Disapointong record purchase.
- Thread starter Kingrex
- Start date
I was "burnt" many times with s/h record purchases.
Rating were off (many times), from various discogs ("respected sellers") and other s/h shops.
I also recall working tediously on trying to align and re-align my entire analog set-up due to distortion and other issues I've had with DG (classical) s/h records.
Eventually to understand that the issue is not with my set-up, but with these s/h records. Best example is the new Original Source DG releases that are ultra-quiet, no tracking or distortion issues and no ticks/pops.
Rating were off (many times), from various discogs ("respected sellers") and other s/h shops.
I also recall working tediously on trying to align and re-align my entire analog set-up due to distortion and other issues I've had with DG (classical) s/h records.
Eventually to understand that the issue is not with my set-up, but with these s/h records. Best example is the new Original Source DG releases that are ultra-quiet, no tracking or distortion issues and no ticks/pops.
I believe they were pressed by JVC Japan. I used to have many Japanese pressings from JVC. They are translucent like SRX. I believe the vinyl compound used by JVC is close to SRX and modern equivalents. Although JVC pressings are very silent and flat I still avoid 70's reissues of Blue Note, Prestige and Riverside.
What is interesting with a used record, the visual appearance does not help much in knowing if it will play well.
So true. Cannot judge an old LP by its cover or appearance. But it is very satisfying when that old LP turns out to be a gem. It bothers me much less when an old LP turns out to be a dud than when the same happens with a repress.
Mosaics universally sound fantastic
The second press of Nonesuch’s The Bright Mississippi by Allen Toussaint and produced by Joe Henry has dropped the gatefold cover, has nothing in the deadwax (to convict the guilty). Same code 480380-1. It sounds like a gravel road, where the first press was done at Pallas, has the deadwax to prove it, a nice gatefold, and sounds groove quite except for the beautiful performance.
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Found this in a throw out pile in front of a house. Beat to crap. Looked bad. Took it home and cleaned it. It plays fantastic.
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I wanted to complete the set of Byron era Uriah Heap albums. Ordered the three missing ones them from Amazon but failed to spot they were picture discs, just didn’t occur to me that they could be. Horribly noisy replay from all of them but just about OK in mono. Can’t be bothered with sending them back and I assume they’re about par for the course (coarse might be nearer) for picture discs I suppose, I’ve never owned any before and won’t make that mistake again.
Most new vinyl I have purchased recently has been so bad that I just quit buying any new vinyl. With a new DAC and maybe even a new R2R next year coming I’m not sure I’ll continue on with Vinyl if the quality of the new releases doesn’t get better.
George
George
Is it pressing quality you are referring to George. If so I find your experience bewildering as I acquire a lot of records these days and rarely, very rarely, do I get a bad one. Also confident though that all three of my tonearms and cartridges are set up impeccably. Find little issue with pressings.
That said, now are all of the vinyl records today sourced and mastered beautifully? No, because the simple fact is they never have been and that goes for digital files as well. A well discriminating analogue setup will reveal these differences every time from pressing to pressing, record to record.
Agreed. Certain labels seem to care about pressing quality more than others (I’m referring to non-audiophile labels) but some new issues are among the best-sounding records in my collection. Buy yourself a copy of Feist’s Multitudes (if you like that kind of music), released by Arts and Crafts, if you want a good example.
Yes it is the pressing quality. My tonearm and cartridge as setup really well also and all of my old records still sound great. Very clean with very little noise. When I find an old record that I want it generally sounds good after a good cleaning. That said many if not most of the new pressing including 45 rpm from trusted sources that I have purchased in the past 2 years are just too noisy to enjoy. Snaps, pops and even scratches right out of the new sleeve. Maybe I just have bad luck ... who knows. As I will be upgrading most of my system in the next couple of years I'm finding little reason to continue to upgrade the phono front end which I know in turn will leave me less than engaged with that format.
George
I find this bewildering. I too have basically given up on new vinyl. It’s mostly garbage. Even if some of them can sound good the pressing and vinyl quality is horrendous. We seemed to have lost all technology to drill a clean hole in the center of something.
Pretty sure what we lost is the skilled labor that used to run the machines...
There are some informative Utoob videos about contemporary mastering and pressing facilities in South Korea and the USA. It appears that the former is more meticulous and perhaps has higher performance, eg., W&F standards. Search for them if you like.
Has anyone ever heard South Korean pressings? How might I order some?
Has anyone ever heard South Korean pressings? How might I order some?
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