Rusty Messages: 1192 Registered: May 2018 Location: Kansas City Missouri
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
I've been following this out of curiosity for a couple of years. https://hdvinyl.org/ A proprietary process using laser cutting the grooves directly on a ceramic stamper plate. Eliminating the multitude of steps used traditionally creating the vinyl record. Promising greater fidelity and higher quality control with an extended stamper life. And it's eco friendly! That's always a swell catch phrase to market anything these days. What remains to be seen is if this startup will ever be a viable process to sustain an alternative to, or replacement of the traditional record making method tried and true.
What'll it cost for one of these platters and will it sound so sublime to be worth the extra money? As is, people plunk down extra for audiophile type vinyl like Mobile Fidelity or Analogue Productions labels. Then there's the total stretch of gullibility with the well heeled throwing silly money at what's called "Hot Stamper" records. Records presumably of greater audio quality due to being among the early stamped records of a stamper plates lifespan. https://better-records.com/
Yeah right. Anyway I'll keep following just for curiosity sake. I'm just fine with the tried and true. But a little innovation in a arcane format is commendable I think. Good luck to them.
Wayne Parham Messages: 18789 Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
That "Hot Stamper" site doesn't impress me at all. They're just reselling copies of records they find at the same places we buy them - estate sales, media resellers and Goodwill stores. They buy records and then "rate" some (most?) of them as being worthy of hundreds of dollars. I'd rather buy a nice new 180g vinyl copy.
But I might have to sample one of the HD Vinyl records - when they start coming out - just to see what they sound like. I know the US Mint offers various grades of coin pressings, and vinyl record pressing is a similar process. The quality of the pressing plate and the pressure and length of application make a big difference in the surface features of the coin produced. So I would expect this kind of thing would be similarly quality-affecting in a vinyl record production process.
Rusty Messages: 1192 Registered: May 2018 Location: Kansas City Missouri
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
That Hot Stamper scam is all it is. Capitalizing on those with more green than sense. I can see this HD vinyl capturing a real legitimate market for reissues of high quality and contemporary releases of high end vinyl playback. If the software technology used to map the control guiding the laser creating the surface ridge of the stamper has more resolution as they claim. It could be a success. They've been pushing the release dates back though just ironing out the production issues inherent with any new technology. Wonder what line of bull the hot stamper mavens will come up with to counter this for those willing to part with hundreds of dollars for their exclusive prize? I can imagine something such as analog purity.
Rusty Messages: 1192 Registered: May 2018 Location: Kansas City Missouri
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
Never underestimate the gullibility of any would be audiophile. Across the internet are a multitude of snake oil salesmen. Cabling, mysterious boxes using exotic physics, crystals, you name it. Even hot stampers. Step right up friends to the show that never ends.
Rusty Messages: 1192 Registered: May 2018 Location: Kansas City Missouri
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
I think it's their magical sell. Their hyped up come on. It's done all the time in advertising. And especially with audio products. Anyone with an ounce of grey matter rather than a thick wallet can see the scheme. I don't think the matrix number on the runout can tell when in the presser plates lifespan that the record was made. But I bet those grifters say they can.
I know scams are everywhere and have been there forever, but it breaks my heart that scammers are in the audio business. I would like to be able to trust more people, but it gets harder every year.
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