The Beatles 45s - 2019 Box Set vs 1960's UK Originals 

At last! A very serious and professional comparison, the 45 discs never was a hi-fi audiophile format. THANKS!!!

Part of the reasons why the original 45s played a bit faster was that the lathes these were cut were modified 78 lathes with weight-driven motors on them which induced a gradual speed change as it went on.

Capitol Records should re-release a box of their original singles from 1964 - 1970 featuring the original picture sleeves in thicker cardboard picture sleeves in glossy colour! My all-time favourite American picture sleeve is Lady Madonna! It was truly the last time The Beatles actually had fun in the studio!

Another fantastic review. I'm still anxiously waiting the review of the 2014 Mono albums to the originals. I personally love the new mono pressings...and compared to some of the original albums I have. .they are very close and a few sound a touch better...looking forward to your review.

I'm from México, and I was pleased that Hello Goodbye recreated the artwork and center label of the Mexican edition, that brings me back great memories when I was a child because it was the one I liked the most and played it a lot on my grandfather's console. Great review, I'll see if I can get this box set.

Once again Great Video. Just bought this set at a record fair and paid £120. I was happy with that as it was new and sealed. A great collectors set but I still love the originals that I have.

I find your analysis of Beatles albums, singles and EPs very thorough and interesting. I remember a friend , back in '85, lent me his original 45's that he bought in the 60's. I was overwhelmed by the fantastic sound. Although I liked most 60's beat combos, I became an instant Beatles fan. It's a shame that other releases don't always match up to the originals.

I couldn’t wait to get the Beatles singles collection it was really fantastic when I listen to them. I love everything about the boxer from the packaging all the way to the 45 some selves including the bonus disc which features free as a bird in real life.. I thought that the team at Abbey Road that I’m good job remastering stuff although it is tricky to play 45s in on a turntable if you have one like I do which is a techniques. But I think that I’m so glad that the vinyl 45s were still available when I bought them my record store here in Portland Oregon.

Took the plunge today and got a brand new box set from ebay and I love it! As you say, it is all about replicating the 60s sound and feel, not creating an audiophile set of 45s per se. The critics have simply not understood the purpose!

Fascinating as always, thanks Andrew. I debated buying this set for 2 years because I already had the 1982 Australian Singles Collection, which includes all of these 45’s and more. In the end it was the packaging I couldn’t resist - it maybe an unfair comparison (after all it’s served me well for 40 years), but this set makes my 1982 collection look like a cheap knockoff. Definitely no regrets.

I played all 23 singles in my box set last Friday and they sounded great.

Hi again my friend Can you do a video on the Beatles DAgostini Collection brought out a couple of years ago can you do a video on them Please Dave.

Beautifully elaborated. Very useful video man! So, the 2019 Box used covers and labels from varius countries' pressings, right? The very first UK 45s are all with generic green sleeves? For many years I thought the originals had photo covers like those shown in The Beatles 1 booklet.

I asked several "RU-vidrs" who talked about this box, about the mixes of their first two singles, if they contained the same original mixes released in the 60s, especially that of "Ask Me Why", which EMI has never reissued later (either on vinyl or on CD). But none of them knew how to answer me on this subject. His videos fulfill the most detailed questions from Beatles fans. Thank you very much. (Cláudio - Brazil)

This is an excellent video. I like how balanced it is. Good to hear both the headlines and the details. Surprising that the original mixes of Please Please Me and Ask Me Why were not used.

As someone who lived through Beatlemania and the 60's, I really enjoy your videos, particularly the unboxings. I am frequently reminded of the time on the release of Can't Buy Me Love, when my Mother strode into our local record shop and demanded "the obvious please!"

Update: I've just gotten an original VG+ 1963 copy of She Loves You. The sound is great all 'round with a brilliant top end and decent bass. One thing I can't hear are the seven edits or tape dropouts affecting Ringo's ride cymbal. My system is entry level audiophile and does a very good job with most recordings. She Loves You is one of the best sounding of their early singles. Even the American Swan single sounds quite good.

