Al Stewart Time Passages MFSL 1-082 LP 1981 1/2 Speed Japan press audiophile

$

43

                                                                   Time Passages
                                                                       Al Stewart
                                           Mobile Fidelity Original Master Recording
                                                            Half Speed Mastered LP
                                                 All original printed inserts included

                                                                      Item Details
             Pressed in: Japan on "Super Vinyl" originally formulated for CD-4 quadraphonic LPs
                           This pressing: First, based on Discogs identifiers (see matrix info)
                         Mastering: Half Speed by Stan Ricker (SR) from original stereo tape
                                    Recorded: June 1978 at Davien Sound Studios, Devonshire
                                                                      Issued: 1981
                                           Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab MFSL 1-082
                                                   Runout Deadwax Matrix Numbers: 
                              Side 1: (etched:) MFSL-1-082-A . H 1 1 1 ? SR 2 ORTOFON
                             Side 2: (etched:) MFSL-1-082-B   H 1 1 1 ? ? SR 2 ORTOFON

Half speed mastering allows the cutting head twice as much time to render the groove.
This means more fine detail on playback (especially in the highs) and less waver on long
sustained notes. The high frequency detail was noted on my play test of "Timeless Skies."

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) after photos taken but before my pre-sale sound check.

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

Track list
1: Time Passages, Valentina Way, Life In Dark Water, A Man For All Seasons.
2: Almost Lucy, The Palace of Versailles, Timeless Skies, Song On The Radio, End Of The Day.

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.

Grading 
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: NM (Near Mint) Front and back surfaces are near perfect with bright smooth finishes.
Very tiny rub wear on corners. Top edge has no rubbing wear, but bottom edge has a small amour of it.
Sleeve edge has a small wear mark as seen on the lower right corner in the front photo.

Vinyl: NM- (Near Mint Minus) Minus is only for the LAST vinyl preservative sticker on the labels. I
usually treated each new record with the LAST vinyl wear preventative treatment before my first play.
Surface visuals were first inspected under high intensity halogen light, tilting the surface at all angles
with my eyes a couple inches away. I couldn't find any kind of marks or hairlines. Both sides are as
perfect as a virgin record. Extensive play testing was performed after visual inspection. I listened to the
beginning and end of each track and all silent grooves. Some tracks were played all the way thru when
digitizing my favorites to 192k/24-bit WAV files. Both sides were close to dead quiet. Of all the
MFSLs I have prepared for sale in the past year this one is the quietest. The audio fidelity is like that of a
an unplayed copy. I actually did not play this LP much except to dub a few tracks on to mix tape
cassettes and CDs over the decades. Except for the LAST stickers the visual and sound condition of the
vinyl is easily Near Mint and could be even be closer to unplayed Mint. 

Packaging
Record will be placed outside the jacket to protect against seam splitting.
Original inner card stock gatefold sleeve is included separately.
Record has been placed into a brand new MFSL Original Master Sleeve to preserve cleanliness.
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 within 5 business days
($3.98 plus $0.50 for each additional LP). If you intend to buy more than one LP do 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.