The Return of Vinyl Records indeed... from Fashion to Confirmed Reality in 2016!

By the end of 2015 and now at the beginning of 2016, the world has witnessed three major facts that really mark the turning point of the Vinyl Resurgence, from Fashion Statement to confirmed format comeback into the homes and stores everywhere in the world.

These are not small things, we're talking major changes or happenings that are unquestionable signs that Vinyl Records are back and here to stay, with significant growth expected in the next decade.

1 - Turntables selling like crazy at HMV and Amazon for Christmas 2015!

This was all over the news, with HMV selling one turntable per minute during the week before Christmas, and Amazon Best Selling Home Audio product during that period being also a turntable. And this of course doesn't take into account all the other major stores across the globe selling turntables like hot cakes in 2015 and now in 2016, with manufacturers like Pro-Ject reporting huge increases in their numbers for the new year. This is a very strong sign of how things have changed in the last few years and how far vinyl records are really going into more and more homes.

2 - Vinyl was King at CES 2016 Las Vegas, Sony and Panasonic highlights!

Nothing stood out and made more headlines than Vinyl at CES 2016. Most importantly, industry GIANTS Sony and Panasonic made Vinyl and Turntables the major highlights of the show, with Sony's CEO introducing a new Sony turntable to enter the market and talking about vinyl playback quality and how it appeals to newer generations, and Panasonic storming the show with the announcement of the return of the famous Technics SL1200-GA Turntable, now even better with many improvements to celebrate the brand's 50th Anniversary. Basically, the biggest and most important Audio/Video Technology event in the World, was dominated by vinyl records and turntables, and two of the major manufacturers in the World made vinyl their main thing for this event.

3 - Brand new Pressing Machines in Europe and America in 2016!

This is by far the biggest sign that Vinyl Records are really back and the future of Vinyl growing is certain. Right now, Viryl Technologies in Canada and Newbilt Machinery in Germany, are making brand new and updated vinyl pressing machines. This is HUGE, pressing plants now can rely on new equipment with reduced maintenance costs, new businesses can plan their strategy without the uncertainty of having to find and rebuild old presses, speed and quality are also expected to reach a better balance in the next few years because we now have new machines. This would never happen if there wasn't already a huge vinyl market and real confidence in the future of vinyl, it takes a lot of time, money and other resources to make these new pressing equipments a reality, we all knew this would only happen when the vinyl resurgence was not just a fad, but a full steaming reality with a very optimistic future ahead. Well, it just happened!

So now we know, and can all rest assured, that vinyl is truly back and it's here to stay, and that is great news for the music loving public, it's not just Vinyl making a strong and sustained comeback, it's music and music culture making a huge and significant comeback to the top position it used to be in our society and in our lives as individuals. Vinyl represents the best of the Music Industry and watching vinyl going back into people's lives, in their homes, is really something special. 

Enjoy the ride!

180 Gram Vinyl... What are the benefits? Heavyweight Vinyl Records Explained

 

The words "180 Gram Vinyl" have been the cause for many misunderstandings and debate among the audiophile and vinyl records community. Unnecessarily so, I would say, there is nothing magical about heavyweight vinyl, and certainly some myths float over those shiny 180g stickers on the record covers, but that doesn't mean there are no benefits from pressing 180g or even 200g vinyl LP's.

Vinyl record weight has very little to do with the sound quality of the music engraved in the grooves. The technical standard by which grooves are modulated and cut on the record surface is exactly the same on all vinyl records regardless of weight grade, the dimensions of the grooves can only be cut within the scope of that standard, and we are talking about extremely small dimensions at the micro-metric scale with such tiny variations that any vinyl weight above 100 Gram (probably even less) provides the necessary physical support for pressing sound grooves according to the standard industry specifications.

In fact, the mastering (or cut) to vinyl doesn't change or vary in any way depending on the weight or thickness of the vinyl discs that will be pressed, and there is no specific mastering for 140g, 160g, 180g or 200g vinyl... Because of the way the vinyl grooves are formed, the relative depth that exceeds the technical standard, has limited relevance since the point of contact of the stylus tip in the groove (basically a triangle shape with one of the vertices pointing down) does not allow the needle to read any deeper, anything below that point is ignored as if it didn't exist... the relative vertical position of the groove in the disc profile depth is also something that has no impact on the stylus performance. In order to make groove depth beyond the current standard make a difference, or to make the vertical position of the groove in relation to disc thickness have some kind of impact, it would require a complete change of groove geometry, such as the standard angles and other characteristics, that is, it would require a new different vinyl cutting standard and different cartridge design, and so on...