00:31 Oooo, a subtle jab at Vinyl Rewind.

A joyfully forensic video! Much enjoyed.

It’s interesting that the new 45 of “All You Need Is Love” has a slightly longer fade. The original 1967 U.S. 45 has a slightly longer fade as well. How does the length of the fade on the new 45 compare to an original “Magical Mystery Tour” mono EP?

I'm the kind of person who most often picka up 45s in the wild in bargain bins with writing all over them and terrible wear just so I can say I have it on 45 regardless of how bad it ends up sounding. I do have to agree with you on the booklet though, as someone who took his entire collection of 45's and not only digitized them as 320kbps MP3 files but also used my flatbed scanner alongside GIMP to make 600DPI scans of the vinyl itself to use as album art on each of the MP3 recordings Let me tell you how much more pleasing a straightened 45 image is vs one which is at an angle.

Great video, Andrew. I purchased this set around 6 months ago and love it. I don't know what these people complaining about the sound quality are talking about, they sound fantastic. Just audiophile-pinheads doing what audiophile-pinheads do best, pretending they know more than you and whining like babies. The different labels from around the world was a great idea, but they didn't think it through enough. For instance, "Love Me Do/P.S. I Love You" should have had the red Parlophone label, since this is one of the Holy Grails of Beatles collecting. At least one of the early singles should have been on a Vee-Jay label, as they were extremely important in the Beatles gradual introduction to this country. "I Want To Hold Your Hand/This Boy" should have been on the Capitol swirl label, since that was the single that broke them in such an enormous way in America. If they had a problem with that since "I Saw Her Standing There" was originally the B-side, they also could have done it with "She Loves You/I'll Get You". "Hey Jude/Revolution" should have been on the Apple label, since that was famously the first single for the new venture. If I'm not mistaken, every single after that was on an Apple label, not sure why they decided to get unimaginative at that point. "Let It Be/You Know My Name" should have been on the red Apple label, for obvious reasons. I feel these are just no-brainers that were sadly overlooked, because no one in that company seems to think like a fan. The sales of the set would have done no better or no worse if these common-sense changes had been made. I'd be interested to hear your opinion on that, if you have the time. Thank you and keep up the great work with the videos, we really appreciate them. I've learned so much that I never knew before, and I thought I knew a lot. I had no idea how much I had to learn!

I have read on many Audiophile sites to hear the best sounding of these original beatles 45s from the sixties you need to use a mono cartridge these original 45s will have a wider groove of 1.0 a stereo record is 0.7 therefore a stereo cartridge will be very slightly be bouncing around in an original mono record causing distortion .

I’m still on the mend on whether to get them or not, I rather seek the early 80’s box set because those look much better. My ultimate beef with this new set, as well as the 2019 Abbey Road remix issue is the new Apple label on the record, the bottom of the Apple looks very tacky, disappointment on the Art Department. It seems with that pixelated picture sleeve you’ve shown, the quality control of the Art Dept is getting very lazy.

THC always helped me maneuver thru any inadequacy found in these wonderful records.

professionally, as always. thanx!

That was very well done Andrew with the comparisons of the different 45s. What do you plan on doing next?

For what it's worth, 39g is over 18% heavier than 33g. I guess it goes against the spirit of this set, but I wish they would release the singles as a set of 10"s, as they did with the Elvis re-releases a few years back. (Well it feels like a few years; it was probably more than a decade ago.) It would just be nice to hear them cut with the emphasis on sound quality rather than trying to emulate the not-too-great sound of the originals. It's worth bearing in mind that for all that these are the mixes as The Beatles wanted them, the band frequently complained about the lack of bass weight on their records compared with what they were hearing from US artists. But to _properly_ do anything about that, you really need to go back to the multitracks, because even the final masters, let alone the cutting tapes, would already be compromised. And of course, they don't have the multitracks for quite a few of these recordings.

