Supertramp ‎- Breakfast In America - LP Review And Comparison What Version Is The Best 

I got the early mfsl version in vg+ for just $20 less than 2 years ago. You must be sick of the album after all those listens. I really appreciate these comparisons as good sound is very important to me. Keep them coming.

This was great! Thank you. It's such a shame that Supertramp and Ken Scott parted ways as 'crisis what crisis' and 'crime ....' were such BEAUTIFUL recordings. I've never heard a decent crankable version of this LP, and will be on the lookout for your suggestions.

Thank you guys for another EXCELLENT video! You make my life so much easier! I wish I lived in Phoenix. I would stop by your store everyday to buy good stuff. Thanks again!!!

I'm SO glad you commented on the cymbals in the opening track. I bought the original Mofi from the 70s and that track drove me crazy. When the newer version came out, I was like "yay, that will be the first thing that will be fixed (and probably why they did another release). When I heard it I was convinced my cartridge wasn't aligned! Glad it wasn't my system!

thanks for a great video - extremely useful, its really appreciated by all of us

Thanks Mike, great video! Always look out for your comparison videos especially... 👍

pretty sure it won a grammy for best engineered album too

Excellent reviews. I have had problems finding a good copy of 'Breakfast', thanks to this review I have found a good sounding one. Cheers

I have recently picked up the new MFSL pressing and I already own a fantastic copy of the original Canadian pressing. The drum distortion is WAY more prevalent on Gone Hollywood, especially in the cymbals, than my Canadian version. That is the only issue I had with the MFSL version and I had no idea this was an issue with a lot of releases due to it being on the original tapes. The amount of detail and separation of the MFSL pressing vs. my other copy is night and day. A must have if you are a fan of this album. Thank you for the great video and review of these pressings.

My copy sounds great. 1979 A&M records 3708 Got it for $5 at a thrift store and it’s near mint! However I did just get a new cart and in the process of breaking in the styli, so far the highs are a little more accentuated but the bass is spot on and right. I playing it with a Technics slq-350 with a at81cp through Yamaha integrated and newly capped Kenwood KL-555a speakers. Everything I play sounds good with my setup so far, very happy and I only got about $600 in all of it.

Amazing as always!

“Breakfast in America” is my favorite music album! My second favorite one is “Sgt Peppers lonely heart club band”.

Thank you once again! A new MFSL is in the mail ;)

Love your videos. Would enjoy seeing a comparison of the various pressings of the Cars first album.

Thanks for your excellent video. I don't own as many copies as reviewed on this video, but I have one of the Canadian Half-Seed Matered and 1982 MFSL pressing among a couple of releases. My favourite so far is the year 2000 "Simply Vinyl" pressing. It has a proper soundstage and a very good tonal balance IMHO. After watching this video, I will get the 2017 MFSL pressing to add to the collection. I would love listening to the Nimbus release.

thanks for the great review

Grateful Dead- American beauty would be a cool comparison! Love the videos. Keep them coming!

Just got the original Japanese ‘Mastered by capitol’ version home. It sounds good. Thanks for the heads-up !😊👌🏼

8:28 - I bought the new MFSL versionw when it came out. I didn't want to miss out on it because I know those pressings get snapped up almost immediately, and I'm glad I grabbed it when I did. Not only is this a stellar album, even if you hear the whole thing on AM radio, the source being a worn out 8-track. It's still a very solid, memorable album, but this new MFSL pressing is tops, and I appreciate all the kudos you gave it.

Perfect analogy... love my MFL copy

Nice Beard Mike, looking good in general too! Great overview of the album, did not know about the Nimbus. Im looking forward to your DSOTM comparison overview as well!

Hello Mike I like your pressings reviews and i hope you keep making new reviews. I'd like to see a Review about electric ladyland and The Dark side of the moon.

huh neat, I haven't listened to that album in it's entirety before. I really like to see a video on cream Disraeli Gears by Cream. I currently have a original stereo pressing on the gold and purple atco label, 2nd press UK stereo on blue reaction, and a rso label. my favorite is the UK copy, it's thankfully the best condition and overall has the most impressive sound in my opinion. I bought it on reverb lp for $45 including shipping. I feel very gratefull and lucky to enjoy it for a good price.

I like these comparisons. How about A Night At The Opera -Queen .