Sound quality on vinyl, as well as any other audio format, depends mostly on the type and quality of the source that was used for mastering, and ultimately on the quality of the mastering process itself as well as equipment used to execute the mastering / cut of the lacquer.

That being said, why are heavyweight vinyl records, above 140 Gram weight grade, usually considered better? What are the real benefits of heavyweight vinyl? Why is it so well regarded by the industry and by most consumers? Here are a few possible answers to those questions:

- The disc, the object itself, is more robust and durable. A 180 Gram LP is not only more satisfying to handle and place on the turntable, but it also offers more resistance to a more aggressive manipulation, adverse storage conditions and other possible abuses that can be inflicted over the years or decades. I'm not referring to groove wear from being in contact with the stylus, that is just the same for any vinyl weight grade, but still there is an obvious advantage to the robustness and durability of the vinyl disc as a physical object, offering more resistance to breaking or to becoming warped, and other potential damage.

- There are mechanical advantages from using heavier vinyl on your turntable, basically it provides a more stable platform for your stylus and cantilever suspension, and probably better isolation from unwanted vibration that can actually cause some sound degradation at this micro-level where the pickup is working. This effect is not much different, from a technical standpoint, from changing the platter material or increasing the platter mass on your turntable, or using a different platter mat... you can see the heavier vinyl record as a type of physical upgrade to your turntable, that will make a difference similar to other upgrades.

- Thicker (taller) vinyl profile might change the sound characteristics of your cartridge, for the better or worse, by changing the VTA (Vertical Tracking Angle) of the tonearm in relation to the record surface, this can be audible or not, and it can change sound to the better or worse depending on how your turntable is setup.

- Historically, there is an implied quality standard associated with 180 Gram vinyl, or 200 Gram vinyl. When these heavyweight pressings first appeared, they represented a higher quality standard being applied to the entire mastering and manufacturing process, so in the end it usually resulted in much better sound but not only because of the heavier vinyl, it was just like today a matter of using better sources (Original Master Tapes) and improved mastering techniques.

- Some labels, namely Classic Records with their Quiex SVP (Super Vinyl Profile), and Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab with their UHQR (Ultra High Quality Record) that was manufactured in Japan by JVC, have developed pressing techniques using 180g and 200g heavyweight vinyl where the dies used for pressing were designed in a way to make the record surface more flat than regular record pressings. The uneven surface effect where the disc thickness varies from outer edge to center point is a well known issue studied by many engineers and entities related to audio mastering and vinyl manufacturing, the benefits of a more perfectly flat surface for the reading of the grooves are real and undeniable, however the relation of this factor with total vinyl weight and thickness is dependent of the use of dies created with such design, and that might vary from label to label and between different pressing plants.

For these reasons, heavyweight 180 Gram and 200 Gram vinyl pressings are usually better quality products associated with limited editions, audiophile editions, and better releases in general. Unfortunately this is not always the reality of all heavyweight pressings, in fact some of the worst record labels making terrible vinyl today are pressing 180 Gram LP's from poor mastering jobs using low quality (mostly digital) sources. Pressing bad records on 180 Gram vinyl doesn't make them good records, even less so does it make them audiophile records... not at all! So what is happening with all these lower quality 180 Gram pressings flooding the market today? These are some of the possible answers for that:

- As part of the vinyl market resurgence that has been going on since 2005 (and growing steady), most labels felt the need to make the vinyl record more attractive for consumers, as if they were justifying the vinyl release (or reissue) with the heavyweight grade and that Quality Standard perception that I mentioned before. There's nothing wrong with this, on the contrary it shows a genuine effort to push forward the vinyl comeback by offering higher quality standard that consumers value and enjoy.

- The somewhat unexpected growth of vinyl sales, and that effort to make vinyl releases more appealing by making 180 Gram pressings, resulted in many pressing plants being much more specialized in pressing heavyweight vinyl records for the last 10 years or so, actually the 180 Gram pressing has now become the standard pressing for most factories, meaning that cost is no longer a determining factor when a label chooses to press on 180 Gram vinyl. It is more expensive because it uses more raw material, but the perceived added value by consumers more than compensates the marginally higher investment.

- Since cost, and technical expertise, are no longer determining factors, this has opened the door for almost any label, good or bad, big or small, to press heavyweight vinyl records. With the added bonus that "180 Gram Vinyl" is usually perceived by consumers as higher quality, specifically higher sound quality.

So, where does that leave us? Well, right at where we started... 180 Gram Vinyl is not magic, and it's really not a solution to any major problem. It's additional value, and can represent higher quality production standards, just as well as it can be used by labels with extremely poor quality standards. It is very important to focus your attention on what really counts: Who mastered the record? Where was it mastered? What sources were used for the mastering process? Where was it pressed? And only then, secondary factors such as Vinyl Weight Grade become additional value and a good reason to buy a vinyl LP.

