Most people (and especially DJs) want their records LOUD. A brief explanation of what happens when cutting a record is in order. The recorded groove is a spiral starting from the edge, going to the center. It's very shallow and needs to be deep enough for the needle to stay in it. The sound is recorded by vibrating the needle that causes the groove to move from side to side in a mono recording, and somewhat up and down as well in a stereo recording. The more time recorded on the record, the more revolutions the record turns, making for a longer groove, and hence a thinner (shallower) groove.
With computerized pitch, the grooves are placed right next to each other when there is little or no volume. Since the louder recordings require more vibrations, the needle deflects sideways, and possibly into the adjacent groove causing a skip. To prevent the grooves from colliding, the computer adjusts the spacing between the grooves to make sure they do not collide and cause the record to skip. Therefore, if the recording is long, the grooves are shallower. If the recording levels are louder, there must be more space between them. A .0025" inch groove is about the limit for assured tracking.
The RIAA and NAB have set forth specific physical groove vibrations to be determined as "Standard Reference Level". All mastering rooms calibrate their equipment to this level through test equipment and test recordings.
Most records are cut at the following levels:
size speed levels
12" or 10" 33 rpm Standard Reference Level or 0db
7" 45rpm +3db over Standard Reference Level
7" 33rpm -3db under Standard Reference Level
Dance club music is usually requested to be cut LOUD, even if distortion occurs. "European spec" is considered to be 6db over standard reference level. The grooves must be deep (about .004") to keep the stylus from jumping out and skipping when cutting at these levels.
Therefore, the maximum times per side are as follows:
size speed max time at +6db
12" 33 rpm 12:30
12" 45 rpm 9:15
10" 33 rpm 9:45
10" 45 rpm 7:15
The Record Making Process
1. Master tapes or a CD (and artwork) are completed by the artist. This includes all tracks timed and in the proper order on the master. Leave at least 2 seconds of silence between tracks.
2. Master tapes are sent to the mastering engineer, with the following details:
a. Master tape, edited with selections in order, and proper time between cuts.
b. Timed list of selections.
c. Speed of the record, 33-1/3 or 45
d. Size of the record, 7", 10", or 12"
e. Record (Matrix) number. This needs to be written in the "wax" so the pressing plant can match the stamper plates to the labels. There is really no standard convention for these numbers, but usually an abbreviation of your label name followed by a series number, then A and B for side one and two (i.e.: REASON-001A and REASON-001B for example).
f. The name and address of the record pressing plant where the stampers are to be shipped, or the plater that will handle the plating.
g. Additional messages such as to write "Not intended for human consumption" in the runout groove on side "A".
3. The master disks (one disk for each side of your record) are sent Federal Express to the plater. They must be sent express as they are only good for a few days, then microorganisms start growing in the lacquer of the master's grooves. There is some debate as to how long it takes for the lacquer to deteriorate. The lacquer manufacturers say they should be plated within 72 hours of cutting. The platers are able to get clean plates even when the lacquer is a few weeks old. Either way, make certain that the plating happens within a week of cutting. You shouldn't have any problems with this practice.
4. Plating:
a. The plater coats the master disk with a thin layer of silver. This is then electroplated with nickel to about 15 thousandths of an inch thick. When the metal is separated from the master disk, the metal that was facing the disk now has protruding ridges where the grooves were. This plate is called the FATHER plate.
b. The FATHER plate is oxidized, and plated again. The resulting plate when separated becomes a metal duplicate of the master disk with grooves again. This plate is called the MOTHER plate. The MOTHER can be played on a turntable to check for errors in mastering or plating.
c. In a two-step process, the FATHER plate is converted into a STAMPER, the MOTHER is shelved for future use.
d. In a three-step process, the MOTHER is oxidized, and plated to make the STAMPER plates.
e. One FATHER can produce 10 MOTHERs. One MOTHER can produce 10 STAMPERs.
f. One STAMPER can produce about 1000 vinyl records. Therefore, a two-step process can produce a maximum of about 11,000 records before a remastering has to be done, and a three-step process can produce up to about 100,000 vinyl records before remastering. Not many independent records go above 10,000 pressings, so use the two-step process.
g. Advantages of the three-step process:
- More records may be produced without remastering.
- When silver is used on the master disks, there may be some leftover silver on the FATHER plate that can cause some noise. In the two-step process, this silver is removed, however, some may remain. The three-step process will not have any residual silver on the STAMPERs. If there is noise caused by silver, a new stamper can be pulled from the MOTHER, and there will be no silver residue.
h. In the cutting process, the edge of the groove forms a small ridge called a horn. This horn can catch the vinyl in the record press causing "non-fill" where the vinyl doesn't quite fill between the grooves, and will cause a crackling sound. Polishing the MOTHER plate will remove this ridge, and the vinyl will flow properly between the grooves. This is an infrequent problem, and a new plate should solve this.
i. The two-step process is recommended because of the savings over the three-step process, about $50, and if problems arise, the MOTHER can be used to determine if there was a problem in plating or mastering.
j. Plates are usually good for about a year. It is wise to have your STAMPERs returned from the pressing plant with your record order, as they will cash in the scrap nickel after they store them for about 6 months. The MOTHERs are usually held for a year at most platers, but they can be returned to you. It's best to wait until you have the records completed in case there is any problem with the pressing plant.
5. Labels are printed from typesets or camera-ready artwork. Seven inch records use 3-5/8 inch labels with either a 9/32 inch or a 1-1/2 inch center hole. Twelve inch records use a four inch label with a 9/32 inch hole, and ten inch records use either 3-5/8, or 4 inch labels with a 9/32 inch hole. Camera-ready art should be black on white with specifications of what color inks are to be used where the black is, and what color paper on which to print. Some printers accept computer files in Photoshop format.
6. 12 inch jackets are printed at a jacket manufacture. They usually need printer's film. This differs from photography film as the negatives used for printing are actual size, and there is no gray scale in the photographs. To do photos, a process called halftones is used where the photo is converted into small dots of varying size. This gives the illusion of grays. Color photos are converted into 4 layers of printer's film, each layer appearing black and white. Each layer is used to print one of the 4 "process" colors of yellow, magenta, cyan and black. Combinations of these 4 colors in varying degrees will produce any nonmetallic color in the final printing. The process for black and white film is called engraving, and for color it is called color separations. Some jacket manufacturers have on-site or subcontracted film engravers, but most want the film. Note that most plants stock solid color sleeves, usually in white, black and red, for $ 0.33- $ 0.50 each.
7. Test Pressings are run using the stampers that will be used for the final pressings. You need enough tests for distributor samples and give away to DJs to get some buzz going. Generally I'd say 50 is the minimum necessary. These pressings are samples of the final pressings. They usually have plain labels. Tests must be approved before the plant will go ahead and run the records. Check the following:
a. Noise (pops) occurring in the same place on every test pressing.
b. Record Numbers, be sure the record number written in the "wax" for each side is correct with the "A" side being the "A" songs. You'd be surprised how often this gets screwed up.
c. Skipping, again on each copy of the tests.
8. Pressing:
a. The pressing plant needs the stampers from the plater, and the labels from the printer before they can start.
b. The vinyl is loaded as a glob between the labels, and then the mess is squashed in the press between the two stampers at about 300 degrees Fahrenheit and 100 tons of pressure for about 20 to 30 seconds.
c. The excess vinyl is trimmed off the edge of the record, and the record is stacked for cooling.
d. The final pressing is then loaded into the paper sleeve and jacket if applicable.
e. The completed product is then shipped to you or your distributor.