Featured Image Credit: X / @learnsomething
A video has shocked the internet by showing the mystifying production of vinyl records.
However, for many viewers, watching this procedure raises more questions than it answers.
The video, posted on X, showed the process of moulding lumps of plastic which are then coated and compressed with a metal stamper to the flat disc-size we're familiar with today.
The explanation behind how sound works in a vinyl lies in the 'grooves'.
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But first, we must understand how the basic physics of sound works.
Sound travels through the air in the form of waves created by the vibration of particles.
We can then hear these waves when the sound reaches out eardrum, causing it to vibrate.
On the surface of a vinyl, the 'grooves' translate into sounds.
These 'grooves' are formed during the heating and compression stage of the manufacturing process.
And they act as a physical recording of how sound waves behave when travelling through the air.
Think of each pattern of grooves reflecting an entirely different song or even album.
As the needle moves, it also vibrates, releasing electrical signals in a cartridge. These signals are then amplified and converted into audible sound through speakers.
It can get a lot more complicated and technical but that's the basis us viewers are trying to wrap our heads around.
One viewer expressed their struggle saying: 'It’s easier for me to grasp the idea of streaming music on the internet than it is for me to grasp how vinyl works.'
Whilst another responded with: 'Digital is science. Vinyl is witchcraft.'
To sum up, the 'grooves' on the vinyl are the musical patterns that translate into smooth audio by the vibrating needle - before gracing our eardrums.
But hey, if you still don't understand how the whole functionality works, you're not alone.
One puzzled viewer wrote: 'I still don’t understand how they get the music on there like I googled it and still don’t understand.'
Adding to the confusion is how far back vinyl records date, which became the most popular medium for music in the late 1940s.
One astonished viewer remarked: 'It’s even more mind-blowing when you consider how long records have been around. All of that fidelity - from basically scratching a piece of plastic. Freaking amazing.'
Eighty years on and we're still trying to comprehend the mechanics behind this magic. Let's not even begin to wonder how CDs and DVDs work just yet.
