Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band - L.P Australia 1983 Audiophile

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Vinyl L.P • Audiophile / EMI Australia Limited • AUDIO-5.

1967 • Australia • Reissue 1983.

No gatefold.

Back cover.

Labels.

THIS RECORD IS A HIGH QUALITY PRECISION PRODUCT

Treat it well and it will last a life-time

NOTES ON LOOKING AFTER THIS RECORD

• Above all else, keep the record clean and free from dust.

• Cleaning with a carbon-fibre type `dust-bug' which is earthed or a soft hand held brush is recommended. Cleaning cloths and fluid cleaners are not normally recommended.

• Handle the record by the edge and label only. Natural body oils on the fingers cause a noisy surface if the grooves are touched.

• To prevent warpage, store away from heat and without uneven pressures. Vertical storage with gentle, even, side pressure is ideal.

• Check that the stylus is not worn and that the arm and cartridge are correctly aligned. It only takes one playing with a worn or chipped stylus to permanently damage the record's very delicate playing surface (this applies to any record).

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

• This audiophile series record has been manufactured in a limited edition with the very best equipment carefully chosen from around the world. The greatest care has been taken in all stages of its production.

• The original tapes used are 30 in/s (76 cm/s) masters with no noise reduction. This ensures a source of programme material of the highest fidelity with no additional noise reduction circuitry to potentially soften transients and cause other distortion.

• The master tape is replayed off a Swiss Studer master machine - the ultimate in professional tape machines.

• The individually selected lacquer is cut at HALF SPEED using a special German Neumann 74B cutting system. This half speed cutting gives very wide dynamics and a frequency response on the finished lacquer that is accurate to better than 1dB within the audio band and extends flat to beyond 40 kHz.

• After cutting, the lacquer is specially plated and the resulting metal parts very carefully checked. If an imperfection is detected at this stage, then the whole process is begun again from the master tape.

• Finally the record is made in a press custom built for audiophile pressings - the only one of its type in the Southern Hemisphere. A special blend of new, virgin vinyl is used to produce a heavy weight record with extended response, a quiet surface and long life. It used to be thought that hard ('super') vinyls were best for audiophile pressings. However, recent research has shown that hard vinyls tend to suffer from microscopic flaking - a phenomenon known as Young's Modulus. The vinyl in this record uses carefully selected copolymers to give the best possible overall performance.

WARRANTY

• Every care has been taken in making this record and it is guaranteed against faulty workmanship or materials for a period of six months from the date of purchase.

• Regrettably this warranty must be limited to manufacturing defects and no exchange can be given if the record has been mishandled or abused, i.e. finger marks, scratches, dust and dirt damage, substances applied to the surface, an incorrectly adjusted system or warpage caused through improper storage.

If in spite of all our care, you are unfortunate enough to have a copy with a defect, then please write or phone our Quality Control Manager, at P.O. Box 32, Homebush, N.S.W. 2140, Phone: 764-0044. Please do not return the record to your dealer.

AUDIOPHILE SERIES

LIMITED EDITION

HALF SPEED MASTERED

EXTENDED RESPONSE AND DYNAMICS

SPECIAL (SUPER) AUDIOPHILE QUALITY

SPECIAL HI-TECH PRESSING

Cover sticker.

Memorabilia:

Australia Hi-Fi Show '83.

Hi-Fi Magazine Vol. 14 No 6.

EMI Records will be demonstratving and offering for sale exclusively at the Show its new range of Audiophile Recordings.

The Australian Audiophile project was undertaken for two main reasons.

The first was to make available to serious Australian record collectors a strictly limited edition of very high quality pressings that are made in Australia.

Secondly, by undertaking such a project, there would be a lot of spin-offs into the normal mass-production processes that would further improve the quality of standard EMI pressings.

There are four titles available, selected by EMI to make a repertoire available to suit a wide range of Audiophile tastes:-

The Beatles' "Sergeant Pepper"; is one of the classics of all time and also a selection that reveals subtleties and nuances inaudible in the normal pressings.

"The John Keating Space Experience", one of the milestones in synthesiser influenced music.

The Little River Band's "Time Exposure"; an Australian record that is certainly worthy of the special treatment.

"Late Night Guitar" by Earl Klugh as the ultimate in high fidelity easy listening. Full technical information on these very special records is included with each record.

Collectors will be interested to know that having started with a perfect pressing, the production of the record was stopped at the first sign of a blemish. As a result there are less than 500 copies available of each title and each one is individually numbered.

These are real collectors' items and should steadily increase in value.

They are available only at the Australian HI-FI Show and sell for approximately $25.00.... So, bring your money with you!

The Collector's Dream.

Hi-Fi Magazine Vol. 14 No 6.

Audiophile recordings.

Hi-Fi Magazine Vol. 14 No 6.

Mastering Info - Don Bartley

Subject: Sgt Pepper Half Speed Master

Date: 29 August 2005 4:04:13 PM

Hi Don,

I saw on an English web site they credited you with mastering this.

I have a pressing barely played in over 20 years. I have No. 189. I am of course a Beatle nut and an audiophile!

One has turned up in England for sale at 1500 pounds that's around AU$3300!!

Could you spare a little time to tell me anything about the whole story?

I remembered seeing an article somewhere further down the line where they said that EMI London had sent THE actual master tapes. Is this true?

Any other facts and figures or even faded memories would be appreciated.

If you can much appreciated,

Paul

From:

Subject: Sgt Pepper Half Speed Master

Date: 31 August 2005 12:43:51 AM

Hello Paul,

Thanks for your interesting message and yes that was a special time for me as I am also a Beatle "nut". The whole project was handled very well by EMI. I was given all the time that I needed to get it right and I seem to remember spending about 3 days on it. As it was a "half speed" transfer there were many test cuts done, two of which I still have and I have never played them since that time. I remember spending many hours setting up for the "secret" track in the lock groove at the end and somehow, I managed to get it exactly the same as the original Abbey Road "cut". The tapes used were specially sent out form Abbey Road, they were not the originals but 1:1 direct copies of the originals. They were 30 ips, Dolby A and I remember feeling quite privileged and lucky the moment I started to play them. The amazing thing about this project was that I was allowed to EQ at my leisure and I must say that was a challenge especially working at half speed. I do remember listening to the test cuts at the time and thinking how fantastic it sounded. Since then I have quite a few people comment on its quality, including Ed Kuepper, who said it's the best version he has ever heard.

Thanks again Paul and it's good to know that a good vinyl is still the way to go. Kind Regards.

Don Bartley. IMS

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