Clarity vinyl - Problems?

[artto]

After an 8 week backorder wait I got my Peter Gabriel "So" on Clarity 45prm vinyl. Last night I finally got around to listening. YIKES.

I have to tell you, I haven't heard surfaces this bad since ~ I can't remember. I didn't even bother listening to the other two discs. The first two sounded like someone had thrown some fine sand on them and blew it off. The recorded sound level was also quite low, not making for a very good S/N ratio. And quite frankly, under bright light the disc quality, the surfaces, don't look very good either. They're only putting two songs on one side. There's plenty of room for a slightly wider groove pitch and to get the groove away from the very uneven outter edge. Sheesh.

I have jive ol' discs I bought in retail stores 30-40 years ago that don't have anywhere near as many ticks & pops. I mean, by the end of disc two, the ticks and pops were almost constant, very much like an old 78rpm. Instead of worrying about resonances caused by grooves on the platter side of the disc, and carbon black (contaminants) these people need to take a serious look at their quality control. Anyone else encounter this from this company?

[garymd]

Wow. I just got mine too but haven't listened yet. Now I'll have to give it a spin. I assume you're going to send it back?

I have about 10 Clarity LPs now and they're almost all exceptional. Just look how the prices have gone up!

Sometimes the QC at Classic isn't great but so far I haven't noticed any problems with the Clarity series. I hope yours is just an aberration.

[artto]

Yeh, Gary, this is my first one. I bought it on your recommendation [] I won't hold it against you. $*** happens. But this was realy kind of extreme. It wasn't too bad at first, but kept getting worse and worse as I went on.

Please post your findings. Hopefully this is just a single aberration. But in the past I have seen instances where the entire run was bad but that was on a regular commercial LP, not this kind of stuff.

Yes, it's going back.

[garymd]

I think I knew that Art.[] You should here Norah Jones on Clarity!

BTW - Here's a review from Acoustic Sounds site:

I say No to this issue of
So posted on 02/17/2010












1 Stars


Reviewer: Mike N.

I was expecting a really clean sounding record, but
all four discs have very annoying ticks throughout. Many of my standard
issue records don't even have this problem. As far as the mastering,
it seems like the highs and lows have both been boosted, often resulting
in muddy bass and distorted treble. The latter makes for some very bad
sibilance on many of the songs. Often so bad, that it makes me
wince...like fingers on a chalkboard! In my opinion, this is bad
mastering, and a bad pressing. The packaging is good... nice gatefold
jacket and nice box. The sleeves are high quality, but unfortunately
they're just a tad too small, so getting the record back in the sleeve
is a challenge. The music is great, this being my favorite Peter Gabriel
album, but the quality of this issue is unacceptable at this price.

[garymd]

Here's another review:

So posted on 01/26/2010












5 Stars

I am a man of few words... So here goes OUTSTANDING
In every way!!!!!!

Maybe this guy is using his old Fisher Price record player.

[artto]

Something obviously went wrong somewhere between January 26 and February 17

[li]

[artto]

You know, come to think of it ~ what if that second guy sent his back ~ some dope in the warehouse looks at it and thinks its fine ~ reseals it ~ and sends it to me

[Y]

[garymd]

You know, come to think of it ~ what if that second guy sent his back ~ some dope in the warehouse looks at it and thinks its fine ~ reseals it ~ and sends it to me

That's hysterical.

I'm going to give mine a spin. I'll be back shortly.

[joshnich]

I do not have the Peter Gabriel lp but I have a number of Clarity releases and like Gary , have been very very happy with them. Some of the best LPs sound wise I have ever heard. I cannot keep them off my turntable!

Josh

[garymd]

Well Art, they must have 2 cutting machines because mine is outstanding. There is a little noise but no more than an average 200 gram LP and it totally disappears when the music is playing. Also, it seems about average on the volume knob so no S/N issues on my system. Very odd. I did notice a little too much sssss on the vocals but nothing outrageous.

I'm not a huge Gabriel fan and I only bought the LP because it's on Clarity. I still have an original pressing from the 80s so maybe I'll throw it on to see how it compares.

Sorry you got a lemon. If you don't trust a trade-in, see if they'll swap it for this one:

http://store.acousticsounds.com/d/61182/Lorna_Hunt-All_In_One_Day-45_RPM_Vinyl_LP

I guarantee you will enjoy Lorna!

[artto]

The verdict is:

Classic Records ~ Clarity Vinyl SUCKS

Here’s the deal. The first Peter Gabriel ‘SO’ LP I acquired was
very, very bad. The pressing was terrible. I could best describe it sounding as
if someone had dumped a cup of fine sand on the record, blew it off as best
they could, and put it back in the sleeve. Also, on this first example, the
recording level was very low which added to the surface noise problems since
the gain had to be turned up. I had the preamp gain at 75%. That should have blown me right up against the back wall!

I returned it and exchanged for another copy. This one, the
gain is more where it should be, about 20dB higher, but alas, the surfaces are
noisy here too. At one point the stylus even started skipping, just like the
first one, albeit a different location.

