I’m quite fortunate to be pretty content with the stash I’ve got, having been a collector over 50 years. But bottom line today is that greed-based pricing has wrecked the music collecting experience, and so it’s trying to scrape what we can out of thrift stores, garage and yard sales, swap meets, flea markets and record store blowouts. Otherwise I literally tape everything I like off the internet on to high grade tapes. The “golden era” for collectors has been over awhile now. I’m not paying $30, $40 and beyond.
When I worked at Wherehouse Music I started there in 1989 most albums were $12.99 that = $30.55 today just about the exact same cost for a standard release 1 LP set. I don’t get why everyone says records are so expensive, now there are way more options today vs. 1989 with more audio file release options those records were crazy expensive back in the day similar to laserdiscs. Nothing has really changed other than records were down and out for almost 20 years, people keep comparing record prices when no body cared about them and now they are the preferred format again. People wake up!!! It’s 2024 just about everything is inflated but records are not
I am 52 and just came back to vinyl since buying my last vinyl in the 90s. Buying vinyl has become a cat and mouse game and I am already slowing down my buying frequency in favor of quality pressings but it requires effort. Might come back to CDs too , I see a lot of good prices out there and I am convinced CDs will become the new vinyl in a few years and prices will go up.
CDs are far less fragile, and it they are playable then they sound just like Mint or Near-Mint vinyl copies, meaning that decent CDs will be plentiful and should keep prices down.
Vinyl recording technology is so far advanced beyond playback, that audiophiles, after upgrading their record playback, will hear new things in albums the have owned for decades and know very well.
Thanks for the reminder. Need to get the first three Atcos...Cowboys, Vulgar and FBD. Rhino's been doing good. Their Sabbath, Yes, and Trane reissues have been all good on my end. Other makers, some bullsh1t they're putting out.
Glad to hear you’re getting into CDs (Bill Evans - great) and better DACs! Have you tried buying LPs from Acoustic Sounds? I’ve bought a ton of vinyl from them as their packaging is the best. I’ve only had one problem over the last 5 years. I wouldn’t buy from Amazon as I’ve heard of packaging/shipping issues. The UHQRs from Acoustic Sounds are expensive but they sound great and are very quiet. I have several Steely Dan and a Miles Davis/ Kind of Blue.
Welcome to 1978 all over again! 1978 was when the furor over crap-grade vinyl pressings, especially in the N. American market, really hit the fan. And just like before, the same nonsense is reoccurring: bad vinyl quality, erratic quality on pressing work, random warps or off-center grooves, etc. Seriously... it's like I stumbled out of a time machine! But yeah...what we're seeing is the same set of problems on the "non-premium" vinyl pressings. And just like then, this was accompanied by price hikes; by the early 1980s, the list price on LPs had made it to $10 from around $6 just five years previously. And they played and sounded like total rubbish UNLESS you could find a foreign pressing. You'd pay more, but the quality...especially out of Germany and Japan...was worth the cost and hassle. All of this silliness over the supposed "superiority" of vinyl has, in fact, caused the quality of it to drop...or at least, it's a big contributor. So we're now back to plants trying to shorten pressing times for increased sales, using "regrind" vinyl, hasty and careless disc mastering, etc. 1978 all over again. CDs, honestly, don't deserve the poo that's eagerly heaped on them by "audiophiles". There are crap digital remasterings, sure...but there's even MORE that can go wrong with vinyl's mastering process. But at least these days labels know to NOT use an "RIAA master" for a 1:1 digital transfer! Those were hideous when you ran across one...like the early US CDs of Elvis Costello's "Get Happy". Ugh... Honestly, I've never stepped away from digital. I like the archival capabilities of CDs (although CD-Rs leave a bit to be desired in this respect), and since I want that across ALL of my music library, vinyl is a second-tier for me. I know that some people are totally entranced by vinyl and other analog storage technologies. I get that. It's "new" (technically) and it's not cheap, so the actual faithful on this point are trying for better audio. But the flip side on this is that people will shell out $20-30 for an LP but then play it on some Chinese-made crackerbox. When THESE