I was one of the suckers who bought the orignial CD catalogue from the 1980s, then bought the original four-disk remasters box set in 1990 (with its supplement from 1993). But THIS box set is the way to go.

First, unlike the 1990 4-disk box set and its 1993 2-disk supplement, you get the orignal records in the original running order, and unlike the orignal catalog releases in the 1980s, you get all the original artwork, which was previously unavailable. These original studio records include the following:

Second, on the 'Coda' disk (which was nothing more than a posthumous collection of unreleased tracks to begin with), you get four of the five nonalbum tracks released with the 1990 box set - "White Summer/Black Mountain Side", a semi-live track from 1969, "Traveling Riverside Blues" and "Baby Come Home", recorded between the first and second records, and the hit b-side "Hey Hey What Can I Do", orignially a b-side of "Immigrant Song", one of the few singles released by this quintessential AOR band. The only thing missing is the remixed version of "Moby Dick", which was included on the first 1990 box set, but which is hardly essential.

Led Zeppelin's complete studio recordings gathered together in one great box set, with all original artwork, plus a book about the band. Could you possibly ask for more?

Ok, so for Zeppelin fans that have all or most of the albums already this set is pretty much worthless. But, for someone with only two albums or someone who has lost all or most of their Zeppelin albums (me) this set is a godsend. It's almost worthless to review, because the content is well known and speaks for itself.

So then why should you buy this instead of individual albums? If you have just begun to get into the band, have liked a couple albums and want more, this set will save you money, because let's face it, you will end up with all or nearly all of these CD's anyway. The set costs significantly less than buying the albums seperately. With this set you get an interesting booklet about the band, as well as all the albums packaged nicely in a great looking, relatively small box.

The one minor, VERY minor downside to this set is that it doesn't include Zeppelins live album, The Song Remains the Same. Some people may expect this even though the title of the box is Complete STUDIO Recordings, since it was released back around the time of Physical Graffiti. It's a small incovenience that honestly I feel stupid complaining about.

In short, anyone thinking of buying this should. It will be a great investment that you will not ever regret.

The following is my opinion. Listen, compare, and decide for yourself. Led Zeppelin is my most favorite group. I would give this set 5 stars except for a major shortcoming. Jimmy Page let his ego get in the way when digitally remastering these studio albums. Remastering also means track remixing. Mr. Page has put his guitar work front and center throughout the CDs. Of course, his guitar is legendary, but the other members of Led Zeppelin were not his personal backup band. The Led Zeppelin sound was a well mixed blend of instruments and vocals. Now his remixed guitar tracks often upstage Robert Plant's voice tracks in the remixes, especially in passages where he is simply strumming or plucking backup notes. It's a bit like a stew with too much salt, where just enough would have been fine.

A followup on the Glue Issue:

After owning the studio set for a month, I must agree with a previous customer that the construction of the box set housing, though artisticly creative, is poorly engineered. If the box case is left with it's door side facing up, gravity eventually forces the CDs to slip into the glued bindings of their sleeves. The result is glue on the edges of your CDs. Luckily, the original albums were signifigantly shorter in duration than the CD's capacity. Since CD tracking starts from the center and goes out, there is usually a buffer at the outer edge of the CD. Still you don't want glue on your CDs. I would recommend inverting the whole case with the lid closed and face down. Then gently tap the case so all the CDs inside fall away from their glued sleeve bindings. Finally, store the case with the lid facing out like a garrage door and the internal CDs laying horizontal. Better yet, invest a few bucks in a set of slim plastic cases and just store the 10 CDs in new clean cases. I removed a small bit of glue using 70% isopropyl alchohol and a soft tissue, such a toilet paper. I applied the alcohol sparingly to the tissue and very gently pushed the glue radially toward the edge of the CD, until it dissolved onto the tissue.

I emphasize "gently" and "sparingly" and of course, you do this at your own risk. You may call all this being nit-picky, but hey it is a $110+ music investment.

If you're considering buying this set, there's a more than decent chance that you already know most if not all of the music, and you know how you feel about that. Overall, I'd give the music here a four star rating; there are classic records here and arguably three or four masterpieces -- nothing to be sneezed at -- but there is also less than perfect stuff: Presence (underrated, but not great), In through the Out Door (not bad), and Coda (self-explanatory title). Those drag the overall rating down.

So why do I give the set three stars? The packaging. It's attractive, certainly, but whoever designed it hadn't thought much about its function. CDs are paired off in slipcases which need to be returned to the box with some care, because everything fits too tightly and can get banged up. The cardboard slipcases are like drawers, and the box has a number of slots or runners, so it's a little awkward. Worse yet are the cardboard sleeves themselves, which hold onto the discs so stubbornly you can't help but know that you risk scratching them -- smudging them is a certainty -- each time you wrestle the platter out of the sleeve and then on its return. That's difficulty enough with play at home; I can't imagine trying to manage the operation when driving on the highway.

So the packaging itself actually discourages play, which is a pretty big and obvious conceptual problem. And since the package is what you're buying here -- not just the CDs -- I have to dock this box one star.

My suggestion would be that if you want to buy this box, order a number of empty jewel cases as well. The cover art won't transfer from the cardboard sleeves' booklets (not without some scissors, anyway), but at least the CDs themselves will be accessible, and that's what all this should service, anyway: the music.

How do you review a boxed set of an artist's complete studio recordings? I guess you would first review the band, and then review the features of the boxset. So, that is what i'm going to do.

First off, Led Zeppelin, how could you describe them? They're so versitile. The only adjective that comes to my mind is "raw". They have a raw sound, something that makes you know they're real. They had an awesome attitude about their music, and were always attempting to grow as artists. There is no use trying to pick a best album, or a best song, they are all masterpieces. This set tells the story of Led Zeppelin. If you like Led Zeppelin, you'll like the box set. If you don't like Led Zeppelin, you probably won't. In my opinion, they are a perfect mix between being serious and having fun, a perfect mix for rock and roll (in my opinion).

Next off- The boxset. It's great. It's an awesome package, and is well priced for the items contained inside. Inside is a book with an essay and pictures, which is well written, and is very informative. Also, inside are the five other booklets which contain two cds each and the original album art on a black background. It has every page of all the booklets and sleeves that came with the original albums, which is always a plus. Overall, the box has no problems. I get paranoid sometimes, though, pulling out the cds of their cardboard holders in fear of scratching them. So far, though, they haven't been scratched. That's why it's only paranoia, and nothing real. If you are careful, they won't get scratched from the cardboard containers.

If you are looking for all the Led Zeppelin songs, there is no other way to go. If you buy all the albums seperatly, you'll have them all at the same price, but with no booklet or no cool box. If you buy the other box set and the two cds to compensate for the songs not on that box set you'll have all the songs in mixed up order with no original cover art and no essay. So that is why, in my opinion, this is the only way to go. The songs should not be mixed up, because they are put in an order for a reason.

So, the only thing wrong with this boxset is the fear I get from maybe scratching the CDs. Again, If you're careful this won't happen. That's why this boxset gets 5 Stars (4.9).