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Depeche Mode : Violator A1 / B1 1st Press 1990

This first pressing plays with stunning quality on both sides with very little background, no 'real' interference as such.  The clarity, depth and power of the audio is very impressive and there are no clicks or pops and only minimal static which is mainly restricted to the instrumental section following 'Enjoy The Silence'.  So many of the tracks play with phenomenal audio and I haven't heard many first pressings play as clearly as this one.

The cover has a little shelf wear and this is mainly some creasing on the front near the top edge and a little corner wear.  The lyric inner has only minimal wear.

There are numerous pressings of this album but I am confident in saying this is one of the early first press variations.

STUMM 64 A1  P3  PR-P   JA / B1   P3  PR-P

The audio on S1 is Near Mint (T1 intro Ex then Mint- / T2 Mint-)

The audio on S1 is Mint(-) (T1 end instrumental VG+ / T4 end instrumental Ex+)

The cover is VG+

The lyric inner is Ex

The labels are Mint-

Visual description

The vinyl is in excellent condition and still has a lovely glossy sheen with no scratches.  There is one very faint blemish on S1 but this has no impact on the audio and few faint hairlines - you only notice these when you look under a bright light.  The labels are more or less perfect with barely any spindle wear and there is still a little vinyl 'flecking' around the S1 spindle hole.

Play grading

The intro on 'World In My Eyes' plays very clearly with only a light tick once per revolution and Gahan's opening vocal plays perfectly with no intrusion.  From then on it plays 'as new' with a clarity and definition that cannot be faulted.  The intro is Ex but the remainder is Mint- for sure.

The quiet build up intro on 'The Sweetest Perfection' has barely any static and Gore's first vocal has no background of any kind.  It continues to play with impeccable quality and the mid instrumental passage plays with stunning clarity also.  The next vocal / instrumental section keeps up this exemplary standard and the final vocal section has no interference either.  A superb Mint- version.

'Personal Jesus' has a little static on the intro for 2 seconds only and then plays with great quality from that point on.  No clicks, pops or static and only a handful of barely audible dust ticks.  Near Mint

The intro on 'Halo' has only 2/3 mega quiet ticks but hardly noticeable really.  The opening vocal has a couple of light ticks also and from then on plays with stunning precision and no interference.  It plays with a clarity and warmth that you only get from un-played / hardly played vinyls - every vocal and instrumental is superb!  Another Near Mint track.

The very quiet intro on 'Waiting For The Night' plays with great clarity, there is only the bare minimum of light static, and Gore's opening vocal is just as impressive.  This is a sparse arrangement so for it to play with such clear sound is a rarity.  I cannot praise it highly enough, the clarity is stunning and through every section it plays beautifully.  Throughout the entire 6 minutes I noticed only a small number of insignificant dust ticks and a hint of mega light static on the final instrumental section so I will grade as Near Mint but the vast majority does indeed play better than that.

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The classic 'Enjoy The Silence' plays with stunning precision from the very first note.  This is the one of the cleanest versions I have ever heard as the actual track plays with no background not even a solitary dust tick.  The sonic quality is exceptional!  Just a hint of light static at the end of the fade out!  The quiet instrumental section that follows does play with some light static but nothing too intrusive.  I will grade the 'song' as Mint- and the instrumental as VG+ but the audio still plays very clearly with no clicks or pops.

'The Policy Of Truth' has only a couple of very quiet static ticks on the intro and Gahan's opening vocal is perfect. It continues to play with phenomenal quality and I only detected one mega light tick and a couple on the fade out.  A Mint- version.

The intro on 'Blue Dress' is flawless and Gore's first vocal is equal to that.  This clarity of sound is maintained throughout and only the quiet ending has a touch of light static but overall Mint- is deserved.  The 'separate' instrumental section then plays very clearly with only minimal static and grades as Ex+

The intro on 'Clean' has barely any static and the opening vocal has no background whatsoever.  It continues in the same precise way with nothing to detract from the audio and for a final track it plays so well.  There are no clicks or pops and, dare I say, the audio is so 'clean' and fresh and it provides a Mint- end to this fine album.

In summary this first pressing plays with superb audio with very little intrusion.  The only 'obvious' background is some light static during the instrumental section that follows 'Enjoy The Silence' but even then it isn't loud.  There are no clicks or pops anywhere and the overall clarity is very impressive.  There is a lot to like about this album!

The Cover & Lyric Inner

The cover remains in very good condition with some shelf wear but certainly not an excessive amount.  The top edge has hardly any wear and the bottom edge just has a little rubbing and some wear on the corners.  The spine has only minimal wear, just a handful of 'specks' and light wear on the corners.  The opening edge has hardly any handling wear and the front cover is very clean but does have some creasing near the top edge and you can see the corners have a little wear.  The back cover is in excellent shape with only one minor crease near the top edge and some light creasing in the top left corner.

The lyric inner is in excellent condition with only minor wear on the thumb notch area on the lyric side.

Play tested on my Rega with Rega Carbon Cart / Denon PMA-520AE Amp / B&W 684 Speakers

This record has been cleaned on a Pro-Ject VC-S machine

STUMM 64 A1  P3  PR-P   JA / B1   P3  PR-P

I grade according to "Record Collector" guidelines.

Any questions please feel free to ask

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Postage & Packaging

I NOW ONLY SEND ITEMS WORLDWIDE VIA TRACKED SHIPPING. THIS PROVIDES 'PEACE OF MIND' IN CASE OF LOSS OR DAMAGE. ALL COSTS ARE SHOWN BELOW AND COMBINED POSTAGE IS ALWAYS OFFERED. ANY OVER-PAYMENT WILL ALWAYS BE REFUNDED BACK TO THE BUYER.

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I ONLY USE HIGH QUALITY MAILERS AND THESE COST ME £1.00 EACH. I WILL OFTEN USE 3 OR 4 CARDBOARD STIFFENERS AND THESE COST AT LEAST £0.15 EACH AND THEN THERE IS THE COST OF THE POLY-LINED INNER AND PVC SLEEVE TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT. IT ALL ADDS UP! NOT FORGETTING EBAY TAKING 10% OF THE SHIPPING FEE ALSO!!

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