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Vinyl record production has finally joined the modern age
When you think of manufacturing in the US, vinyl records probably isn't the first thing that springs to mind, but the industry has been chugging along as best it can. For decades, pressing plants have been using aging machines that require a complex infrastructure of piping for the steam-based heating (and cooling) mechanisms -- not to mention an engineering support team to keep them in working order. New vinyl presses just weren't being made, at least until a few years ago. Two companies emerged to fill that need. Newbilt Machinery launched around 2015 in Germany with slightly updated (cloned) versions of old presses, adding electronic controls and hydraulic power. In February 2017, Jack White's Third Man pressing plant opened in Detroit running Newbilt's manual Duplex machines. That same year, Toronto-based Viryl Technologies joined the market with its WarmTone presses. These machines weren't clones, but built fresh from the ground up including a modular construction, fully automated operation and remote machine monitoring (even from a mobile device) with its ADAPT software. Viryl's tech support can log into the system remotely to help troubleshoot any problems. Still, like Newbilt, they required a large boiler system and network of piping to support their operation. Anyone looking to start a pressing plant still faced hefty startup and maintenance costs, a difficult permit and zoning process, as well as a less-than-ideal impact on the environment.
Smart record presses promise consistent audio quality at a global scale
The manufacturer of what's one of the best sounding record pressing machines today is taking a step into the future. Viryl Technologies recently announced its WarmTone and LiteTone models will soon connect to the internet. After a test pressing is complete, an engineer will upload the press' settings to the cloud. The promise is two records that sound near-identical regardless if one was made in America and another in Germany. That consistency is important, as the sound quality and audio characteristics can vary wildly from record to record, plant to plant and pressing to pressing. Every one of its 40ish machines across the globe will operate from the same data for each album.
Vinyl record production gets a much-needed tech upgrade
Ever wondered why you sometimes have to wait months after an album's launch to get the music on vinyl? It's not necessarily because the label hates vinyl -- in many cases, it's because the decades-old manufacturing process can't keep up with the format's resurgence. Relief may be in sight for turntable fans, though. Viryl Technologies is producing a pressing machine system, WarmTone, that should drag vinyl production into the modern era.
