Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin II

well, im really only a casual Zeppelin fan, at best. a couple songs on a couple LPs is as far as it goes with me. but this specific pressing of "II" is the one you need. ive had 3 different pressings in the last few years in an attempt to get a good sounding version without begrudgingly spending the going price for a decent VG copy of an RL pressing. after hearing about this DCW variant, i figured id drop the less than $20 on a clean copy (copy in hand is variant 3; looks high VG, plays strong EX/EX+). without a doubt, this is the best 20 bucks ive spent in years!! the sound is so HUGE, deep, and so open and clear with a depth and punch that ive never heard on this record before. all the instruments explode from the grooves; especially the bass which has an actual "growl" in its attack (especially in "Heartbreaker" !!!) that ive never heard before. this is almost surreal what im finally hearing.

my very early Presswell variant sounds really clear, but incredibly thin. my 1975 RCA club pressing has some serious low-end bombast, but the high end is a tad lacking for my tastes. my early 80s George Piros CRC version is hot garbage cut from a badly damaged tape. this DCW pressing may as well be a completely different record. the difference is absolutely staggering. the vocals have a little bit of sibilant distortion in "What Is And What Should Never Be" and theres a couple of really nit-picky bits of compression in a brief area of "Whole Lotta Love". other than that, i dont see how an RL cut could be noticeably better. this just sounds that Incredible. it really does.

to be fair, i dont own and have never actually heard what Mr Ludwig did on the initial mastering, but after hearing this DCW cut, i no longer see any reason to spend the tons of money required to find out. this really does sound phenomenal and i cant recommend it enough to Zeppelin fans on a budget who are also on a quest for the best version of this LP. you cant go wrong with this one.

I have a VG++ copy of this and it is excellent sounding. I’m alway trying to better pressings so I bit the bullet and bought a VG RLss pressing for $250 and compared the two. It wasn’t the pops and clicks that made the RL worse, but the sound (I think it had just been played to death and wore out). That being said I’m sure a great condition RL is maybe better, but how many do you have to buy to get one that hasn’t been played to death. I’m going to stick with this one because I’m very happy with it.

I just received this DCW pressing off eBay and it was sadly in much worse condition than described, but even then the volume and punch of the music completely cuts through and smokes a 69 Specialty Press I have, which is in better condition. I'm definitely gonna search for a cleaner copy of this pressing!

This pressing I got is driving me insane. The etching shows ST-A691671-Y-Z-1 and on the opposite side of the label is an etched 2. It is coming up DCW on Discogs but on the label it shows ST-A-691671PR which I thought was Presswell?! Can anyone enlighten me on which version I have?

I am so happy with this pressing! Sounds fantastic and with the power that all Zeppelin albums should have.

I have many pressings of this album, Zep 2. George Piros, RL, and this DCW. The RL and DCW are the same mix, this for the money is ridiculously loud. The GP is close, you have to crank it up a little more, but all of bonzos drums punch and might are still there. Get a copy of this DCW if your on a budget, or a GP if you can't find one of these.

I also have the same opinion as the people below me on this release. This is an absolute hidden in plain sight gem of a pressing. Bobby’s Vocals and Bonzo’s drums are crisp, the overall bass is punchy, just an overall very enjoyable listen and solid soundstage on this pressing, absolutely nothing like the muffled vocals/drums and muddied bass on some of the non RL cuts I’ve seen. If you don’t want to spend your spleen on an RL SS, definitely consider trying this press out for a crank.

Edit: so I finally managed to get my hands on the much lauded RL SS Monarch pressing, and it’s as expected, far superior, with a lot more bass and a larger soundstage, but I still think this pressing is an excellent and cheap alternative.

I have the 3rd variant in the higher end of VG condition, not quite VG+, and it's insane. It's an incredible pressing, so dynamic. I'm really only a lukewarm "fan", but I was compelled to come here and write this immediately, I have another pressing of this I've yet to compare it to. I've heard a lot about the Ludwig pressing, if it's any better than this I'd be shocked. This one is a REAL sleeper.

I have this and one of the 2014 remasters (the European realease on Optimal even though I found it new at a brick and mortar in Colorado). I prefer the mastering on this one - the other is a bit harsher on the high end.

This pressing sounds fabulous. Not an RL but sure close