Vinyl Is Back In The Groove

Audiophiles Shun MP3s and CDs For "Old-Fashioned" LPs, And Companies Meet The Demand

(CBS)  Remember turntables? They were used to play LP's, those long-playing records developed by Dr. Peter Goldmark of CBS Labs. They spin at 33-and-a-third revolutions per minute. Even in these digital days, true believers have never given up on analog vinyl LPs, and today they're enjoying some vindication. Thalia Assuras examines an audio counter-revolution:

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Schoolkids at P.S. 8 may not know exactly what the large round black thing is.

"It's, it's, uh, I don't know," one said.

"A CD?" another asks.

"It's a disk," said another.

Hey, if you were born in the age of digital sound, you might not know exactly how this it works, either. But they threw out guesses:

"It's something really old and it plays music."

"And it's so huge because in those days CDs hadn't been invented and this is kinda what it was."

"When you play it, it sings music out."

"It's a record!"

And … it's coming back.

Vinyl records, yes, the same kind of LPs you listened to on a turntable, have become, well, cutting edge again.

True, the newer technology can put a thousand digital songs in your pocket, but for a growing number of music lovers, there's nothing like a real groove.

Record labels are re-releasing vinyl LPs; Amazon has inaugurated a vinyl-only Web site; and the makers of vinyl records say sales are up, enough to keep them in the black.

When asked why he ventured into an analog music business, when vinyl is virtually non-existent in music stores, Thomas Bernich said, "There's enough out there to, you know, have a little piece of the pie. I'm certainly not going to be driving a Ferrari tomorrow, There's no question about that!"

Bernich is the founder of Brooklynphono, a tiny factory that presses records in small batches for artists who want the sound, and feel, of vinyl.

Why would an indie band want to put their album out on vinyl as opposed to what's supposedly cool - you know, CDs?

"It's a closed format," said Bernich. "Not everyone can have access to it. So if you don't want your music to go everywhere, it's one way of having control over your product."

With wife Fern and daughter Hazel, Bernich's record factory is, quite literally, a mom-and-pop business.

"If the money's green, we press the record," said Fran.

Jason Durham runs the production line, where each record pressed is inspected. "Both sides, A and B. Every album. We're very serious about quality control."

To Durham, the difference between vinyl and digitized music is like comparing a formal dinner to fast food.

"I think it's got to do not only with the sound but the ritual of playing the record," he said, "and also just the whole packaging. It's like a gift every time you open it."

Our schoolkids had some idea of the history of vinyl.

"In the old ages they used this instead of a DVD player," one said.

And just when were the old ages?

"In the 1960s!"

Actually, he's right. The 1960s have been called the golden age of vinyl. That decade saw major advances in how the music was actually recorded, but it all ended up on a turntable. Steve Sheldon was a college student when he joined Rainbo Records in L.A., back when vinyl was king and "The King" was on vinyl.

"The busiest period for Rainbo was 1977, when Elvis died," Sheldon said. "And within three days of his death, we had booked about a million and a half records to be pressed. Our capacity at the time was 60,000 pieces a day."

But in the 1980s, CDs hit the market, and pure sound quality took a back seat to convenience. When computer downloads and MP3 players came a decade later, it would seem that vinyl LPs were on the fast-track to oblivion. But although demand for vinyl declined, it never disappeared, in part because digital recordings just don't sound the same.

"It's smooth, right?" Durham said. "It's a groove, whereas a CD takes music, audio, chops it up. And it's done in little packets of data. And the trick is that you listen to it, if the data is quick enough, your ear 'makes up' for the difference. Theoretically, they scientifically have proven that we can't hear the difference. But there is something. There is something different."

That old-fashioned sound requires an old fashioned, labor-intensive process.

Technicians create the metal master plates one by one. The raw vinyl pellets are hand-loaded into the pressing machine, and each LP is packaged (carefully) by a gloved employee.

Making compact discs is a different story: The process is high speed, and highly automated, with a lot of the work done by robots. At Rainbo, making a CD costs less than half of what it takes to press a record, but Steve Sheldon says he's banking on the future of vinyl.

"In the next few years I'll be pressing more vinyl records than CDs."

