Direct To Disc Recording - Professional Analog Sound Recording

Professional Analog Sound Recording

Most sound recordings for records prior to the 1950s were made by cutting directly to a master disc. Recording via magnetic tape became the industry standard around the time of the creation of the LP format in 1948, and these two technological advances are often seen as being joined, although 78 rpm records cut from tape masters continued to be manufactured for another decade.

In the late 1970s, a small number of albums recorded direct-to-disc began to appear again on the market and were marketed as "audiophile" editions, promising superior sound quality compared with recordings made using the more common multi-track tape recording methods.

In order to make a direct-to-disc recording, musicians would typically play one fifteen minute "live" set in a recording studio per side of LP using professional audio equipment. The recording would be made without the use of multitrack recording, and without overdubs. The performance would have to be carefully engineered, and mixed live in stereophonic sound. During the performance, the analog disc cutting head engages the master lacquer used for pressing LP records and is not stopped until the entire side is complete.

Such a direct-to-disc recording was often simultaneously also recorded onto a two-track master tape for subsequent pressing in the traditional manner. Although such tapes were often made to preserve the recordings in case the direct-to-disc process failed, or the master disc became damaged before the final product could be produced, direct-to-disc albums were almost never re-issued as standard albums made from tape masters.