Austrian Company Developing ‘HD Vinyl’ LPs Eyeing Production in California

Rebeat Innovation, the Austrian company promising summer 2019 debut of “HD Vinyl” enhanced LPs (see 1804250069), will base the first laser-production equipment it ordered in Weiz, Austria, founder-CEO Guenter Loibl emailed us Tuesday. “Once we finished the development we will order 2 additional laser-equipment sets for production.” One machine will be based in Tulln on the Danube for supplying Europe, “and one will be based somewhere in California (we have not decided the place yet) for supplying the American market,” he said. “In the case the demand from Asia is big enough we will add a 3rd production machine and base it in Japan or maybe China.” Any user, on any turntable, will benefit from 90 percent of the “enhancements” possible with HD Vinyl, said Loibl. “If you really like to get 100% of the HD Vinyl sound it might be necessary to upgrade your cartridge.” Turntables “optimized” for HD Vinyl “will have such a cartridge already installed,” he said. Technically, Rebeat can provide for playback of HD Vinyl LPs on either tangential- or radial-tracking turntables, he said: “At the end it is up to the music label. But I guess, due to the fact that most turntables are radial players, labels will decide for radial optimization.”