Woah... You’re my neighbor! I live off 46th St & Thomas and ride past your store almost every day. I listened to Breakfast In America a few days ago. Played it off the 1979 A&M retail 8-track in the grey cartridge. It sounded fine to me, lol. I don’t even think I paid for that tape. BTW, the song is “Gone Hollywood”, not “Goin’ Hollywood”

Few groups in the history of Rock ( like Supertramp ) have been able to combine their heavy lyrics with a wide-ranging melody (The Doors, Pink Floyd...) without inevitably falling into the cacophony ...and because of this they can be considered geniuses, regardless of whether they brought something new or not. Moreover, many people scattered around the world consider the music of Supertramp also suitable for music therapy. In short, listening to them makes you feel good! No coincidence that this album was recorded in the best recording studio in the world. If, in their long career, they had been much closer to the mass media, they would have received other prestigious awards such as "Walk of Fame" and "RRHF"

I have a very clean original UK version bought from a charity shop. It sounds amazing! I am playing it through Rogers LS3/5A powered by a Naim amp though, which helps. Only thing I have noticed is that the hi-hats really are mushy, but my setup seems to handle it well. So it was interesting to hear what you said. What a mistake to mess up the drum recording at the time!

I just was recommended your channel from youtube and I was shocked you chose Supertramp for a fidelity review. I'm not sure about Breakfast In America, however the original recording of Crime of the Century is one of the finest recordings I ever heard. Now to be specific I had the original recording English press A&M disk. It was superb, the best record I ever owned. I believe A&M made the best pressings and the Import of "Crime" was my finest record. I don't know if Supertramp used another engineer for the follow up LP and I think I still own the "Breakfast" LP but not the import pressing. Seems a pitty so many brilliant analog recordings were replaced with early digital replacements, and the original tapes may have been lost forever.

Thank you! I'm a new subscriber. Please do Billy Joel "The Stranger". So many versions of this it would really be helpful. Also Gerry Rafferty "City to City" :-)

We have the original MFSL gold CD and it sounds fantastic. Unless you're strictly LP only, this CD is worth getting. And it is easier than making certain your LP is mint.

I totally agree. I own a lot of copies of Breakfast that you profiled, and for some reason it's impossible to find a good sounding copy. I found a recent UK pressing which is pretty good.

Dig Mike’s LP reviews!

I've had the mobile Fidelity I also got a copy for $2 and they both sounded great it's just great music get over it!!!😎😃✌

I have the 2008 pressing and honestly it sounds pretty good.

The distortion may well have been from the Harrison desk that was used when tracking. When it came to the mix, they found it to be rather harsh, so went elsewhere. The mix also took far longer than was planned! Apparently at the mastering session for the first pressing, Bob Ludwig was concerned about high high the bass was, but went with it and was pleased with the result. ..and let's not forget that this album won a Grammy for its engineering/production.. There's an excellent article about the recording of the album from a tech perspective here - www.soundonsound.com/techniques/classic-tracks-supertramp-logical-song

I own a near mint, nr unplayed Nimbus supercut.... thanks poppa! 😇 I would say the treble to my ears is night and day better on the Nimbus vs the latest Mofi cut which i also own. No, i will never ever sell it 😁

If you don't mind digital, the Mobile Fidelity gold CD from 30-ish years ago, sounds absolutely awesome. Don't bother with any other CD version, though. If you can't get the MFSL CD, get the records recommended in this video.

Great review and information! What kind of rack is your beautiful McIntosh system sitting on?

More of these!

Good to see you back Mike!! Great reviews. How about a Led Zepp III? My plum UK A5 B5 although regarded pretty good sound way too much on the top end. I hear the Canadian pursuing is pretty good.

Thank you Mike! Could you do one of Disraeli Gears by Cream? ~Peace

Could you do a comparison between the 6 (or 8, or 10) vinyl versions of Friday Night In San Francisco? Thanks!

I like the original first press. sounds good to these ears. Anything made with an analog preview head instead digital will sound pretty darn good.

I have an original US pressing. Now I’ll have to find it, clean it up, and put it on for a spin.

Thanks for the videos Mike. May I suggest Band On The Run?

The mofi is extraordinary!

Nimbus versions of Sgt Pepper & Band On The Run are excellent too. If I remember they cost £4.50 from Hi-Fi Pleasure magazine

Hi they released a picture disk to this album what’s that one like?

I’d love to see Strange Days done, this is a hard one to get a decent copy. I wonder if there is a better alternative to the AP reissue?

Worth mentioning the Aussie original press. It uses US plates with Bernie's mastering and has SILENT vinyl. Sounds unbelievable

Wow!, .... that's a funny thing. I looked on Acoustic Sound's website and I read the reviews for the new Mofi pressing and the only three reviews they had on there were very, very, bad. ...... super bad! ...... Man!, I would love to get this record.

