Question for you vinyl people out there.

[panteragstk]

This makes me wonder if the new Tool album would sound good given it's a VERY good pressing from what I can tell. At least it better be for what I paid for it.

Now I'm going to have to get a turntable. Maybe.

 

[lovinthehd]

This makes me wonder if the new Tool album would sound good given it's a VERY good pressing from what I can tell. At least it better be for what I paid for it.

Now I'm going to have to get a turntable. Maybe.

You got the vinyl but have no tt? Okay, why? As an "investment"? If the latter probably best to leave it sealed.

 

[panteragstk]

You got the vinyl but have no tt? Okay, why? As an "investment"? If the latter probably best to leave it sealed.

Nah, just wanted it. No investment. I do have a player, but it's a huge console from the 60's.

When I originally decided to get it I had every intention to get a table. I've got a lot of vinyl from my grandparents and my parents will probably give me theirs too. They have good stuff, but don't take care of it.

I plan to keep the Tool album mint, but I really do want to hear how good/bad a new pressing sounds. I've never heard new pressings, only from the 70's and before.

 

[lovinthehd]

I'm curious how vinyl sounds for Tool....never tried any that way. Not $120 worth interested, tho

 

[Eppie]

Nah, just wanted it. No investment. I do have a player, but it's a huge console from the 60's.

When I originally decided to get it I had every intention to get a table. I've got a lot of vinyl from my grandparents and my parents will probably give me theirs too. They have good stuff, but don't take care of it.

I plan to keep the Tool album mint, but I really do want to hear how good/bad a new pressing sounds. I've never heard new pressings, only from the 70's and before.

Point of entry isn't that bad. Project released some new budget TTs, and there's U-Turn, Audio Technica and Fluance. What you get for the money now is better than 20 years ago. There's always the used market too, if you're patient and now what to look for.

 

[panteragstk]

Point of entry isn't that bad. Project released some new budget TTs, and there's U-Turn, Audio Technica and Fluance. What you get for the money now is better than 20 years ago. There's always the used market too, if you're patient and now what to look for.

What's funny is I used to sell turntables to DJs back in the day. Been a long time, but I remember a fair bit. Fluance has some nice looking stuff, and I like the price.

 

[highfigh]

If it's half speed vinyl, you mean 16 2/3 rpm, I may be wrong but I would presume that the high frequencies are more limited to a certain extent than with the 33 1/3 speed disc. The recording must be EQd to compensate for it. IMO, there is a similarity as with the 3¾ ips compared with the 7½ speed tape.

What is Half Speed Mastering? - Why It Sounds Better

Discover how the finesse of half speed mastering produces a superior sounding record and why it's undoubtedly worth the extra effort.

www.yoursoundmatters.com

 

[highfigh]

Agreed and while I also have had a few I still perform an initial cleaning to remove any mold release compound that might still be present. That combined with all my records are kept in achievable sleeves.

It's ironic that so many people want to remove the mold release agent- it's Silicone spray (commonly used in the plastic molding industry) and is one of the best ways to reduce friction.

 

[highfigh]

The original mastering shouldn't take more time. Basically, for a new recording the mastering is the same as for a CD. Then the recording goes through a DA converter for the vinyl pressing. That vinyl making process (which they call mastering) has nothing to do with the original mastering of the recording.

At this point, nobody should ever make a digital master to be used for LPs or vice-versa- that's the reason the first CDs sounded like crap.

The music isn't always mastered in digital form (still not mandatory), it can still be done from analog tapes as it was before digital. Some artists have returned to using all analog equipment in the studio because they like the sound vs digital. Dave Grohl bought the mixing desk from Sound City in California, which had been used for hundreds of well-known recordings to use in his studio. A documentary was made, called 'Sound City'. How he can hear the difference, I don't know.

 

[WookieGR]

What's funny is I used to sell turntables to DJs back in the day. Been a long time, but I remember a fair bit. Fluance has some nice looking stuff, and I like the price.

I just bought this one: Fluance RT85 and like it. Sounds really good.

 

[highfigh]

Well.... I just got the Philharmonic Audio BMR Towers. I would love to hear Dennis Murphy's thoughts on the theory that poor speakers cause records to pop.

Bad speakers usually have more emphasis or lack output in frequencies that don't need that, which can make some record noise more noticeable. Great speakers will/should allow a broader range and less variation in amplitude, which is a good way to hear the differences in recording quality. In the past when the average level of sound quality wasn't as high, many recordings sounded very similar but some were clearly mixed with speakers that weren't the same as others- some recordings from the '70s are terrible.

 

[Verdinut]

At this point, nobody should ever make a digital master to be used for LPs or vice-versa- that's the reason the first CDs sounded like crap.

The music isn't always mastered in digital form (still not mandatory), it can still be done from analog tapes as it was before digital. Some artists have returned to using all analog equipment in the studio because they like the sound vs digital. Dave Grohl bought the mixing desk from Sound City in California, which had been used for hundreds of well-known recordings to use in his studio. A documentary was made, called 'Sound City'. How he can hear the difference, I don't know.

So you think that big vinyl manufacturers are still using analog tape decks to master vinyls. I strongly doubt that and believe that they have been using digital recordings to produce vinyls since the early 1980's. Early CDs sounded like crap because some sound engineers were incompetent with the serious O dB limit with digital recordings.