people start bloviating about "vinyl superiority", I just wanna slap some sense into them. Or just slap them because that's SO dumb! The reason it's "better" invariably comes down to the old "familiarity breeds contempt" problem in human nature -- it's only "better" when you play it on some Crosley or Victrola box BECAUSE that music will sound different, and this gets misinterpreted as an "improvement". Trying playing the same LP on, say, a classic Technics or Denon turntable with a good Moving Magnet or, if you can swing it, a basic Moving Coil cart that's been properly aligned and balanced, and you WILL be puzzled as to why it doesn't sound as "better" as you'd figured for the price you'd spent. I said it when the "vinyl craze" started to creep into existence c. 2000, and I'll repeat it here: vinyl isn't viable. It wasn't viable back in the late 70s and onward, in fact. Vinyl is a petrochemical substance, and when oil gets expensive you have labels raising prices or speeding up production. Neither is good...but then, I recall saying the same thing in 1980. And one last poke...vinyl is very nasty stuff, like many other petrochemicals. When it's made, the outgassed byproducts as well as the vinyl vapor itself are extremely nasty stuff. Polyvinyl Chloride, over long-term exposure, wrecks your nervous system in addition to being a carcinogen. And it's difficult to contain as a vapor, so exposure off-premises can be as bad as if you were on the production line. So when you put that new LP on, it's important to remember that that licorice pizza has likely contributed to some factory worker(s)'s tremors and other Parkinson's-ish horrors. Not my trip; you'll not catch me dead issuing my work on vinyl, with that fact alone being sufficient reason.
I haven’t heard anything bad come from Analogue Productions and I have about 80+ records from them. Not cheap though usually. I also took an old 300 disc DVD changer I got for free years ago and digital coax output it to a good DAC I purchased a while back for streaming, popped all my CD’s in it, essentially turning it into a CD transport and it sounds fantastic.
You have to wonder exactly "who" is manufacturing these vinyl albums now. I'm not getting rid of the albums I've had, but I've been straight CD since 1986. I'm too old to go "turning over" an album now.
Vinyl has become a rich man's game. I'm 67, and remember when. Digital is clean and predictable. If you still need that old sound, get yourself a tube amp.
I have a new copy of Getz/Gilberto I bought years ago and it sounds great, however I don't like the male singer at all but I do love the late Astrid Gilbeto
I agree 💯%! The price of CDs today are what vinyl cost 10-15 yrs ago I so I buy more CDs lately. Still love vinyl but am more selective about my purchases.
Don't think if I brought back a poor quality LP I'd accept a $10 dollar 'coupon' to replace the album at the same store. I'd never shop there again forfeit the $10 and chuck it in the bin (spite/nose). Not that I've bought any LP's for decades partly for that reason. Don't get this back to vinyl thing at all...just another old man rant.
You're totally wrong there . Vinyl is definitely the best media . I remember being totally excited by the arrival of the cd in the 80's with all its hype and then being shocked at how bad they sounded compared to vinyl . But unfortunately people believed the hype .
Buying from amazon is sometimes a gamble. A few years ago they were caught selling counterfeit goods anything from ssd drives to perfume to clothing so I wouldn't doubt if it were the same from the vinyl they sell. The chinese will counterfeit anything and sell it to the world. That said it all depends on who's doing the re-issue there are places more reputable than others. I'll always try to get an original if it can be found for a reasonable price in good condition. The only way ill consider a re-issue is if it's the original is something next to impossible to find. I think CD's now are where vinyl was in the 90's. I see good cd's anywhere from $1.00-$5.00 if it's something i like i will always pick it up at that price. Like most things it's all cyclical. No doubt it's just a matter of time before a younger generation "discovers" cd's and it become trendy again causing prices to shoot as records are currently doing.
I still by CD's but also purchase Vinyl. (re-issues mostly) My collection is about 60/40 in favor of CD's. I had that Getz/Gilberto LP on my wish list (have had the CD for many years..) The problem you described with amazon vinyl also applies to many of the 75th anniv. Blue Note re-issues. Quality control is becoming a real problem here. ps: I also have Marantz CD player..
