Santana – Santana

This sounds pretty perfect. Can’t think of any way that it can be improved.

This is most definitely a step up from the 2008 MFSL 1-LP pressing of this album! That one for some odd reason was really subdued and not very dynamic at all. Fortunately, I was able to sell that one. But this one... WOW! what a difference. Much more dynamic and as others have stated the bass is quite room filling now. FWIW, my system is super sensitive to masterings that affect the image and soundstage. So, I did a comparison between this pressing and a very early Columbia 2-Eye pristine pressing.

Now, here is where my system reveals things like this. I would say that yes, the original US pressing is ever so slightly more 'Natural' sounding. BUT... without screwing up the image or EQ, somehow MFSL has really beefed up the dynamics and soundstage immensely which makes this one quite engaging. Is the original a tad more natural or 'organic' sounding? Yes... but, in this specific case I feel the very slight 'trade off' is worth having this excellent and powerful pressing.

As a contrast, for example... The recent Pink Floyd Animals that was done recently was mastered very well and came out extremely detailed and clear sounding. Many really liked it. BUT... on my system, although I did appreciate the greater clarity and such, the soundstage to me just didn't sound nearly as 'organic' or natural as the 1st UK pressing. Yes, the UK pressing is very dark and some say quite murky. But, at least for my taste, I actually prefer (on my system) the more naturally placed instruments in the soundstage of the original. The new one just sounded a little artificial, like it was more 'manufactured' (which of course it is 😊) But, for me personally, considering the extremely moody and atmospheric sound of the album, I thought that was more preserved in the original. So, there is a contrasting example to what I was saying above about the MFSL 2-45 LP pressing of Santana

My System:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/9ja3UKob7tppW4Y38

Sorry I do not get it. This is not a 2023 reissue as it is dated 2015 and repressed since then again and again. It is even numbered continously.

This album sounds fantastic. Really great sound separation with instruments and vocals. Deep rich bass that fills the room. Great mids on my system. You may hear some very slight distortion on the high guitar solos but it’s very minimal. This sounds infinitely better than any of my older pressing Santanas. Get it while you can!

Sounds pretty good, but it was never a sonic masterpiece. There's also some volume fluctuations and some weird EQ choices here and there which aren't great. Overall it's still pretty solid and worth getting.

I wish RTI would step their game up with quality control. All the releases I've bought in the last month that were pressed there have either some visual flaw that's distracting, or no visual flaws with major audio flaws. This, for example, looks spectacular but has loud repeating pops on ALL SIDES, throughout all tracks. I've reached out to Mofi to hopefully get my discs replaced, but it feels like all the big pressing plants that were once famous for their great quality have been letting things slide too often, even QRP.

Edit: I got my replacement LPs after a few weeks of with . They certainly aren't perfect but are a substantial improvement over the first set. This pressing does sound great, the bass is super nice, and is quite an awesome listen when you don't have to deal with pressing defects.