jamesV Posted May 2, 2008 Share Posted May 2, 2008 Not bad from shipping, I received it today only two days after I ordered it. It does have a little bit of the plastic gone from the upper left corner and numbered 3475. I will have some time this weekend to listen, since they are calling for rain. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBryan Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Interesting.... the box set I ordered from Amazon last Friday arrived this am and the serial# is lower than the one I got from them a couple of weeks ago (#1300 vs.168x). I read that Amazon had to re-stock before this week's shipment so I wonder if Rhino is even keeping track of such things. BTW, the packing was actually worse than with the first one I received - it was loosely taped, only had a couple of air pillows and one end was crushed. Oddly enough, the box set arrived safely and even the plastic was intact this time. I've heard that the quality of these box sets are spotty - some folks report bad printing, loose labels, even deep gouges in the records but so far Rhino seems to be very responsive to these claims - be sure to check your set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garymd Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Bryan, The deep gouges seem to be an RTI QA issue. I had a similiar problem with one of my Blue Note 45s so now I have a 2nd copy of McLean's LP#2 (free) even though the gouge was only 1/4" at the beginning of one side. RTI is pressing so many LPs these days that the cooling arm gripper thingys (that's the technical term[]) occasionally wear out leaving gouges on the outside edge of some LPs. BTW - I still haven't heard anyone else's opinion. Bryan? Travis? Anyone else listen yet??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted May 7, 2008 Share Posted May 7, 2008 BTW - I still haven't heard anyone else's opinion. Bryan? Travis? Anyone else listen yet??? I get home tomorrow night and will be putting this on first thing Friday morning. Is there one in particular you recommend to start out with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lonelobo Posted May 7, 2008 Share Posted May 7, 2008 Ordered mine thru Amazon as well. 2 days later it arrives as #3736. I was thinking about ordering another set for investment and leaving it in wraps, but it sounds like I would need to open it up to inspect for quality issues. Any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcarlton Posted May 7, 2008 Share Posted May 7, 2008 Ordered mine in Feb. Came today...03846/12500. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBryan Posted May 8, 2008 Share Posted May 8, 2008 Bryan, The deep gouges seem to be an RTI QA issue. I had a similiar problem with one of my Blue Note 45s so now I have a 2nd copy of McLean's LP#2 (free) even though the gouge was only 1/4" at the beginning of one side. RTI is pressing so many LPs these days that the cooling arm gripper thingys (that's the technical term) occasionally wear out leaving gouges on the outside edge of some LPs. BTW - I still haven't heard anyone else's opinion. Bryan? Travis? Anyone else listen yet??? Well, that wasn't what I wanted to hear. Now I'll have to rip open all the records I have from RTI and check 'em. I did finally crack open the Door's Box set and listened to my favorites....Strange Days and Waiting for the Sun. I scrutinized all the records in the box and found only clean, shiny surfaces..WHEW! The only complaint I have is that the mono self-titled cover had a couple of scuff marks that shouldn't be there but that's hardly enough reason to send it back. maybe I'll just request another cover. I am quite pleased with both records I heard and think they are a definite improvement over the originals. Coincidentally, I picked up several Doors LPs in the past 2 weeks (in addition to the box sets) and had a chance to do some comparisons. Visually, the covers from the box set are brighter than the originals and aren't as defined. Sonically, at least with SD and WFTS the box set is more open and defined with a much-improved bottom end and Jim's voice is more front and center. The originals had a darker presentation and the soundstage was compressed between the speakers while the instruments on the box set LPs was more stretched out and filled in beyond the speakers. I didn't hear any surface noise as Gary pointed out but maybe it'll show up on some of the other records in the set. All-in-all, a great set and a notch above the originals and leaps and bounds above some reissues (except one or 2 from DCC). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBryan Posted May 8, 2008 Share Posted May 8, 2008 BTW, I'm also getting the MOFI copy of the Doors LP (self-titled) so I'll compare that with the box set issue this weekend (hopefully). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garymd Posted May 8, 2008 Share Posted May 8, 2008 Bryan, It was only one RTI problem I had and the explanation came from the guys at Acoustic Sounds. Apparently there are pads on those arms and they sometimes wear out before they have a chance to change them. Glad to hear you like the LPs. I had the same impression when comparing to the originals and even my Japanese pressings. As far as surface noise, the worst was Morrison Hotel and you could really only hear it between songs and during rare quiet passages. The Doors just didn't have many quiet passages on those LPs. It wasn't a big issue, just something I (and others) noticed on a couple of the Lps. Maybe you got lucky! Did you notice Strange Days was a bit on the thin side (but still very detailed) compared to the others? Still much better than the original IMO. Thanks for the review Bryan. Anyone else crack theirs open? I know Mike will this weekend. I'm looking forward to his review as well as the rest of you who are holding back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted May 10, 2008 Author Moderators Share Posted May 10, 2008 Well the intitial impressions are: Holy Cow, this is the set to own. Hands down, no comparison, with the exception of DCC and R2R prerecorded. They blow away the tan and butterfly labels in every respect. The Jap. Imp. of The Doors is good, but with the Morrison way more out front, I would say it is preference on that one, but I much prefer the Rhino. Toss the MSFL The Doors. The 71/2 IPS tape is vitrually identical to the S/T Rhino stereo, but the Rhino is slightly clearer on the symbols. The best version of The End I have every heard which is saying A LOT for the Rhino vinyl. It is very tought to beat the 7.5 IPS tapes. I got a good number because I ordered direct from Rhino, the day it was announced that they were doing a CD and LP reissued. The Rhino CD issue is something worth getting as well. Three of the lp's covers have that damage, almost a split at the top, not quite and have a 1" white area. That was a bummer. The lead in between songs have a lot of noise in places, but nothing during the song itself, even in a quite passage of the song. I still have to compare the Rhino Mono The Doors, with my original issue mono. That is goning to be a big one for me to compare. I'm with Gary, you can sell the red labels, the MFSL, the imports, and go with this set and you are going to be more then happy. I still have to listen to the DCC's and the Mono and will update on that. Travis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted May 10, 2008 Share Posted May 10, 2008 Three of the lp's covers have that damage, almost a split at the top, not quite and have a 1" white area. That was a bummer. The lead in between songs have a lot of noise in places, but nothing during the song itself, even in a quite passage of the song. All 7 of mine have a minimum 1" white area and 3 of them have closer to 2". I am really pissed at the moment. I am going to send my entire box set back to Amazon, but don't know what to do now. If I order another from them it will show up the same way (truly, the worst packing job I have ever seen with vinyl), and if I order from Elusivedisc or Acoustic Sounds I'm not sure if it'll be any better. I would like to talk to Amazon and send them the packing materials, but I am certain they won't do anything with them. I have only played the Morrison Hotel and it is superb! Blows away my red label, which sounds very good in it's own right. But I still can't get over how poor all the covers look, and I have to send them all back. It makes me sick that probably 90% of these are all in the same condition. You would think someone would do something about this. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBryan Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 I listened to the original S/T mono last night and I think the box set S/T mono is an improvement but not as much as with some of the other titles. I don't find either mono all that impressive - kind of dark and distant with a bit of distortion in the upper-mids and the imaging is very flat but since its essentially being thrown in to complete the set, I'll live with it and listen to the stereo version whenever the mood strikes. I'm still waiting on the Doors' MOFI release to arrive and will compare that to the Rhino. Travis...which Doors' tape(s) are you listening to (the self-titled album)? I've been going through a few boxes of pre-recorded tapes that I picked up lately and the fidelity is there but I'm hearing some tape noise and crosstalk bleed in the pause between songs. It normally wouldn't bother me but until a few weeks ago, I was listening to albums I'd recorded at 15ips and that was a revelation that essentially doomed my CDP. If there were pre-recorded tapes at 15ips (aside from the $300 Tape Project offerings), I may even have a hard time firing up the TT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBryan Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 To those who found their box set damaged.... "Originally Posted by Doorsmanagement Well, here