How easy is it to damage a vinyl?

One of the fundamentals of record collecting is that you don’t stack your records. Stacking records can warp and even crack them, but it can also lead to scratches as any surface dirt on the vinyl is easily turned into a point of friction which can lead to irreparable damage.

Does touching a vinyl record damage it?

If you touch the record’s surface, you increase the risk of getting dirt on the record and damaging it unnecessarily. To avoid these risks, some vinyl enthusiasts will protect the record’s sound quality by using cotton gloves that protect the records from fingerprints.

What can damage a vinyl record?

Seven Bad Habits That Will Destroy Your Vinyl Records

• Touching the record surface.
• Stacking your records.
• Leaving your records out.
• Carelessly returning the record to its sleeve.
• Bad cleaning practice.
• Cueing up records with your hand.
• Not waiting for the record platter to STOP.

Is it bad to play a scratched vinyl?

But that pop you hear when the needle traces its way over a scratch is enough to stop your heart. Surely it must be causing some damage. Let’s investigate this further, starting with the needle. Also called the stylus, this tiny, sharp object is made of diamond or sapphire.

How do you know a vinyl is damaged?

Pay special attention to:

1. The start of the first track on each side, where the first needle drop occurs and where damage is most likely to occur, clicks, pops, greasy fingerprints which attract dust and grit.
2. The presence of fine “hairlines”.
3. The area immediately around the spindle hole, look for spindle marks.

Can a needle scratch a vinyl?

What Is Scratching? In my experience, when you’re playing vinyl records on an everyday basis, the stylus tends to move across the grooves on a vinyl record. However, when you position the stylus or needle in the groove, that’s called scratching. DJs do this positioning to get that repetitive sound.

Is it OK for records to lean?

Once you’ve got a sturdy shelf, store your records standing vertically. This is critical to avoid warps over time. This isn’t too much of a problem, just make sure that it is minor and that they all lean in the same direction, without any record putting too much weight on the one next to it.

Are vinyl records toxic?

Vintage vinyl is quite likely to contain cadmium or lead – both toxic to humans – and even some new vinyl might still contain lead. With certain additives no longer allowed, substitutes and new compounds have been devised. These concerns have not gone unnoticed within the record-manufacturing business.

Is it bad to leave a record spinning?

Never place or pick up a vinyl record as the turntable platter is spinning. This will quickly scratch the underside of a record. Always wait for the platter to come to a complete stop before doing anything with the record.

Is vinyl really better?

Does it sound better than an MP3? Absolutely – vinyl wins this one hands down. Vinyl fans will argue that as it is an end-to-end analogue format, from the recording and pressing to playback, that it more closely reproduces what the artist originally played in the studio. Digital music works much differently.

What does groove sound like?

What does groove wear sound like? ‘Fuzzy’ is a good word to describe it. ‘Crackly’ is another, but it’s not to be mistaken with the crackle caused by surface marks; crackling caused by groove wear is more apparent during dynamic bursts corresponding with louder moments in the program.

How does a vinyl record work?

The grooved vinyl record is placed on a turntable, which rotates at a constant speed, and a tiny stylus is placed in the groove. This stylus traces a tight spiral, leading it from the record’s outer edge to its inner diameter, following subtle groove modulations (squiggles) along the way.

What happens if you wet play a vinyl record?

Wet playing a vinyl record is not a cure Never wet play a vinyl record in an attempt to quiet the crackle and pops. Doing so only forces the abrasive sludge deeper into the grooves as the needle makes its way around the record possibly doing irreversible damage.

What should you never do with your vinyl records?

Never leave your records out of their sleeves longer than necessary Put vinyl records back into their protective inner sleeve when you’re done. Remove a record from the turntable platter as soon as you are finished listening to it to prevent it from attracting dust and dirt.

What does pitch mean on a vinyl record?

To a vinyl-cutting engineer, “pitch” means “amount of space between grooves.” If a record’s grooves are too far apart, space is wasted and side length isn’t maximized. But if the grooves are so close together that they collide (a phenomenon called an overcut), skipping and mistracking become likely.