reflectivity of cd label

[floyd]

Is it true that a painted surface on the label side of the cd produces better reflectivity? This is what mofi claimed (at least at first) and it seems to make sense although does that mean the portions of the disc with the lettering where the gold shows through has more chance of error?

Anyway I’ve given some thought as to why do the mfsl gold cds in general seem to have hold more of a monetary value (at least on ebay) than the fantastic DCC discs. That has been pointed out on this forum before so I’m not stating anything new there. It has always boggled me that even years ago (before ebay) mofi in the used rack might cost a couple bucks more than a DCC, yet the DCC came with so much more care in packaging and the sound well we all know about that. I must commend Steve for paying attention to things like matching the paper of the booklet to the same as the LP like on the Band’s Stage Freight or the embossed eagles scull on the Eagles greatest hits. The color reproduction was great and mofi’s often sucked.

Still after all that when I held the cd in my hand the DCC’s seemed, … well I’ll say it, cheaper. Somehow the gold seemed thinner in comparison to the mofi’s and more washed out in color to the mofi deep gold color, a lot of that simply had to do with the black background of the label but still it was a perceived quality difference. I have to admit somehow the mofi black cd with the gold lettering looked great.
I’m not saying that DCC cds should try to look more like mofi but if the black paint reflectivity issue is an issue then why not. To me the best looking cds in my collection still have to be some of the earliest ones I bought and those are the original Harvest issue Japan made Pink Floyd discs. Flat black label surface and the silver color of the aluminum underneath for the letters looked sharp!

Let me say that I’d love to see DCC come back strong as can be. I’ve been a fan since I bought Highway 61 when it first came out! Any of my comments are only my suggestion to strengthen that image of quality that the product deserves and I would hope that might make a difference in the profits for DCC because after all my bottom line is to hear more Steve Hoffman mastered titles!!

[Sckott]

The reflectivity in 24K gold is not only more reflective, but smoother after processing. Ask any jeweler. The label has nothing much to do with it. The way the impressions are processed into the gold mean MUCH more than the label that's silk screneed on top....!

The manufacturer, in this case, is much more of an important factor to a more accurate product.

[Gary]

That image stuff is a good point..... as long as Steve keeps mastering them! Think of it this way: Better 'image' as well as keeping the 'Steve Sound' will probably increase sales. Spread the word on the great quality. More sales and more profits to invest in new projects, like Floyd, Bowie, Beatles, whatever.

Good in theory, at least! Something that should be brought up at a DCC meeting!

I just think that MOFI stuff is expensive because they went under. The titles will never be duplicated. Supposedly.

It's the collectors value of the MFSL that jacks up the prices. It has nothing, or very little, to do with how good the disc sounds.

A great example are the Japanese paper sleeves HDCD series of the Yes first five albums. Out of print, they were going for over $200.00 USD each. Yessongs (3 CD set) went for over $450.00 once. Now, they are under $50.00 because they've been released again. I feel sorry for those who bought them in the 'craze'.

[floyd]

Yes while the reflectivity of gold is smoother and more impervious to oxidization you probably cant hear the difference from a Steve Hoffman mastered cd if it was on gold or aluminun as long as the mastering is the same, as long as the aluminum one is functioning properly the gold is mainly a quality assurance issue as opposed to a sound issue. I just remember mofi claiming the silk screening had a function too. I believe you sckott when you say it has less to do than the manufacturing in general.

And as Gary said colector prices had little to do sound, I wonder what the percentage of people who bought gold discs are true audiophiles. I have to admit when I first got gold discs years ago I didnt have a system that would show the difference so much, I just knew that some day I would so I bought them. The truth is it is not ONLY the audiophiles that keep an audiophile label in business because there is not enough of us out there. But the ones who got to have there favorite artist on gold are doing alot to help sales.

My main thing was just that somehow TO ME the look of a dcc looked cheaper than the Mofi and but every other aspect of the DCC blew mofi out of the water. Dose anyone else agree?

All in all I just want to hear more Steve Hoffman mastered cds

[Joseph]

I seem to recall Steve Hoffman saying that they went with gold because MFSL was using gold.

JVC went to great lengths in researching silver and gold when they were planning XRCD's. They decided that silver was superior (and XRCD are premium quality and price).

[Michael]

A deep scratch on the label side of the CD...Will effect play. I found that out in a painful way.

[Grant]

There has been poor communication to the public about damaging the disc on the label side. Many people seem to think that it is only the play side. If fact, the play side has more protection. A flaw in the CD spec, to be sure.

Gold actually has a lower reflectivity than other metals but resists oxidation better. But, if a CD is made to spec with either aluminum or gold, the CD should not oxidize under normal care.

There are theoretical reasons a silkscreened CD should provide better reflectivity, thus fewer reading errors, but this has yet to be conclusively proven.