Interesting to hear him talk about whether these awful pressings might be digitized when the mofi stuff is almost all digitized but he did mention that modern digital has come a long way and it certainly has. Some of the mofi records that were sent to dsd sound amazing.

Love my 1st Japan press , minty super Quiet vinyl. Sad to see you don't appreciate the Japan Presses.

Great video and excellent comparison, but a question... Do you know the master of the mfsl 2017 if it comes from the Master Tapes or an already Digital format? Because the old mfsl (1983) comes from analog masters, right? Thank you very much and continue with these reviews!

Totally agree this album has compression and some weird distortion baked in the master tape. It's always sounded off to me, even before i knew much about audio, there was something about it that didn't sound right. What happened between Crime of the Century and this one???

Anyone ever notice the city is condiments and coffee cups?

Idk, but my pretty clean copy of 1979 SP-3708 SP3729-m25 sounds pretty tasty. Very recently got it for like $4 as an add on to a $28 stones record. If it has a smiley face EQ, then I guess that's what I'm liking about it too, at least for this record. Maybe my system isn't great enough to hear the flaws. Again, idk.

SHM SACD and I’m more than happy

The best digital version hands down is the 2018 SACD by MFSL The best vinyl version imo is the 2017 MFSL vinyl

From what year is the Nimbus Supercut pressing that is mentioned to be the best sounding version of this record?... I'm looking for this record and this review comes in very handy! Right now there's no copy available from MFSL so looking for the Nimbus Supercut might be an interesting task! Great vids, btw!

I have a few copies on lp and cd. I like the original with the trumpet in the wax best. The mofi version is very good and with a bit more weight to it overall, but I find the cymbals on gone hollywood and a couple of other places a big distraction. On all the other versions that issue was dealt with, to the point where they are buried further in the mix and you actually have to listen hard to hear the distortion, so it really isn’t a problem. On the mofi it is much louder and very clearly present. Not sure how that could have got through QC with all the test pressings they apparently do at mofi, unless someone has cloth ears over there.

I know these videos take a lot of time, but I wish we could get a new one once a week! My requests: Black Sabbath- Heaven and Hell Dio - Holy Diver Judas Priest- Stained Class Megadeth- Countdown to Extinction

I love the 1st German pressing. It sounds better than the 1st US at least.

Got a 1979 Supertramp Breakfast in America of A&M Records Inc.distributed under licence by Festival Records Pty Ltd Australia.Purchased in Aussie because I live in Aussie So what's it worth ?

I’ve got an original US pressing in near mint condition. I’ve always thought it sounded really good. I might have to try listening to it a bit more critically next time.

Thanks for the review, Can you tell me if that's a HRS platform under your turntable? I'm looking for something to go under my VPI.

Do roxy music's debut album from 1972

My original glowed green under blacklight. Intentional or accidental?

To me this record sounds like it was just mixed for the radio. I did recently get the new Mobile Fidelity and it sounds ok. If you want good Supertramp get Crimes Of The Century on Mobile Fidelity.

MASTERED BY NIMBUS. even their cd masters sound better than many vinyl masters !

I purchased a 2000`s copy of Breakfast In America and after that to save myself the headache of finding a better pressing, I went and bought the Blue Ray Audio. Problem solved!

Thanks ! What about Michael Jackson Thriller ? So many versions out there

Mine says PROMOTION NOT FOR SALE. SP-3708. What does that mean ???

Canadian pressing!

Man, the L.A. Woman Video was great!! Please do more Doors stuff. Also Pink Floyd’s and supertramp’s crime of the century :)

Bridge over troubled water! Or any Simon & Garfunkel!

Just picked up the original US copy for about $10 from someone who didn’t know any better. To be honest, it’s my 2nd record so it’s not like I know any better either. But really glad I picked it up because it’s cool to own the original copy of something, and... it’s a decent copy. Plus it was $10 so who cares just glad it’s not garbage lol

Some titles I would like to see done: The Church - Starfish Steely Dan - Aja Roxy Music - Avalon Pink Floyd - Meddle, Wish you were here

Not my favourite Supertramp album but still a goody. I have an Australian 1st pressing (I'm an Aussie) and sometimes Oz pressings used UK stampers.....can't be sure if that was the case here but my copy sounds quite excellent. However, I have an Oz pressing of 'Brother Where You Bound' (IMO, a superior album to BIA) and it sounds absolutely superb, a better pressing AND a better recording and production than BIA in EVERY way.

