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New Vinyl Quality

levimax

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I primarily buy original pressing of older records which like all things vinyl are hit or miss but at least they are old and interesting. My experience with New vinyl is that the vinyl it's self is quieter but that I get a lot of off center and warped records. I think the main problem is the heavy weight vinyl... it is a complete fad (many of my favorite 1st pressing are Dynaflex) which helps nothing but seems to be much less reliable to produce.
 

Chrispy

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From what I've read vinyl is largely being produced on old manufacturing gear, some past its prime and not easily serviced, or simply not serviced. It's that aspect perhaps showing up. I haven't bought vinyl in many years myself, tho.....and even a "180g" special release vinyl I got for free some years back was pretty bad manufacturing wise (very noisy on initial playback).
 
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dBiz

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From my experience on new vinyl purchases (which was from a couple of years ago). Mostly classical and some of the more popular re-issues.

Off center, warped, scratched, pressing defects causing noise such as squeals/burps/etc., pops in record (not dirt in groove), jagged edges. Then you can put on an album from the 60's and it is dead silent, on center and flat. I've stopped buying new vinyl, almost every purchase results in a return, and it's sad because when you pay $40 and up per album you expect some quality? I'd even pay more for a better product if it was available.

For myself I'm better off hunting for used albums (fortunately for me there are a couple of good shops that have a decent selection of used vinyl), get them home and clean them. Some are gems, others just average, some used for placemats on the kitchen table, but I'm buying used and still come out ahead dollar wise.

The technology is available to produce vinyl records that would surpass anything made in the past but I don't see that happening for probably more reasons than we can discuss in 100 forum pages. With all that said those producing vinyl records cannot make them fast enough. I guess that a lot of those buying vinyl are accepting the current quality and are just satisfied to spin some vinyl.
 

anmpr1

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I would say the big makers of guitars had real issues in the seventies, but today you can get really good instruments for relatively small prices.
CNC machines along with a consumer QC expectation (who are not hesitant to return what they consider a defective item) has been my experience. I don't prefer to buy an instrument on-line, but with today's exceptional return policies it's not a gamble, anymore.

World Musical Instruments, CorTec (and others) have mass production and quality down to a science, and at a very low price point. Indonesian PRS guitars are lovely... Ibanez, Schecter, et al. QC of Chinese Epiphones, which were until recently fairly inexpensive (but now tip the scale at a thousand dollars or more--maybe inflation?) is impressive. At the 'high end' you find guitar's from Beijing's (violin maker) Eastman, sending out hand made custom shop tier instruments. The last several years have been a great time to shop for inexpensive to higher end guitars.

I don't think this translates very well to buying a DAC or headphone amp from Asia. Anecdote: last year my new Epiphone SG Standard had a slight neck-headstock crack (at the nut). It probably should have been caught at the factory, but it was hairline. I called Nashville, and was sent a replacement in a two weeks (they were out of stock so I had to wait that long). If I'd have noticed it when it first arrived (I let it sit around a month before I opened the box--not smart on my part) the on-line retailer would have sent me a new one, then and there.

However, with one of the little Chinese wunderkinds you read about here on ASR, I don't think after sale support/exchange is going to be as easy as buying a guitar, on-line.

I don't remember seeing the kind of pressing/handling defects that I am seeing now (and none of my old records show evidence of those types of issues, outside of sleeve scuff marks).....although, admittedly, I wasn't paying as close attention to record quality in those days.

If you rummage the the pages of Audio, Stereo Review, Hi Fi, and early Stereophiles from the late '50s and '60s, there were a lot of complaints about record quality. One thing I'll give Harry Pearson credit for... his push for decent quality records. Product from the '80s might have been the worst. I've heard it attributed to the 'oil crisis'.

The beginning of a real push for decent records was cottage industry labels like Sheffield (direct to disc), and on a mass market scale, Teldec DMM pressings. I've read negative comments about DMM, but I have them in my collection and have not experienced any sonic horrors. Japanese import pressings (supposedly using JVC 'supervinyl') were popular. MFSL half speed mastering. 45 rpm and such. Boutique high end hi-fi stores carried the audiophile product in my area. One of my most 'dynamic' records is an Umbrella label direct disk (distributed by Audio-Technica). Big band jazz... Rob McConnell... not a Count Basie tier performance for sure, but notable for how carefully it was recorded, cut and pressed (if not its artistic value).

