GTPlanet Vinyling ClubMusic

[Shaun]

Sure it wasn't just a reshrinked one?

Nah pretty sure it was new unless one of Australia's biggest music and electronic stores sell second hand stuff advertised as new.

 

[Sprite]

Anyone else experienced brand new and sealed albums to be scratched when opened?

A couple of days ago I bought the Re-Issue Dark Side Of The Moon (why not add it to the four versions I already have ) only to find a large thumb print and scratch just next to the print. No doubt it was just carelessness during manufacture bit still it shouldn't have got past quality control.

The store was fine and swapped it over but it was still a pain to have to go back to get another, this is the second new album that has been the same for me in the last few months.

I get a fair few which have defects etc from the pressing. I also get a lot which have been messed about with.

It's because there are few pressing plants operating and so many records wanted. The recent "Stranger Things" soundtrack had been delayed due to the pressing plant also the "Perfect Blue" was delayed also.

Some pressing plants are better than others though. Rainbo did the "Moon Shaped Pool" pressing and are regarded as the worst pressing company by far. This is why I was reluctant to buy in the "Twin Peaks" OST by Mondo as they asked Rainbo to do it.

A lot of the German pressing plants tend to be the best as they take time over batches and they do everything by the book, just like anything else they do it has to be perfect.

I recently bought Czarface and that record has a defect, it didn't seem to alter playback so I'm ok with that. The "Whiplash" soundtrack however is unlistenable due to the poor pressing of the record. It seems two plants did this soundtrack and one did a good pressing and the other did a poor job.

I'd say a little research into an album, especially if it's one you really want a good copy of, is worth it. Just for your own knowlage and peace of mind.

 

[tarnheld]

A lot of the German pressing plants tend to be the best as they take time over batches and they do everything by the book, just like anything else they do it has to be perfect.

One of them, Pallas Media Group is just 80km from me, it would be great to do a factory visit. Here is a german TV report about vinyl mastering (0-3min) and pressing at Pallas (3min onwards), you see that they even employ a Mutterstecher (literally mother-stabber , but i think the correct translation is mother-engraver). You see him checking for dust and scratches, locating them with a microscope and removing them from the mother matrix, the first galvanized pressing matrix that is made from the master cut. You got to admire the meticulous craftsmanship involved here.
Sorry, there is an ad before the video and it's in german, but you get to see a nice Neumann master cutting machine and the inside of a pressing plant. 👍

http://www.kabeleins.de/tv/abenteuer-leben/videos/20159-kultobjekt-schallplatte-2-clip

 

[Shaun]

Thanks for that @Sprite I'll keep it in mind in future and also do some research on as you say albums that are sought after to me at least.

Worked out well in the end though as the replacement is spotless and sounds very good. 👍

 

[axletramp]

Just received my copy of the 2016 reissue special edition of The Books - The Lemon of Pink.

Coloured disk, die-cut cover, lyric sheets and booklet. Very sexy indeed. 👍

 

[Sprite]

Thanks for that @Sprite I'll keep it in mind in future and also do some research on as you say albums that are sought after to me at least.

Worked out well in the end though as the replacement is spotless and sounds very good. 👍

No problem.

Another thing to look out for are Japanese pressings as like the German ones, they have been done correctly and to the highest possible standards. Japanese pressings of Rock and Jazz albums in the past have been great. A name to look for is King. They did a lot of Jazz records which were fantastic.

Edit- More Records inbound...

Run Lola Run soundtrack on Cherry Red. It's a limited run from Bella Union Records based in London.

The next record doesn't need much of an introduction.

The soundtrack to Stranger Things. This is part 1 of 2 with a box set also on the way. It's also the Invada Records mail order Variant too.

 

[ildd]

Let this be my introduction, I guess.

Spoiler

A couple months ago I was really intrigued by vinyl records and I mentioned something about it to my parents, and they said they had a lot of them in their closet. I had already done a little bit of research (turntables, how to clean and store, etc) and it kinda hurt that I walked in and they were all stacked one upon another. I went through abut all 100 that they had, and took 10 or 12 out that I'd actually like to "start" with. I cleaned the needle of their turntable, put in the first one- The Wall, disc 2, side A (I wanted to hear Comfortably Numb) and just kinda sat there, like "...huh, that's pretty neat." As I started going through the rest, it seemed that most were... not in the greatest of conditions. Abbey Road didn't even have a sleeve. Hotel California had to have the first 10 seconds skipped.
The week after that, I stopped by a store in North Houston off I-45 that sold used and new records, CD's, skateboards and some other collector kind of stuff (and also pipes but that's another story). I picked up three albums there (The Doors 13, Jimi Hendirx Are You Experienced, and CCR's Chronicles). Went on Amazon a little later and ordered a Glass Animals vinyl even though I literally just pre-ordered the CD, then went on eBay and bought a Leh-nerd Skin-nerd album (the best album in human existence). Within two weeks, I bought my own turntable, a Pioneer PL-400 off eBay. Absolutely mint condition apart from the dust cover (...which I should definitely get a new one of).