I have a complete set of first press singles that I bought when they came out all EX, and I bought the box set in the 1980's all played once, I don't think I'm going to bother doing that all again with this doggy looking box set, I prefer my originals anyway

You’ve come up trumps again Andrew..top rate review. I love watching your videos..the master!!

Very interesting video thanks. At 7.10, over about 2.5 minutes, the 1 or 2 second difference , could be the very slight difference between the speed of the original mastering recorder, and the playback machine used for disc mastering. Even though every recorder is speed checked with specially made strobe tapes, I’ve seen a very slight difference, even the weight of mismatched tape spools can do it. In 1961 at 2UE in Sydney we had our on air 45rpm turntables running at 48rpm. This was so dial twisting listeners heard a ‘brighter’ Beatles sound than our competition and over 30mins. broadcasting, we could get in 1 or 2 extra 30sec. ads. We never got any complaints.

Got mine last year for Christmas opened a Amazon prime account set was going for $150 got a $100 off still haven't opened it after watching this say I got hit the jackpot with this buy

I felt badly let down by EMI when they put out that LP box in 1979 and many bought albums again that they owned already just to get the Rarities album and then they issued the Rarities as a standalone album, what a swizz that we bought an expensive boxed set just to get that one album.

It's nice to get a review of this box set that carefully considers the audio of the singles in context with the original releases. I think too many reviewers have trashed the audio quality without knowing how the original singles sounded. I still may not purchase this box, since nothing replaces the thrill of handling and playing the original singles, but it's good to know that option exist should I ever find a heavily discounted copy someday. I just kind of wish they had gone with a green color for the singles box, as a nod to the original Parlophone green that was on the sleeves for the singles. Maybe they figured it wouldn't look good against the Apple logo.

I absolutely love the 2000 nineteen boxer I bought it at one of my favorite music stores here in Portland Oregon and it is really fantastic I especially loved that they added free as a bird and real love being a huge Beatles fan that I am.

I know in the UK singles didn’t have picture sleeves, but to be honest the sleeves chosen for this set are so-so!

Hi, I'm new to this site and your reviews are spot on but there are some problems with a few of the discs where I noticed distortion on maybe 3 of the discs, but still a great set,. I also have the 1978 set and the 82 set. I'll have to listen to them all to see which is best but that'll be sometime in the future, thx !

kudos for including what Kit you used.

Love all your videos Andrew, would love to see one of your own Beatles vinyl collection! Thx Brian..

Regarding the difference in the timings on some of the singles, I have no proof of this but I theorise that it may have actually been the original singles being cut a little too fast. Perhaps some were cut as close to 45rpm as their cutting system allowed at the time. My turntable is direct drive with manual speed adjustment and a built in strobe too and records have always sounded perfect on it, that is apart from some of my 1960s records that came from EMI, those all seem to play the tiniest bit faster than later 1970s/80s cuttings of the same albums, and sound faster than the digital versions of their respective albums too. I have no proof of that so please take that with a grain of salt, I don't know if the cutting systems of the time were direct drive or idler driven but if they were the latter then I suppose there's always a chance that's why. But my long winded ramble aside, this is an excellent video! Great job 👍

So many reissues over the years that I think I'll pass on that one. But, anyway, I enjoyed the video and the infos. Please, keep the videos coming. Cheers, Nelio.

13:27 This rhetorical question I have sometimes been asking myself over the years of buying boxed set/archive editions of various bands/performers, usually followed by "I could provide better images/audios..." 🙂

This is a great box set.But ,Unfortunately ,there has yet to be a vinyl box set UK reissue which includes the correct original mixes for each single.Thanks for pointing out the Please Please me/Ask Me Why Fail in this release.

