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I'm a little surprised to learn that they use normal styluses instead of reading the grooves optically.
More than that, they use 4 different styluses and let you choose which one you think sounds best for a particular record. I think it's kind of sad that this is a purely volunteer effort and not an official effort of the Library of Congress.
I thought there was something in the early 2000s that used a laser (an array of them, actually) to map the grooves on a vinyl (or wax) record with perfect precision that allowed for the virtual audio processing of the record in higher quality than any physical stylus or pre-amp system could deliver. (There was also the side-benefit that the reading process didn't involve physical wear on the record or cylinder to opt…
Seems if you strictly are extracting the topography of the record ... good for printing a new one, but would require all kinds of simulation to playback accurately?
I'm a little surprised to learn that they use normal styluses instead of reading the grooves optically.
It's worth noting that the Internet Archive are always on the lookout for more records to digitize, so if you (or someone you know) has a collection and wants to see them go to a good home where they'll be preserved, you can donate them [1] to the Internet Archive (they also take 33/45rpm records, books, CDs, etc...). (I'm not affiliated with the Internet Archive) [1] https://help.archive.org/hc/en-us/articles/360017…
If corporate America had their way, those records would have had DRM, there'd have been half a dozen different formats, and they'd have stopped working after twenty years.
A silly example, but looking at how records are preserved today, then imagining how media of today might be preserved for a century from now, should be something we think about when we're choosing what to buy, yet most people keep buying from companies that just disable our media whenever it benefits them.
I'm a little surprised to learn that they use normal styluses instead of reading the grooves optically.
Why does this matter? Because it probably keeps down the fine high-frequency crackle from very minor dust and surface imperfections. But I can see that you wouldn't subject a precious antique 78 to that kind of playback these days.
It's worth noting that the Internet Archive are always on the lookout for more records to digitize, so if you (or someone you know) has a collection and wants to see them go to a good home where they'll be preserved, you can donate them [1] to the Internet Archive (they also take 33/45rpm records, books, CDs, etc...). (I'm not affiliated with the Internet Archive) [1] https://help.archive.org/hc/en-us/articles/360017…
I don't know why I didn't think to check into this sooner, but I inherited my grandfather's record collection that is >5,000 records, and I just couldn't bear donating it to some random thrift store, and I knew that selling them would just mean someone picking through the collection and leaving the dregs. This is a solution that I've been looking for. I do listen to some of the records, and I enjoy it, but I don't ha…
I'm a little surprised to learn that they use normal styluses instead of reading the grooves optically.
Any dirt in the grooves screwed up the playback in the case of using a laser. Remember the pits that are read on CD/DVD are under a clear coating and cannot get dirt in them.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
More than that, they use 4 different styluses and let you choose which one you think sounds best for a particular record. I think it's kind of sad that this is a purely volunteer effort and not an official effort of the Library of Congress.
I'm on the opposite side; I think it's an amazing example of private actin for a public service.