There's many vinyls from the late 70s & early 80s that sound like a fryolator when played. Ive read where record manufacturers started using recycled vinyl. Ive purchased 90% of my albums at yard sales & thrift sales and paid between 25 cents and a buck. Best sale was a church sale that i bought 40 MFSL albums for a quarter a piece, all in perfect condition. Bought my share of trash too. Usually the ones from late 70s early 80s that looked perfect but sounded like fryolators. Recently bought David Gilmours newest album on CD. Cant wait for it to arrive. Its an eBay purchase almost $20
Jazz and Classical CDs can absolutely sound better than vinyl but most popular forms of music are mastered to increase the volume at the loss of dynamic range. This wasn't the case when CDs first came to market. You can compare the soundwaves of The Beatles 1988 CD release to the remastered 2009 versions to see how much has changed. The 2009 releases are highly compressed. This also applies to newer releases. The CD version of The Beatles' Now & Then is virtually brickwalled whereas the 12" single has great dynamic range. Pressings coming out of GZ in the Chech Republic are usually pretty poor. Optimal in Germany is the best major pressing plant but I believe either one can be labeled "Made in the EU" making it difficult to know the origin of some records.
I know that back in my teen years, the 70’s I thought the German and Japanese pressings were the best, is this still the case and if so where are they? Are they special order only?
Do you have a stylus timer how old is your turntable? When was it was serviced, I buy > 600 records a year with no issues, if you're getting that many issues the problem is probably with you!
Agree 100%. I bought several non-premium records recently and they all had some sort of defect. They either have a scratch, a warp, or too many pops when played--and that's after cleaning them with an ultrasonic machine. The quality is still good for the $40 or more premium records, but non-premium records are being mass-manufactured with zero QC.
@@allwheelsdown5646 Those days are long gone, but there are still a few local stores selling used records for $5 each. Most sound great after a good cleaning.
Not long ago, there was a video out that was very critical of record consumers and audiophiles who are anxiously expected too much fidelity of newly pressed reissues. The opinion stated that listening with anticipation of any flaws ruined the experience of listening to the music. While I appreciate this point of view, it is getting more and more difficult not to have higher expectations of reissues at these prices. We have audio gear becoming more affordable, luring more enthusiasts into the vinyl world, and lp prices are going way up. Then again, those pressings and remasters and remixes that have been done so well reveal that remastering original tapes pressed on better vinyl could have been achieved a long time ago forging a truer competition for choice of musical media for all. Sooner or later, the snake will end up eating itself, and lps will either become a market for the elite, or records will just get increasingly crappy again.
"audiophiles who are anxiously expected too much fidelity of newly pressed reissues" sounds like they're trying to get people to accept lower quality. Unfortunately i see this across the board for many other products and services these days.
The same thing happened to me. It actually was the same album, with the same issue. It had this strange surface noise. It was a bummer too, mine was a DOL record label purchase off of Ebay. Luckily the seller refunded me. Funny thing is that I already have an original copy from the Verve record label from the 1970s. It has some clicks and pops, and I wanted a brand new copy.... That didn't turn out to way I intended 😢
PS. one needs to decide what pieces you want to invest in and own, and listen to as a record and one's that you just are okay with having a CD. Yes Band on the run is great, so is Ram. Venus and Mars is okay. (Half speed). Some Stones Half Speed masters are not that great. Lastly, even some CD'S are not always that great, but they are not as astronomical as many lps. Record labels and issuers of lps are also things to be considered in terms of price and quality.
Steve, forgive me here, but I just don't understand the whole vinyl thing. CDs always sound great, never wear out, and you only need to purchase them once because they last forever. Vinyl records, on the other hand, wear out the more you play them. The same is true for cassettes. CDs are the way to go! Also, if I'm not getting too personal, how old are you? I was just curious. . . Hope you don't mind me asking.
You are correct on all points. You'll notice, I didn't talk about hi res streaming. That actually makes all physical media pointless. It's all just fun and games. As for my age... I am reminded of the line from an old song. "I turned 65 eleven months ago." Let's just say I am old enough to know better but still too young to care.
@@allwheelsdown5646 Thanks for responding! You don't look 65 and 11 months! Honestly, I thought you were about 55 or so. BTW, one other point. . . I prefer a physical CD to a streaming service! The reason being, a streaming service can pull an artist and his/her music from the platform. I don't remember the particulars, but I remember this happening several years ago when I saw this story on the news. Of note, I own on DVD the "Classic 39 Episodes" of the Honeymooners! I figured I'd better grab it before some group takes Ralph's "Bang Zoom, to the Moon, Alice!" comments as spousal abuse and these shows are banned forever. The same is true for "White Christmas". You know where I'm going with this. . .
