Holst The Planets Mehta 1st 1971 UK LP Decca SXL6529 TAS "Best Of The Bunch"

$

28

• Artist: Zubin Mehta, LA Philharmonic.
• Title: Holst - The Planets.
• Decca SXL 6529.
• Clarifoil Laminated Jacket.
• Highest Award - "Best Of The Bunch: Classical" By The Absolute Sound Magazine (TAS).

Item Details
Manufactured in: United Kingdom
Recorded: April 19, 1971 at Royce Hall, U.C.L.A
Lacquer Cut By: Harry Fisher ("W" Code in Matrix)
Pressing: By Decca's own plant, New Malden, London.
Original Issue: 1971
This Issue: 1971 (based on Discogs Identifiers)
Label: Decca SXL.6529
Runout Deadwax Matrix Numbers:
Side 1: (stamp:) ZAL-10784-1W 1 JT BK (1st lacquer, 1st Mother, 14th Stamper)
Side 2: (stamp:) ZAL-10785-1W 1 JT BC (1st Lacquer, 1st Mother, 13th Stamper)
I recall long ago a collective opinion that the Decca pressings of classical works always sounded better than the US London versions even though they were both pressed in the UK. I did some research for this sale and found some compelling evidence to support that opinion. I found 2 audiophile "shoot outs" (one using this same LP version) and a survey of collectors weighing in. eBay does not allow me to embed external links in a listing but I tested the following strings that I'm certain will get you to the articles if you are curious. They are: "audiokarma decca vs london trials" and "enjoy the music viewpoint london decca" 
Was bought new by this seller many years ago and now offered from his private collection (you have absolutely known provenance). Has had limited plays only on an expertly setup high-end audiophile turntable, arm, and cartridge. Has never been exposed to heat or tobacco smoke and always stored vertically in a specially designed record cabinet (Rackit) to prevent warpage.
Was cleaned on a VPI HW 16 with Audio Intelligent solutions and ultra-pure water rinse (50X purer than distilled water) before my pre-sale sound check. I wear nitrile surgical gloves while cleaning and play testing to avoid any chance of transferring finger oils to the vinyl.

Very sensitive play testing was performed straight off my Ayre P-5xe fully balanced phono preamp over Sennheiser HD 600 headphones using a Schiit Audio Valhalla 2 tube headphone amp fitted with Voskhod Soviet matched tubes (see last photo).

Track list
1: Mars The Bringer Of War, Venus The Bringer Of Peace, Mercury The Winged Messenger, Jupiter The Bringer Of Jollity.

2: Saturn The Bringer Of Old Age, Uranus The Magician, Neptune The Mystic.

I never take "distant" photos nor the so-prevalent type with the LP sticking halfway out of the jacket. I take close-ups under photo lamps so you can see nearly everything I describe in the jacket grading. It is virtually impossible to know the true vinyl condition from any photograph. That takes very bright and close visual inspection PLUS play testing with thorough coverage on high resolution equipment.
Grading Details
Note: Record grading by text characters is subjective and does not fully describe quality levels. Please see photos and my detailed descriptions below.

Outer Jacket Inspection:
VG++/VG++
The front face has a 3" crease with a small amount de-lamination along it. There is a minor crease about 1/2" in length radiating out from the spine in the upper left. There is some light dulling of the laminate gloss at the very top extending only the width of the "PHILHARMONIC" text. Otherwise the front face has beautiful laminate gloss throughout. The rear face is not laminated and has a soft matte finish. It has a stripe of mild 3" X 3/16" ring wear at the very top. Where the laminate wraps around the spine there are 2 hairline creases about 3/8" long. There is only very light rubbing wear on all corners and along the bottom edge.

Vinyl visual inspection:
I examined both sides after cleaning and the grooved portions looked visually perfect with deep gloss and absence of any reflective hairlines. I did find a couple of faint hairlines only in the dead wax lead-out groove area.

Play Testing:
NM/NM-
Extensive play testing was performed after visual inspection. I listened to the beginning, middle, and end of each track. Some tracks were long so I advanced my way through them about 1/4" at a time listening for a few minutes (or more) at each needle drop. I also listened to all lead-in, lead-out and transition grooves between each track. Continuous written notes were taken. Here is rundown of each side from my notes.

Side 1 Play
The lead-in groove to T1 was nicely absent of ticks typically heard in the rim area of most LPs. My initial sense was of an enormous hall space captured with great realism. Mars is a very impressive track because of its powerful full-tilt forte passages. Listening to the silent grooves I was able to get a handle on the character of the vinyl noise floor. Instead of crackle or high frequency tick clusters its a sort of a steady state low frequency "rustle" noise. It didn't vary much over both sides so I'm convinced it is the original native state of the pressing when new. Because of the high dynamic range I was able to hear it on my very sensitive headphone rig sometimes during the very quietest music passages. Normal types of vinyl noise like ticks, clicks and crackle were not prevalent. I detected only tiny high frequency ticks of very low energy, rarely heard, and non intrusive to the music. T3 (Mercury) is very delicate musically and ethereal. T4 was one of my top 2 favorites and I found it so moving I stopped play testing and just continued to listen out of pure rapture.

Side 2 Play
On T1 (Saturn) entry  I heard a bit of mild crackle of short duration repeating  for a couple of revolutions then fading away. Random small ticks also faded away at about 1/2" into that track. The forte passages were really stunning in this one. T2 (Uranus) is a "must hear" track and the 2nd of my favorites. I noticed that I could pick out any instrument or percussion element and follow it clearly for as long as I desired. The presentation had such detail and clarity making that easy. The final closing passage is very powerful. T3 (Neptune) was summed up in my notes by one word: "captivating." Its another "must hear" with magnificent music and audio realism.

This was one of the 1st classical LPs I bought many decades ago. Revisiting it again after so long I can see why it has gathered so much praise from audiophiles and serious classical listeners.

Packaging

• Record will be placed outside the jacket to protect against seam splitting.
• Original inner sleeve is included separately.
• Record has been placed into a new MFSL-style "rice paper" sleeve, as the original, even though plastic lined, may be holding onto some dust. This will keep vinyl surfaces clean during shipping and ultimate buyer usage.
• Outer jacket is contained in a new clear polyethylene protective sleeve.
• Sent in good quality record mailer with cardboard stiffeners.

Shipping

• Shipping will be via USPS Media Mail for a flat charge of $3.98 per single album sale.
• A combined shipping discount is available on multiple sales completed on the same day($3.98 plus $0.50 for each additional LP).
• If you do buy more than one LP  on the same daydo not pay immediately but wait for my all-combined invoice. A discount for the combined items will show on that invoice. Then, once payment is received, the items will ship.