Great read on Vinyl 'revival'

[sparkyhx]

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/jan/07/-sp-v...

[selym]

That's a very interesting article. One thing I must comment on though, is that Abbey Road was not The Beatles' last album.

[Zod]

selym said:

That's a very interesting article. One thing I must comment on though, is that Abbey Road was not The Beatles' last album.

It was. Let it Be was released later, but Abbey Road was recorded after Let it Be was finished.

[selym]

Zod said:

selym said:

That's a very interesting article. One thing I must comment on though, is that Abbey Road was not The Beatles' last album.

It was. Let it Be was released later, but Abbey Road was recorded after Let it Be was finished.

Semantics.

[Zod]

selym said:

Zod said:

selym said:

That's a very interesting article. One thing I must comment on though, is that Abbey Road was not The Beatles' last album.

It was. Let it Be was released later, but Abbey Road was recorded after Let it Be was finished.

Semantics.

I don't think so. Abbey Road was the one they knew was their last album, so they behaved better towards each other in the Studio. Anyway. we're rather OT.

I've bought quite a few albums on vinyl recently, including the Led Zeppelin reissues (despite having all the originals on vinyl). Day to day, I stream from iTunes, but putting on an LP is always a treat.

[selym]

Zod said:

I don't think so. Abbey Road was the one they knew was their last album, so they behaved better towards each other in the Studio. Anyway. we're rather OT.

I've bought quite a few albums on vinyl recently, including the Led Zeppelin reissues (despite having all the originals on vinyl). Day to day, I stream from iTunes, but putting on an LP is always a treat.

I have transferred a lot of my CD collection to iTunes, but that is only to make the gym sessions a little more enjoyable. There is nothing better than settling down to a planned evening of digging out albums (vinyl of course) that you haven't listened to for a while.

[Zod]

selym said:

Zod said:

I don't think so. Abbey Road was the one they knew was their last album, so they behaved better towards each other in the Studio. Anyway. we're rather OT.

I've bought quite a few albums on vinyl recently, including the Led Zeppelin reissues (despite having all the originals on vinyl). Day to day, I stream from iTunes, but putting on an LP is always a treat.

I have transferred a lot of my CD collection to iTunes, but that is only to make the gym sessions a little more enjoyable. There is nothing better than settling down to a planned evening of digging out albums (vinyl of course) that you haven't listened to for a while.

I'm starting to feel almost the same about CDs though. I have a great CD player and a large collection, all of which I have in iTunes, but when I listen to an album, as opposed to a track or listening on shuffle, I generally put on a CD. It's not quite as much of an event as putting on a record, but it's still satisfying to see the tray slide in.

[sparkyhx]

Got rid of all my turntable and older hifi kit and Vinyl a few months ago to go purely down the Sonos/FLAc source linked to Amp and speakers.

I miss Vinyl, and still think it sounds the best, but to be honest for the past 10 years i just don't have the time to sit down and 'listen'. Now everything is on digital and gets played in shuffle. I probably play Music far more now, either in the music room or over the house with the other speakers.

[Phatboy317]

Some of my 40+ year old vinyl albums have, unfortunately, become quite unplayable.

It seems that plastics can degrade given enough time, no matter how well you look after them, at least how well you think you're looking after them.

Edited by Phatboy317 on Wednesday 7th January 21:14

[mad4amanda]

Funny I was having conversations with my father in law over Christmas about old fashioned HiFi we both prefer listening to a good turntable and separates system. He is about to buy a pair of KEF Q900 speakers to update his and I am digging my old system out of the attic this spring.
He said he read an article on a french HiFi website that said there is a difference in the timing on digital stuff so you don`t quite hear what was put down by the artist and this is why it sounds clipped not fully rounded.
I can`t wait to listen to my Moody Blues Albums again on a decent system.

[Nick M]

We dug out dad's turntable, amp and speakers on Christmas day, as my daughter (nearly 15) had never heard a record !!

We played some MP3s, CDs and LPs of the same music alongside each other, and the vinyl certainly sounded the richest with the most musical sound, which I guess is really what it's about. But the other thing with an LP is the fact that it forces you to listen to an album as it was intended (rather than the brief and instant gratification that is the shuffle feature on an ipod), and there is something about the act of lowering the needle onto the record which makes it seem more of an event.

We're going to hook it up to my amps / floorstanders (which have a bit more oomph than his ones) one coming weekend and have a proper listen to some of the records I heard when I was a kid - can't wait !

[sparkyhx]

Nick M said:

We dug out dad's turntable, amp and speakers on Christmas day, as my daughter (nearly 15) had never heard a record !!

We played some MP3s, CDs and LPs of the same music alongside each other, and the vinyl certainly sounded the richest with the most musical sound, which I guess is really what it's about. But the other thing with an LP is the fact that it forces you to listen to an album as it was intended (rather than the brief and instant gratification that is the shuffle feature on an ipod), and there is something about the act of lowering the needle onto the record which makes it seem more of an event.