Realistically, at the end of the day we're talking records. A certain level of imperfection is expected, and can be considered a 'feature'. The big question for record buyers is: if you have a record with only one major pop or click per side, would you rather have it at the very beginning of the record, or at the very end? My vote is at the beginning! :)
 

cicastol

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Since getting back into vinyl one of the more interesting things that I have noticed is the lack of manufacturing quality controls on new sealed vinyl. Without really tracking it, I'm noticing that about +5% of my new vinyls have some type of manufacturing defect.
In my personal statistic at least 40% of my new vinyls has defects, more often 1 side is better than the other , even in "audiophile grade" 180 grams super luxury expensive pressings......

Now after spent over 1k$ for turntable i'm went back to digital audio only due to new poor pressings vinyls and quality control.

 

dBiz

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Now after spent over 1k$ for turntable i'm went back to digital audio only due to new poor pressings vinyls and quality control.
I wished that is all I spent on my turntable. Have more than that in the cartridge alone, and that is just for one that I own. So in reality the poor quality of new vinyl is saving me money. :facepalm:
 

Godataloss

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In my personal statistic at least 40% of my new vinyls has defects, more often 1 side is better than the other , even in "audiophile grade" 180 grams super luxury expensive pressings......

Now after spent over 1k$ for turntable i'm went back to digital audio only due to new poor pressings vinyls and quality control.

That's ridiculous. I buy hundreds of records a year. I've had to return far less than 1%- mostly due to shipping damage. Perhaps your turntable wasn't set up correctly if your 'vinyls' don't sound right.
 

LouB

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In my personal statistic at least 40% of my new vinyls has defects, more often 1 side is better than the other , even in "audiophile grade" 180 grams super luxury expensive pressings......

Now after spent over 1k$ for turntable i'm went back to digital audio only due to new poor pressings vinyls and quality control.


That's disappointing, I was recently given a turntable & thought for sure I'd be upgrading it. After reading some of these posts I'm having second thoughts. I'm in the process of upgrading my whole system. One of the selling points of amp choice was it has a very good phono preamp built in.
Wasn't the only reason for amp choice but I thought it was plus for me.
 
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Digby

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My impression is that today's vinyl often sounds very good, which I think ironically has to do with the fact that all steps before pressing are usually digital.
Among the best I've heard was the Decca classical pressings from the early 1960s. Technology at the time was rather limited, so I can only put it down the knowledge of the people doing the recording & mastering, probably the kind (depth) of knowledge that has since been lost.
 

levimax

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That's disappointing, I was recently given a turntable & thought for sure I'd be upgrading it. After reading some of these posts I'm having second thoughts. I'm in the process of upgrading whole system. One of the selling points of amp choice was it has a very good phono preamp built in.
Wasn't the only reason for amp choice but I thought it was plus for me.
I wouldn't let a few random internet posts change your plans but if you are going down the vinyl rabbit hole you need to know that records, whether old or new, can be hit or miss. It is the nature of the format and manufacturing process. If you are looking for consistent "perfection" you will be disappointed, if you can live with some variability and can accept that as part of "the fun" then you will be OK.
 

WDeranged

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I've had quite a few more duds this year when buying new. Multiple copies of brand new vinyl from current bands covered in clicks and scrunches. But in defense of modern vinyl I have a previously unplayed record from 1995, mint as can be, riddled with clicks.
 

LouB

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I've had quite a few more duds this year when buying new. Multiple copies of brand new vinyl from current bands covered in clicks and scrunches. But in defense of modern vinyl I have a previously unplayed record from 1995, mint as can be, riddled with clicks.

If my memory is correct it seems that by 1995 the CD revolution was in full swing and vinyl was on the way out so possibly that pressing was just an afterthought ? It's odd when I think about it, back in the day 70's & early 80's I bought a lot of records & never returned 1 of them because it was defective. Only after a record had made the rounds from house to house party to party did they become damaged. However those records were never played through any high end gear and we had no other format to judge them by. I just don't remember hearing any clicks or pops or any flaw from a new album.

