Is HD Vinyl the Unicorn of the animal kingdom? Or is it something that in theory could work and in reality change the face of Mastering all together. A guy by the name of Guenter Loibl of is proposing a new mastering method that could revolutionize the way Vinyl is mastered and replicated. Or ‘pressed’ as they say. Actually it’s a molding machine with grooved stampers on each side where the plastic gets ‘pressed’ into the mold creating a 2 sided disc.
Having over 10 years experience in CD and DVD mastering I personally think that what he’s proposing sounds a little strange. For over 80 years the three step process to a vinyl pressing has been unchanged. First the lacquer master is cut on a mastering lathe. From that they electroform a father. Typically the Father is used to make Mothers for stamper replication purposes. Mothers are used to make multiple stampers which are then used to make the records. The stampers wear out quickly so keeping a pristine father around is a good idea. I’m not sure how many mothers can be made from a father in vinyl manufacturing but hopefully you get the idea on how the process works. You can learn more here.
Cutting Vinyl Lacquers Inside Telegraph Mastering from wweek.vimeo on Vimeo.
Anyway, Guenter’s process would literally use a laser to create a stamper. The stamper would be a laser cut ceramic disc that wouldn’t wear out like traditional stampers. Seems to me then he would actually ebe blasting away all but the ‘grooves’. Because remember the stamper is the inverse of the record. Seems to me that’s probably why he can attain such rigid peaks (which would be grooves after pressing). It’s an amazing process if you think about it.
Lets hope he can pull it off. It honestly would revolutionize the industry and perhaps keep our beloved vinyl medium alive even longer. This resurgence of Vinyl certainly came along at the right time. Practically everyone who pioneered the medium has long but passed away. I guess we’ll soon see where things end up, but for now we will keep crate digging and record store browsing. There is still nothing quite like it and probably never will be.
You can read more about HD Vinyl on their website here.
CROSLEY PORTABLE TURNTABLES
CR49 Traveler The Portable Turntable was introduced in the late 1950s. The popularity of this unit was due to its portability, but also to its suitcase styled finishing touches that became a Crosley hallmark. This fan favorite is a 3-speed belt-driven turntable that plays 33 1/3, 45 and 78 RPM records.