Wait - there’s a difference between the single and the album version of the song “please please me”?? I know the mono and stereo versions are different edits/takes. But single and mono album of that track are not the same??

Don't forget that the original 45s and LPs were cut with tube amplifiers which plays a major factor in the sound department, EMI (along with Decca) went to transistor amps in 1970. I'm hoping if Universal does a AAA edition of the stereo box is that tube amps are utilized for the cutting amps.

My set just arrived! Already spun about 6 discs and I’m impressed. Yes, many of the records are slighted warped. Emphasis on slightly. But… that doesn’t interfere with the sound . Strong, punchy, clean and fun sounding cuts of these songs. Love it.

Thank you for this incredibly informative video! I am curious as to whether any time difference existed for Love Me Do? I am curious if EMI deliberately slowed the transfer prior to cutting the 2019 single to better approximate the true playing speed of the original tape. Also, do you remember the time difference for Ask Me Why? Thanks in advance!!

Don't Actually own any Beatles UK 45s But I have a few UK Singles From Dusty and Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich. Compared to Digital Files The Singles kick them out of the Ballpark , The DD, D, B, M&T Single is very Bassy and is warm and very dynamic. The Dusty ones are like that as well. These all cost me 3 dollars each, a steal!

I wish this was released as a cd boxset

Great review. Bought the set too, was generally impressed apart from the warped discs.

Great job Andrew. One odd thing about my first UK pressing of Paperback Writer is how thin the vinyl is. I've got an acrylic platter on my main TT. Even tracking at 1.75 grams, dropping the needle on it stops the record from spinning. It's the only sixties EMI single I have that does this.

I don't put too much stock into what people think, yeah, its good to hear an opinion! But people listen too much to others! I've had records where people said they suck, but when I spun them, they sounded great! And vice versa! Sound is objective, and everyone has their preferences that pleases their ears! Doesn't mean its going to be the same for you as someone else! Actually the original masters sound best, and imho ,sound quality has been going backwards since the inception of digital! 96k/24 bit is closer to the original!

i have some superior quality VHS tapes if anyone is interested? .... i have some superior quality computer-floppy-discs if anyone is interested?

Hi Andrew Can not find a Beatles hard days night White jacket anywhere I think it’s form October 1972 EMI 2 box help Dave.

It occurs to me that from now on every Beatle song can be remixed and then released many times. Every time they can boost the vocals or boost any instrument or even add sounds from tracks that were left off the original releases. In his way EMI will make a fortune. What EMI needs to do is release all Beatle songs in the future on a new medium that has ALL the isolated channels on it so it is in effect an exact copy of the MASTER TAPE. Together with the launch of a new player for this new medium the listener can play back these songs either in the default way they were originally released OR the user can boost any track with a mixing table included with the player. So in effect the user can pay back any way they want and listen to any isolated track or boost tracks etc. Listen to bass track only or drums only or vocals only. Then if you add AI you can isolate parts that are on one track . I wouldnt pay for any new releases based on new mixes BUT I would pay for both all Beatle songs released with all individual tracks accessable to the listener and the player needed.

I got the box from Walmart for 120 I think

If anyone is watching this today, Amazon has the 2019 Singles Collection for $180 (USD) right now.

Most normal people cant tell the difference from the original 2 the new ones anyway you shouuldnt mess with the first press

Apple missed a trick with this set. To make it really worth buying they should have made them all in stereo, using rare versions where possible e.g the first stereo version of I Want To Hold Your Hand, as released in Australia in 1976 etc. My only dodgy single from the set was A Hard Day's Night, it jumped all over the place but I soon replaced it with a good copy.

I would have loved this even more if the 1976 set had been included in the comparisons. I personally think the 45s pressed from then until the late 80s were the best possible representation, either being the very same matrices used for the last contemporary pressing, or a new version of it (same lathes, same cutting engineers, same know how, same tapes, even the same stamper font for the matrix numbers in the run outs).

