Though its market share of music sales is still relatively small, innovators the world over are trying to find ways to take vinyl records to the next level, whether through naming conventions or manufacturing processes. Now, a company is not only looking to improve sound quality, but physical quality as well.
Japanese company Ulvac has unveiled patented nanotechnology that it claims makes records resistant to scratches, static and mould while also improving sonic qualities. Unveiled by the company’s Taiwan branch in Kaohsiung over the weekend, the technology makes use of a nano-scale chemical called molybdenum to coat the disc.
The Taipei Times reports that the technology was developed by Ulvac Taiwan vice chief executive officer Clare Wei, who spent $150 million NTD (just shy of six million CAD) developing the formula after becoming a vinyl user in 2015.
Apparently the technology is commonly employed in the semiconductor industry, and it can be used to protect vinyl LPs from mould and static, with the coating helping to harden the polyvinyl chloride (PVC) material that records are made of. In effect, this is said to prevent records from being easily damaged, as well as offers a better sound quality overall.
While there’s no current indication as to whether the technology will make it to the consumer market, Ulvac has been granted patent rights in Taiwan, the U.S., Japan and China.
If this were to be paired with the “high definition” manufacturing detailed last month, it could push the format to even greater heights, but what’s the point if people don’t even play the records they buy?
Via Callum Slingerland/exclaim.ca
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