@@allwheelsdown5646 some say because the secondary distortions and such in analog play back are the same the human ear evolved to hear in nature, so they find analog sound more pleasing. Digital distortion harmonics are different. Nothing last forever, but correctly played vinyl has infinitesimal wear, because the vinyl actually deforms from the frictional heat of the needle, , flows around the needle, and then returns to it's original shape because the event is so quick, the pressed in molecular lattice structure is retained. this is a characteristic of the material. Non vinyl records will not do that, but many analogs records are playable after one hundred years plus. CD's are expected to suffer delimitation and edge oxidation of the metal interior in time.
Rock titles have been good, as well as the Atlantic jazz Rhinos. Polygram (Verve) reissues like you have there have been sheeyat! The f**k they're doing...low bid bulls**t seems like.
New Gilmor Album have problems too . For jazz I have good experience with reissued Blue note records and mofi . Stay away from colour lp I had many of them in bad shape!
In Australia we have a chain store called JB HI-FI, Yesterday i decided to have a look in there and saw a copy of Tina Turners Greatest hits on vinyl and it was $115 aud 😳 Also saw Daft Punk RAM with a $84.99 aud price tag. I actually bought this album from this exact store when it first came out for $29.95 aud, now the reissue is $85. Its outrageous!!!!!!
this guy makes no effort to be an informed vinyl consumer, just blunders on, continuously buying from amazon with no interest in learning who makes good records, doesn't even know where his record was made or how, and then complains about his results. random complaining doesn't get you a better record. I bought the same Getz/ Gilberto recording, but from acoustic sounds who run quality record pressings. their modern repressing is remastered from the original master tapes in several formats , vinyl is about 40 or 60 dollars depending on your desires. their shipping packaging is also top quality. I hope this helps
The fact that you have to learn where to buy a decent record is so stupid! It's also not always easy to find out where a record is pressed. Some records give you no real clue. Yes, I guess you could spend all day on group forums discussing where a record was pressed, but seriously, who's got time for that. I want to listen to my music... Spending big bucks also doesn't mean you'll be getting a decent pressing. Recently, I sent two mofi records back due to the warps... I've started buying a lot more cds recently. Once I've ripped a cd to my Uniti Core, it takes one hell of a well pressed record to actually sound better!
@allwheelsdown5646 That's a real shame. I've heard good things about the Bluesound node. I'd talk to your local hi-fi dealer about it. They may know the reason why the sound is degrading after the cds have been ripped... I guarantee he'll know a lot more than I do 😉
I’m quite fortunate to be pretty content with the stash I’ve got, having been a collector over 50 years. But bottom line today is that greed-based pricing has wrecked the music collecting experience, and so it’s trying to scrape what we can out of thrift stores, garage and yard sales, swap meets, flea markets and record store blowouts. Otherwise I literally tape everything I like off the internet on to high grade tapes. The “golden era” for collectors has been over awhile now. I’m not paying $30, $40 and beyond.
I got my Getz Gilberto from Analog Productions on two disks at 45 RPM it sounds better than my CD
I believe that. I have to save up my money to try those. Thanks for watching and leaving a comment.
I am waiting on that exact pressing, glad to hear it sounds great. Buying records has become a chasing game of which is the best pressing...
I went with the Impex one step and it is incredible.
When I worked at Wherehouse Music I started there in 1989 most albums were $12.99 that = $30.55 today just about the exact same cost for a standard release 1 LP set. I don’t get why everyone says records are so expensive, now there are way more options today vs. 1989 with more audio file release options those records were crazy expensive back in the day similar to laserdiscs. Nothing has really changed other than records were down and out for almost 20 years, people keep comparing record prices when no body cared about them and now they are the preferred format again. People wake up!!! It’s 2024 just about everything is inflated but records are not
I see what you mean.
I am 52 and just came back to vinyl since buying my last vinyl in the 90s. Buying vinyl has become a cat and mouse game and I am already slowing down my buying frequency in favor of quality pressings but it requires effort. Might come back to CDs too , I see a lot of good prices out there and I am convinced CDs will become the new vinyl in a few years and prices will go up.