I come to post, and I see the preceding message - so, yes, you DO deserve some words from management. There have - obviously - been some problems with the first box sets (and perhaps all of them). We haven't even received any for US in the office, or for The Doors, so we can't even examine them ourselves! We are NOT happy campers - and neither are Rhino. Apparently, RTI, the manufacturer, is (clearly) having difficulty producing large-volume orders, and they are (again, clearly) experiencing some quality-control issues. We went with RTI because they are THE best high-end audiophile vinyl manufacturers we know of - and, funny enough, everyone is raving (more or less) about the actual SOUND quality of the vinyl release. But, for well in excess of a hundred bucks, you deserve pristine packaging, artwork, delivery, etc. No less. There were also one or two artwork mistakes on the Rhino end (using a stereo catalog number for a mono record, or vice-versa), etc., etc. While there is nothing we can do about the art mistakes we frankly ALL missed, you guys deserve to be taken care of for ANY quality-control issues - and we will see to it that you are. The most vocal fans are those who have issues with their vinyl box, bit we have found that the vast majority of Vinyl Box Sets were fine (thank GOD) - though that is no excuse, and we will see that each and every last issue is handled for our fans, no worries. It's all we CAN do at this stage, but we will make sure that everyone ends up with a complete, pristine Box Set. Go to www.rhino.com, and navigate to "Ask Dr. Rhino." They are aware of the issues, they are having replacement sleeves, liners and records sent to them from RTI, and they will replace ALL defective parts of ANY Doors Vinyl Box that anyone may have, no question. Now, it's gonna take a little time to get all of the replacement parts manufactured, but I cannot see it taking more than a few weeks at MOST. If you have an ongoing problem or issue that Dr. Rhino has not taken care of - AFTER you've attempted to do so through them - please email us directly and we will address them personally on your behalf. Email to: vinylbox@thedoors.com" Thankfully, they are acknowledging the problems and it looks like they're trying to keep everyone happy.... so far. -Bryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcarlton Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 I have listened to the first three records...The Doors, Strange Days and Waiting for the Sun. TD and SD all have surface noise between songs. WFTS has the label offset on the record by about 1/8" which looks weird. Sounded quiet though. Packaging looks pristine. Album cover colors seem odd compared to my original covers. Gives the impression someone used Photoshop to boost the colors and printed them with an older model deskjet printer. Jims hair on TD original cover has enough resolution to pick out single strands whereas the reissue looks blurred in comparison and difficult to pick out strands of hair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garymd Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 I guess I got lucky. My set is perfect. All labels are straight and covers have no discoloration. Other than the noise between songs on a couple LPs which seem to be on everyone's records, absolutely no issues. Good luck fellas getting replacements. Are they asking for the bad records or jackets to be returned? If it's anything like the Blue Note 45 series, you might end up with some doubles to pass around to friends. Maybe not such a bad thing in the long run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I am interested in being friends with anyone with Blue Note doubles...[{][][}] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garymd Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I am interested in being friends with anyone with Blue Note doubles... And I might need a carpenter in the near future. I'm sure we can work something out mi amigo. Want a paid vacation to the beaches of Delaware??? (wink, wink) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted May 12, 2008 Share Posted May 12, 2008 I just emailed Dr Rhino... I'll let you know what they tell me in regards to the covers. As a side note I have #2786 I believe. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted May 14, 2008 Share Posted May 14, 2008 Dr Rhino responded back and told me to let them know which covers/lp's are bad, and they will order new ones for me, but it will take 4 - 6 weeks before I get them. Regardless, this is great customer service. I will definitely buy more lp's from these guys if I find something I want. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garymd Posted May 14, 2008 Share Posted May 14, 2008 I didn't know you could order directly from Rhino. I'll have to look into that since I seem to buy quite a few of their reissues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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