We're going to hook it up to my amps / floorstanders (which have a bit more oomph than his ones) one coming weekend and have a proper listen to some of the records I heard when I was a kid - can't wait !

you are making me regret selling up..........................no............... <convince self> I wasn't using it, I wasn't using it, I wasn't using it, I wasn't using it </convince self>
<fingers in ears> la la la la la la </fingers in ears>

[anonymous-user]

Phatboy317 said:

Some of my 40+ year old vinyl albums have, unfortunately, become quite unplayable.

It seems that plastics can degrade given enough time, no matter how well you look after them, at least how well you think you're looking after them.

Edited by Phatboy317 on Wednesday 7th January 21:14

I've got vinyl that's been around since the 50's that still sounds fantastic, have you thought about getting them cleaned properly? Sometimes it will bring them back to life. Every few weeks I'll take half a dozen albums to my local vinyl shop and get them run through the RCM, it doesn't work miracles on some records, the perils of buying used vinyl means there can be groove damage that's only apparent on a first listen, but the majority of albums respond well with a definite improvement in surface noise and clarity.

[Zod]

You can clean records using Copydex (that white glue we all used at school that turns to rubber when you rub it between your fingers) or wood glue

[anonymous-user]

Zod said:

You can clean records using Copydex (that white glue we all used at school that turns to rubber when you rub it between your fingers) or wood glue

Often thought about trying that on one of the wife's Abba albums....

[Phatboy317]

swiveleyedgit said:

I've got vinyl that's been around since the 50's that still sounds fantastic, have you thought about getting them cleaned properly? Sometimes it will bring them back to life. Every few weeks I'll take half a dozen albums to my local vinyl shop and get them run through the RCM, it doesn't work miracles on some records, the perils of buying used vinyl means there can be groove damage that's only apparent on a first listen, but the majority of albums respond well with a definite improvement in surface noise and clarity.

Thanks, I will give it a try.

I find it a bit strange though how some records which haven't been played for many years, suddenly sound quite dreadful, while some even older ones sound just fine on the same turntable.
And I've always made a point of looking after them, always keeping them in their sleeves, storing them upright, never touching the grooves, keeping my turntable and stylus in good condition etc.

[Phatboy317]

swiveleyedgit said:

Zod said:

You can clean records using Copydex (that white glue we all used at school that turns to rubber when you rub it between your fingers) or wood glue

Often thought about trying that on one of the wife's Abba albums....

I'm soooo glad my OH likes the same music as I do

[Zod]

swiveleyedgit said:

Zod said:

You can clean records using Copydex (that white glue we all used at school that turns to rubber when you rub it between your fingers) or wood glue

Often thought about trying that on one of the wife's Abba albums....

I'd try superglue on those instead.


Or you could do what I did as a teenager and leave them on the turntable in the summer sun.

[anonymous-user]

Phatboy317 said:

swiveleyedgit said:

I've got vinyl that's been around since the 50's that still sounds fantastic, have you thought about getting them cleaned properly? Sometimes it will bring them back to life. Every few weeks I'll take half a dozen albums to my local vinyl shop and get them run through the RCM, it doesn't work miracles on some records, the perils of buying used vinyl means there can be groove damage that's only apparent on a first listen, but the majority of albums respond well with a definite improvement in surface noise and clarity.

Thanks, I will give it a try.

I find it a bit strange though how some records which haven't been played for many years, suddenly sound quite dreadful, while some even older ones sound just fine on the same turntable.
And I've always made a point of looking after them, always keeping them in their sleeves, storing them upright, never touching the grooves, keeping my turntable and stylus in good condition etc.

I've found over the years that just because an album looks clean it doesn't mean it'll play well.And vice versa. My son bought me an old Soft Machine album recently that looked as if someone had cleaned it with a scouring pad, it plays beautifully without any pops or clicks at all. The guy in my local vinyl shop says modern styli go further down into the grooves than they did years ago so they are not picking up the noise from the surface of the disc, or something like that. Had my original copy of Steely Dan's Aja album cleaned yesterday, the first time since I bought it in 1977, it sounds absolutely superb, just as good as the Back to Black pressing that came out a few years back. When I get them cleaned they always go back into polythene lined inners as well, the original paper ones will almost certainly have crap embedded in them.

I was kidding about the Abba albums,we have an arrangement, they only get played when she and her sisters come back pissed from the pub and I'm not in the house. When she's out the King Crimson albums get an airing.

[TwigtheWonderkid]

Phatboy317 said:

Some of my 40+ year old vinyl albums have, unfortunately, become quite unplayable.

It seems that plastics can degrade given enough time, no matter how well you look after them, at least how well you think you're looking after them.

Edited by Phatboy317 on Wednesday 7th January 21:14

Really? First album I bought was Hunky Dory so 42 yrs old now. Played it the other day, still sounds great. And I haven't overly looked after my albums at all. They were in a box in a loft for 10 yrs.