CDs are far less fragile, and it they are playable then they sound just like Mint or Near-Mint vinyl copies, meaning that decent CDs will be plentiful and should keep prices down.
The best sounding items in my music collection are vinyl records , but they're not crappy reissues . I much prefer them to the sound of my cd's .
Vinyl recording technology is so far advanced beyond playback, that audiophiles, after upgrading their record playback, will hear new things in albums the have owned for decades and know very well.
Same here.
I played Pantera’s albums for over twenty years. Bought the Rhino vinyl versions and they sounded like all new versions.🤠
Thanks for the reminder. Need to get the first three Atcos...Cowboys, Vulgar and FBD.
Rhino's been doing good. Their Sabbath, Yes, and Trane reissues have been all good on my end. Other makers, some bullsh1t they're putting out.
Glad to hear you’re getting into CDs (Bill Evans - great) and better DACs! Have you tried buying LPs from Acoustic Sounds? I’ve bought a ton of vinyl from them as their packaging is the best. I’ve only had one problem over the last 5 years. I wouldn’t buy from Amazon as I’ve heard of packaging/shipping issues.
The UHQRs from Acoustic Sounds are expensive but they sound great and are very quiet. I have several Steely Dan and a Miles Davis/ Kind of Blue.
Welcome to 1978 all over again!
1978 was when the furor over crap-grade vinyl pressings, especially in the N. American market, really hit the fan. And just like before, the same nonsense is reoccurring: bad vinyl quality, erratic quality on pressing work, random warps or off-center grooves, etc. Seriously... it's like I stumbled out of a time machine!
But yeah...what we're seeing is the same set of problems on the "non-premium" vinyl pressings. And just like then, this was accompanied by price hikes; by the early 1980s, the list price on LPs had made it to $10 from around $6 just five years previously. And they played and sounded like total rubbish UNLESS you could find a foreign pressing. You'd pay more, but the quality...especially out of Germany and Japan...was worth the cost and hassle.
All of this silliness over the supposed "superiority" of vinyl has, in fact, caused the quality of it to drop...or at least, it's a big contributor. So we're now back to plants trying to shorten pressing times for increased sales, using "regrind" vinyl, hasty and careless disc mastering, etc. 1978 all over again.
CDs, honestly, don't deserve the poo that's eagerly heaped on them by "audiophiles". There are crap digital remasterings, sure...but there's even MORE that can go wrong with vinyl's mastering process. But at least these days labels know to NOT use an "RIAA master" for a 1:1 digital transfer! Those were hideous when you ran across one...like the early US CDs of Elvis Costello's "Get Happy". Ugh...
Honestly, I've never stepped away from digital. I like the archival capabilities of CDs (although CD-Rs leave a bit to be desired in this respect), and since I want that across ALL of my music library, vinyl is a second-tier for me.
I know that some people are totally entranced by vinyl and other analog storage technologies. I get that. It's "new" (technically) and it's not cheap, so the actual faithful on this point are trying for better audio. But the flip side on this is that people will shell out $20-30 for an LP but then play it on some Chinese-made crackerbox. When THESE people start bloviating about "vinyl superiority", I just wanna slap some sense into them. Or just slap them because that's SO dumb! The reason it's "better" invariably comes down to the old "familiarity breeds contempt" problem in human nature -- it's only "better" when you play it on some Crosley or Victrola box BECAUSE that music will sound different, and this gets misinterpreted as an "improvement". Trying playing the same LP on, say, a classic Technics or Denon turntable with a good Moving Magnet or, if you can swing it, a basic Moving Coil cart that's been properly aligned and balanced, and you WILL be puzzled as to why it doesn't sound as "better" as you'd figured for the price you'd spent.
I said it when the "vinyl craze" started to creep into existence c. 2000, and I'll repeat it here: vinyl isn't viable. It wasn't viable back in the late 70s and onward, in fact. Vinyl is a petrochemical substance, and when oil gets expensive you have labels raising prices or speeding up production. Neither is good...but then, I recall saying the same thing in 1980.
