Mariah Carey – #1's

The pros
-Nice packaging
-Beautiful silverish marbled color (matches the cover so well!)
-Great mastering
-Pristine sound quality
-Mariah Carey

The cons:
-I wish this was gatefolded

Conclusion
I am very happy with this purchase, her team did a great job here!

This metallic silver & black swirl vinyls are manufactured in EU.

spent plenty of time with the record store day version of this album and can safely say this pressing is MILES better! the packaging alone is some of the best i’ve seen - printed inners lined with anti static, thicker jacket and no creases or bends unlike my rsd one. the clear discs match perfectly with the cover (not always a fan of clear but great choice in this instance) and both discs play back with no surface noise and crisp, dynamic sound - crazy to think it uses the same cuts as the rsd release. love that it has an actual obi stripe and a lyrics sheet with both japanese and english lyrics!

i wouldn’t bother with any other version of this album (even the stunning grey smoke reissue) as the quality and overall package of this pressing elevates it to one of my favourite releases i own. would love to see this level of quality with more song mariah released as the standard reissues always seem to be lacking :(

Strange pressing. It’s d as being high-res and the packaging is underwhelming so one would expect it to deliver exceptional sound. I will say that the record sounds very clear and has a great sound stage, but the sibilance on her voice is distracting. I don’t understand why her vocals seem to be an after-thought with the mastering when that’s what people are buying her music to hear.

Is this a US import that they put an OBI strip on, or is this pressed in Japan?

I recently acquired a copy of Mariah's #1's from a Japanese seller and i am happy to report that all the superflous ratings about the quality of the pressing from that country are spot on: whisper quiet and refined sound.

To be fair, I have not had the opportunity to listen to any other edition of this release, but at this point I'm very content with what I have. I agree with XETSOF that a gatefold sleeve and chronological listing of the songs would have improved things all round. Additionally, I couldn't help but notice that in the liner notes the songstress was at pains to stress that this was NOT a greatest hits package, something that the Japanese were only too happy to contradict on their obi strip.

A few choice cuts were missing but I've long come to with the record companies that include just enough in packages like this to whet your appetite, but deliberately leave out a few choice cuts forcing you to wait for yet another release, or select a catalogue item. I suppose they stuck to the memo of only number ones (with the exception of the newly recorded material of course).

Poor quality SACD. Another of those lazy transfers with a terrible boosted bass that dominates and distorts at volume, spoiling the listening experience of the majority of tracks. There are no audible benefits from buying this disc- a bitter disappointment.
The Blu-Spec edition sounds so much better.
THIS IS NOT AN AUDIOPHILE QUALITY DISC- AVOID AT ALL COSTS!

Can anybody comment on the sound quality of the Japanese pressing of this vinyl compared to the EU or US pressings.. I’ve heard the EU & US have sound distortion issues like the rsd releases?

Any help would be great, thanks ☺️ 🎶

Guess I lucked out with my copy. Mine didn't have any sound issues at all, sounded just as good as the Japanese clear vinyl from last year. Gorgeous vinyl color too, it matches so well with the album art.

Soooo much sibilance. I didn't find my copy sounded low, as it is loud and punchy but the sibilance detracts a ton. Otherwise its a pretty pressing but I don't know how often I'll be dropping the needle on this one unfortunately.