[Vintage-Audio] Re Ultra Thin Flex Records

[Joe Filice]

Hi Duane,

 

I remember RCA LPs of the early seventies being noticeably thinner than ones from other manufacturers.  They referred to the process as Dynaflex.  I just pulled a Doc Severinsen LP entitled Brass Roots from the shelf.  It is dated 1971 and if you pull the LP from the cardboard sleeve and hold it near the end, there is a pronounced sag.  I'm pretty sure I bought this LP in 1971 because I recall still being in high school.  I was picking up quite a few RCA LPs at the time being deeply into big band recordings from the thirties.  RCA was reissuing lots of stuff on a series of double LP albums.  They were called "This Is Benny Goodman", This Is Duke Ellington", etc.  I still have these LPs and they all show this sag.  

 

This is what the blurb on the back of all these LPs says:

 

Dynaflex is the RCA trademark for a new development in record manufacturing that provides a smoother, quieter surface and improved ability to reproduce musical sound.  This lightweight record also virtually eliminates warpage and turntable slippage.

 

I don't buy any of that.  On the other hand, I haven't noticed that the converse is true either.  As far as I could tell, these thin LPs didn't wear out faster, warp easier, or sound noisier than their fatter brethren.  Even as a naïve 17 to 18 year old I assumed they were trying to save on vinyl and while aesthetically they seemed to be a step backward, I didn't notice any drop off in performance.

 

Joe Filice

KQ6GL