And one last poke...vinyl is very nasty stuff, like many other petrochemicals. When it's made, the outgassed byproducts as well as the vinyl vapor itself are extremely nasty stuff. Polyvinyl Chloride, over long-term exposure, wrecks your nervous system in addition to being a carcinogen. And it's difficult to contain as a vapor, so exposure off-premises can be as bad as if you were on the production line. So when you put that new LP on, it's important to remember that that licorice pizza has likely contributed to some factory worker(s)'s tremors and other Parkinson's-ish horrors. Not my trip; you'll not catch me dead issuing my work on vinyl, with that fact alone being sufficient reason.
I'm glad you have spoken these truths. I was wondering if it was just me. Thanks!
Same here, I thought maybe I was too picky. But that's not true. Thanks!
I haven’t heard anything bad come from Analogue Productions and I have about 80+ records from them. Not cheap though usually. I also took an old 300 disc DVD changer I got for free years ago and digital coax output it to a good DAC I purchased a while back for streaming, popped all my CD’s in it, essentially turning it into a CD transport and it sounds fantastic.
From one old man to another, I could not agree more.
You have to wonder exactly "who" is manufacturing these vinyl albums now. I'm not getting rid of the albums I've had, but I've been straight CD since 1986. I'm too old to go "turning over" an album now.
So true, I'm getting too old for flipping records too. However I do need the exercise. lol
Vinyl has become a rich man's game. I'm 67, and remember when. Digital is clean and predictable. If you still need that old sound, get yourself a tube amp.
Cds can still be had for 2 bucks or less. I buy em all the time. They sound good enough for my old ears.
I have a new copy of Getz/Gilberto I bought years ago and it sounds great, however I don't like the male singer at all but I do love the late Astrid Gilbeto
I agree 💯%! The price of CDs today are what vinyl cost 10-15 yrs ago I so I buy more CDs lately. Still love vinyl but am more selective about my purchases.
Don't think if I brought back a poor quality LP I'd accept a $10 dollar 'coupon' to replace the album at the same store. I'd never shop there again forfeit the $10 and chuck it in the bin (spite/nose). Not that I've bought any LP's for decades partly for that reason. Don't get this back to vinyl thing at all...just another old man rant.
The old CD’s absolutely smoke vinyl with a good DAC
You're totally wrong there . Vinyl is definitely the best media . I remember being totally excited by the arrival of the cd in the 80's with all its hype and then being shocked at how bad they sounded compared to vinyl . But unfortunately people believed the hype .
Buying from amazon is sometimes a gamble. A few years ago they were caught selling counterfeit goods anything from ssd drives to perfume to clothing so I wouldn't doubt if it were the same from the vinyl they sell. The chinese will counterfeit anything and sell it to the world. That said it all depends on who's doing the re-issue there are places more reputable than others. I'll always try to get an original if it can be found for a reasonable price in good condition. The only way ill consider a re-issue is if it's the original is something next to impossible to find. I think CD's now are where vinyl was in the 90's. I see good cd's anywhere from $1.00-$5.00 if it's something i like i will always pick it up at that price. Like most things it's all cyclical. No doubt it's just a matter of time before a younger generation "discovers" cd's and it become trendy again causing prices to shoot as records are currently doing.
I still by CD's but also purchase Vinyl. (re-issues mostly)
My collection is about 60/40 in favor of CD's.
I had that Getz/Gilberto LP on my wish list
(have had the CD for many years..)
The problem you described with amazon vinyl
also applies to many of the 75th anniv. Blue Note re-issues.
Quality control is becoming a real problem here.
ps: I also have Marantz CD player..
There's many vinyls from the late 70s & early 80s that sound like a fryolator when played. Ive read where record manufacturers started using recycled vinyl. Ive purchased 90% of my albums at yard sales & thrift sales and paid between 25 cents and a buck. Best sale was a church sale that i bought 40 MFSL albums for a quarter a piece, all in perfect condition. Bought my share of trash too. Usually the ones from late 70s early 80s that looked perfect but sounded like fryolators. Recently bought David Gilmours newest album on CD. Cant wait for it to arrive. Its an eBay purchase almost $20
40 MFSL? wow what a score!
Jazz and Classical CDs can absolutely sound better than vinyl but most popular forms of music are mastered to increase the volume at the loss of dynamic range. This wasn't the case when CDs first came to market. You can compare the soundwaves of The Beatles 1988 CD release to the remastered 2009 versions to see how much has changed. The 2009 releases are highly compressed. This also applies to newer releases. The CD version of The Beatles' Now & Then is virtually brickwalled whereas the 12" single has great dynamic range. Pressings coming out of GZ in the Chech Republic are usually pretty poor. Optimal in Germany is the best major pressing plant but I believe either one can be labeled "Made in the EU" making it difficult to know the origin of some records.
