How a vinyl record is pressed. An exploration of the resurgence of vinyl records, with views of Rainbo's manufacturing plant and interviews with Rainbo's general manager Steve Sheldon.
The experience of getting a record out that you personally picked and then put it on the table and needle drop is what it's all about. You gotta take the time to listen to the music, but in turn you get a more personal experience. The music sorta means more, at least to me.
I am 48..and still prefer vinyl..nothing compares...I miss the days of going to a record store and the 'high' I would get from just being in a record store...the album artwork, the liner notes, the great photos that were sometimes on the inner sleeve, the scent of a newly opened record....great days. Kirk..in Montreal,
I used to work there back in 1991, awesome place to work for, me being a music lover and a record collector I was in heaven, Eli was the master maker back then. I just wish I had stayed there and learn the trade. I used to love the boxes of pictured records or the ones with the funny shapes :D. Good times
I made my first single when i was 19 years old. Sent it to college radio and local stations. I got airplay! I did everything through Rainbo. They treated me like I mattered even during the dominance of big record companies selling vinyl. I am forever grateful. ( I wonder if they keep those things on file forever? I should order more!)
I RECENTLY DISCOVER THE ART OF RECORD COLLECTION , I AM SWITCHING ALL MY CDS FOR RECORDS IS MORE EXCITING PLAY THEM ON THE RECORD PLAYER LIKE THE OLD TIMES ,
tbh a lot of artists are now all about vinyl/digital releases. Just check out talk shows like David Letterman, most of the times he'll hold up the vinyl release when introducing the artist. The way many people and I see it is: if you want a physical medium, vinyl is much more interesting than a CD, but if you want digital, why bother getting a CD when you can just download the music straightaway. All my vinyl records are still intact, my CDs...long ago replaced by my mp3 player.
I'm 15 and I prefer music be put on wax than CDs. I got a Stanton record player when i was 9 and play records like everyday. Hopefully when start recording professionally, I wanna be on vinyl. The good thing is, now they have USB record players. So you can record your records to your computer and save them as mp3 files
Vinyl is just a better listening experience. That's what it's all about. You can't skip tracks, and you get the big artwork and inserts. It's so pleasing to sit back and just listen to a record all the way. Kids these days have attention spans like goldfish. So it's refreshing to see vinyl making a comeback. As long as the hipsters don't drive the prices through the roof. Im not gonna pay $50 for a record that was pressed last year.
I've heard numbers of ~80% growth in vinyl annually... we know it's growing again, but are those numbers even close to what you are seeing? Was it 80% a few years ago and tapered off? Or is it ramping up? I hope it's 80% a year, but those numbers sound too good to be true. What really amazes me, and prompts a chuckle, is watching CD die while vinyl enjoys a resurgence. Did anyone see vinyl finally winning the format war against CD in 2013? I didn't see it coming.
Seeing this makes me want to do a vinyl release of some of the music that I am working on. As soon as I get the material mastered properly Ill be hitting you guys up :)
Plenty of good music in every genre, best time for music ever. Name another decade where you could enjoy all the music of the past at your fingertips and all the music now also
Absolutely fascinating. I've been DJing since 1998 and still to this day will prefer to drop records over CDs when spinning a set. I've always been interested in how records are made. Vestax came out with the way overpriced home cutting machine in 2000 which paved the way for bedroom producers and studio musicians to cut dub plates and test pressing they could try out in the club. Kinda died out over the years with the advent of digital media. No matter, long live vinyl records!!!
@HypeRhymz The problem about those players is that I hear they are more cheaply made and the stylus is a lot more delicate. There are plenty of youtube users that post videos of their 45s playing on their old household turntable and it sounds better than a CD would produce. I'd just ground the outer cable to something metal and modify the audio cable so it fits in the 'line in' jack. They have the red-white-to-3.5mm converters at Radio Shack, for example. Nothing beats the sound of a vinyl.
The vinyl we use to make the records comes in black pellets, but we can also get vinyl pellets in several other colors that we can mix together to make new colors. The swirl patterns of two colors must be hand-mixed.
4:49 "they still make CD's?" .... good question! Do they still make CD's? I thought music was all digital download or streaming now? I mean when was the last time someone inserted a CD into their iPhone or their MacBook.... lol One day I guess someone will ask "they still have iTunes?" or "people still download music?" or "do people still listen to music?"
