[dwayniac]

I am thinking about buying a Miles Davis mono recording cd box set

and I am wondering if someone can give a description of how mono can sound through headphones. Inferior or better than stereo? Does a digital format change a mono recording in some way? For better or worse?

 

[RRod]

  I am thinking about buying a Miles Davis mono recording cd box set

and I am wondering if someone can give a description of how mono can sound through headphones. Inferior or better than stereo? Does a digital format change a mono recording in some way? For better or worse?

 
Mono can sound just fine, and can sound superior to stereo if the mixing isn't to your taste. Take a piano, for instance. I have never really been a fan of the "bass on left, treble on right" approach to piano stereo recording; I want it to sound like I'm listening to a piano as a spectator, not a performer. If the performers don't use much of a soundstage (i.e. all standing close to one another), then you won't miss out with the mono, but if something has panning elements as a core feature, then you'll need stereo or multichannel to get that. You'll find all kinds of various opinions on the stereo vs. mono Davis recordings; listen to them all and see what you like. 
 
Digital format doesn't change mono, but there is no CD standard for mono delivery, so "mono" will actually be identical L/R channels. Someone who has mono multichannel recordings can weigh in on how they are delivered (e.g. center channel only, duplicated L/R).

 

[dwayniac]

Thank you.I can stream the whole box set from Amazon Prime to listen closely.

 

[sonitus mirus]

I have both the Beatles stereo and mono box sets.  Some of the older stereo mixes have vocals and instruments panning completely through one channel or the other, making it feel like my sinuses are congested with some songs.  For the Beatles, stereo seemed to be a bit of a gimmick early on, and there was some experimentation until they got it right.  Some of the same songs I prefer in stereo to mono, but the mono versions all sound good on my headphones, whereas I can't listen to some of the hard-panned stereo tracks with headphones.

 

[Roly1650]

I have both the Beatles stereo and mono box sets.  Some of the older stereo mixes have vocals and instruments panning completely through one channel or the other, making it feel like my sinuses are congested with some songs.  For the Beatles, stereo seemed to be a bit of a gimmick early on, and there was some experimentation until they got it right.  Some of the same songs I prefer in stereo to mono, but the mono versions all sound good on my headphones, whereas I can't listen to some of the hard-panned stereo tracks with headphones.

You are correct, all the early Beatles tracks were mixed for release in mono. The stereo mix was done days or weeks after, not always by George Martin and sometimes not even from the same takes as the mono recording. Stereo wasn't considered very important, by and large, the target audience owned one valve portable record players, not stereos.
The book "The Complete Abbey Road Sessions" is a great read, very detailed and considered the last word on all Beatles recording/mixing sessions, but it may be out of print now.
Edit: apparently it has been reprinted as "The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions - The Abbey Road Years 1962 - 1970". A couple for sale on the auction site now.

 

[bigshot]

The stereo version of Rubber Soul was done by George Martin in the late 80s for CD release because he wasn't happy with the original stereo mix. He signed off on all the rest.

 

[dwayniac]

It seems as though what was recorded in mono "should" stay that way considering stereo was in its infancy.

 

[RRod]

It seems as though what was recorded in mono "should" stay that way considering stereo was in its infancy.

 
Even later on stuff isn't necessarily friendly if you use headphones. The AAD version of Van Halen 1 I have on CD (1990 release I think) has the guitar panned hard left most of the time, with nothing nearly as weighty on the right to compensate (vocals are center); I really can't stand it on my HD800s, but on my cheap floorstanders it sounds fine.

 

[Solrighal]

Women & Children First is exactly the same - lead guitar panned well to the left. I find it very annoying, particularly with music with an inherent guitar lead.