Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with LP

Legal and Tax Ramifications of Paying Subcontractors

Mister_A — Fri, 17 May 2013 08:17:43 -0800

I've been doing a fair bit of freelance work, and it's to the point now that I have to sub out certain tasks that are outside my area of expertise. I don't want to make my clients cut multiple checks if I can avoid it–want them to just deal with me to keep it simple and neat. However, I do not want to be on the hook for income that is actually going to a sub. What to do? Details:
I do not own a corporation or partnership or anything like that.
I live in Delaware County, PA (10 miles from Philadelphia, 10 miles from Delaware).
Most of my freelance business is in advertising; some in marketing consulting.
I am unlikely to be able to afford an attorney.
I have a pretty good friend who is an accountant, I am asking him as he provides services to small businesses.
I am tight with my subcontractors–known them for a long time, work well together, and def. want to pay them in a timely and fair way.
I am willing to pay fees and do paperwork to form a legal entity, but must keep it within reason.

Thanks!

Is home-etching of vinyl records possible in any manner?

mediocre — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 16:45:13 -0800

I have a very clear memory of part of an interview in the film Hype! wherein a member of.. some band.. I can't remember. And frankly, my mind might be fabricating this whole memory for want of such a thing to exist.. but he was talking about pressing vinyl LP's at home, recording them OVER other records that were bought from a store. Then taking the sleeves and pasting new art over the old.. I remember a clip where he seems to operating some sort of home version of a vinyl lathe. The record looking smooth and blank up until the point of the needle, where you see grooves being made as the record spins past.Then taking the sleeves and pasting new art over the old.. I remember a clip where he seems to operating some sort of home version of a vinyl lathe. The record looking smooth and blank up until the point of the needle, where you see grooves being made as the record spins past.. Is this memory.. even a memory? I'm aware of one or two things you can buy to etch an acetate, but nothing of vinyl. Aside from an old device that was used to record 78's at home, I have never heard of anything like this. Does it exist? CAN it exist? Just.. as a thought experiment.. if money was no object, could such a piece of equipment be prototyped until a working version came out of the hard work? It seems that if there were a means to simply record vinyl OVER old vinyl like any old cassette tape that it would be used like crazy these days.. Which makes me think my memory either isn't a memory, or he was talking about something that never existed.. or something..

Is this memory.. even a memory? I'm aware of one or two things you can buy to etch an acetate, but nothing of vinyl. Aside from an old device that was used to record 78's at home, I have never heard of anything like this.

Does it exist? CAN it exist? Just.. as a thought experiment.. if money was no object, could such a piece of equipment be prototyped until a working version came out of the hard work? It seems that if there were a means to simply record vinyl OVER old vinyl like any old cassette tape that it would be used like crazy these days.. Which makes me think my memory either isn't a memory, or he was talking about something that never existed.. or something..

I need to buy or rent a record lathe, please guide me in the right direction.

Ponderance — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 09:29:58 -0800

I need to rent or purchase a reasonably priced record lathe to cut short run vinyl LPs. Advice/contact info needed. I have an art collective project that does interviews with artists. We have an exhibition coming up at a major midwest art museum. We have a small budget, but not enough to run out and buy a Neumann record lathe.

I'm looking for an inexpensive (Under $1K if possible) purchase solution or to rent one for a few months. Even a few days would work. The problem is the equipment needs to be on site, the fabrication is a performative element of the process.

I am happy to do the Peter King/King records thing and etc into plexiglass.

I would rather not buy one of the record recorders from the 40's that etches into wax coated steel, I've messed around with those and they are fairly impossible to use in a consistent way.

Google has yielded little reliable info, can anyone help?

Why no full length LPs from Electronic Music Producers?

J0 — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 16:52:53 -0800

Why is it, or is there a why, as to some artist/producers/labels focus mostly/solely on putting out singles, 12", EP etc, and not full length albums? I am speaking in generalities of course and specifically in regards to the past ten years of electronic and dance music. Is there a divide between 'DJ-Producer' (focused more on releasing singles and occasional EP) and 'Artist' (more prone to a release schedule similar to pop/rock groups)? Over the past 15 years I have moved from following and consuming music produced in the latter fashion to music being produced in the former fashion. Is this something that I just didn't notice until my habits changed? Do maybe artists working in dance and electronic and DJ oriented genres work on a different marketing strategy then the indie/college rock bands of my earlier days? I know that artists in the electronic and dance genre DO put out full length albums, but it seems to me like there is a trend of smaller length releases.

For example, there is no XXXY full length LP, yet XXYYXX is releasing a full length album. People like Joy Orbison and Jacques Green release singles and EPs and run record labels of their own but don't have "proper full length" releases.

If this is not a trend, feel free to disabuse me.

40 acres and a huge personal liability

Wretch729 — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 09:58:37 -0800

My friend owns a property jointly with several other family members. What are his options for 1) limiting his liability 2) optimizing the legal/tax situation for hypothetically putting capital improvements into the property and 3) optimizing the legal/tax situation for transferring ownership when a part-owner passes away or sells their interest? He vaguely thinks forming an LLC would be the way to go but wants to know more, and possible downsides of forming an LLC. He is also very interested in learning more about liability both ways, meaning what happens if someone hurts themselves on the property and sues OR what happens if someone goes after one of the joint owners' assets because of something that happened elsewhere. Would some sort of umbrella insurance be a simpler option?

The basic goal here is to protect the owners from liability and to shield the property from taxation to the extent possible. (This is more regarding taxes involved in transferring ownership; an LLC won't effect property taxes right?)

You are not our lawyer/accountant. He will consult a lawyer and accountant. This is just to help inform the questions he will ask those people. This is in New York state. This is a question about the legal and financial aspects, he knows that there are a lot of emotional/social issues regarding a family owned property but that is NOT the subject of this question.

My turntable's too fast

Silky Slim — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 02:03:47 -0800

My turntable plays records too fast. It has no adjustment knob. How can I slow it down? (found this older discussion, but it wasn't resolved)

So basically, I've been playing records on this thing for over a decade, and recently I realized it plays too fast. This could be a recent development; It could also be that I'm a moron and never noticed it before. I just tested it by playing the same song from an LP and on YouTube simultaneously. The LP went noticeably out of phase after just a few seconds. Also, as you might imagine, every LP sounds ever so slightly chirpier and lighter than it should.

It's a Sherwood PD-502, belt-driven turntable. I tried cleaning the little spindle that turns the belt; There was some residue there, but removing it didn't solve the problem.

That's it, I'm stumped. Any ideas?

Give me your best 12 inches!

buckaroo_benzai — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 10:34:08 -0800

What essential vinyl LPs should I buy? I'm going record shopping in a few hours and have a good chunk of money to spend. What essential LPs should I add to my collection?

Ideally they should be relatively easy to find and cheap. I'm looking for used stuff that I can get for under $10 (best <$5), not stuff that is rare, limited, or highly prized.

Any genre or era is fine. Tell me what has stood the test of time! Classic rock, blues, jazz, synthpop, indie rock, country western, whatever as long as it's good!

Who knew Mott The Hoople even put out that many records?

Sara C. — Sat, 02 Jun 2012 15:18:24 -0800

Where do flea market vinyl dealers get their records? I live in Brooklyn, which is probably one of the old school vinyl picking capitals of the USA at this point.

I've just recently started to get into this, and on nice Saturday afternoons I like to make a slow crawl from my apartment to the Brooklyn Flea in Fort Greene, sometimes stopping at stoop sales and less formal selling-stuff-on-the-street situations if I see crates of LPs.

There are quite a few different booths selling records at the Flea: used vinyl dealers, pop culture ephemera folks, and junk booths which might have a crate of vinyl. After hitting a few different booths, patterns will start to emerge. I'll see the same few random albums over and over, or the complete oeuvre of a group I've never heard of. The more booths I visit, the more I notice it. What's even weirder, is that if I stop at a stoop sale nearby that has a lot of vinyl, often they'll have the same groups and albums as the booths in the Flea.

While I do see a few usual suspects from week to week which I can tell were popular albums back in the day (ahem, Saturday Night Fever soundtrack), these trends I'm noticing don't really account for that. It's weird stuff, and in huge quantities.

Where does this stuff come from? How do secondhand record dealers* and junk shop owners get used records? How do they choose what to sell at any given event? The approach to sought-after classic albums is easy to grok, of course. I'm talking about putting out 20 copies of this one obscure Ian Dury record. How do all the dealers end up with the same inventory, despite the diversity of business models? Is there one guy with a warehouse full of this stuff out in Queens somewhere? Is there some kind of shadowy mafia controlling all the flea market booths in the city? Is there a strategy to this?

*Another weird angle is that I haven't noticed record shops doing this at all; there are patterns there, but they're different patterns.

Who scratches words into vinyl records?

facetious — Wed, 23 May 2012 21:17:33 -0800

Who the heck is it who scratches words into the centers of vinyl LP's? I've been buying a lot of new vinyl LP's this past year. Almost all (or all?) of them have letters and words scratched, seemingly by hand, into the narrow band of smooth vinyl between the record label and the inner groove. In particular, quite a few have the side designation (A, B, C etc.) scratched into them. Who the heck does this? Is it a person, or is it done by machine? All of these characters look like they've been scratched in freehand with an awl or a dremel or something.

Digitizing Them Big Plastic CDs

Miko — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 20:36:30 -0800

Best practices for burning vinyl to digital on an Ion Turntable? I just came into possession of a secondhand Ion TTUSB turntable. I've figured out how to use the EZVinyl software that's on Ion's website, and really makes the tracking and titling easy, but in my first few hours with the thing it's already clear that there are many potential mistakes to be made and many things I can do to get optimal output.

Those of you who have digitized an entire collection, how did you manage to streamline it? Did you clean each record before recording? - I've already been frustrated by getting a good recording of most of an LP and then having it ruined with a single skip. Can you go back and "paste" in good copies of tracks if the other tracks are OK? Where did you set the gain? What about the tone arm - anything about the settings for balance and "anti-skate?" Any tips for interfacing with the iTunes library system?

The last turntable I had was a mid-80s vintage and I was only worried about playback, not getting a good recording. I'd really appreciate hearing any technical tips you have as well as any best practices you figured out for getting through your entire vinyl collection efficiently.

It is pretty amazing to hear the full, warm, round sound of vinyl again!

What is this gas grill fitting?

randomkeystrike — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 11:56:27 -0800

What is this gas grill fitting? (the bright brass one at top with 3 orifices) It is from a Weber gas grill that I believe is set up for Natural Gas. (don't be misled by the other fitting, which is a propane tank outlet) I was going to give the thing to a friend who has a NG outlet on his porch, but he says this won't fit. What have I got? Have called local grill dealers and talked to big box stores; they're all clueless.

How Old Is My Quadrophenia Vinyl Album?

marienbad — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 08:23:26 -0800

How can I tell if my copy of Quadrophenia is an original pressing? I bought some random records on ebay, and in amongst them was Quadrophenia, double album, gatefold with booklet still attached. I googled and followed someones suggestion of www.discogs.com and searched, which lead me to this page : Quadrophenia Pressings.

So, checking the Cat# on my copy: 2657 013, which means it is either an original 1973 UK pressing, or a 2007 (3rd from bottom of list) US pressing. How can I tell which it it?

Unidentified Vintage Porn LP

well_balanced — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 09:05:55 -0800

Identifying an unmarked vintage erotica 33rpm LP record album? On a recent dig I found an unsleeved 12" 33rpm LP record consisting of 3 tracks of vintage dramatized porn. Both sides have unmarked orange labels and the matrix/runout is marked CL-333-A and CL-333-B. This is a fairly heavy pressing, not a lightweight disc that may have been enclosed in a magazine or anything like that. My guess is that this is from the 1950's or early 1960's just based on the vinyl weight/appearance and the speaking style.

The tracks seem to be one-take recordings done by a man and a woman using different voices for the different scenarios. It seems as if there is some ad-libbing and flubbing of lines as if they were only loosely following a script. The first side is a single track in which the milkman sneaks into a house to bang the housewife whilst the husband is asleep upstairs. Curiously, there is no swearing at all in the entire thing.

I ripped the whole thing to soundcloud: Unidentified Vintage Erotica LP

I'm looking for an ID of this record, any general info about this type of recording or a pointer to a site where people more knowledgeable about this kind of thing may reside. The Discogs Track ID forum hasn't come up with anything yet.

Are LP download codes legally giftable?

milk — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 21:14:32 -0800

Does gifting a download coupon from an LP sleeve to someone else constitute copyright violation? Most label-backed LPs sold these days come with a coupon on the inside redeemable via a URL for a high-quality digital copy of the album. (Like so.) Almost all coupons of this nature are only good for one use — after that, the URL/code combination never work again. If I buy the LP but have no use for the download coupon, it seems to me that it's within my rights to give it away, unused — that what I paid for was two copies of the album on separate formats, each of which I'm free to use as I please. But I can certainly imagine a viable counterargument that the digital copy is meant to enhance the analog version, and that by giving away the coupon I'm unlawfully forcing my purchase to undergo mitosis.

I skimmed through some TOSes of third-party one-shot download services but they all seem to cover use by the participating record label, not use by the consumer. Any thoughts?

Genie in a box

activitystory — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 14:11:46 -0800

Less expensive dust-cover for Pro-Ject RM 1.3 (aka "the Genie")? I just purchased a Pro-ject RM 1.3 Turntable, and am looking for some kind of dust cover solution for it that is not the ~$300 CoverIT. I'd like something similar, though it doesn't have to be clear (but the TT is so beautiful, wouldn't it be nice if it were?). It's in the living room, so I don't just wanna put a cardboard box over it. The dimensions are 15 x 4.5 x 13.8 in.

For now, I have a Jacksons Victory Tour bandana covering it, so anything is an upgrade!

Help me identify this hippy album from my youth from a vague recollection of the inside cover only.

Jofus — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 08:42:03 -0800

Help me identify this hippy album from my youth from a vague recollection of the inside cover only. It had a gatefold sleeve - and the only things I can remember about it are:
1) On the inside, taking up the whole double spread, was a black and white photo of a man and woman,
2) They were naked, sitting in long grass.
3) There were boobs.
4) They were tossing his or her head back and forth between them merrily, as if it was a fun game of catch.

The music I can barely remember - but if I recall it was a kind of puerile Fairport Convention meets The Fuggs psych kind of deal. There may have been swears and references to the aforementioned boobs.

The album cover has always stuck with me - again, boobs - and so I thought I'd ask. I saw the album when i was in Wales at the age of about 7. I assumed then it was British - but it could just as well have been American. I assume now that it was recorded in the sixties, but I base that on nothing other than, for the final time, the boobs.

Windows XP USB soundcard?

facetious — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 17:23:41 -0800

I want to record LP's using a Windows XP external soundcard. I've searched AskMe, and I've found recommendations for external soundcards for music production & recording, but I think this might be different (?). I just got a Pro-Ject Debut III turntable with a native USB output. I'm not happy with the results I get plugging it into my Win XP SP3 laptop and using the onboard SoundMax soundcard. Can anyone recommend an alternative setup? I'm envisioning an external USB soundcard with some software that's well suited to making good-quality WAV or FLAC recordings of LP input via USB. Any clues?

I just inherited my father's record collection. Now what?

pleasebekind — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 10:29:53 -0800

Buying a turntable, vinyl record cleaning kit, and vinyl sleeves. Need your recommendations, please. Turntable
There are some great suggestions here, but my budget is around $100-200 for now. The models I'm looking at the moment are:
- Crosley CR49 Traveler Portable Turntable, because I like the look and the fact that it is portable
- Crosley Mini Turntable
- Victoria GDI-TW3USB 7-in-One Stereo Entertainment Center, because you can also play cassettes with it.

Are these any good or do you have any other recommendations?

Some thoughts running through my mind:
- Most of my records are classical and jazz. Does it matter whatever model I get? Some guy at the store before was telling me that some turntables are better suited for rock and techno music, but I just don't get it. Does this have to do with the turntable itself or the speakers?
- When I search for models and read the reviews, there would always be people who say the sound is great vs not, and I always wonder if this is more of a matter of audiophiles vs regular listeners. I am just a regular listener, I mean, I know I can't expect *very high quality* given my budget, still I want something that's a good buy.
- Should I forgo the cassette-playing option? I just thought it was convenient, and I do long to play my tapes again. I could always look for a separate CD+cassette player, with AM/FM radio to boot, like this one. Would having extra features like this compromise the quality/performance of a turntable?
- I am going to place this in my office, which is smaller than an average living room. Should I buy speakers, too or would I be fine with built-in ones?
- Been reading about all this hype on the Crosley brand but also some hate there, too. Is it really any good or should I look at something else?
- Would love a retro look, as this reminds me of the one my grandparents used to have.

Vinyl Record Cleaning Kit
I see these serious looking kits in Amazon and I wonder if one really needs it? Should I buy a brush or would a fibercloth do? Found this homemade solution that I would like to try to save some money.

Vinyl Sleeves
Some records that I have are very old and dirty and thought I would replace paper inner sleeves, then as an extra protection buy the plastic outer sleeves. Good idea? How else can I protect them? For now they are stored standing up in a cabinet, secured by bookends to keep from sliding. I thought of buying crates, but they seem more protected from dust if inside a cabinet. What do you guys think?

The negative of music

ricochet biscuit — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 07:51:11 -0800

What would you hear if you played the negative image of an LP? I was talking to a friend this weekend about the few LPs we both still have. He mentioned that he had learned a surprising trick: molten wax can be used to clean the dust and microgrit off of them by putting a generous layer on, letting it dry, then popping the wax off with all the scuzz embedded in it (if you're trying this at home, he mentions you need a lot: a thin layer just crumbles and you do more damage picking off the individual remnants).

He further mentioned that when he removes the sheet of wax, he is left with the negative image of the LP, and wondered what would happen if he tried to play that on a turntable. Notwithstanding the question of whether or not the needle would just dig into the wax instead of riding along it, what would he hear? I suspect it would just be white noise: the stylus would be riding in a groove which is the negative of the ridge separating the grooves on the LP. He wonders if you might get some weird, out of phase, backwards ghost of the music through the noise. What does the hive mind think?

What's a good speaker system for a Turntable?

Kcmartin — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 12:59:20 -0800

I am in search of a dedicated speaker system to listen to my LP's. Doesn't have to be too fancy, but I like nice sound. Any help is GREATLY appreciated. I have a 7.1 Setup in a different room, but I would like to setup a separate "listening station" for just my records in a different, normal sized room.

I have a belt-driven Audio-Technica (mid grade) turntable and a pre-amp if needed.

I am just looking for a very simple, loud, and preferably acoustically sound setup. The smaller the better.

budget is up to 500$ but I can be talked into anything...

Thanks for your help!

How to fix my record player?

atoastedheart — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 06:41:21 -0800

Lately, my record player (not turntable) of four years hasn't been working correctly. When I turn it on, the platter part of it doesn't start spinning until I give it a slight nudge. Even after doing so, it still doesn't spin at the right speed (33 1/3 sounds more like 45, 45 sounds closer to 78, etc). Is there a relatively easy way to fix this or should I just buy a new one? My current model is really similar to the new 3-in-1 "vintage-style" Crosley.

Is there an LP Frame wear the LP can slide out easily?

ProfLinusPauling — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:44:50 -0800

I am interested in wall-mounted individual LP frames that also allow me to slip the LP out easily — both for listening and fast LP swapping for re-decorative purposes. Has anyone seen a product like this around?

Recommend a LP to CD conversion service?

Comrade_robot — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 06:47:35 -0800

Recommend an LP to CD conversion service? Hi!

I recently purchased an LP record that my parents played for us as a kid. LP players aren't very common these days, though, so I was wondering about converting it to CD -- I've seen quite a few ads on the internet for companies which offer to do this, but there's a pretty wide range of prices, and I haven't the foggiest idea who to go with. I'm hoping someone has a recommendation!

Local (I'm in Durham, NC) would be cool too.

Save my vinyl!

pedstel — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 16:12:05 -0800

How should I ship my beloved LP collection across the country? So, I'm moving from Portland, OR to New Orleans, LA via plane. I don't have any furniture/pets/children so I'm mostly planning on taking what fits into a couple of suitcases and shipping everything else (mostly just clothes, some books). However, I do have some vinyl record albums that I need to ship, and I really don't want to damage/warp them in the process. I have enough records to fill 1 milkbox type crate completely (maybe 50-100?) Help me, hive mind! I know a similar question has been asked in the past, but I'm wondering if anyone has some tips on shipping specifically, rather than moving the vinyl via truck.

How can I buy a custom mix LP?

obiwanwasabi — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 18:02:36 -0800

I want to make my wife a mix - not on her iPod, not on CD, not even on tape, but a mix LP so those daggy eighties tracks are crackly and warm like my lurve. Is there a service that'll let me give them a bunch of tracks and then put them on to vinyl for me, or am I cluelessly underestimating how involved, expensive and illegal such a service is likely to be?