Tech

Sonically superior 'HD Vinyl' may be coming soon

by Richard Howard

Austrian audiophiles aim to transform the record game with an invention they’re referring to as HD Vinyl. A European patent filing by the Tulin, Austria based companies Rebeat Digital Ltd. and Joanneum Research claims that the technology will result in vinyl records with twice the audio fidelity and 30% more capacity. HD Vinyl masters will also be created far more quickly, accurately, and with less adverse environmental impact.

It may sound almost too good to be true, but the information presented by Digital Music News is pretty convincing (the online mag wasn’t allowed to keep a copy of the filing, unfortunately).

The foundation of HD Vinyl technology is the 3D-based topographical mapping and laser inscription method used to create masters. Currently, the two methods of creating masters or ‘cuts’ are lacquer mastering where the grooves are engraved into a soft metal lacquer-coated aluminum disc, and DMM (Direct Metal Mastering) in which a lathe engraves the audio signal directly onto a hard metal copper-plated master disc. Both of these methods are time-intensive and use a considerable amount of environmentally harmful chemicals.

The HD Vinyl process, meanwhile, uses a ‘pulsed high-energy Femto-laser’ rather than a cutting lathe to inscribe the highly accurate, computer generated 3D modeling imprint.

“We adjust the distance of the grooves, we correct the radial/tangential errors, and we optimize the frequencies,” Rebeat CEO Guenter Loibl explained.

Notably, the audio is burned directly into the stamper, thus eliminating the chemical-reliant electroplating process the older technologies rely on to transfer cuts to a stamper. Stamper-related costs are expected to decrease by 50%, while the cutting process is expected to become 60% faster – a huge consideration when taking into account the global vinyl bottleneck being experienced by the industry.

So that’s all well and good – but what about the sound? Rebeat assured that the high-tech cutting process will result in vinyl that is aurally superior to traditional records and free of the distortions that are often present due to imperfect mastering. Importantly, experiencing this sweet HD goodness won’t require you to go out and by a new record player. 

“This is a completely backwards-compatible technology,” said Loibl. “It will play on any existing turntable, you don’t need to buy a new system to enjoy the benefits.” Of course, the filing noted that the enhancement “will be better realized on upcoming, HD-compatible turntables.” (Rebeat patent pending?)

It bears noting that Direct Metal Mastering was touted as a far superior mastering method due to its more precise cut – but many manufacturers and listeners have stuck with lacquer due to a perception that DMM loses some of that beloved ‘warm analogue sound.’ Still, while the old-school vinyl lovers may be turned off by extremely high-quality records, the ongoing sales boom suggests that Rebeat will make a killing when HD Vinyl hits the market in about three years.