Not to be quick to place blame, I actually went through my
tonearm/cartridge setup all over again ~ just to make sure it’s not me. Nope,
everything is spot on. I even played each disc at least three times. Why?
Because my main cartridge is a Decca Jubilee. And the Jubilee is a heavyweight
low compliance pickup, somewhat known for it’s “snow plowing” capability ~ it
can actually clean the grooves, removing debris and burnishing the grooves
after a few plays, making the record sound better. No such luck here!

I then pulled out an old Ten Years After album that I know
was played a couple hundred times ~ on an old Zenith console when I was in High
School. This LP actually had less snap crackle and pop. I then pulled out
Sheffield Labs ‘Confederation’ and just one pop, between tracks, and that was
it! The grooves were clean as a whistle, no surface noise.

So, just to give Classic Records the benefit of doubt, I
ordered the Lorna Hunt LP (highly recommended by others here and elsewhere). It
sounds fine ~ at first. The sound itself is not the problem. On this LP, the
transfer is quite excellent, and the level is much higher (than SO). Because
the recorded level is higher, the noise problems aren’t nearly as apparent.
They’re there, turn it up to the same level I needed to for SO and its clearly
there, but then the sound is too loud for this type of music. Then the bummer,
first disc, track 3. Skip. Skip. Skip. I take the disc off the platter and examine
it more closely and even I can see the visible defect with my bifocals and I’m
far sighted!

When I ordered the Lorna Hunt LP I also ordered Hugo
Musekela’s Hope 45rpm LP on Analogue Productions for comparison. Was it
perfect? NO. It had a pretty nasty repeating pop that moved from stage left to
right but only lasted a few revolutions, but absolutely nothing like the snap, crackle,
pop, and skips on the Classic Records Clarity series.

I also played these on my other TT, a Thorens 126 with a Dynavector 10x5
pickup. I must admit there wasn’t nearly as much apparent groove noise with
this pickup, but it is, an elliptical stylus, and much less expensive than a
Decca Jubilee (ultra fine line contact stylus mimicking the cutter stylus). I
mention this because in my experience here, it’s apparent that a less capable pickup/stylus
may actually smooth over (read: cover up) these vinyl defects.

This, and some other recent experiences have led me to the
conclusion that many of the newer “audiophile” LP pressings are not so good. I
have yet to find any that are really up to the quality standards of LP’s put
out by the likes of Sheffield Labs, Reference Recordings, or even Telarc’s
digital/LP’s of the 70’s and 80’s. And at $25 per one-sided disc (that’s $100
for four discs that make up one conventional LP), I think it’s a shame.

Classic Records should spend more time worrying about how to
actually press a clean record instead of explaining to us how grooves on the B
side of an LP cause undesirable resonances, yet they sure know how to stamp
their name in the semi-clear vinyl on the "blank" side. And I almost forgot, one of the Peter
Gabriel discs actually had what appears to be carbon black “whisping” through
it, like a trail of smoke. So much for not using carbon black because of all
the contaminants.

And if you don’t believe me, just take a look at their
website blog. It’s few years old now but there’s quite an extensive discussion
about (drum roll please) manufacturing DEFECTS. I wish I had read this before I
bought. It’s almost like a self-proclamation that they don’t know what they’re
doing! I mean come on guys, this is NOT new technology.

The bottom line is, BUYER BEWARE. Ironically, the more “average”
your turntable/arm/cartridge is, the more likely you’ll be able to enjoy this
overpriced junk.

[Travis In Austin]

Art,

I am really sorry to hear about your experience with Clarity vinyl from Classic. It seems you ran into a bad patch of luck. I have gotten all of my Clarity lp's from themusic.com (the affilliated online outlet of Classic) where you can request one of the first 50 pressings and ask them to hand select a copy for you and so, knock on wood, I have not experienced the same situation you have.

All pressing plants have issues, ask anyone who bought the Doors limited edition set (RTI). I agree with you however, at this price point the quality control should be better. You might want to send Mike Hobson an email at Classic and let him know what you experienced and I am pretty sure he will help you get the thing straightened out.

Have you returned both LP's yet? If not I would write him a note for sure, as opposed to dealing with the people you bought it from, and ask if you can send them to him to check out, and from past experience I would expect that he is going to find you a good set of vinyl. He is an audiophile so he is also going to talk your language as well.

Out of curiosity, where did you purchase yours from?

Travis

[artto]

I have gotten all of my Clarity lp's from themusic.com (the affilliated online outlet of Classic) where you can request one of the first 50 pressings and ask them to hand select a copy for you and so, knock on wood, I have not experienced the same situation you have.

Have you returned both LP's yet?

Out of curiosity, where did you purchase yours from?

Travis

I still have them. I even thought of keeping one just as "proof", but I guess that wouldn't be valid.

I got all of these from Acoustic Sounds.

I'll definitely take your advice and give Mike a hollar tomorrow. I am really, really disappointed. This all started months ago when I ordered and it got back ordered. All this waiting for nothing. GRRRRRRRRRRR [:@]

[artto]

Well, the jury is in.

I spent the last week and a half trying to contact someone, anyone, at Classic Records via email and phone calls, if for anything, just to be able to bring this problem to their attention.

