Led Zeppelin – Houses Of The Holy

So this isn't an audiophile pressing and won't sound like one, but for $25, this version punches well above it's price point sonically. The vinyl is OK, but the mastering was a definite upgrade over the 2 older reissues I own. Most previous mass produced versions of this LP are muddy in the mids, the drums and bass are buried, and the vocals lack clarity. This version addresses all of those shortcomings. The drums are really present, detailed, and clear sounding. The bass is well up in the mix, and there's a crispness in the vocals that wasn't there before.

I'm unclear about the comments about distortion on The Ocean. There's a little distortion in the vocal, but it seems to be an artifact of the original recording as it's detectable on my other copies, too (sounds like Plant's vocal was recorded a little to hot IMHO). Now that the vocals are cleaner, it may just be more pronounced than some people are familiar with. No distortion in the rest of the mix on that song that I could detect.

Don't worry about this pressing - it won't disappoint the majority of listeners and probably sounds better than 95% of any other versions you can lay your hands on.

System: VPI Scout, w/ Dynavector ctg., Prima Luna Dialogue amp, B&W 702S towers, JL Audio sub

As others have reported, The Ocean is extremely distorted. And there are some little distortions on a few tracks. Otherwise very clear dynamic. Probably just good enough to keep me from getting a different pressing.

I was scared I was gonna wanna get rid of this pressing right away after reading the notes about it. It bangs, I don’t know what everyone’s upset about. A lot of comments about bad distortion. Maybe it’s cause I don’t have multiple pressings of this, but I listened to this through streaming first and then ordered this vinyl. Thought the mix is pretty beautiful, it came to life when I was spinning it. Pleasantly surprised because this pressing has a bad rep

My copy was pretty good, I didn't notice any major skips, but I also cleaned it really well prior to listening. This is my favorite Led Zeppelin album by far and I felt like this remaster definitely did it justice. I would be interested to compare this to an older pressing to see if it sounds better or worse, but for now I am happy with this one!

I have the B2, and yeah the distortion on The Ocean is pretty bad (No Quarter is clear and clean, thankfully). But not enough to ruin the whole experience for me. I've been revisiting the 2014 reissues lately and I'm impressed. I wasn't blown away at first, and I think I let the internet chatter get to me, so I started collecting the George Piros 1977 cuts (affordable, all-analog, easy to find in playable condition). Honestly, this compares very favorably. This really sounds excellent. Full sound, good bass and low end (essential for ANY Zeppelin pressing), clear guitars and good vocals (except for The Ocean).

Ignore the online negativity. If you're just getting into vinyl or just want these albums on vinyl and don't care about the whole digital thing, there were many worse sounding versions in the '70's. These will definitely satisfy. If you're a little picky and want all-analog, go for the Piros cuts (this one set me back $40.)

UPDATE: I've recently been able to compare this to a 1st RL pressing, and I can say that the 2014 pressing hold its own. No, it's not the same as an original 1st pressing. Nothing would be. BUT, this is about 85%-90% of the way there.

couldn’t love this anymore. It brought new life to the songs and is my favorite record at the moment. Mastering elevates the space of the songs, drums sound live, bass notes I’d never heard are present, and the guitar sounds like it’s played in the room. And the artwork is pure 70’s… a masterpiece. Record sounds great no issues.

Mine is an A1 / B2. I have zero distortion on 'The Ocean'. None on 'No Quarter' either. Whole thing is flat & dead-quiet.

I have the A1, B1 version. Any negative/positive thoughts of this pressing? Thanks. Ric

This version with b3 stamped is absolutely packed with all you’ll ever need. Beautiful pressing.

I had purchased a used copy of this last night, not knowing about the B2 matrix having the issues it does, and boy does No Quater and The Ocean play with heavy distortion. I went back to the store today and exchanged it for a new copy hoping to have the newer matrix number etched B3 but I was pleasantly surprised to see it was the EU pressing etched in the wax, found here https://discogs.librosgratis.biz/Led-Zeppelin-Houses-Of-The-Holy/release/6224441 and it sounds 100x better than this pressing did. It may not be as warm as my '77 reissue but it sounds great plus it is without the surface noise and occasional click from being played so much over the years. I'd recommend the linked version to anyone able to cop one.