150 Vs 180 Gram Vinyl
The vast majority of 12 inch records that have been pressed in the 20th century weigh between 120 and 140 grams.
150 vs 180 gram vinyl. Sure 180g lps ride more smoothly on a turntable thanks to their weight but the benefits end there. A 200 gram vinyl record will have extraordinary good sound quality only if high quality source material mastering vinyl and manufacturing process is used. 180 gram is a heavier grade of vinyl that many believe coaxes a richer audio palate than lighter standard grades. The words 180 gram vinyl have been the cause for many misunderstandings and debate among the audiophile and vinyl records community.
In fact a great many records sold with the 180 gram hype stickers are often inferior scorpio pressings. In short it s all about weight. 180 gram vinyl by contrast is significantly thicker and heavier creating a product that is widely considered to be audiophile grade. Unnecessarily so i would say there is nothing magical about heavyweight vinyl and certainly some myths float over those shiny 180g stickers on the record covers but that doesn t mean there are no benefits from pressing 180g or even 200g vinyl lp s.
150 still has the potential to sound as good as any pressing even super heavy ones it s simply down to the quality of the actual pressing rather than the weight. 200 gram vinyl is heavyweight vinyl taken one step farther than 180 gram vinyl. 180 gram vinyl explained. I personally can t see why anyone would choose 150 over 180 but at the same time i don t feel strongly about it either way.
In other words 180 gram vinyl isn t any indication of a better sounding record. These are poorly mastered vinyl pressings often sourced from a cd or even poor digital sources. Which in itself will have no real sound quality benefits over standard 140 gram vinyl or 180 gram vinyl. The quality of the sound derives from the vinyl compound as opposed to the weight of the disc.
Explore our list of vinyl albums 180 gram vinyl at barnes noble.