Is the newer MFSL version sold out?

1979

Buy an old german VG+ or netherland (europian) pressing for 5 euros or dollars and you have nothing to worry about. You`ll save a lot of money for expensive records that you want to buy and you`ll just feel fine.

I agree, great album, one of my all time favourites but as a hifi fanatic- it drives me nuts- poor sound recording- rips your head off. I am using valves and have waited 40 years for a decent pressing, Thanks for this tip and will give it a go and get back to you. Could you please do a comparison on Steely Dans- Gaucho. Cheers

The original first US pressing is the best sounding to my ears!

Interesting. I have only owned one copy of this album, an original US pressing with the A&M trumpet logo in the dead wax. It was mastered by Bernie Grundman (not sure what the reference is to Robert Ludwig below). Anyhow, I just cleaned and ripped mine...I think it is one of the best sounding LPs that I own. I guess I am not hearing the "distortion" spoke about in the drums? At any rate, it is a fantastic album!

I just dug up a vinyl copy I've had since perhaps late 80's? or maybe I bought it used in the 90's. I was shocked at the physical condition as I typically take care of my vinyl, so maybe I bought it used and cheap. A&M SP-3708 TCI-T. It is so compressed and terrible cymbals as you stated and half the volume of a cd I purchased in late 80's where the cymbals may have been overcompensated.

Can you do Steely Dan -Aja, Nirvana nevermind, the killers Hot fuss, and Michael Jackson off the wall, Thriller, and Bad, Dire straights brother in arms, Joni Mitchell court and spark, maybe a David Bowie album, and Fleetwood Mac Rumors.

Please review Vangelis - Blade runner.

Based off your tone it seems like hours of listening to Breakfast in America took a toll on your mental well-being 😆

Pretty in-depth review, but i'm not 100% sure..:) On a serious note, did you do all the listening on the gear to your right?

Take a look at my album. It's the only one I've got. Not much of an album. Never seem to play a lot.

Supertramp ‎- Breakfast In America Label: A&M Records ‎- 0600753304365 Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, Remastered, 180 Gram Country: Europe Released: 2010 THIS IS MY FAV

Totally disagree with you on the old Mofi not sounding as good as the recent press. I did these side by side quite a few times and the original has more bass, soundstage, mids and highs. The new one just sounded flat in comparison

So the copy you chose as the 2nd best and best bang for buck is the copy that emphasizes the worst part of the album (the distorted drums) the most?

btw i listen to this album since it came out,,and the problems with the drums is an all versions,,immy opinion., its to muffled, a dead drum sound

Great album, but highly overproduced , I own the new MoFi version. My favorite is Crime of The Century musically.

I wish he would do Steely Dan's Royal Scam album. Also Phoebe snow's debut album.

couldn't have been more wrong about the mix of the record...

Another sugestion- Crime of the.Century.

@3:45 "One of the problems the Japanese do ... they have certain mastering choices that they do that are probably really desirable in the Japanese market." I respectfully disagree. Generally speaking, people purchase locally. So if that is what those local studios are trudging out, then that is what those regional folks are purchasing. The studios are making the choice for them. Yes, customers can purchase on-line, and pay the additional costs for overseas shipping, and many do. But most people, anywhere in the world, are not listening "critically". They put the song on, and they go about their business. They probably do not even recognize the deficiencies, or if they do, it is not a big deal for them. Searching for a better sounding pressing is not a priority for them, assuming that they even know that overseas' pressings are better. Consider The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour: Did the US and the UK customers want crummy sound quality, and only the German customers wanted amazing sound quality? Of course not. The people purchased what was shoveled out to them by the local studios. There are a select few yahoos at the Japanese studios that control the mastering, and for reasons unknown, they like crappy sounding pressings (to their ear, its great -- they just do not recognize their own incompetence). So a few powerful studio people make the choice for their entire country. I doubt that the population prefers that awful sound. And I feel confident that just about any Japaneses citizen, if played a Japanese pressing and then a US pressing, would absolutely choose the US pressing. Please do not assign the blame for the crappy Japanese pressings to the Japanese people. Please assign the blame to the responsible personnel in the studio (and if their names are "classified", then blame the studio -- and at the very least, blame the owner of the studio, who is ultimately responsible for its products). I suspect that nearly every critical Japanese listener no longer purchases Japanese pressings. Those lousy pressings are sold to those in the general public that does not know better.