Why is some vinyl noisy?


I'm listening to a copy of "This Is The Moody Blues", a very fine record store find, and I'm amazed at how noisy the vinyl sounds compared to it's physical condition.

The record is nice and flat, looks great in bright light, heavyweight. It's very clean as it's just been through my VPI 16.5 cleaner with two fluid baths. The rig it's playing on is plenty good enough to get the best from this record: VPI Scoutmaster, Sumiko Blackbird, McCormack & Krell downstream.

Yet, this is a noisy, clicky, poppy ride. I don't get it. Is some vinyl just plain noisy, or is some surface damage too hard to detect? By the same token, an ancient, clearly scuffed RCA Living Stereo recording of Van Cliburn just sounds terrific.
forddonald

Showing 1 response by krusty2k

Every now and then one runs into a "pre-owned" LP that looks pristine and plays horribly. My best guess it that it was handled well but played with a bad (chipped? too heavy?) stylus back in the day. Better luck next time.