Weird Artifacts on Test Pressings

GussyLoveridge · Post by **GussyLoveridge** » Fri May 09, 2014 12:55 pm

A client of mine stopped by yesterday with some test pressing he'd just received. Everything sounds pretty good and overall I'm really happy with it - but there is this weird thing going on throughout where it sounds like all the acoustic guitars have some kind of warble, as if it sounds like there is a shallow but fast tremolo on them. I can't figure out for the life of me what this is. It's not present in the source files and I can't hear the same thing going on in the vocal or the occasional organ part, the drums on two tracks, the pedal steel or anything else -just the guitar. A bunch of the songs are from different sessions - but this weird thing seems to be throughout.

Happens on the clients deck too.

What the shit is that all about? It seems like an impossibility.

Any ideas?

losthighway · Post by **losthighway** » Fri May 09, 2014 2:24 pm

All I know is that every test press I've ever gotten sounded inferior to the final pressing. I don't know if that's a very smart way: make a leap of faith that it all turns out ok. Generally what I've heard is more problems with clarity, and surface noise. Your problem sounds a little weirder.

drumsound · Post by **drumsound** » Sat May 10, 2014 9:32 am

I hope you didn't approve the test pressing and spoke to the manufacturer about it.

GussyLoveridge · Post by **GussyLoveridge** » Mon May 12, 2014 12:11 pm

Yeah - Haven't approved the test pressing yet. Working on it. Very strange.

drumsound · Post by **drumsound** » Mon May 12, 2014 2:56 pm

GussyLoveridge wrote:Yeah - Haven't approved the test pressing yet. Working on it. Very strange.

make them cut it again. That's the point of a test pressing.

cjmnash · Post by **cjmnash** » Tue Jun 03, 2014 1:53 am

sounds like either one of the stampers wasn't mounted perfectly in the center of the press.

this causes the record to be off center and play like you described.

this can easily happen as they set up the test pressing presses many, many times a day.

does it happen on one or both sides?

i'd order another round of test pressings and see if the problem persists. another (less likely) cause is that the stampers hole was punched off center.

hope this helps!

-chris mara
www.welcometo1979.com

themagicmanmdt · Post by **themagicmanmdt** » Tue Jun 03, 2014 8:12 pm

a test pressing should be immaculate.
i've found them to be a bit... sharper... crisper... and hi-fi... than the regular run...
of course, the end of the stamper's life is duller... the beginning is the crispest...

but, i've learned the hard way that any noise, wow, flutter, warble, surface noise, hiss, etc that's on the test pressing IS IN the actual run.

could be the lacquer cut...
could be the record pressing plant had some errors in plating the lacquer... bad vacuum, etc...

m

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Weird Artifacts on Test Pressings

Weird Artifacts on Test Pressings

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