Have one to sell? Sell yours here

Sorry, this item is not available in

Image not available for
Colour:

Image not available

Share your own customer images

The Catalogue (Numbered Limited Edition) [Box set]

Kraftwerk | Format: Audio CD

4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (29 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.

Amazon's Kraftwerk Store

Music

Photos

Videos

Biography

Kraftwerk (German pronunciation: [ˈkʀaftvɛʁk]), German for power plant or power station, is an electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008. The signature Kraftwerk sound combines driving, repetitive rhythms with catchy ... Read more in Amazon's Kraftwerk Store

›

Visit Amazon's Kraftwerk Store

for 91 albums, 5 photos, videos, discussions, and more.

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Minimum - Maximum [DVD] [2006]
Kraftwerk

4.3 out of 5 stars (26)

DVD

�13.85
Roxy Music: The Complete Studio Recordings …
Roxy Music

4.0 out of 5 stars (32)

Audio CD

�52.49
Soothe My Soul
Depeche Mode

3.7 out of 5 stars (3)

Audio CD

�2.89
Sound System
The Clash

Audio CD

�111.81
Blur 21: The Box [Bonus Three DVD's and One 7" …
Blur

4.2 out of 5 stars (16)

Audio CD

�98.87
Wishful Thinking
Propaganda

4.3 out of 5 stars (6)

Audio CD

�7.43

Product details

Audio CD (9 April 2012)
Number of Discs: 8
Format: Box set
Label: Parlophone
ASIN: B007P5U2GU
Other Editions: Audio CD

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (29 customer reviews)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 129,369 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

See all items

Customer Reviews

2 star

4.5 out of 5 stars

4.5 out of 5 stars

Write a customer review

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

75 of 75 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Probably for obsessives only... 17 Nov 2009

By Trash

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

As no-one else has yet written a review having actually received 'The Catalogue' I thought I would put fingers to keyboard and supply one (sorry if it's a bit long-winded)...

Firstly the contents:
The packaging is excellent. Each CD comes in a little cardboard wallet with the outside sleeve showing the new updated artwork and the inner sleeve showing the original vinyl front covers (the back covers are often different to the vinyl). Some people have expressed concern over the updated artwork but I think it makes the albums more unified (which I guess was the intention).
The full-sized booklets are very nice and very high quality. The booklets contain contemporary extra artwork for each album which in most cases is really lovely (if somewhat sparse). The booklets also give information on what is played by the various Kraftwerkians - something that was definitely not on the original CDs (and I don't seem to remember there being quite as much detail on the vinyl LPs of the earlier albums either). For example I didn't know that Ralf played guitar on the Autobahn album. The booklets are held in a slip case.

The whole catalogue is collected in a thick sturdy box.

Secondly the albums themselves:
I won't go into the merits of Kraftwerk themselves - I'm a huge fan so I'll leave it at that. However, having listened to bits of my original CDs and then the same bits on the remasters I have to say that remasters don't really blow me away. Yes the bass is more present, hiss has been removed (the Man-Machine album was particularly noisy originally) but other things seem to have suffered in the process. For example the synth melody in Pocket Calculator has some very audible reverb on it when it first appears giving it a nice sense of space.... However on the remaster this reverb has been buried by the more pronounced bass making the into sound more 'closed in'. Subtle I guess but listening on headphones it's quite noticeable and is possibly indicative of how the overall sound balance has been chosen to favour the bassier end of the spectrum.
Overall my first impression is that the older albums have the greater audible change particularly as the older albums were much quieter (as older CDs tend to be) and noisier. I'm not sure that there really is a great difference in the overall sound quality (unlike the recent Beatles remasters where you can really hear the differences without having to 'look' for them).

Finally, what's missing?
Personally I think that as nice as the boxed set is it could have been better. A couple of things spring to mind:
1 - Why oh why did they remove the original mix of Telephone call from the album Electric Cafe/Techno Pop? The track Telephone call/House phone sounds like the 12" single that came out at the time of Electric Cafe (I will have to dig mine out to check) and was thus a single mix created to have more impact on the radio/dance floor. To my ears it now does not fit well with the rest of the album.