I guess my old ears can't tell if hi-res streaming sounds any better than a good cd.
Re Rumors, to expand on my previous comment, here in the UK it's cheaper to buy the 3x CD edition than the LP.
I know that back in my teen years, the 70’s I thought the German and Japanese pressings were the best, is this still the case and if so where are they? Are they special order only?
I did always hear the Japanese pressings were somehow better.
I've had much greater satisfaction (and lower blood pressure) since I switched my LP and CD shopping to Discogs.
Do you have a stylus timer how old is your turntable? When was it was serviced, I buy > 600 records a year with no issues, if you're getting that many issues the problem is probably with you!
I have a new this year Technics SL-1500C with a Red Ortofon cartridge with about 100 hours on it.
Agree 100%. I bought several non-premium records recently and they all had some sort of defect. They either have a scratch, a warp, or too many pops when played--and that's after cleaning them with an ultrasonic machine. The quality is still good for the $40 or more premium records, but non-premium records are being mass-manufactured with zero QC.
I miss the old days when it cost $4.95 for the latest album that were mass produced with pride and quality control. Thanks for leaving a comment.
@@allwheelsdown5646 Those days are long gone, but there are still a few local stores selling used records for $5 each. Most sound great after a good cleaning.
Absolutely correct. That's where I am. Mostly CD and vinyl records for special..
Not long ago, there was a video out that was very critical of record consumers and audiophiles who are anxiously expected too much fidelity of newly pressed reissues. The opinion stated that listening with anticipation of any flaws ruined the experience of listening to the music. While I appreciate this point of view, it is getting more and more difficult not to have higher expectations of reissues at these prices. We have audio gear becoming more affordable, luring more enthusiasts into the vinyl world, and lp prices are going way up. Then again, those pressings and remasters and remixes that have been done so well reveal that remastering original tapes pressed on better vinyl could have been achieved a long time ago forging a truer competition for choice of musical media for all.
Sooner or later, the snake will end up eating itself, and lps will either become a market for the elite, or records will just get increasingly crappy again.
It's all a snare and delusion. Maybe I'll just stream. Or not.
"audiophiles who are anxiously expected too much fidelity of newly pressed reissues" sounds like they're trying to get people to accept lower quality. Unfortunately i see this across the board for many other products and services these days.
I have the same problem with these so called expensive pressings
Thanks for leaving a comment. I read every one.
The same thing happened to me. It actually was the same album, with the same issue. It had this strange surface noise. It was a bummer too, mine was a DOL record label purchase off of Ebay. Luckily the seller refunded me. Funny thing is that I already have an original copy from the Verve record label from the 1970s. It has some clicks and pops, and I wanted a brand new copy.... That didn't turn out to way I intended 😢
It's a shame when you are willing to spend the money but don't get what you deserve.
Have to be careful with the DOL label. To get great quality LPs you have to pay more these days. Worth it for me.
Yes, I think the Getz Gilberto was DOL. Should be called DOA.
You’re correct. No pride in final product
New Cd,s are a disaster too .
I miss Cassette Tapes!
PS.
one needs to decide what pieces you want to invest in and own, and listen to as a record and one's that you just are okay with having a CD. Yes Band on the run is great, so is Ram. Venus and Mars is okay.
(Half speed). Some Stones Half Speed masters are not that great.
Lastly, even some CD'S are not always that great, but they are not as astronomical as many lps. Record labels and issuers of lps are also things to be considered in terms of price and quality.
Record albums? Czechoslovakia?
I admit I'm an old man living in the past. lol
Steve, forgive me here, but I just don't understand the whole vinyl thing. CDs always sound great, never wear out, and you only need to purchase them once because they last forever.
Vinyl records, on the other hand, wear out the more you play them. The same is true for cassettes. CDs are the way to go!
Also, if I'm not getting too personal, how old are you? I was just curious. . . Hope you don't mind me asking.