This video is awesome, one question only, where can I get original pressed 45 copies? I got the box recently and I agree there are another versions which sound better i. e. Mono Masters

Great review.

Recently bought this set based on your great and informative video. Yes,mine has a few slight warps but otherwise it’s a great sounding set.Thanks 👍

Amazing video!

I had the American versions of these 45s and LP's when I was a kid. Needless to say, we got the short end of the stick over here, but we didn't know any better. I prefer a lot of those original mono mixes, particularly Help, which I had on a 45. I still have quite a few of those 45 left. Anyway, that was an excellent presentation. Two thumbs up for you sir!

I have a few of the color jukebox 45s they put out in the 80s or 90s. Have you done a video in that set? I've thought about trying to collect that entire set but I might have to go with this set. Great videos. I watch a few every day. I'm trying to get a full LP discography of original first pressing UK and US releases. It will be spendy and take a lot of time an effort. I'll probably buy some from your website too. Thanks for the great content. Been watching for the last few years. Recently finally subbed.

I, like many teens at the time, used to play my records on a cheap Dansette tyoe record player so the sound quality at the time was pretty poor.

Hello, Great video! Question: would you recommend the 1st press of Paperback Writer if I told you that I like distortion & lo-fi? Thanks in advance!

It’s 4 years later, and I finally took the plunge, because it was a clearance item, which, shockingly, was discounted to 50%, and when it’s price is $300CDN, half-price is a major bargain, especially when you consider how seriously overpriced new Beatles product has become, and Universal Music product in general. The store in question was Canadian chain Sunrise Records, and I can’t say for sure if it was chain-wide, but I’m glad to have found it so affordably priced!

Great comparison.

I guess they should have given you a ring first to sort out the true originals. I never had any Beatles 45's so I will not be able to compare. My first Beatles record I bought was the Abbey Road album, 3rd hand lol I do love the mono masters.

I love these videos. My only suggestion is you add a de esser or re eq the audio. The sibalance in these videos make them unlistenable after a while.

Excellent review!

I Purchased some year ago the Singles and EP box sets on CD, what is your opinion on those and particularly the singles box set, do they have the same mastering as the original vinyl singles?

Is a true fact the difference in timing between the first UK singles and latter versions which run slower in comparison. For example, She loves you, I want to hold your hand, Can't buy me love, From me to you and so on. Still I prefer the original Parlophone UK 45 rpm. Great video, I'm glad to know I'm not the only one to noticed that fact regarding the timing. Thanks!

I appreciated this one Andrew ............and ALL your Videos . I would be interested to know how the Sound Quality of the USA JUKEBOX 45 s stack up to the Original s .

I own the box. It's very... unique. It definitely sounds a lot like a few Capitol singles I've got. Tiring on the ears. I like it, but not really. It's nice to own, but it doesn't sound anything you'd expect it to. It's not the sweet, soft sound off the LP, it's something new altogether.

I have The Beatles Past Masters Vol.1 and Vol.2, with every Beatles single in them. I have the 2009 remastered equivalent too. I wouldn't buy that box set even if i could afford to spend money for music I already have, re-marketed and sold in the ancient and faulty format of a bunch of 45rpm small vinyl records. But if I had all those original 45s I would sell them. In near-mint condition they can fetch over 25 euros each. And with the sum, I would buy the 50th anniversary White Album remix. Now THAT is worth spending money for, as far as I am concerned. On CD of course.

Just noticed your Our Price T-shirt. I still have some original bags from the 80's.

Oh dear. The "Swedish" label at 9.06 is either fake or typed by a dyslectic person (or, well, just sloppy). "Furgehalles" - really..?

I'm now the proud owner of two made in Barcelona 45s that I bought recently at a record fair they are Hey Jude And Help!. They have lovely artwork and vinyl looking near mint. Only £15 each. Made my day

My only incentive to get this collection was to own the Free As A Bird/Real Love disc but I'm not to sure. I've been trying to figure out what would be the optimum pressings for those songs

I'm glad you reminded me to SUBSCRIBE, as I like these video reviews. Incidentally there were some (5?) export 45s made in England. Those won't have been in the box set.