2 - I know Ralf is often quoted as saying there are no unreleased tracks in the vaults but I can't help thinking that this collection would have been enhanced with the addition of an extra CD containing the few things that do exist and are hard to get hold of. For example
- Dentaku the Japanese version of Pocket Calculator (originally the b-side of the Pocket Calculator single now only available as a live version or as the Mix album version)
- The original version of Telephone call could have been left on the album Techno Pop and Telephone Call/House Call could have been placed on a Bonus CD
- There are some alternative Kraftwerk versions of certain original tracks, such as the different version of the original Man-Machine track (i.e. not the Mix album version) which Ralf created at one point (I think it was originally intended for this boxed set but then they scrapped the idea of adding any bonus material)
- The original version of Tour de France (sparser but in many ways nicer sounding)
I know that this bonus disc would have ended up as a bit of a hodge-podge of tracks from different eras but it would have been a great bonus.

So in summary - a lovely collection but given it's price it's probably only something that would appeal to those that are really into kraftwerk. Those that aren't would probably be better off sticking to the big three (Trans Europe Express, Man Machine & Computer World). Read more ›

8 Comments |

Was this review helpful to you?

Yes

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars KW 2009 Re-Masters - An opinion and observation 16 Oct 2009

By R. Hallett

Format:Audio CD

I have purchased and listened to all eight re-masters. The transfer of the audio sound archives is all very good. The transfer of Electric Cafe re-issued as Techno Pop contains a reconstruction of the track the Telephone Call and is now split into two tracks 4.The Telephone Call and 5.House Phone. Whereas on the original this was something of a dead flat-song, this has been re-constructed into a new vibrant reconstruction KW mix.
I notice that a number of albums state reconstruction as opposed to re-mastering! Another observation is that Tour De France Soundtracks is more balanced and a substantially more refined mix than the 2003 issue. In other words if you have the original 2003 issue do re-consider to purchase this 2009 remaster which is sonically better. Nice expanded inlay photos on all the CD inserts. Information is expanded more so than on previous releases such as lyrics, performers and there music role on the each CD release. My only disappointment is that not all release state tracks numbers against the tile and the timings of each song, and additional PC content on each CD? Despite this small quibble strongly recommended and all the releases are worth purchasing. I certainly will be listening to all eight CD's for years. If you a KW fan then you will require no real prompt from me to purchase these CD's. If you're a newcomer to KW, start with the Mix after that try Trans Europe Express and Computer World.

6 Comments |

Was this review helpful to you?

Yes

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Testament to a fantastic back catalogue 18 Nov 2009

By Bruce Percy

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Well, this is perhaps the first 'real' review, because everything else said here were folk talking about 'vapour ware'.

It's now here, and the presentation of the set of albums is great. I think it's perhaps one of the nicest collections and ways to collect these albums together.

Sound quality is in general - a big improvement. The albums sound smooth, full bodied and less harsh than the original CD's, which I'm sure were just taken from masters created for Vinyl etc.

There are however a few problems with the audio that I would like to note:

1. Radioactivity : every time the burst of white noise comes in, the entire audio track dulls.

2. There is an echo clicking sound right the way through 'Showroom dummies'

3. Evidence of the same noise reduction which tends to dull the sound at times is apparent through TEE and also Pocket Calculator

But they are an improvement on the originals. No more left sided bass on Computer world, or shifting stereo imaging on the album of the same name.

I'd say that the albums to have been transferred the best are 'Man Machine' and 'Computer World'.

Comment |

Was this review helpful to you?

Yes

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Top album - some flawed reviews 16 Dec 2011

By The Purist

Format:Audio CD

Whilst I agree with all the previous comments about how good Autobahn is and how far ahead of its time it was, I must correct one minor issue that has cropped up in several reviews, including the BBC one for the album (look up the listing for Autobahn rather than The Catalogue).

The original 1974 UK release had the blue front sleeve with the white image, as shown on the cover of the 2009 remastered version. The sketched front cover showing a motorway scene (used as the inner sleeve on the 2009 remaster) arrived later and was certainly available during the 1980's. My father bought the original, with blue and white sleeve, back in '74 and my brother bought his own copy during the early 80's and his copy contained the image of the motorway scene. Maybe this version was originally released in Germany during the 70's, but the blue and white version is nothing new, as several reviewers suggest.

