12-Inch LP’s mastered at 45 RPM sound better. What’s the Difference Between 33 and 45 RPM?ģ3 RPM records have always presented a compromise in sound quality, in exchange for longer playback time. Most lack dynamics, and sound thin and noisy. Sadly, most of these releases are style over function and don’t sound particularly good. More often, however, when we think of picture discs, we think of collector’s items with full-color graphics over the playback surface. In fact, they date back as far as 1900, when the Canadian Berliner Gramophone Company had the “His Master’s Voice” dog-and-gramophone trademark lightly etched into the playback surface of some seven-inch shellac records as an anti-piracy measure. The roots of picture disc records go back further than you might think. We’ve all seen those picture discs hanging on the wall in record shops. After about fifty plays, the loss in sound quality becomes noticeable. Traditionally, the material of a dubplate is much softer than pressed vinyl.

These dubplates will often be unreleased recordings, exclusive versions, or remixes of existing recordings. They’re also used by drum and bass and other electronic music producers. In reggae dancehall culture, a dubplate refers to an exclusive, ‘one-off’ acetate disc recording that only some DJs have access to. (Most are 10-inch discs, but 12-inch versions are available). Very nostalgic nonetheless.Ī dubplate is a type of sample disc (referred to as an acetate disc) used in mastering studios for test recordings before proceeding with the final master, and mass-produced vinyl pressing. As you can imagine, the quality wasn’t great as the thin material and subsequent shallow grooves didn’t reproduce great sound.

Valuable 33 rpm records