A record press is a hydraulic press used to produce vinyl records. The process involves creating a reference varnish, making a mold, injecting molten vinyl, and trimming the disc. Quality control is necessary, and safety measures are required for employees. The press can produce records in various colors and sizes.
A record press is a hydraulic press used to produce vinyl records. Presses are typically capable of handling different sizes of discs for different applications and provide a method of producing runs of music albums on vinyl very quickly. While many musicians focus on other distribution methods, vinyl continues to be popular with music enthusiasts and some albums may be offered on vinyl as an alternative format. Several companies maintain printing presses to meet the needs of these customers.
Preparing music for a printing press begins with creating a reference varnish, where an audio engineer takes the music and records it onto a blank record with a cutting head. The reference varnish is the basis for a mold which creates a negative of the grooves in the disc. The molds fit into the record press and are injected with molten vinyl, which fills the grooves and then cools, usually with the assistance of a cooling system to speed up the process. After trimming, the disc is ready for inspection and sale.
The press uses hydraulics to squeeze the molds tightly together and hold them in tension while the vinyl sets. The device usually has a robotic arm to grab finished records and stack them on a spindle for inspection by employees. Quality controls are necessary to identify malformations that could hinder the quality of the reproduction. If an error appears consistently, there may be a problem with the press or die and production will need to be stopped to identify the problem.
Working around a printing press can be dangerous. It is very hot and moving quickly and with tremendous force. Technicians can suffer burns or injuries if their hair or extremities get caught in the press mechanisms. Basic safety measures such as wearing close-fitting clothing, tying hair back and using hearing protection to avoid harm from loud press noise are required for employees while working around it.
The vinyl record press can melt vinyl knots, tiny nuggets of raw material, in a variety of colors to produce records in classic black and other shades such as white, green and red. The size of the die determines the size of the disc and the width of the opening. At the end of the press, when the disc needs to be trimmed, the die determines the diameter of the trimming to maintain the integrity of the data storage on the disc.
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