 

[WookieGR]

So you think that big vinyl manufacturers are still using analog tape decks to master vinyls. I strongly doubt that and believe that they have been using digital recordings to produce vinyls since the early 1980's. Early CDs sounded like crap because some sound engineers were incompetent with the serious O dB limit with digital recordings.

Analog is still used to master and press LP's. I thought it was ALL digital till I started researching it and discovered a number of facilities that do the remastering and pressing onsite, completely in analog. Here is one in particular:

I just bought their Jimi Hendrix Are You Experienced from there. The entire interview is a bit long winded but there are some revelations to be had about the process vs consumer perception.

Other facilities take the analog data and once fully ready to press, will indeed dump it to 24 bit 192khz audio formats or even greater. Either way, the LP will have been made with a greater quality source than the CD is capable of playing back. The quality of the final vinyl album is still subject to foul play in the process though.

 

[panteragstk]

So you think that big vinyl manufacturers are still using analog tape decks to master vinyls. I strongly doubt that and believe that they have been using digital recordings to produce vinyls since the early 1980's. Early CDs sounded like crap because some sound engineers were incompetent with the serious O dB limit with digital recordings.

It really depends on the band more than anything. The Black Keys have albums that are all analog, at least that's what they say. So if one were to buy vinyl of theirs they should get a "pure" experience. I've heard of bands doing interesting stuff to change their sound. It's pretty interesting.

If you can tolerate a video that has single digit pixel count, this is pretty cool.

 

[WookieGR]

It really depends on the band more than anything. The Black Keys have albums that are all analog, at least that's what they say. So if one were to buy vinyl of theirs they should get a "pure" experience. I've heard of bands doing interesting stuff to change their sound. It's pretty interesting.

If you can tolerate a video that has single digit pixel count, this is pretty cool.

Red Hot Chili Peppers and Jack White are all about the analog these days.

 

[Verdinut]

Analog is still used to master and press LP's. I thought it was ALL digital till I started researching it and discovered a number of facilities that do the remastering and pressing onsite, completely in analog. Here is one in particular:

I just bought their Jimi Hendrix Are You Experienced from there. The entire interview is a bit long winded but there are some revelations to be had about the process vs consumer perception.

Other facilities take the analog data and once fully ready to press, will indeed dump it to 24 bit 192khz audio formats or even greater. Either way, the LP will have been made with a greater quality source than the CD is capable of playing back. The quality of the final vinyl album is still subject to foul play in the process though.

Do you think that big labels like RCA, British Decca, MCA, Philips, Odeon, Polydor, Universal etc. use analog tape machines to produce new LPs? That would imply that artists and orchestras would have to perform twice for the same recorded music, the first take for the CD and the second one for the LP.

The number of vinyls produced by the facilities you mention represent a very small percentage of all the vinyls released.

 

[WookieGR]

Do you think that big labels like RCA, British Decca, MCA, Philips, Odeon, Polydor, Universal etc. use analog tape machines to produce new LPs? The number of vinyls produced by the facilities you mention represent a very small percentage of all the vinyls released.

I'm not arguing that. As a consumer that thinks about things like that, one needs be vigilant and shop wisely. Otherwise expect the worse. It's more of an enthusiasts/collectors market than it is a basic consumer market. but yeah, the bulk of the LP's out there are probably garbage pressing sourced from digital files because hipsters will buy anything.
I did however, buy the new Chili Peppers albums solely because it's all analog and that is a major label.

Acoustic Sounds in that video I linked pressed all the Doors, Beatles and Hendrix records of late so a major label goes to guys like that to handle it.

 

[Verdinut]

I'm not arguing that. As a consumer that thinks about things like that, one needs be vigilant and shop wisely. Otherwise expect the worse. It's more of an enthusiasts/collectors market than it is a basic consumer market.

A real fact is that most world wide renown artists don't record for those exceptional audiophile vinyl producers however. You still have to get recordings from big labels if you wish to have their discs.

 

[WookieGR]

A real fact is that most world wide renown artists don't record for those exceptional audiophile vinyl producers however. You still have to get recordings from big labels if you wish to have their discs.

I'm definitely winding down on my vinyl purchasing. The experience is more for the cool artwork and handfeel. Most records have been a disappointment and can't hold a candle to the 24/96 versions already on my server. or the common CD for that matter. For me, it's more about the experience and the event than it is simple listening in high quality.

But then again, I don't have a retirement fund tied up in audio gear so maybe the vinyl experience is out there, just not for most of us.

 

[panteragstk]

Do you think that big labels like RCA, British Decca, MCA, Philips, Odeon, Polydor, Universal etc. use analog tape machines to produce new LPs? That would imply that artists and orchestras would have to perform twice for the same recorded music, the first take for the CD and the second one for the LP.

The number of vinyls produced by the facilities you mention represent a very small percentage of all the vinyls released.

They could just recode to both analog and digital at the same time. Worth it? Not unless you think most people care, which they don't.

I'd wager most of the vinyl produced today is just a pressing of the digital recording. Most artists/producers aren't going to waste the time recording specifically for vinyl.