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Oh no, there's metal in your records!

IMO, this is completely out of left field. But, here’s the story. On Saturday, there was a "seminar" at the local stereo shop about why you should listen to high quality records. It turned out to be a 3 hour commercial for this dude who wants to market his services as a "HQ record shopper" of sorts. For a mere $240, you get an annual subscription to his services. You pick a title, and he will find the "best available" version of the record... so you can buy it. And, when he brings it to you, he’ll bring other similar records for you to buy. Most of these records are in the $50 to $100 range, so this "service" clearly not for me. Plus, I kind of like the hunt for a gem.

Anyway, the point of the post: One thing he said is that some older vinyl has metallic content embedded in the vinyl, and that it can interact with your cartridge’s magnet, causing distortion. Therefore, you should only buy the newest, most pristine (hence most expensive) vinyl records... from him, of course. I didn’t want to challenge him on the spot in front of others, but in my mind I’m thinking this is the most ridiculous claim I’ve ever heard. Even more ridiculous than gems you place on your speakers to change the way they sound... but, I digress. I understand he wants to show the true value of his "service"... but, seriously? Interesting business idea... but metal in the vinyl?

Just for fun, I did a little bit of google searching for metal in vinyl, and I found links to Metallica and Whitesnake records, but no stories about the metal embedded in the vinyl. So, can you prove me wrong, or just remind me that I’m not all that gullible. Please! Anyone have any information about such a wild claim?
soundermn

Showing 7 responses by lewm

lewm
13,476 posts
 
To add to soundermn's apt questions, do we know the hours of use on the cartridge that you described, Jcarr?  Thanks for chiming into this thread to enlighten us Philistines, by the way.  Your input is appreciated.

I have had the experience of using a magnet to attract a tiny washer, screw, or nut that I accidentally dropped on the floor under my basement workbench or in my garage.  Inevitably, the magnetic head of the probe comes back with "magnetic dirt" all over it, in addition to the retrieved washer/screw/nut, if I'm lucky.  This suggests to me that there is magnetic dirt or dust in the environment, generally.  (Of course, no one uses a phono cartridge to probe for a washer on the floor, but my observation suggests that what we see on the cartridge need not necessarily have come from an LP.)
lewm
13,476 posts
 
Moon, I guess I am suggesting that I don't know and don't much care about non-virgin vinyl.  I would not characterize the question as a "concern" that is "widespread and longstanding".  I would, however, be interested to know if anyone has a solid basis for believing that LPs contain magnetizable materials, just out of curiosity.  No one here seems to have such evidence.
lewm
13,476 posts
 
I grind my coffee beans every morning using a grinder that is probably not as tough as the one used to recycle vinyl LPs.  Probably I should treat the grind with my friend's Furutech before brewing.

lewm
13,476 posts
 
I grind my coffee beans every morning using a grinder that is probably not as tough as the one used to recycle vinyl LPs.  Probably I should treat the grind with my friend's Furutech before brewing.

lewm
13,476 posts
 
Moonglum, You have a vivid imagination, indeed.  You'd better get one of those Furutechs.

lewm
13,476 posts
 
He would rather not talk about spending $2500 (less the discount he probably finagled) for the Furutech demagnetizer that he now never uses and from which he never detected a benefit.  OK?  Was trying for a bit of humor.
lewm
13,476 posts
 
The presence of magnetizable (ferrous) metal in the vinyl and the question of static charge building up on the LP surface are two entirely different things.  As some know, you can buy a device designed to degauss an LP; I don't know whether it's still on the market, but I think Furutech made it (and sold it for something like $2500!!).  In reaction to that product, there were a lot of on-line debates about ferrous material in vinyl.  Some talked about buying much less expensive tape degaussers found on eBay, to do the same thing for less money.  But nowhere at any time did I read of any convincing evidence that there actually IS any ferrous material in vinyl.  The thought that newly made LPs would be free of this (non)issue is kind of laughable.  Anyway, to the best of my ability to investigate, there is no evidence that vinyl contains ferrous metals.  One of my audiophile friends has a Furutech degausser gathering dust in the corner of his listening room.  He would rather not talk about it.

On the other hand, as anyone knows who plays LPs, the surface of an LP is very prone to pick up static charge, and there are various ways to deal with it.  The most popular is using a Zerostat, although many do not use the Zerostat properly.  However, it makes us feel good to use a Zerostat after brushing. 
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