So here we are now. I have 27 albums on vinyl, my latest purchased one being AC/DC's Back in Black, another 16 sitting in my Amazon shopping cart, and a mini home theater system in my bedroom. Oh, I also cut out part of a storage bin and drilled screws through the bottom to hold the albums upright. They all slide out of the bottom shelf (and technically the middle shelf as well) now. So yea, maybe on my next purchase I'll get some pictures up in here.

 

[Sprite]

Well a few things have turned up.

Tails Of The Blood Dragon soundtrack by the tour de force synthwave band from down under Power Glove. The records are a super sweet candy neon pink too.

Also Stranger Things Vol 2 arrived. Again like the first volume it's the Invada Records mailorder only variant.

 

[Sprite]

Some more discs of lovely grooves.

Pye Corner Audio & Dalhous / Run For The Shadows EP - Dark brooding synth music.

Solange - A Seat At The Table

A cracking album by a women who surpasses her sister in every way.

Lost Boys Soundtrack

 

[Parker]

Put in my pre-order for this yesterday, can't wait for it to release.

I should have my new house and music room set up by then so I'll be a happy camper.

 

[Sprite]

Put in my pre-order for this yesterday, can't wait for it to release.

I should have my new house and music room set up by then so I'll be a happy camper.

I was tempted but I wasn't keen on the Artwork and there is no mention of being an officially licensed Nintendo product. Iam8bit will do a stellar job though, I have their pressing of the Journey soundtrack.

 

[ildd]

I had an Amazon gift card so I decided to not buy the cheapest things in my shopping cart this go around.

The Rising Tied one was a Record Store Day special edition or something, pretty cool green color to it.
I also found a vinyl of the Rock N Roll Soldiers, which surprised me. Not a lot of people know who they are but I really like their music, despite the lack of it. I bought the FOB Save Rock And Roll 2LP and i was really confused when it got here, because it was a 10" and it was a slightly transparent dark red color. It didn't say that when I bought it but that's pretty cool. Now that the semester is over I might try and pick up some older used stuff, if I can find it.

 

[Sprite]

Don't feed them after midnight and don't get them wet!

With a UV reactive front and rear outer sleeve and water activated inner sleeves this Gremlins release from Mondo is fantastic.

 

[Shaun]

As some of you may know I've been on Xmas holidays for the past few days now.
While that's all and good the extra time at home has also given me the chance to catch up on some listening of various albums I've bought to recently.

What stood out the most and for strange reasons was the The Cult's newest album Hidden City that I haven't really had the chance to sit down to.

Ok drop the needle on side 1 track 1 and straight away I'm thinking gee they have taken a new direction. Ok sweet no problems not everything is the same forever. Get to the first vocals and I think my god whatever drugs or alcohol Ian Ashbury may have had has now caught up to him, the guy sounds so slow and in pain.
Right then the second song, this will surely change but no more of the same.

At that moment the penny dropped, it's a double album with only 3 songs per side.
I'm playing it at 33 when it should be 45 .
Funny thing is on both records and the sleeves there is no indication of the speed.

What was I saying about drugs and alcohol before.

 

[Sprite]

Most records these days don't indicate the speed.

Some have also been designed to be played at both speeds.

If you want a crazy time with an LP you should check out Jack White - Lazaretto Ultra LP

These are the features:

- 180 gram vinyl
- 2 vinyl-only hidden tracks hidden beneath the center labels
- 1 hidden track plays at 78 RPM, one plays at 45 RPM, making this a 3-speed record
- Side A plays from the inside out
- Dual-groove technology: plays an electric or acoustic intro for “Just One Drink” depending on where needle is dropped. The grooves meet for the body of the song.
- Matte finish on Side B, giving the appearance of an un-played 78 RPM record
- Both sides end with locked grooves
- Vinyl pressed in seldom-used flat-edged format
- Dead wax area on Side A contains a hand-etched hologram by Tristan Duke of Infinity Light Science, the first of its kind on a vinyl record
- Absolutely zero compression used during recording, mixing and mastering
- Different running order from the CD/digital version
- LP utilizes some mixes different from those used on CD and digital version

 

[Shaun]

That's some pretty crazy stuff on the Jack White album @Sprite.
I wonder how many own it without knowing about all the intricacies.

