Audiophile Vinyl LP Records - Rock

The audiophile vinyl LP records on this page feature rock music in editions whose labels focus on careful mastering and pressing. Most are pressed on 180 or 200 g vinyl, and some play at 45 revolutions per minute. You'll find classic, progressive, art, folk and blues rock, including King Crimson, Dire Straits, Fleetwood Mac, Led Zeppelin, Roger Waters and The Doors. Most titles come from Mobile Fidelity and Analogue Productions, which specialise in audiophile reissues, with further releases from Music On Vinyl and Panegyric.

Why does an audiophile rock album have two records instead of one?

At 45 revolutions per minute, a longer section of groove passes beneath the stylus each second than at 33 1/3 revolutions per minute. Fine details and loud passages therefore have more room in the groove, and the sound is often cleaner, particularly towards the end of a side, closer to the label. Less music fits on each side, though, which is why Rumours by Fleetwood Mac has two LPs in this type of edition, while Amused To Death by Roger Waters has four.

You switch your turntable to 45 revolutions per minute using a switch or by moving the belt; the speed is stated on the label and in the record's specifications. Most titles on this page, however, play at 33 1/3 revolutions per minute and consist of one or two records.

What do Mobile Fidelity, half speed mastering and 200 g mean?

Mobile Fidelity is an American record label that has specialised in audiophile reissues of well-known albums since the late 1970s, often in numbered runs. Half speed mastering appears in the name of releases such as Revolver by The Beatles: the grooves are cut into the master at half speed so that the cutting head can capture high frequencies more accurately.

A weight of 180 g or 200 g tells you about the thickness of the record. A heavier record is less prone to warping and sits more steadily on the platter, but mastering and pressing have the main influence on the sound, rather than weight. Panegyric, the label for King Crimson, releases the band's albums on 200 g vinyl, including In The Court Of The Crimson King in a 40th anniversary edition with a new mix.

You'll find audiophile releases in other genres in the audiophile vinyl LP records category, with titles close to blues rock also among the audiophile blues LP records.