Don't let the 180 Gram sticker alone put you off buying a great LP... but also, don't let it alone be the major deciding factor when buying a record. It's not magic, but it's not to be dismissed as "gimmick" because there are in fact many benefits to heavyweight vinyl pressings when that is part of a bigger picture of quality production that includes quality mastering from the best sources to achieve a result that is a better product in all areas.

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The case for Vinyl in the Digital Age... or: Why does it sound better?

Here at Vinyl Gourmet we know that nothing sounds as good as Full Analog Vinyl, cut from Analog Master Tapes with 100% analog mastering chain. But we also know there is a place for Vinyl in the Digital Age, regardless of source type vinyl is still the best way to enjoy your music.

This is one of the most common questions about vinyl these days. In this Digital Age we live in, where most music is in fact recorded digitally, why is Vinyl a viable proposition and why should we expect better sound reproduction from vinyl records?

It's a very good question, and even though most people instinctively found the answer just by using their ears and actually listening to records to learn that they do usually sound much better in the real world today, it's very important that audiophiles and consumers in general understand why this happens. 

The answer to this question involves the correct understanding of what makes recorded music sound like it does and how this relates to audio formats as they changed over time. There are multiple factors contributing for great sounding vinyl records today:

01 - High Resolution Sources. Industry Standard today for Studio Digital Audio resolution is at 24bit depth / 96kHz sampling rate or higher. It's not uncommon to find most recording, mixing and mastering studios today working with a baseline of 24bit/192kHz, and most archival transfers done at the big labels from their treasured vaults is actually going up to 32bit depth! Most vinyl records today are mastered from the highest resolution digital sources available, usually 24bit sources that are much higher resolution than the 16bit/44kHz CD has to offer.

02 - Better Mastering. Most quality digitally sourced vinyl made today is mastered specifically for the vinyl format from high resolution sources. This means that the production goals of the vinyl mastering are not the same and can actually be much different from the goals of mastering for iPod, streaming, or for a CD that will get a lot of car play. Usually better dynamics and balanced EQ are top priority for vinyl mastering. Most of the dreadful aberrations common in digital mastering from the last 10 or 15 years, like extreme dynamic compression and limiting (the so called Loudness Wars) and exorbitant EQ choices for over-the-top brightness, are not even reasonable technical options when mastering for vinyl, it would be just silly to do that when cutting the lacquer, some of those moves that make digital mastering often sound so bad would actually be impossible on a cutting lathe, the cutter head would burn out and dozens of acetates would be wasted...

03 - Digital is much more than resolution. It involves Analog to Digital Conversion (ADC) and/or Digital to Analog Conversion (DAC) processes that are very complex and easy to disturb. True digital quality results from high resolution and from extremely controlled operation environment to prevent data loss or degradation in the time domain, it's about how it is actually processed and relayed through cables and between interfaces, how different algorithms work to correct errors, the actual processing power and speed to ensure only the best possible filtering is applied to shape the conversion effectively. Professional studio digital is a completely different universe when compared to domestic home digital, no matter how much "audiophile" your DAC says it is it will still be put to shame by the controlled studio environment. Most likely the DAC process result used for mastering the digitally sourced vinyl LP will sound much better than the sound you get from the DAC process being made in your home system. Your vinyl playback might just expose that weakness in domestic digital systems...

In short, if you stay away from bad quality vinyl from well known "junk" labels that are just taking advantage of the growing vinyl sales worldwide (you know, the usual junk from labels like DOL or Wax Time, Vinyl Passion, Vinyl Lovers, Doxy, Lilith, Not Now Music, Jazz Wax, in some ways even MOV, and many more), you can be sure that in general vinyl records are actually the best option today to enjoy contemporary music with the highest possible sound quality, even if they are digital recordings, and they also sound better than consumer grade high resolution music files because they are mastered better for vinyl.

Actually, I can't remember a single major release of new music from the last several years that sounds better on any digital format than on the corresponding vinyl release. The ratio of bad mastering for digital formats is much higher than the ratio of bad mastering for vinyl, and in addition to better sound, with vinyl you also get decent large format artwork, a collectible physical object that increases the ownership satisfaction and intensifies the relationship with the album, and a much higher potential to maintain financial value or even increase in value over time.

Of course, all this is is a non-issue for full analog vinyl being cut from 100% analog recordings, and we are fortunate to have many of those at Vinyl Gourmet. But that is something everybody already knows, analog is king!