It's kind of weird you mention not many records now stating the speed, I've been buying and playing my own records since the 80's and can't recall that previously.
Strangely the penny didn't drop though as I would have in the past changed the speed automatically without thinking about it.

Edit: Oh I also gave the new DSOTM on 180gm vinyl a listen. Glad I bought it to go with my other numerous copies. It sounds good, real good. 👍

 

[ildd]

That's one of the records sitting in my "to buy" list, although it's not the ultra so maybe I should try and get that one instead.
One of the last records I got was Rise Against Appeal to Reason, and I gotta say I'm kinda shocked at how bad it sounds towards the center on Side A. The first two songs sound great, then it slowly deteriorates. Side B is better overall but the last song sounds like trash. I kept looking in to it more and more and eventually convinced myself I needed a new cartridge, but it's only on that record for the most part.

 

[Sprite]

That's one of the records sitting in my "to buy" list, although it's not the ultra so maybe I should try and get that one instead.
One of the last records I got was Rise Against Appeal to Reason, and I gotta say I'm kinda shocked at how bad it sounds towards the center on Side A. The first two songs sound great, then it slowly deteriorates. Side B is better overall but the last song sounds like trash. I kept looking in to it more and more and eventually convinced myself I needed a new cartridge, but it's only on that record for the most part.

Sound like a bad pressing. I bought Whiplash soundtrack and that's the same. It's nice and clean with no visible issues but the pressing is so bad after the first track or so it becomes unlistenable.

 

[ildd]

Sound like a bad pressing. I bought Whiplash soundtrack and that's the same. It's nice and clean with no visible issues but the pressing is so bad after the first track or so it becomes unlistenable.

Would it be worth an effort to try and get another copy sent/money back? I really like that album by I'm not sure if another copy may sound better.

 

[Sprite]

Would it be worth an effort to try and get another copy sent/money back? I really like that album by I'm not sure if another copy may sound better.

If you can get another copy as a replacement I'd give it a go. It certainly sounds like a defect of the pressing so it's worth trying another copy.

 

[Shaun]

Yay one of my Xmas presents.

Just giving the neighbours a listen now. 👍

 

[Sprite]

I got two fantastic box set for crimbo.

Nina Simone - The Phillips Years 7 LPs of beautiful vocals. Also some of the best albums she made too.

40th Anniversary Oxygen box set. This comes with Oxygen 1, 2 & 3 in LP format and also CDs. It also comes with a hardback book of all the synths used for the albums and a poster. Best of all this is a signed version direct from JMJ which has an extra print of the front cover signed by the man himself.

 

[ildd]

Got my own additional Christmas presents in...

The Heist, I was under the assumption the records would be gold as they are in every picture, but mine are black. Little disappointed but I guess I got tricked by a business.
The Urban Flora record is totally transparent.
I also got a 50-pack of antistatic sleeves to replace all the ones I have that came with the paper sleeves.

Thinking of which one to play first...

 

[Sprite]

@ildd there is a gold version but it currently going for around $70/$80 along with the black vinyl set the UK got a smoky clear pink and clear version but not the boxset you got.

btw it's a great album so having on black vinyl maybe better as coloured vinyl doesn't always sound as good as they look.

 

[ildd]

It is a great album. Funny story, the previous owner of my car had the album in it, I saw it and decided to start playing it- loved just about every song on there. Good to know about the different editions I guess, I wanted the bling factor for this one though, haha. I'll probably play side B tonight.

 

[Sprite]

This is the boxset for Oxygen. The signed print bottom right.

 

[coryclifford]

Out over here tonight.

 

[Sprite]

Well the wait is over. It's now in my hands and already been spun on the deck.

Plus the digital download as I already have the CD so no need for it.

 

[coryclifford]

It's pretty good. Not like their first few, but still, good.

 

[Sprite]

It's pretty good. Not like their first few, but still, good.

Agreed. I was quite surprised by how good it turned out actually. A lot of groups loose quite a lot of Magic after a long period of not making music but they seemed to have done a great job.