdp24 

I had to recheck my Island copy of TFTT. I was not aware of a solid pink label but mine is surrounded in pink and thought perhaps that was the reference. I decided I needed to see for myself if I was thinking wrong and I was, not knowing there was a solid pink label out there. I do have the sunray in pink outline but if you read on Steve Hoffman reviews of this, the early ones like I have are supposed to be the same as the solid pink copy. There was reference to the code in the wax, U2, I think which matched what I have. I just can't remember from one minute to the next so I may have that wrong. You can check Hoffman for yourself or maybe you have. I certainly believe you as your description has a rather amazing amount of details that I would think is known by a very small group. Interesting for sure. 

I never had a problem with the A&M's as they were all that I had. If you have no better reference, they become the reference. There are differences even among them as one says dbx and that one got high praise at least from someone. I'll have to check and see what I can hear as differences among my own. I just always found the Island copy to be somewhat better than the A&M'a that I had for so many years before. If I have the wrong one, I can only imagine how good the solid pink one must be and I guess I have to throw my system out the window. :) Thanks for the info and no, I am not following it 100%. It would take me awhile to absorb it all. 

@unreceivedogma 

Funny, that is the same gang that I was just listening to on Joni Mitchell's own recording. Very good stuff and well done.

Remasters have almost always been a disappointment to me, especially for the price. Originals have been better virtually every time. Rino rings a bell, might have something on that label somewhere. I think I remember reading that you have 6k LP's and know them all. I have somewhere between 2 and 3k and keep finding ones that I don't remember. Kind of fun and kind of sobering at the same time.

Someone said that analog remasters are fine and that stands to reason, especially if they go back to the original master tapes. D2D eliminates all of that and it's not hard to understand how it can be so good. Recorded direct to cutting lathe, no tape involved. I've never had the pleasure of hearing a master tape first hand but have spoken to some old internet buddies who had that luxury. I guess nothing quite compares but D2D is probably as close as it would get. Anyway, all good stuff. Thanks.

@dogberry 

I didn't know there was a Steve Hoffman version. I'll have to look for that. I guess this is why people stream. I have to buy it all to find out. Takes time.