Yesterday, on the third try, I actually was able to reach a real person! After a lengthy discussion he said he would look into it and get back. About a hour later he calls and explains that Aoustic Sounds is now their exclusive distributor and probably have all existing stock. And that I need to contact Acoustic Sounds for a replacement, that maybe both Peter Gabriel sets were from the same "box" ~ maybe a Monday morning or Friday afternoon production run. I explained my concern was more regarding the inconsistant quality of these pressings more than getting (another) replacement.

Today I call Acoustic Sounds and attempt to explain the situation (again), only to be told (I'm going to paraphrase this as best I can) "Well, if you're a vinyl collector you should know that vinyl isn't perfect and there's going to be a few ticks or pops here and there." I told him I have plenty of recordings that are decades old that don't have a fraction of the defects these do. His response was "I guess you have a few recordings without these defects". And I told him"Yes, I do, but they didn't cost $50 - $100 per set!" At that point I'm pretty tired of the bantering and he asks "What wouldyou like me to do?" I told him (the second time) I would like to speak to the president (again) and added "and make sure you're fired".

Bottom line is, Acoustic Sounds is not going to care two bits about your defective LP's and apparently Classic doesn't care too much either. The impression I came away with is "give us your money and take your chances". You're going to have to repeatedly keep returning them at your own expense until either they give up or you do. Too much fancy packaging and incosnsistent quality. I guess I shouldn't have expected any more from company that expounds the benefits of demagnetizing plastic (see their website blog).

They're all going back. No sense in wasting more time on this junk. I have thousands of LPs and I'd be hard pressed to blindly pull one out that has as much noise.

[seti]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll keep them on my don't buy list. What nerve.

[Dennie]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll keep them on my don't buy list. What nerve.

Ditto! Sorry to hear about all the problems, but thanks for posting them.

Dennie

[garymd]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll keep them on my don't buy list. What nerve.

Ditto! Sorry to hear about all the problems, but thanks for posting them.

Dennie

Don't overreact because of one bad experience.

I have about 12 or more Clarity Vinyl box sets and I've yet to be disappointed. They are some of the best sounding albums I own. My copy of "SO" is dead quiet and sounds amazing. It sounds like Art just got a bad run. I've also had run-ins with the folks at AS and they always seem to cop an attitude and come back with comments like, "Oh, I better write down in your file that you want perfect covers." Damm right I do when I'm spending $50 for an album!

With just one or two exceptions, the Clarity Vinyl LPs have been extremely quiet in my experience. I had one record in a 4 record set that I sent back. The one I got in return was even worse than the first so it seems when they have a bad batch, they're all bad. I bought mine when they were first offered at AS for $50. Now, some are selling for as much as $200. I don't regret buying any of them.

[seti]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll keep them on my don't buy list. What nerve.

Ditto! Sorry to hear about all the problems, but thanks for posting them.

Dennie

Don't overreact because of one bad experience.

I have about 12 or more Clarity Vinyl box sets and I've yet to be disappointed. They are some of the best sounding albums I own. My copy of "SO" is dead quiet and sounds amazing. It sounds like Art just got a bad run. I've also had run-ins with the folks at AS and they always seem to cop an attitude and come back with comments like, "Oh, I better write down in your file that you want perfect covers." Damm right I do when I'm spending $50 for an album!

With just one or two exceptions, the Clarity Vinyl LPs have been extremely quiet in my experience. I had one record in a 4 record set that I sent back. The one I got in return was even worse than the first so it seems when they have a bad batch, they're all bad. I bought mine when they were first offered at AS for $50. Now, some are selling for as much as $200. I don't regret buying any of them.

That is some audacity. Yes please write in my file that I want perfect covers and quiet vinyl. I bought a record by Anja Garbarek from Tonefloat which had some problems it was slightly warped with surface noise. This was a gift for a friend. They apologized and sent me a replacement. Paying a premium and getting rude customer service is just a pita. So is AS just rude but still take care of the problem?

[garymd]

Yeah. They'll send you as many replacements as it takes but they aren't always nice about it, particularly a guy named Cody who is responsible for returns. Elusive Disc is better to deal with. They actually appreciate your business. AS owns Analogue Productions which are usually excellent pressings so sometimes you just have to bite the bullet or pass on a good title.

[seti]

Yeah. They'll send you as many replacements as it takes but they aren't always nice about it, particularly a guy named Cody who is responsible for returns. Elusive Disc is better to deal with. They actually appreciate your business. AS owns Analogue Productions which are usually excellent pressings so sometimes you just have to bite the bullet or pass on a good title.

You would think that someone at Analogue Productions or AS would not
appreciate such poor customer service.

Ah thanks for the tip on Elusive Disc. I've only been buying vinyl heavily for a little over two years. After I scored the Garrard 301 I dove in head first. Mostly I buy from local shops or when I travel. Austin Tx has been the best town for LP's so far. Ebay has been pretty good as well.

Have you tried Analogue Productions Ultimate Test Analog Test LP? It seems I would need more sophisticated equipment just to use it. I'm still trying to find TT setup guru in Little Rock. There may not be one.