Vinyl has very limited dynamic range, CDs, are 48.1 24 bit, iTunes sells the crap audio for streaming, except you pay an extra buck for HD. Only way to get any thing decent from vinyl is completely manual equipment , remove the auto on, and auto return gearing, that extra dragging causes extra friction against the tone arm, which hold the cartridge needle favoring one side of the groover.The automation has gearing, great gearing, but still drags. The tone arm should float effortlessly through the center of the groove, and drop deeply into the groove, or you just don't get it all. Back in the 1977, they were trying to add dynamic range enhancer, another black box, for turn tables, then came the CDs, with huge dynamic range. Then came the greedy quick stamped CDs with hyper compression
CD's are 44.1k 16bit actually. As for the so called drag, it's very minimal unless the mechanism is very dirty and lack of lubrication. Actually some of the better turntables have either mechanically or electronically dampened tonearms to fight resonance, meaning they deliberately put sticky goo in the bearings to add resistance. As for cartridge pulling to one side, physics tells the needle will always pull towards the center of a record. There are ways to solve this, first is to add anti-skate, either mechanically or electronically. Mechanically, there is a spring loaded cam or a weight on a rotating arm by the tone arm. As the arm goes towards the center of the record, the cam or the weight rotate to apply more and more force towards the outside of the vinyl. Second way is just have a linear tracking system where the tone arm moves on a rail instead of turning alone a shaft, this way the needle is always parallel to the groves.
sunnyjason I think some even had little air cylinders to create dampening. I don't believe anyone mentioned that vinyl needed help, it wasn't the ideal media for audio reproduction, and eventually RIAA stepped in to create standards for equalization curves for vinyl media. Also, about the late 50's, man wanted to create even more impressive sound and began using 35mm film media to record music, since magnetic recording tape still had issues. But, I have to assume the added cost was not welcome, telling me, people never really want ideal sound quality.
It's debatable. Vinyl sounds good because people typically want to imagine that it does. If you were playing a lossless file on an excellent system you really would not know the difference. Furthermore, people like to collect vinyl as a hobby and typically like to validate it with claims like these.
well vinyl allows more dynamic range and they don't clip if the volume is exceeding the limit of the media. say if you have a song has very quiet and very loud notes, on a cd you can only fit 65536 levels (16bit) where vinyl its infinite.
Martin asked: How in HELL is it still possible that Vinyl is still better quality than Digital?? It isn't. Vinyl records were compressed, too. The dynamic range of CDs well exceeds vinyl records. People just like the idea of gouging a vinyl record with a sharp needle :)
genuineuni imagin a cd had a sound level from 1-10 it represents the sounds from 1-10 really perfect and you here that crystal clear ... but compared to that 1-10 from the cd is the vinyl able to get the level from 1-100 it holds all lil instrument vibrations and captures the the sound feeling in the recording room . that´s what vinyl fans call the soul of the music . try to listen to your favorite song on cd or mp3 ... and than on a good lp player .. this will blow your mind
Do they still make CDs? Guess you have not been in the music section of a Walmart lately. Shelf space is 60% less than 3 years ago. Streaming is where everyone buys their music. The recording artist can't make big dollars from streaming selling. Their lavish life styles are nothing like they use to be. Ask Taylor Swift, as she removed her portfolio of music off the cloud. The CDs are hyper compressed from what was made in the late 80's early 90's . Vinyl can't be made quick and dirty like CDs, no huge world wide mass quantities, small limited box loads, if bootlegged. The only way to make the big bucks for your recording stars today is, live concerts. That's heavy work, not like sitting home signing for another pressing of CDs , for another million. Music industry has evolved into another dimension. Let there be turn tables, LOL, a small. rich niche market, but a real cool one for audiophiles. Wait for the movies to catch up, home theater is the new way. Just an opinion, but a true one. Stream the movie right into your living room the day it is released. Wine, and cheese anyone?
@ Boscobear: Do they still make BOSCO!!?? :-) Sure, CDs are still being manufactured by many independent reissue companies, but business is slowly becoming quiet. But, the funny thing is watching how many are jumping on the HQ sound gig, trying to put MP3s out of commission. It's what I call desperation for money. Like 5 Hour Energy drinks, I joked about someone selling air, and then I found empty cans (by weight) at a Wal-Mart with (20) shots of air, like $5.00, I had to laugh. But, both ways it was fun, when vinyl records died, I'd hit the budget bins, same with CDs, found some Gold with both medias!
+Boscobear > The recording artist can't make big dollars from streaming selling. "Earlier this week, Yahoo! News reported that Sheeran’s unofficial wedding anthem, “Thinking Out Loud,” has now chalked up over half a billion streams on Spotify. This means that one song has earned Sheeran some $3.5 million in royalties from Spotify, whilst his entire catalog has earned Ed over $20 million." And as more people subscribe to spotify that number gets bigger. I think they're going to be ok.
"Nothing sounds as good as vinyl" Sigh, the full quality digital WAV master it's made from is infinitely better! Besides, the tracks toward the center of the record are about 3dB quieter than the ones on the outside.
Where are you getting the audio that you are cutting the vinyl with? Are you using a tape master? I'm just saying whatever the format before it gets cut to vinyl is the best. NOT the vinyl. How many people are still making records this way? Unless you are not using any DAW it will be digital at some point and not get any better going back to analog. Not everyone has a 24 track Studer in the machine room mixing to 1/2 inch stereo tape!
James Reeno LOL, go tell that to Neil Young! It's a mater of science, AAA will always win out. Do you also deny evolution, the big bang, or global warming? Science, science, science...
