I’ve bought some new 33 rpm ‘audiophile’ vinyl and the titles I’ve purchased sound really great. I’ve avoided 45 rpm because (1) I dont want to turn over the record so much (4 sides for a standard LP) and (2) I understand that some songs have to be faded out and back in on another side…mid-song record flip (!!!)
Any supporters of 45 rpm vinyl that want to tell me what I’m missing??
I am not a fan Bart. They are supposed to sound better but I remain unconvinced.
Stu
Only album I can think of I have on 45rpm is Jess Glynne/I cry when I laugh and to me it does not sound any different and as you say it is 2 discs and means turning over more.
I only have one, a Diana Krall album. Very little background noise and great sound quality.
some mobile fidelity 45 pm are sounding fantastic. I have only 2 albums. But too expensive to buy regularly.
Prices are more than 100 euros…
I get what you mean about the short play times each side, but in most cases sound quality definitely gets an uplift, and you tend to avoid the dreaded inner groove SQ tail off and distortion.
Yes I’ve got some elbow albums on 45 and they sound better…
I only have one 45rpm album, which by necessity becomes a double, and that is Steve Rothery’s album ‘The Ghosts of Pripyat’. It’s an all-instrumental album and once I played it at 33rpm by mistake and didn’t notice until I lifted it off the platter!
12” singles used to sound superb back in the ‘80s. I still have a number of those. I assume it’s a greater S/N ratio owing to higher modulation in the groove.
One London Gammar is a double 45, couple of Elbow and then Miles Davis MSFL, and Bridge over Troubled Water is also.
Do make a difference - bigger, more dynamic sound, less noise.
There is a double 45 of ‘Friday Night in San Francisco’, but went for the Half Speed Master instead - may revisit.
Bart, I’ve moved this to the Music Room for you.
Thanks I couldnt quite decide myself where it best fit!
“Kind of Blue” on 45 was a revelation. Some others I have heard have been pretty good, too. Dave Brubeck “Time Out” was not nearly as special. I don’t own but three or four total.
78rpm anyone? 
Or 16 rpm? 
Sometimes cutting an album at 45rpm seems to be done entirely for marketing purposes. R.E.M.’s “Accelerate” is unlikely to sound good irrespective of the format it’s presented in, and the 45rpm pressing merely exacerbates the issue by making the listener change sides every eight minutes.
I have a few dozen, at a guess, of the Music Matters and Analog(ue) Productions reissues, and none have disappointed.
I can’t think of any of my 45rpm issues that have split a track over multiple sides.
45rpm can sound very good but so can 33rpm. I prefer 33rpm for convenience factor. For example Music Matters Jazz label have released some titles on both 45rpm and 33rpm. Both versions sound fantastic some say the 45rpm sound better but where I have compared I can barely tell the difference as the 33rpm is so good.
45 rpm sounds better, in nearly every case.
On the negative side, you sacrifice album flow and have to get up frequently. Some albums don’t work that well. I did go for the Marvin Gaye What’s Going On one-step 45rpm, but I am wondering what the broken album flow will do to the experience (album on pre-order still).
Couple of decades ago we bought some Frankie Goes To Hollywood 45rpm singles and played them on the pre-Valhalla Sondek (using the “45 adaptor”) through the Meridian/Briks system. Having also bought the Frankie 33rpm LP which had the same tracks, it was very easy to compare the two.
The 45s won out every time, and the differences were not subtle!
i agree, for the few i have. However they are very pricey. The Santana Abraxas 45 pm Mofi costs around 200 dollars. The original one i have , japan pressing, is already very good.
I think you’re referring to the one-step one. If so, you’re lucky to find it at $200 now. It was $100 when released - again very expensive.
I didn’t get it as I already have a few Abraxas, including a 33rpm Mofi one that sounds great. I regret that decision after having heard the Donald Fagen one.