"Here's the bottom line question: Will vinyl ever die?" Assuras asked.

"No. Absolutely not," Thomas Bernich said. "It's too wonderful of a medium."

And for true believers, a medium that will keep audiophiles happy for generations to come.

[wljolly880]

Chillidog,
Vinyl is abundant in most of Europe and Asia. The Japanese are alsmost obsessive about it, making copies of just about all great American lp''s in the vinyl format. Tower went out as a distributor of CDs. Vinyl made up a miniscule percentage of their sales--they just did not carry much of it. Many vinyl users were forced into CDs as many retailers refused, starting in 1989, to guarantee, and then to even carry vinyl product--if you could get it and it was defective, you were stuck with it...the incentive was in place to force users to switch to the higher priced cds.

[spotty17-2009]

"tropolus" may have just possibly made a mistake; utilizing a spectrum analyzer demonstrates wave forms. yes, a vinyl record usually has a "dirty" composition (the vinyl isn''t really "virgin" usually, it''s usually made up of recycled plastic). and the spectrum analyzer will show that (depending on the sensitivity of the needle and the cleanliness of the record).
On the other hand, digital information "muddies" itself through compression and the resultant combination of pink, brown, and white noise. Pink noise is somewhere in between white noise (complete chaos, far too disorderly to be considered musical) and brown noise (very orderly, and too dull to sound like music). The vinyl counterpart, because of it''s analogue nature, practically eliminates brown and white noise leaving the subtle sounds of pink noise to delight the ear. the "type" of music (rap, rock, classical, spoken word) is important in the equation, but doesn''t effect the waveform demonstration of the analyzer.

[rs125racer]

The best turntables have one job and only one job...to reproduce and extract every ounce of information from the groove of a record. Not to "scratch" or to stack and drop for convenience. Listening to a record is like anything worthwhile in the world...it takes time and care. The best cars, wine, furniture, etc... are all made by hand. A record does require you to actually flip it over every 45 minutes or so BUT the rewards of audible ecstacy are well worth it. Think foreplay here! If music is something you play while putting those dishes away then program your digital devices away. As for me, I''m going to pour myself a nice glass of cognac and retire to my music room where my Linn LP12 and a vast record collection await!.

[rs125racer]

Hey "tropolus"! Do me a favor and tell me what a spectrum analyzer sounds like!!! You''re probably one of those folks who get your hi-fi at the same store as your dishwasher and got the "Best Buy Recommendation" from the latest issue of Constupid Reports. That''s as rediculous as buying a car based on the recent Motor Trend tests. Music is HEARD not specs on a sheet of paper. The REAL problem with vinyl is a) convenience and b) the playback devices. No doubt that a CD or MP3 is more convenient and do have their place (I own an iPod too!). But, what killed vinyl was the hisses and pops that were associated with the medium. The records (clean and free of scratches of course) weren''t the problem, it was the pathetic excuses for turntables (make that "record players") that were THE main reason for all those annoying pops and cracks.

[thechilidogg]

Michelle,
there are a few turntables that play both sides of a record without turning over the record. I think Mitsubishi (MGA) made one and maybe Sharp.
As far as finding one I would search ebay rather than buying a new one from china. The older ones are built better. Yup you''ll need a new needle (and belt) again online is much faster than pawnshops. turntableneeldes dawt com has all that stuff. Hope that helps.
Nicolas

[spotty17-2009]

can someone tell me if there is any difference in the vinyl sales outside of America? Are there a greater number of vinyl sales in...say Cairo? or the United Kingdom? with so many electronic stuff coming out of Japan and China, those countries might sell a greater number of CD''s and IPOD''s....maybe. or how about America; is there a greater number of vinyl sales on the East coast or the West coast, or maybe mid-America? The "news" states that Tower Records went out because of record sales...for vinyl or compact disc? and, also, if the vinyl records were such a great sounding medium, why would anybody pursue CD''s anyway? And what about all the vinyl manufacturers that went under because of the rise of the CD?
the internet is a weak source at best for information, but here is a link that some might find useful: http://www.recordtech.com/prodsounds.htm

[michellem99-2009]

I am hard of hearing due to C/P..and aging..I am 53.