I wouldn't let a few random internet posts change your plans but if you are going down the vinyl rabbit hole you need to know that records, whether old or new, can be hit or miss. It is the nature of the format and manufacturing process. If you are looking for consistent "perfection" you will be disappointed, if you can live with some variability and can accept that as part of "the fun" then you will be OK.
A rabbit hole indeed ! Seems with the internet most hobby's quickly become a rabbit hole. So many choices/opinions & facts. I think at this point I'm scratching the turntable & just buy amp,speakers & CD player & hook up the TT that given to me. Buy a few more records & see how it goes. If I find that records are OK to listen too compared to CD's & streaming I'll than decide if spending the money on a TT is something I'd enjoy.
 

JaccoW

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In my experience it largely depends on where they are pressed and often which label releases them.

For example:
  • Gondwana records (UK) - Excellent quality. Often mastered at half-speed and even their translucent records sound great.
  • Mondo (USA) - Unique records, beautiful packaging... but lots of complaints about noisy records.
  • EnjoyTheRideRecords (USA) - Unique records, generally excellent sound quality.
I think my only really big disappointment was Celestial Greens by Vels Trio. Excellent music but the vinyl sounds like a lo-fi recording with extremely limited dynamics.
 

LTig

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I absolutely hate the paper seelves they use nowadays because they lose fibers and it will scratch across the vinyl and leave little white specks everywhere. I am pretty sure I once destroyed a new record when first pulling out the vinyl because there was some paper needle that somehow formed from shipping.

I have no idea if they were better in the past or if the old records I have simply already lost all the bits that were to lose. But the paper feels smoother.
Some time ago I bought an anniversary package of 6 records and they were packed in heavy rough paper sleeves, similar to a standard record sleeve without the inner sleeve.:facepalm: They were all scratched on the surface due to movement during shipping and covered with lots of paper dust particles.:mad: I thought about returning them but the package was already sold out and I was sure any other package would just show the same problems. So I used my vacuum cleaner (it comes with a very soft brush for furniture) to remove the dust particles which worked quite well. However I decided if I ever buy vinyl again I make sure the records are packed in proper plastic sleeves.
 

LTig

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If my memory is correct it seems that by 1995 the CD revolution was in full swing and vinyl was on the way out so possibly that pressing was just an afterthought ? It's odd when I think about it, back in the day 70's & early 80's I bought a lot of records & never returned 1 of them because it was defective.
That's my experience as well. Beginning 90ies records became thinner and thinner and ground noise got louder. At that time I thought it was intentional to force people buying CDs instead of vinyl.
 

Mulder

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That's my experience as well. Beginning 90ies records became thinner and thinner and ground noise got louder. At that time I thought it was intentional to force people buying CDs instead of vinyl.
My experience is that the vinyls varied greatly in quality both during the 1970s and the 1980s. When CDs became more common in the latter part of the eighties, the playing time was often extended. When the same amount of music was pressed onto vinyl, the audioquality suffered.
 
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thrillho

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i have started buying a big chunk of my new stuff from amazon because of defects (thus easy returns).

the two big things i've mainly noticed:
1. records are off center which can help cause wow/flutter
2. imperfections which cause noise

regardless of me buying a new or used record, i always put them through the same cleaning regimen.

Spin Clean with cleaning fluid > Spin Clean with only distilled water > Degritter

this has helped a ton as the factories records are pressed in are usually pretty dirty. i've cleaned friends new records that have turned the water completely cloudy.

i don't know the exact statistics but would probably say about 2 out of every 10 i buy has problems. sometimes it's just the pressing itself (went through multiple copies of secret machines first album and in it for the money by supergrass) that has issues. overall, not terrible but super annoying to drop 20-30 dollars on only for it to sound like hot garbage. having a puffin definitely helps reducing the clicks thanks to it's magic mode.
 

thrillho

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also, life hack i've found for buying any records is checking the release page on discogs to see peoples thoughts on the pressing
 

MattHooper

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Weirdly, though I'm 59 and grew up listening to records, I can't remember worrying at all about record quality - as in opening a record "I hope this one will sound ok." I don't know if that's because record quality was more consistant in the 70's or if, since it was the main medium we just went with "it is what it is." I know I cared about sound quality though.
 

oceansize

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For me, the biggest issue with modern vinyl is that there is such high demand (over current production capacity) that the labels are rushing to get things out on the market, which is going to inevitably create quality issues.
The labels receive test pressings from the pressing plants that they should listen to prior to approving a full scale pressing.
 
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