2005 ??? Year of Bad Pressings?
george
3 Posts
Is it just me, or was 2005 worse than ever for dished, warped and otherwise poorly-manufactured records? It seems to be a complete lottery when unsealing new releases at the moment. There???s something like a one-in-four chance that the contents won???t be flat and glossy, and this goes for both US and European pressings (although I haven???t seen a bad Japanese that I can remember). Apparently plants are overstretched at present, but the lack of quality control has got out of hand - and this goes for some established labels you???d expect stringent quality control from, as well as more fly-by-night operations. 
It???s especially disconcerting in the current climate for new records, when no-one seems 100% sure what long-term effect paid-for MP3s will have on vinyl sales; the market needs strong releases that have been manufactured with care, not a stream of weak product that???s likely to make already twitchy customers get flakier. Surely a lot of people buy vinyl as opposed to CDs or MP3s because they like to own a high quality physical item, so it follows that relentless shoddy workmanship will deflate collectors??? spending enthusiasm, helping propel vinyl towards the grave more efficiently than a small army of popcorn Serrato DJs ever could?
It???s especially disconcerting in the current climate for new records, when no-one seems 100% sure what long-term effect paid-for MP3s will have on vinyl sales; the market needs strong releases that have been manufactured with care, not a stream of weak product that???s likely to make already twitchy customers get flakier. Surely a lot of people buy vinyl as opposed to CDs or MP3s because they like to own a high quality physical item, so it follows that relentless shoddy workmanship will deflate collectors??? spending enthusiasm, helping propel vinyl towards the grave more efficiently than a small army of popcorn Serrato DJs ever could?
Comments
oh oh.
i keep noticing this as well.. with the trend toward "louder is better" mastering i find alot of wax is just pressed WAY TO LOUD.. like distorting load, needle popping loud, can't back cue its so loud, same spot skips o na brand new record LOUD.
havent noticed any pressing flaws.. just the mastering.
As far as other records out on the market, i gotta say, I havn't noticed much of a decline in quality. One thing for sure, 2005 brought out some great releases. Tons of dope stuff. Don't even want to know how much I spent on records
ez.