UMe doesnt manufacture records - they contract it out. If you want to avoid all of these problems you have to do you homework. Where is the said LP going to be pressed - locally (ie USA) or in Europe? or both if its in US by whom - if its XX or XX then try and find an alternative ie European pressing (there a few XX pressing plants in the US) if its QRP then you know its going to be AOK but is going to cost quite a bit more - cheap records are cheap for a reason If its a European pressing was it done by Pallas or RTI or GZ or someone even lesser qualified? All of this is discussed in minute detail on almost every new record that comes out, right here (Ah Ha and Phil Collins solo maybe not so much) Find out which is the best pressing of said record and then get it from there - some of them are going to cost more cos they are coming from Europe and take longer to arrive too but that beats getting a warped/scratched/dusty/fingerprinted/ all of the other issues pressing But blaming amazon is wrong
I’m actually not blaming Amazon. I’m actually well aware they ship this product factory sealed. I was just mentioning that all my purchases so far have been ordered from Amazon.
Well in the many cases I’m talking about these defects were clearly evident prior to even putting the vinyl on my turntable. Example I ordered QUEEN Greatest hits volume 2. 2 lp set, it arrived totally sealed and totally full of scratches,marks,damage. I requested a sealed replacement 2 days later another sealed vinyl arrived. Full of the same issues. Clearly these pressing plants have zero quality control. It’s just surprising to me that vinyl from 40 years ago is made to a much higher standard than today.
that's crappy customer service all around. I recently bought the new queens of the stone age from amoeba. first record was warped, so I tried to fix it in my vinyl flat (instead of returning it to amoeba, which would have been easy as pie because they're cool). I melted it! I emailed matador records and told them exactly what i'd done. matador is sending me a replacement for free. indie stores and labels. can't beat 'em.
It sounds like what you are describing is stitching or non-fill....definitely a pressing defect. Call your credit card company and cancel the sale. Unless the store has a sign up that says "all sales final" or something similar, you'll get your money back. Record stores and manufacturers who stick it to the customer is BS.
Maybe it's a EU vs US pressing thing but I buy a lot of records and many of them are new (usually from Amazon UK etc). I think I've had maybe two copies that have been defective out of something like 150 in the last couple of years. And that's going on my own strict standards... I'm sorry that this appears to be happening but I can't really explain it...
Oh I've had my share of issues with new vinyl. It's one of the reasons that I barely buy new vinyl anymore. I'm fed up with the lack of quality control and could not be bothered to put in the time to keep sending back to Amazon 2 to 3 times just to get a good copy. I'm buying more SHM and SACD these days, and paying attention to the used bins.
I really haven't had any issues with pressing quality or lack of. For me it's been the crappy mastering laid to wax which has pretty much stalled my new lp purchases. I grabbed OMD's latest 12 inch for the b-side.
Buying any record without at least being able to visually inspect it frightens me. But, I guess I like to be frightened.
I buy a ton of albums off Amazon and they always arrive safely and in great condition - I've only sent a couple back due to noise or serious warps. So no it isn't normal.
Right. Although factory defects happen too often for my liking, it certainly does not occur in the majority of cases.
What baffles me is why people who suffer such a high defect rate continue to buy this stuff. How many times do you stick a finger in a light socket before you learn not to expect a different outcome?
Yeah but comparing sticking your finger in a light socket to collecting vinyl or pursuing your hobby is not relevant! I know what your trying to say but as a huge music lover all I am trying to do is revisit a passion I lost 30 + years ago for vinyl. The fact I have in some cases got lucky with Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab vinyl wont make me give up on Vinyl, but I will continue to send it back when it arrives defective. I think the more important thing to think about is how long these places can continue to get away with sending out defective products, before something is done to make them improve or change the process. Your response came across like if your idiotic enough to keep buying it then. More fool you. But when you love music and you love vinyl you try and find a solution, you dont just give up!
I don't know I bought my last record five or six years ago. Prior to that I purchased maybe 3000. Maybe 25% were new. If I experienced a tiny fraction of the defect rate I see here I would have quit immediately and moved on. So in 6 years did things goto hell? Or did I just get super lucky?
Maybe not for everyone. But for me ive purchased maybe 100 pieces of vinyl in the past 90 days 60 brand new. And 40 used. The used stuff is mostly awesome. I would say 45% of the new stuff i have had to exchange to get a slightly better copy. So far the worst have been the Queen resmasters. Depeche Mode. Remasters. Genesis remasters.
I must have your luck. Over the past year I've purchased about 50 new (sealed) LPs, and not a single one was defective. Like you, if I had anything like the experiences I'm reading in this thread, I probably would have stopped buying them after the first half dozen or so. I like music, but I'm not a masochist. There are other format options.
Maybe this is just a thing with remasters of '80s artists (which I have none). ... so you bought 27 defective LPs in the past 90 days? That's terrible.
Possibly. For Depeche Mode remasters I have a hodgepodge of different years, some MOV, some Rhino and have had no issues. The occasional rice crispy, but I mark that down as part of format.
Old record shop manager here. Every single one of these are defects that also could have happened 30 years ago. We're just hyper aware of them now after years of digital perfection. This is not to say there aren't defects which occur far more now than they used to. Non-fill and scratched vinyl being the worst offenders....
