Why do 78rpm Records sound so Bad?

I have three boxed sets of vinyl 78s , pre-Rhino. I forgot who made them, but they were cut with non-78 grooves. I got them for my Wurlitzer 1015, so they didn't sound that good. The first two sets have original looking labels, all old R&R. The third set had generic labels.

 

They were made by Capitol Special Markets,pre-Warners,since they were licensed by them to press Rhino Lps and 45s.

 

After 1989,all Rhino Media was made by Warner Music Group.

 

It wasn't a matter of the type of metal but of thickness. Loud tone needles were thickest; the others were progressively thinner so that they would flex more, transmitting less mechanical energy to the diaphragm.

 

My folks had one of those plus half dozen other real early one sided 78's more of Caruso Galli-Curci and some other opera stars from that era. We still have all of them they have been played very little and are in superb condition as are the 100 or so other 78's of all genra's, one of our faviorites is the sons of the pioneers "Pecos Bill" just fantastic fun to listen to.

Jim

 

In my folks 78 collection my mom got especially because the 5th was her faviorite one of beethoven the bruno Walter version and the Toscinini NBC symphony version, it is just amazing how much different the two are in that they are the same symphony Walters is nice sort of mellow, Toscanini's just leaps out it hit and keeps hitting I bebieve he conducts it as it was meant to be and Walter was half asleep?

 

Sounds like a nice lot! One thing to bear in mind: one-sided Victor red seals aren't necessarily all that old, at least as acoustic 78s go; as a marketing ploy, Victor kept the red seal series one-sided into the early 1920s, long after it had taken less "exalted" ones to double-sided issues. You can consult the Victor discographical site http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/ to find out when your records were recorded.

Oh, one other point worth mentioning: Victor "78s" often were recorded at other speeds; the company was particularly fond of 75, which was fairly close but would make the records sound more "brilliant." There is a comprehensive listing of speeds for Caruso's recordings, but with others you can usually tell by ear if things are running a bit fast, especially if you compare to a later electrical recording of the same piece of music by other artists.

 

Well, each had his own style, and Walter's was more laid-back, as a rule. (Not always; I have some records of Walter that are quite lively.) I would agree that the Toscanini approach seems more "right" for this score, but doubtless there are others who will rush to disagree.

 

I think 78s sound great.

 

It's a common misconception that shellac is made from beetle bodies. It's actually a resin secreted by female lac bugs, and is obtained by scraping the bark of trees upon which the bugs build tunnels made from the stuff. It's worth knowing! ™

 

But in later years they switched to crushed Karmann Ghia bodies, which were somewhat quieter.

 

Gentlemen,

If you can find one, play one of the old Audiophile 78 RPM microgroove recordings. Some of the best mono sound you will ever hear. And a beastie to track. Ewing D. Nunn's very best. Some of the best Dixieland Jazz you'll ever hear.

 

Used to have a mint 78 of Sixteen Tons that sounded great

 

By the end of the 78 era in the 1950's, they really had their act together, and those shellacs sound absolutely stupendous. One reason is the very shellac itself. When the needle vibrates in the groove, it turns the record into a very tiny loudspeaker. That's the "hiss" you hear coming from the needle while a record plays, and 78's "hiss" differently than albums because of the hard material. It's a completely different resonance signature. 78's have a lively, up-front, in-your-face sound character that I've never heard from albums.

 

That ladies and gentelman is the absolute beginning of "Rock and Roll"

 

I've been hoping to come across one of these for years, no such luck. Closest I've come to it was finding one of their 33 rpm releases, did not buy it though. How would you say the sound generally compares to maybe 15ips full track mono? The one microgroove 78 I have sounded great although I suspect digital mastering was involved, so I wish I could experience that same magic in analog. There was a certain clarity and presence yet smoothness to the top end that I just don't normally hear from records and that is why I would like to hear more in the same vein. The surface was exceptionally non-present too, you had to really struggle to hear it on headphones. With the vinyl surface moving that fast underneath the stylus it was almost like digital-like levels of darkness.

 

One of the guys on the AVI forum digitised and cleaned up some of these. You might be surprised how good some of them sounded...!

 

I'd put it as close as you'd get to full track mono tape on those Audiophile 78 microgroove discs, known as "Good Old Reds"

 

I just got a new record player to replace my other micromatic player that had a bad cartridge (Couldnt find the right one to replace it with)

This new micromatic player I have has a short needle... 1 side says MG and the other 78 ... I havent ever had one of these before... Playing my records on my MG needle most of them have heavy bass,is this the way MG needles sound?????

The needle barely works,I do not think its the right one for this cartridge! (The 78 tip doesnt work @ all even on 78s (Its not long enough) it makes all kinds of wierd sounds like its hitting the cartridge......


Its white and on most needles 78 is on the left. On this one 78 is on the RIGHT and MG is on the left.........

Its a standard magnavox cartridge so I might just replace it with a proper 33/78 needle.... BUT THIS ONE SOUNDS QUITE GOOD ON 78s!!!! (The MG side) On most 33s the sound is HEAVY (More bass than should be I think I dunno since I havent ever had an MG needle!! (All needles I have ever had say LP .. 78 (Or LP/S .. 78)))

 

This is a great thread. I too have some 78's and I think they sound real good. They're not what you would call classics like some I've listened to here but there are a few that I've warmed up to. I washed all of them with dish soap and a sponge so they sound pretty nice.

I have a couple classic Harry James, Bill Haley and His Comets and one called I'm my Own Grandpa but it's not by anyone I've heard of before. I can't find the version I have anywhere. It got cracked on the edge so I have to start playing it about an inch into the song. There's also one called Befuddle Me. I like that one. It has a crack but someone placed a piece of medical tape on the edge to keep the crack together. It actually is still holding. There are, of course, many Big Band, and Country artist types, Perry Como, etc. in my collection too.

I am amazed at how well they recorded back then. I really enjoyed hearing and watching the records members put on here. Nice job!

 

I have some 78s that are amazingly quiet!!!!!!!

I LOVE 78s!!!

 

I recently switched to a Stanton 500-II for 78 use. I only have a 3 mil tip at the moment, but I like that a wide range of tips are available without the need or expense for custom fabrication. I'll probably buy a set in the future. I find that the 3mil stylus is a nice improvement in sound over the 2.5 mil I was using on the m78s (the only size that is readily available for that cart) and it's also a lot smoother/less strident especially when it comes to groove-worn discs, but that could also be due to other changes in my equipment that I've made over the years.


One of these days I'll have to re-transfer that Rock Around The Clock 78 with this new cart, and in hi-res!

 

It's a shame these discs are so fragile. On that note, it's also pretty surprising how many have survived because of that.

I also have the Stanton 500 and I have the Shure with the 3 mil too. The Shure came wired for mono but they had the jumpers in the wrong position. The way they had it jumped, the channels were being grounded out.

 

Hmmm. Are you sure your tonearm wiring isn't reversed in polarity? Because that would explain what you were experiencing with the jumper on the Shure.

A simple test: Finally - an absolute polarity test for vinyl playback! »