180g … It’s All Hype !


I seem to have had an issue with just about every 180g record I’ve purchased… Either warped, surface scuffs or just plan ole doesn’t sound as good as the original.

I’ve noticed on re-masters / re-mixes many times it’s just somebody else’s idea of how the music should sound, adding in a few leads or something and certainly not what I expect or want. 

I actually have one I swear they just took the CD as the master and pressed it on to vinyl… Seriously I’ll stick to a decent cartridge, my ultrasonic record cleaner and the bargain bins for my vinyl purchases and listening. I’ve been able to build quite a substantial collection, granted the outer covers may show some wear, but being I’ve been in this for sometime I know by looking at a used record weather it will clean up or not and after cleaning I always replace the inner sleeves with static free high quality sleeves. As for the outer covers… I buy records to listen to so as long as the cover is in tact I’m ok with that. 

I’d rather see ‘em re-release stuff if they do on un doctored up original weight vinyl with the same quality control they had back in the day… 

Heck, stuff in the dollar bins, after having been played over and over through many a folks’ adolescence then stored for years in basements and attics, then sold at garage sales, flea markets or ending up in bargain bins seem to have made the journey just fine… 

I’m tried of the hype and seriously, 180g is nothing but marketing BS to part you with your money.

Need proof of how good older records from the back in the day can sound?….. Check out any of these….

WAR - The World Is A Ghetto

King Curtis & Champion Dupree - Blues At Montreux

John Mayall - Blues Jazz Fusion

Led Zeppelin- Led Zep II

Any LP from James Cotton 

Any LP from The Alan Parsons Project

Any LP from Steely Dan

Any LP The Yellowjackets 

Most LP’s from Savoy Brown

Most LP’s on The Blue Note Label

just to name a few…

I’ve got of tons of ‘em and if you have any Artists or specific Titles you’d like to suggest feel free to respond

128x128flasd

Showing 4 responses by big_greg

I've bought quite a few white label promos and they are often quite good if they haven't been abused.  Getting harder to find, especially at a reasonable price.

Claiming that "all" recordings made on vinyl of a particular thickness/weight is "hype" is ignorant at best.

I'm with you that there are a lot of crap recordings that are hyped because they are on 180g vinyl.  There's also a lot of crap on 150g vinyl.  And different colored vinyl.  And CDs.  And streaming.  

I finally opened up my MFSL of Nilsson Schmilsson and played it last night and holy smokes, was it good!  So dynamic and the soundstage and imaging made my speakers completely disappear.  Everything else I listened to after that was mediocre.  

MFSL has had some duds, no doubt, but their newer releases are often revelatory.  I never really thought of the Pretenders as being "audiophile" material, but what they did with it makes it quite a treat.  Pretty much everything I've listened to from Classic Records and Analogue Productions has been outstanding. 

Speaking of media, almost all of the records I've bought that were made with Quiex vinyl are also very good.

It's already been said (better than I can say it), but there is more to making a record than the media itself and there are some places that put more care and skill into the end result than others. 

 

@bdp24  I actually like some of the colored vinyl. It often doesn't sound as good as black, but it is kind of cool and fun to watch on the turntable. Some of the more limited versions like some of the RSD releases can go up in value pretty quickly too. Not for any good reason but I don't mind seeing something I purchased go up in value instead of down, LOL

Very cool story bdp24. I saw Dave Mason at a small local venue 3 or 4 years ago. He was very entertaining. I have a few etched records like you described.