$3000! Yipes! Someone really wanted that record. I usually prefer original pressings but not at that price.
Compared Tone Poet to Mosaic
This might interest some people. The new copy of Hank, by Hank Mobley Sextet on Tone Poet just arrived last week. The sextet: Donald Byrd, trumpet; John Jenkins, alto; Hank Mobley, tenor; Bobby Timmons, piano; Wilbur Ware, bass; Philly Joe Jones, drums. Originally released in 1957, new release dated 2026, but received 12/2025. Anyway this is a terrific hard bop record in the best Blue Note tradition. Originally recorded by Rudy Van Gelder, remastered by Kevin Gray and Produced by Joe Harley. I thought it might be fun to compare the vinyl Tone Poet with the Mosaic release of 2022, which is on CD.
For vinyl playback: VPI HW-40 w/SoundSmith Hyperion set up using AnalogMagic, Conrad Johnson ART Phono.
For digital playback: Luxman D-10X
Amp, line stage, speakers, wires etc. were the same for both.
Well some interesting differences and similarities. First the Mosaic set used the mono master, whereas the Tone Poet set used the stereo master. With that said the two masters were made simultaneously so there were no differences in performance. The overall tonality of two were exactly the same. That surprised me. Overall I found that I liked the mono recording better. I was amazed that there was no real difference between the analog and the digital versions that I could discern. They were equally great and I would be happy to own either. The difference I heard was more to do with what the recording engineer did and it is clear that Rudy V.G. was more adept or more comfortable with mono and lavished more attention on it to get it right. I also think that Kevin Gray must have done everything possible to capture the sound of the original mono master. The two recordings are remarkably transparent. Later recordings in the Mosaic set are in stereo and if there is interest and if I have a duplicate in vinyl of another record, let me know and I will endeavor to do a follow up.
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"If the original recording was mono how was it changed to stereo?" AI quick answer: You make a mono recording sound stereo by duplicating the track, panning the copies hard left and right, and then applying subtle differences like a slight delay (micro-delay), EQ tweaks, or using a stereo widening plugin to create a sense of width, since true stereo needs different signals in each channel, not just doubled mono.
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No, not RVG, he used two machines, one mono and one stereo. There is no slight of hand here, two masters were made. What amazed me is that there is no difference, repeat NO DIFFERENCE, in the sound quality between my extremely expensive vinyl setup and my CD player. The tonality, the clarity - identical. The Tone Poet records sound great too. That also says a lot about the later Mosaic CDs which are in fact excellent. And of course the Luxman D-10X is very good as well, but in terms of dollars invested it cost a mere fraction as much as the TT + cartridrige + SUT + phonostage + the extra wires. Tens of thousands less altogether. Then consider the cost of the CD compared to the cost of that minty vinyl record that @tablejockey found on discogs. And I'll bet you a bottle of your favorite beverage that there is no difference in sound quality based on my experiment here. Although that minty vinyl record would probably not sound as good as either of the modern options because RVG said he always cut the bass on the lacquers to prevent the crappy arms of the day from jumping out of the record grooves. There really is a limit and here is an example. |
Detailed breakdown of early Blue Note recordings. Insightful read The Blue Note Record Sound | Music Matters Jazz | Jazz Vinyl
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