Mike Oldfield – Tubular Bells

Just got my copy. I guess I was lucky because mine sounds great. Quiet vinyl too which is a must for this album. I also have the original UK version which is a bit noisy, but the audio is great too. I like this 50th better just for the quiet vinyl.
UPDATE: Been listening to this a few days and it is just fantastic. Miles Showell is my favorite Lacquer cutter guy. All the pressings that I have of his is just amazing.

5th copy is a charm.

Yep, 4 duds returned mainly due to non fills. A 5 month wait and i tried another and i finally got a defect free one.

Now i can finally appreciate the wonderful remastering here.

I still maintain the CD counterpart at 1/3rd the price makes more sense but y'know

Been a fan of this album since 1973, OMG can’t believe it’s “50” years, surly I’m not old enough 😖😭

I went trough two copies of this release, both had a loud, repeating click affecting the last 20 seconds or so of side A (the guitar outro). The closing chorus on side A is also heavily distorted, which is very unfortunate… Finally I kept the second copy on which the click was less pronounced because besides these issues I really love this release. The packaging is great, it shows care, and the bonus disc material is interesting. Regarding the sound: I love this remaster, yes it’s louder than the original recording, yes it’s more dynamically compressed but in this rare case it somehow works for me. I can really hear all the small little details and all the instruments in this wonderfully complex composition.

This is worth the purchase just for the bonus disc. Love it. Happy with the sound quality & quiet vinyl. No issues thankfully…I must have gotten lucky for a change.

My copy sounds fine throughout. Good pressing and nice addition to the collection.

A tale of two sides.... 1st copy a PERFECT side 1 but a non filled disaster on side 2. 2nd copy a now non filled side one and perfect side 2. Welcome to buying vinyl in 2023!

A frustrating hobby now due mainly to the pressing plants focusing on quantity over quality. For images of these shoddy pressings see my Amazon UK review.

Edit: determined, ive tried a 3rd (worst of the lot) and a 4th copy. The 4th has the least visible non fill but the sheer tics, pops and rips are unacceptable.

A HARD HARD for me on this release entirely. What a shame. Or is it? The CD is mastered the same and is 1/3rd the price... maybe the vinyl gods are trying to tell me something!

I enjoyed 98% of side one until the guitar outro when a non-visible but audible once per revolution blemish ruins the effect. Anybody else experience this? The LP is currently in the US cleaner to hopefully solve the issue. UPDATE: No amount of cleaning could solve the issue so returned to WOM. The replacement was same plus several other unacceptable blemishes. Full refund this time, I give up for now. Have written to Abbey Road but no-one has bothered to reply so far. Shame.

Lots of mixed reviews and opinions here. I kinda get tired of the OG argument, as vinyl quality during this era was generally poor, with the exception of Japan and . Further, mastering has significantly improved over the decades, to the point where a good master tape will give you phenomenal results - case in point John Martyn’s Solid Air (Abbey half-speed), which ended up being the best-sounding release of the Abbey Rd series. As for this release, it is dead-quiet, and sounds very clean. Compared to the V2001, it’s cleaner, and there is excellent separation of instruments. The artwork is the big letdown here - another washed-out record cover. Universal are absolutely the worst in this area - have they lost their entire repertoire? Other than that, this pressing will serve you well, and you won’t have to pay an obscene amount of £ / $ for a NM original.

Initially, I received a copy that exhibited a significant amount of surface noise, prompting me to return it. Upon receiving the replacement, while it was free of surface noise, I discovered it to be off-center, causing a distinct pitch effect. Regrettably, it appears that I might have to return this one as well.