My apologies if this review doesn't really address the merits of the album - which are numerous - but I felt I had to comment.

1 Comment |

Was this review helpful to you?

Yes

› See all 29 customer reviews (newest first) on Amazon.co.uk

Write a customer review

Would you like to see more reviews about this item?

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 22 reviews 4.8 out of 5 stars

Were these reviews helpful? Let us know

Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars "It's like being brainwashed"

Call me a charlatan if you like, but I don't own a copy of 'The Catalogue' as such.
But I picked up a copy of Autobahn last week and was blown away by it. Read more

Published 3 months ago by I. Campbell

5.0 out of 5 stars just brilliant

i got single albums but i wish now i got this boxset. its gonna be well worth every penny. kraftwerk r fantastic

Published 12 months ago by tango

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome!

Although this has been released in a previous form, this limited edition is linked to Kraftwerk's recent residency at MOMA in New York. Read more

Published 12 months ago by slatts352

1.0 out of 5 stars Unbelievable Cash Cow Milking!!!!

I purchased this limited edition set despite the knowledge that there would be no additional content to the regular set. Read more

Published 13 months ago by Hasbeena

5.0 out of 5 stars Only one thing missing...

I received The Catalogue yesterday, when the postman rang the door bell and presented me with a big Amazon box. Read more

Published 14 months ago by S. T. Garratt

5.0 out of 5 stars kraftwerk

must say this box set is fantastic.the mix is very good.if you like electronic music this is very good value .cant stop playing it .

Published 20 months ago by dek lewis

5.0 out of 5 stars You must buy this set!

Whilst many have gone into the pros and cons of what has been done well and what could have been done better ie: bonus material, I have to admit I was a little unsure if I should... Read more

Published 22 months ago by David Bentley Newman

5.0 out of 5 stars Kraftwerk Catalogue Box purchase

After not being able to buy this box in a regular store, I went to Amazon.
The price is almost identical, excluding the shipping cost. Read more

Published on 3 Sep 2010 by NicoMan

5.0 out of 5 stars The future arrived now

Amazing product. Better than I could ever have imagined.
Crisply remastered and repackaged in a deliciously heavy and reassuring box. Read more

Published on 28 Dec 2009 by Mr. R. D. Rimbaud

5.0 out of 5 stars Kraftwerk - The Catalogue

Excellent!

The ultimate and complete collection of Kraftwerk's 8 most relevant masterpieces!
Absolutely reccommended for all those who love Kraftwerk.

Published on 26 Dec 2009 by bobcats

.jsOffDisplayBlock { display: block; } .jsOffDisplayInline { display: inline; } .jsOffVisibility { visibility: visible; } .jsOnDisplayBlock { display: none; } .jsOnDisplayNoneBlock { display: block; } .jsOnDisplayNoneInline { display: inline; } .jsOnDisplayInline { display: none; } .jsOnVisibility { visibility: hidden; } .jqOnDisplayBlock { display: none; } .jqOnDisplayInline { display: none; } .jqOnVisibility { visibility: hidden; } .jqOnDisplayNoneBlock { display: block; } .jqOnDisplayNoneInline { display: inline; }

Customer Discussions

This product's forum

Discussion	Replies	Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight

Start a new discussion

Topic:

First post:

Receive e-mail when new posts are made

Prompts for sign-in

Guidelines

Active discussions in related forums

Discussion	Replies	Latest Post
pop discussion forum "BALL UP!" - Val's 2013 Aussie Rules Footy Tipping Open to Everyone 9well, almost)	392	1 hour ago
music discussion forum Deep n' Soulful House Music	37	4 hours ago
music discussion forum A-Z (III) Uncharted - Track 20 - T - Nominations	1	5 hours ago
music discussion forum Music Forum's Fave Artist(s), Track 151 - McGarrigle/Wainwrights - Kate & Anna, Loudon, Rufus and Martha, nominated by Lez Lee, Voting	28	7 hours ago
pop discussion forum song title tag 3	5469	7 hours ago
pop discussion forum All Over The World (2) - Bonus Round 1 - (Half 'n' Half at least) - Voting	13	7 hours ago
dance discussion forum What's you favorite dance compilation album ever, and why?	36	5 days ago
dance discussion forum Trance Music	35	10 days ago