You are correct on all points. You'll notice, I didn't talk about hi res streaming. That actually makes all physical media pointless. It's all just fun and games. As for my age... I am reminded of the line from an old song. "I turned 65 eleven months ago." Let's just say I am old enough to know better but still too young to care.
@@allwheelsdown5646 Thanks for responding! You don't look 65 and 11 months! Honestly, I thought you were about 55 or so.
BTW, one other point. . . I prefer a physical CD to a streaming service! The reason being, a streaming service can pull an artist and his/her music from the platform. I don't remember the particulars, but I remember this happening several years ago when I saw this story on the news.
Of note, I own on DVD the "Classic 39 Episodes" of the Honeymooners! I figured I'd better grab it before some group takes Ralph's "Bang Zoom, to the Moon, Alice!" comments as spousal abuse and these shows are banned forever.
The same is true for "White Christmas". You know where I'm going with this. . .
@@allwheelsdown5646 some say because the secondary distortions and such in analog play back are the same the human ear evolved to hear in nature, so they find analog sound more pleasing. Digital distortion harmonics are different. Nothing last forever, but correctly played vinyl has infinitesimal wear, because the vinyl actually deforms from the frictional heat of the needle, , flows around the needle, and then returns to it's original shape because the event is so quick, the pressed in molecular lattice structure is retained. this is a characteristic of the material. Non vinyl records will not do that, but many analogs records are playable after one hundred years plus. CD's are expected to suffer delimitation and edge oxidation of the metal interior in time.
Thanks for this.
Mobile Fidelity is a CD on wheels, very bad
Rock titles have been good, as well as the Atlantic jazz Rhinos.
Polygram (Verve) reissues like you have there have been sheeyat! The f**k they're doing...low bid bulls**t seems like.
With records you need a good turntable and cartridge for them to sound good. Don't buy these cheap suitcase style record players.
I agree. I have the Technics sl-1500c with a red ortofon.
New Gilmor Album have problems too . For jazz I have good experience with reissued Blue note records and mofi . Stay away from colour lp I had many of them in bad shape!
I wondered about the colored vinyl, I have a few of those.
In Australia we have a chain store called JB HI-FI,
Yesterday i decided to have a look in there and saw a copy of Tina Turners Greatest hits on vinyl and it was $115 aud 😳
Also saw Daft Punk RAM with a $84.99 aud price tag.
I actually bought this album from this exact store when it first came out for $29.95 aud, now the reissue is $85.
Its outrageous!!!!!!
Cd's are a better value for sure, but sometimes I need my vinyl fix. Thanks!
@@allwheelsdown5646
I prefer vinyl but the prices have become ridiculous.
ur so right sir i buy cd. vinyl in austrlia are over 1oo au dollars i can buy 4 cd. record companies are greedy
verve record label thre cd are quality
Hey, good to hear from you in Australia! Thanks!
this guy makes no effort to be an informed vinyl consumer, just blunders on, continuously buying from amazon with no interest in learning who makes good records, doesn't even know where his record was made or how, and then complains about his results. random complaining doesn't get you a better record.
I bought the same Getz/ Gilberto recording, but from acoustic sounds who run quality record pressings. their modern repressing is remastered from the original master tapes in several formats , vinyl is about 40 or 60 dollars depending on your desires. their shipping packaging is also top quality. I hope this helps
I'm doing the best I can Richard.
The fact that you have to learn where to buy a decent record is so stupid! It's also not always easy to find out where a record is pressed. Some records give you no real clue. Yes, I guess you could spend all day on group forums discussing where a record was pressed, but seriously, who's got time for that. I want to listen to my music... Spending big bucks also doesn't mean you'll be getting a decent pressing. Recently, I sent two mofi records back due to the warps... I've started buying a lot more cds recently. Once I've ripped a cd to my Uniti Core, it takes one hell of a well pressed record to actually sound better!
I have been ripping my cds too for playing on my Bluesound node. But for some reason they don't sound as good as just playing the cd.
@allwheelsdown5646 That's a real shame. I've heard good things about the Bluesound node. I'd talk to your local hi-fi dealer about it. They may know the reason why the sound is degrading after the cds have been ripped... I guarantee he'll know a lot more than I do 😉