Format wars have raged on for years, with two varying formats looking to dominate their respective market. Often, in the case of records vs. CDs, Beta vs. VHS, or DVD vs. Blu-Ray, it has resulted in everyone being forced to go out and replacing their collection of music or movies with the newer, more popular format. Well, you might need to get ready to do it all again, with news that “High Definition Vinyl” could be available as soon as next year.
As Pitchfork reports, after filing for a patent in 2016, Austrian startup Rebeat Innovation has recently received $4.8 million in funding which they hope to use to ensure that your local record store now has a section for “HD Vinyl” as soon as 2019.
So how does this all work? Well, according to the company, a $600,000 laser system converts the record’s audio into a 3D topographical map which is then inscribed onto a ceramic stamper.
See, traditional records are pressed using a nickel stamper (a ‘stamper’ is the thing that physically stamps the grooves into the vinyl), but nickel stampers can wear out quickly and easily, meaning that first and last presses of a record could can completely different. There’s also the fact that this process uses a lot of harsh chemicals, which result in a lot of hazardous chemical waste.
However, using a ceramic stamper, well, you’re guaranteed that each and every copy will feature the same level of quality throughout the pressings, plus it’s much more environmentally cleaner and safer.
If you’re wondering just what sort of benefits you, the consumer, will actually see as compared to your regular ‘Standard Definition Vinyl’ records, well there’s a few. Firstly, the records are set to be much more faithful to the audio in the way the artist intended, but there’s also the fact that these new records will feature 30% more playing time, as well as 30% more amplitude, meaning you can crank those records up louder until your neighbours complain (with 30% more exasperation, presumably).
However, the best part is the fact that this new format plans to be backwards-compatible, meaning that you can play them on your current record player. So while you won’t need to buy a new player for these albums, if you’re a diehard collector like some of us, you’ll probably end up emptying your back account to make sure your collection is full of these new, high-quality records.
At the moment, Rebeat Innovation are hoping to receive their new laser system, which they hope should be up and running in the second half of the year, with the first test stampers arriving at their new pressing plants by September.
“Our goal is to officially present our test stampers at the Making Vinyl conference in October,” explained Rebeat Innovation’s founder and CEO Günter Loibl. “It will take another eight months to do all the fine adjustments. So by summer 2019 we shall see the first HD vinyls in the stores.”
Needless to say, if you’re a vinyl tragic like Jack White, this is bound to be both a blessing and a curse, with your well-loved ‘lo-fi’ records about to be dwarfed by the superior sounds of these new pieces of vinyl. Whether or not this is set to be a fad or a new standard in physical media remains to be seen, but we’re definitely going to be watching how this one plays out.
Check out Black Market Rhythm Co.’s ‘Lo-Fi Records, Hi-Fi Radio’:
