HD Vinyl is a massive improvement over traditional vinyl records.

[NorthStar]

? https://hdvinyl.org/

 

[Solypsa]

Interesting. I can say from my vinyl mastering past that having a computer analyse the whole plot and optimise for space is cool. How does it sound?

Other than the obvious plus of compatibility with existing turntables, once you have lasers and 3d modeling you may as well reinvent the analog laser disc. That was the the real future!

 

[spiritofmusic]

Erik, I still have 1000 LDs.

And the absolute beast Pioneer HLD-X0 to play them on.

 

[Solypsa]

Yes there was research into a next generation analog audio laser disc but we all know what won!

Meanwhile, for this hd vinyl, will the transfer be all digital or is a digital copy used to generate the map and some form of analog real-time input used to drive the laser?

 

[garylkoh]

I don't see how this can work given the scales of things. For detail and resolution, theoretically at 60dB of resolution, the stylus has to resolve the groove down to 20 nM. The wavelength of a red laser is 650nM. Even an excimer laser that is in the ultra-violet has a wavelength above 300nM. There is no way that an LP cut with a laser can be "high resolution".

 

[Don Hills]

According to the patent, they are using laser ablation. You can get features down into the 10s of nM range without having to resort to exotic lasers.

 

[Folsom]

The real problem is whether or not we can get titles that are transfers instead of shitty remasters.

 

[garylkoh]

According to the patent, they are using laser ablation. You can get features down into the 10s of nM range without having to resort to exotic lasers.

"Laser ablation" just means removal of material using a laser. I haven't managed to find a copy of their patent. The pictures on their website show the gross measurements for LP grooves. The picture is correct - and it measured in micrometers. The smallest dimension of about 10uM is the peak to peak distance of a waveform in the groove. A red laser has a wavelength of 0.65uM, so it can reach the frequency response required to cut music-frequency sound into the grooves.

I am referring to resolution - if you can hear a difference of 1dB between a louder sound and a softer sound, the displacement difference at the stylus is about 10 nM or 0.01 uM - at any frequency. Since the laser is pulsed light, you would have to abate the laser at that resolution.

 

[Don Hills]

"Laser ablation" just means removal of material using a laser. I haven't managed to find a copy of their patent. The pictures on their website show the gross measurements for LP grooves. The picture is correct - and it measured in micrometers. The smallest dimension of about 10uM is the peak to peak distance of a waveform in the groove. A red laser has a wavelength of 0.65uM, so it can reach the frequency response required to cut music-frequency sound into the grooves.

I am referring to resolution - if you can hear a difference of 1dB between a louder sound and a softer sound, the displacement difference at the stylus is about 10 nM or 0.01 uM - at any frequency. Since the laser is pulsed light, you would have to abate the laser at that resolution.

The patent is linked to from their website. (Actually, in the comment from Techspot at the bottom of the page.)

By itself, the beam can't be focussed to the size required. The accuracy required to cut nanometre features is achieved by precisely adjusting the duration of each laser pulse. Positioning the beam to the required accuracy is achievable too, it's done every day for "cutting" blu-ray masters.