Hello wise people of the EA forum world. Hello. As it's been a while since I asked one of my puny questions in the tech room, I thought it was high time I got one in.

I have produced a track which has been mastered and is ready to send off. It is going to be pressed onto vinyl and vinyl only. I will not be attending the pressing of the record or the cut, and I keep hearing things about frequencies to be careful of and panning and all that. I am slightly concerned. The records I've done before have been alright, but I don't want to leave it to chance.

I apologise, because I know some of these subjects have been covered in this forum, but I get mixed up with it all (honestly, I do). Plus I am not very technically aware, so this can be confusing too.

I am hoping that some kind soul(s) can give me a basic overview of what I should be checking for, and what to worry (or not) about when my master gets sent off to be made into a record.

Thankyou.

United has some really good info on getting your material ready to be put on vinyl. Although I haven't used them to press a record in quite some time, I often refer to the info they've got on their web page.

http://www.urpressing.com

Thanks, that's really useful.

If you are happy with the mastering job, the odds of things getting fucked up drop considerably. Attending the mastering session will usually save time, money, and hit points in the long run.

United is the only pressing plant I've ever had problems with. They are dirt cheap, but I'd still suggest looking at some other places.

Fr'instance:

http://www.erikarecords.com/
http://www.rainborecords.com/
http://www.billsmithcustomrecords.com/index.html
http://www.musicolrecording.com/index.html

Check the FAQs and call them. All these folks are very friendly.

I just re-read your post and realized that you are in the UK, which makes my suggestions pretty useless. The FAQs still might help, and I have a small list of European pressing plants if you need more info.

I will be mastering for vinyl pretty soon. I'd like to send the tapes to John Golden in California, where I will not be able to attend the session. He has mastered several of my favorite-sounding records, so I think I can trust him to make it sound good. But then again, I couldn't shut up during the entire recording of the album. Maybe it would be better to do it in the New York area, where I could have a say in the process.

Would the John Golden master end up sounding better even without the band present?


-Noah

I've had John Golden master about half of the vinyl that I've done. I live on the East Coast and have never attended one of these sessions. He is a gifted man, with gifted ears and I trust him with my records. I've attended several more "local" mastering sessions and have, most of the time, left about 75% satisfied. The only New York area mastering session that I've attended and left happy has been at Westwestside Music in Tenafly, NJ. The guy's name is Alan Douches. Yeah, I know.

So, yeah. John Golden will do right by ya, whether you're there or not.

John Golden it is.


Thanks,
Noah

Noah wrote:Would the John Golden master end up sounding better even without the band present?

I would say that if the mastering engineer is talented, experience, empathetic, and professional (as John Golden is) and the band can't shut up and let the guy do his job, then the master will usually sound better without the band present.

John is really just one of the greatest guys you'll ever get to deal with in your life. He's taught me more about audio than anyone I know, and always does a great job for me. And he's cheap!

mb

Any time threads about pressing vinyl and where to get vinyl pressed comes up, I always have to give my full endorsement for Musicol. I run a tiny tiny label out of the bedroom of my apartment. Hopefully in a few years if things go well I'd like to try Bill Smith, but if you're sick or disapointed with United and on a budget, I really can't say enough good things about Musicol.