Stereo/Mono in Pop Vocals and Jazz

[tinpanalley]

How would one know whether a particular jazz or pop vocals artist originally released their records as Mono or Stereo? When there is a Mono available I'd prefer that but often when you find a record in a shop there's no way to know if you're holding a stereo record that sounds better in its mono release, right? Sinatra's Capitol albums for example are known to be better in mono. I would imagine that in the mono era, mono is how records sound "better" than their simulated stereo releases. So... any foolproof way to know if I'm looking at a record that is also available in Mono?

Anyone know of a music forum that gets people into this kind of music together?

[jake]

Usually when you see the prefix "RS" that means fake stereo. Then the other basic way to tell is to check the rare record guide, usually STEREO cost more, but if MONO is priced higher you can bet that's the original way it should be.
Just using the mono/stereo switch is not full proof, there are different kinds of fake stereo, and some are so close to being mono - they just have a very slight added echo - you may not hear the difference. With ESL speakers I find that mono soundstages seem deeper, stereo soundstages seem wider, but I don't think that works for cone speakers.

[tinpanalley]

Any rare record guides you can recommend?

[analogaudio]

Stereo was not the standard release format till the late 1960s, so you can use dates as a guide. Before the mid 60s stereo was rare and mono was standard. By the 1970s everything was stereo and mono disssappeared. In between in the mid 60s it was common to have a choice. When a recording was produced for mono release it was played back on a single speaker.

[tinpanalley]

See that's what I was kind of doing instinctively. I figured if mono is an option on some of these pop vocal and jazz albums I'm looking at, it's probably best to go with that. I've seen simulated stereo separation, I've seen the kind of fake stereo that's just slightly delayed on one channel to cause an echo and I've seen excessive reverb as well. I'm sure Sinatra's Capitol isn't the only thing that sounds better in Mono.
Thank you!!!