The Beach Boys – Surfin' U.S.A.

This particular pressing seems to be 'tone stereo'.
Can anyone compare their pressing?

PLEASE NOTE: My star rating does not indicate the quality of the album, but the quality of the pressing -

Make no mistake, this is NOT duophonic. This is true stereophonic and it shows. This album absolutely bangs in stereo. I'm usually a firm believer in mono for most Beach Boys records. I picked this one up for $20 at my local record store more or less just to add Surfin' U.S.A. to my collection, but I was absolutely blown away by how incredible this sounds. There is such a richness, clarity that simply cannot be found in the mono pressing. This is the one to get if you can grab it. Mine was dead quiet upon the needle drop and with eyes closed, it brings you that much closer to chilling on the beach with The Boys.

How do I know if mine is a repress if all the markings are identical from the 2014 version? Just purchased from Acoustic Sounds.

A mostly legit stereo early LP by The Beach Boys--not much fake stereo on this one, and the pressing sounds better than I was anticipating. Sure, The Beach Boys sound best in mono, and sure "Surfin' USA" is no "Pet Sounds", but this is a big improvement over their execrable first album. The surf instrumentals are pretty good and "Lonely Sea" and "Farmer's Daughter" are Brian's first exceptional ballads.

I don't own this but I'm surprised that the previous reviewer thought it sounded good. Just by looking at the track list, I can't believe that squashed 12 tracks on each side.

Sounds fantastic! As with All Analogue Productions pressings. The Only negative comment I have is… the center spindle hole is Wayyyy too tight!! Surprising… cuz’ this is usually only a cheaper vinyl issue. Other than that it’s Amazing!

Great album to have in your collection from one of the best bands in music history. Love playing this album in the summer by the pool.

Agree with the previous two commenters that this release is worth $40 for the unreal mono mix of "Lonely Sea." I've purchased every Analogue Productions Beach Boys release over the last few years and this was the last album I needed to complete the AP collection.

I can confidently say that all of these AP Beach Boys reissues are some of the best audiophile reissues of a band's collection (in my opinion). This is especially true considering that many Beach Boys albums have sounded terrible over the years, including many of the original Capitol releases (and the nightmare duophonic stereo fold-downs). To have so many of the Beach Boys best albums redone in this complete audiophile fashion from the analogue tapes with top-quality packaging is a Beach Boys dream come true (if only they had done Friends, Wild Honey, and 20/20, CATP, 15BO, and Love You, too...). Glad I ordered all of these already, as it appears many are going out-of-print. Grab them while you still can!

AP always does great work, and the Beach Boys reissue series is no exception. I have both Pet Sounds on 45rpm, Surfer Girl 45rpm, this one, and Surfs Up. They all sound absolutely superb, extremely dynamic, beautiful jackets and stellar QC. These were so good I ordered Shut Down Vol. 2 mono, All Summer Long (had to opt for the stereo since the mono is back ordered for the moment), and Beach Boys Party in stereo three days ago.

As the other commenter said, this album (specifically this exact pressing) is worth getting just for Lonely Sea. It’s worth the $40 entry fee. I just discovered this song about 3 weeks ago and has been on repeat since then.

Do yourself a favor and get this one. Don’t get the stereo unless you’re a completist with lots of cash to burn, the stereo mixes on this one are hit an miss. Lonely Sea has a really bad stereo mix, as well as some of the others.

This is a really amazing pressing! With a good system you hear incredible detail. You can even hear thier lips move!!