Vinyl may well be the audio format of choice for veteran music lovers and hipsters the world over, but a new recently filed European patent may finally bring the giant floppy discs into the mainstream with the concept of 'high definition vinyl'.
As oxymoronic as it might sound, this is a real concept we've seen knocking around for a while. The idea here is to create a larger capacity and volume by trading the traditional and time consuming process of creating a vinyl (in which a large mechanical press is used to press grooves into a mixture of lacquer and metal) for a more modern combination of 3D-based topographical mapping and laser inscription.
So vinyls wouldn't only be easer to manipulate in terms of intended capacity and quality, but they'd essentially be much faster to produce for the mass market. The patent, filed by Rebeat (an Austrian music retailer), states these new discs will work on traditional vinyl players, but you'll need a special HD-ready version to really enjoy them. "This is a completely backwards-compatible technology," comments Guenter Loibl, Rebeat CEO. "It will play on any existing turntable, you don't need to buy a new system to enjoy the benefits."
Considering how popular vinyl has remained since its inception in the late 1940s, we wouldn't be shocked to see this new modern incarnation take off - however, with the patent only just filed don't expect to see it gracing your record collection for a while.
Via: Digital Music News
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