What Does 180 Gram Vinyl Mean

The words 180 gram vinyl have been the cause for many misunderstandings and debate among the audiophile and vinyl records community.

What does 180 gram vinyl mean.

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. In fact a great many records sold with the 180 gram hype stickers are often inferior scorpio pressings. In other words 180 gram vinyl isn t any indication of a better sounding record. The words 180 gram vinyl have been the cause for many misunderstandings and debate among the audiophile and vinyl records community.

Are 180 gram vinyl records inherently better than standard pressings. A phonograph record also known as a gramophone record especially in british english or simply a record is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove. 180 gram is a heavier grade of vinyl that many believe coaxes a richer audio palate than lighter standard grades. We explain the benefits of 180 gram vinyl to see if they are worth the premium price.

Sure 180g lps ride more smoothly on a turntable thanks to their weight but the benefits end there. At first the discs were commonly made from shellac with earlier records having a fine abrasive. The groove usually starts near the periphery and ends near the center of the disc. 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.

Vinyl was the only music format available so record labels competed for consumer dollars. These are poorly mastered vinyl pressings often sourced from a cd or even poor digital sources. Just because it s on wax it doesn t always mean that it will sound better. This ensured consistency in the quality of the lps and 45s made during this period.

Many new vinyl record releases tout their selling feature of being pressed on 180 gram vinyl.