[beehive21-2009]

Some never change ,stuck in a time warp,most folks who lived the sixties can''t hear from all that load music.the turn table sucks playing 33 ,45, 78,all useless,we can outfit your car with a crank start if you preferliving in the past.Leap into the future the past is gone ,foreverr.

[seafang]

Well one reason vinyl is still around is there is a lot of music that just isn''t available on CDs. Another reason is that many CDs are ***; the music itself is ***, and the audio quality is ***.

I have LP recordings that were recorded in the 1960s. I also have the exact same recordings; the same performance, all digitally re-mastered on a CD set. And the music quality on the LPs is better than the CDs. There is some noise that is on the LPs; but the sound quality is still better than the CDs. Quantization noise you just can''t get away from with CDs.
And the general quality of "high fidelity" equipment has gone steadily downhill since the 60s and 70s, with the push to cracker box loudspeakers. People have the gall to call a six inch cone speaker a woofer, just because it can crack the windows of your boom box laden automobile. But it takes a thousand Watts of amplifier power to produce what you can get from 4 good Watts with the right speakers, and the sound still isn''t as good.

French organ music has sounds that go down to about 8Hz, and you aren''t going to get that out of a 4 inch cube speaker no matter whose name is on the box.

But the sound quality of what passes for high fidelity today is more than adequate for the music du jour that is being churned out by people who call themsleves musicians; when they are not stoned on crack.

[panton41-2009]

Rushman, the CD was first released in 1982, but was a well-beyond high ticket item ($3,000+) aimed mainly at classical music fans at first.

[rushman71]

"But in the 1980s, CDs hit the market..."
Was that in ''88 or ''89? They need to be more specific on that. All I know, I did not listen to my first CD until the early ''90s.

Throw away the MP3, bring back the LP!!!

[michellem99-2009]

The 60s and 70s and maybe 80s..70s..gramma I asked my friend where yer might find a turntable to play yer records..He said pawn shops...Yer just might find it plus the next issue is buying a new needle for it.I have seen them in pawn shops here in Seattle. Good luck..

[michellem99-2009]

I don''t care for them records. When I was sitting in my room at the Blind center I had wished there be a recorded means that play the record with out needle and turning it over,,they thot I lost my mind..I can''t see the lines in the old records. cds are the answer.

[grammawhamma]

This is good news to me. I was a manager of a record store in the early 70''s so I have hundreds of albums. I just have problems finding a turn table of decent quality.

[takion1]

people want vinyl because the new music sucks!
70''s and 80''s rule!!!!!

[random_radar]

"I wish we could get something that''''s better than vinyl and better than CD''''s."

Posted by MaxMcPower

Live music--the true gold standard!

[thgdriver]

I purchased my own Juke box in 1980, it''s a 1961 Album of the week Seeburg AY160 Stereo. It Holds 80 45s or a mix of 45s and extended play 33 1/3 rpm albums. They are records that look like 45s but have a small hole in the middle. It has a vacuum tube amplifier and when I turn it on and turn it up it sounds fantastic.

Problem is, it''s too damm big to get into my cars dash.

[neenga]

How many of you can say you have a 33 1/3 vinyl with a color photo of "The Who" imprinted on the record itself?

[maxmcpower]

I wonder if there was a story 50 years ago about how 78''s were coming back because they were better than the new 45''s and 33 1/3''s? I don''t think vinyl is coming back. I wish we could get something that''s better than vinyl and better than CD''s. I still have my vinyl records and I still listen to them. There was stuff to look at on the jacket and the liner. That''s why they were called albums. Now we get a plastic case that breaks the first time you open it and a 4 inch piece a paper with writing that''s too small to read. Or with mp3''s you get nothing except a tiny picture of the cover.

Today music is disposable. No space on my mp3 player? Just delete some songs. I can get them back anytime if I want, along with 8 million other songs.

What bothers me the most is not CD''s instead of vinyl, but what''s on them. Record companies give us idols instead of artists. They want to make money instead of music. If we had a better sounding media, what bands today would be worth listening to?

[cornflower3]

i love my records. still wish they made them.