Over the past dozen years, vinyl records have evolved from an indie-rock subculture to a major, established part of the music business. In the U.S. alone, vinyl sales will reach $1.4 billion in 2023, more than CDs — and as much as Latin music — and will likely top $2 billion worldwide by 2025.
As the market matures—and growth slows from spectacular to merely healthy—it collapses. A part of the business once dominated by rock and reissues now looks more like the Billboard 200, and labels release different kinds of records for different buyers — low-priced products for big box retailers, endless color variations for pop fans and, increasingly more, premium vinyl for audiophiles.
The descriptions of these products make them sound pretty impressive — and so do the prices. If the new Joni Mitchell vinyl reissues just aren't good enough for you — and they are very good — $125 will buy you Mobile Fidelity's UD1S 180g 45RPM SuperVinyl 2LP box set, pressed from 'analog master to DSD 256 on an analog console on a lathe . ” That's about five times the price of most discs. Mobile Fidelity sells some of Mitchell's albums in this format, as well as titles by Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Van Halen and many others. They're not the only company selling premium products, either: Analogue Productions is reissuing all of Steely Dan's 45rpm albums on UHQR vinyl for $150 each, as well as a trove of deluxe Atlantic Records reissues for the label's 75th anniversary. (Both companies have been in business for some time.) The big companies do it themselves. In 2019, Blue Note President Don Was launched the Tone Poet series, which reissues jazz records that sell for around $35. And in 2023, Rhino began releasing Rhino High Fidelity reissues of WMG albums, which it sells online for $40.
All of these are marketed with the exact distinctiveness of supercar engines — it's not just vinyl, it's SuperVinyl! But how much better do they really sound — especially to an untrained ear on a home stereo? This is important to the music business – consumers will only buy so many $125 records if they don't sound great. And I was curious too.
I have to admit here that I'm audiophile enough to understand about half the jargon above. Over the years, I've collected a few dozen audiophiles myself, including two Mobile Fidelity Linda Ronstadt CDs (fantastic), a CBS Mastersound edition of Bridge over turbulent water (incredible), and Isaac Hayes' Craft Recordings Small Batch pressing Hot Buttered Soul (as if you were in the studio). Others were just too good – and not worth the money. And I had never sat down and compared different versions of the same record in any disciplined way. So I decided to do it. A few caveats: I have no real audio experience. I listened on a very good home stereo, and there is no point in buying such discs unless you have them. your mileage may vary. Here's what I found.
I started with the Analogue Productions reissue of Steely Dan's Come on because the album has a very good reputation as a fantastic recording. I compared it to an early pressing I have, which is a detailed and vibrant record — it sounds great. This reissue just blew it. The definition of the reissue was so impressive that on “Black Cow” and “Deacon Blues” I noticed sounds that I hadn't paid much attention to before. And while the older album sounded spacious, the new one sounded like I could tell which musicians were playing where. If you're a Steely Dan fan, this is worth $150. If you're not, this might make you one. It's so good.
The other Analogue Productions reissue I heard, Otis Blue / Otis Redding Sings Soulit's part of the company's Atlantic 75 Audiophile Series, and I compared it to my copy of the album that was released in a 2017 box set of Redding's mono studio albums. (I compared these reissues to records I happened to have.) The analog version was more detailed and transparent — certain sounds stood out more. But the reissue was of the stereo version of the album, in which Reading's voice is on one side, and I found that my less detailed mono version had more dimension. I prefer the reissue, but it's a close call.
The first new Mobile Fidelity album I played was by Bob Dylan Nice as I was to youwhich I compared to the European reissue in 2017. Neither disc has much of a soundstage – it's really just Dylan and his guitar – but the Mobile Fidelity version has more details. For this album, though, that's about it. Hearing Dylan's fingers on the strings matters because the album is so intimate — it's a portrait of a songwriter returning to the music that inspired him. The reissue makes a big difference.
Next I tried Joni Mitchell's $125 Mobile Fidelity Press Blue. It's amazing. From the opening strums of “All I Want”, I felt I could better hear more detail in a familiar recording. I compared it to my 2007 reissue, which I prefer to an early version I used to have. 2007's pressing is a great record, with the depth and spaciousness that this album deserves, and I have nothing bad to say about it. But the Mobile Fidelity push offered more space and detail. Here, the luxury version is better, but it's hard to go wrong either way.
Lately I've switched to two Rhino High Fidelity discs. (Tone Poet pressings sound great, but I don't have enough old jazz records to compare them to.) I've always been happy with the 2014 Gram Parsons reissue Sad Angela quiet, clean click of a detailed recording. But the Rhino High Fidelity reissue blew it away: details came out clearer, vocals came out louder, music just seemed more alive. It just felt more there. Listening to the old record after the new one, it almost sounded covered. Of all the discs I played, this one gave the most difference for the least money. It's a joke.
I found less difference between the Rhino High Fidelity version of the Stooges' debut and my 2010 reissue. This is a less detailed recording from Sad Angelby design, and should hit harder – both versions did. The deluxe version sounded a bit longer presentbut only if you listened carefully. To get another perspective, I also listened to a CD reissue of the 2005 album, which I kept because it had a bonus track disc, and immediately noticed that it sounded lousy — choppy, unexciting, and hard on the ears. volume. Here, both vinyl versions are great.
Obviously, expensive records have a limited audience. But at a time when so many music executives are talking about “superfans,” this seems like a product category worth watching.