LOVELY REVIEW!!, I HAVE THIS WONDERFUL BOX SET!!

The Capiphone Singles-Capitol Swirls and Apple singles involved-and an Capitol colorband label EP also coming with the LP program set on CD.Lp set on CD,singles and EP sets on both vinyl and CD!!

I think the "Please Please Me" version IS the correct one. Listen for the drop-out around the 1:47 mark...only heard on the 45.

This is a message from the future! I’m expanding my beatle collection and I’m seconding between this and mono masters… thanks so much for your input and expertise! 💕💕💕

I purchased my set on day of release. Actually played them all fro the first time yesterday. Yes they do have some warped records but some tend to slip or slow down which i have read reviews from other that do the same especially paperback Writer, but with some adjustments i can get them to play correctly. Like pressing down a bit harder or placing record clamp on them. Can you do a review on the Capitol coloured juke box singles fro m the 90"s. Thanks agin for you videos.

what price is the box set? i have about half of the beatles original singles and have had them since the 60s so are very scratched and think it might be cool to have a new set to listen to :)

The Beatles collection box set it is a really fantastic well put together Box Set hand damn I had used all of the original album covers and had they been illuminated and made into fabulous ones I think Beatles collectors would be very happy. Did you notice that all of the singles in the box that were from different countries? It’s too bad that EMI didn’t use the single version of ask me why am please please me but I think those are two great songs from one of the fabulous albums that the Beatles did since the Beatles record of their first album in one day. Which Beatles album cover were you talking about the one that was a real shocker as far as album covers go and images? You should do your own reviews of Beatles CDs or LPs. Also I think free as a bird and real love are the only ones that aren’t sourced from the vinyl masters since those two songs were released on CD back in 1995 and 1996 but I think it’s a really fantastic box set And I also noticed that the holes are much smaller because some 45s have these big donut holes inside.

If you want flat none warped disks use a record clamp and make digital copies . It will add wear to the label but you can’t have everything.

Hi Andrew Love the work you do on Beatles vides I am a big Beatles fan and collector Please can do a video on the Beatles records EMI one box records please Dave.

I would have to agree with you Andrew I think the album covers 445 cover should be used with greater detail so that way the pictures can be very open and not highly pixelated as that one shot that you showed. And I think that all of the singles should have an open air to them sound wise and that way all the songs can have more life to them. I love the Beatles singles collection exit which is great especially considering the fact that real love and prayers of bird are from a digital copy I think that’s the only 45 and it’s not from the original 60s but the whole box that is fantastic and the packaging is good too and using different 45s from different countries with genius as well.

I really appreciate this review and purchased this box set after viewing. One question: which of the records are mono vs stereo? I didn’t find that info in the included booklet

Question, does the single version of “day tripper” include the drop off in volume toward the end? Where it famously can be heard better in the stereo album version?

I'd imagine the new releases sound different as most are replica's from different countries, you would need to compare that country to the new release rather than just UK comparisons

So many changes between the two sets but the speeds should have been the same between the two. I would enjoy the originals more. But good with the new sets, though.

I have almost all of the original US 45s. They sound great with my mono cart. It would’ve been interested to hear the difference (if any) between the new set and the originals using a mono cartridge.

Hi Andrew Love the video on the Beatles let it be box sets Andrew can you help me please For the Carboot to day I got 8 Beatles LP In stereo in Beautiful condition there is one I do not no it’s a hard days night It’s on EMI one box in a EMI Picture sleeve the Deadwax number is YEX 126-1 and there no stereo on the jacket And the front of the jacket is white not the standard blue PCS 3058 in fab condition dave

Any reason why Help! Sounds the way it does?