Vinyl record is an
audio storage medium, most commonly used for preserving
music. It is a subset of the family of
Analogue disc records (
see). A Vinyl
gramophone or phonograph record consists of a disc of
vinyl plastic, engraved with a single concentric spiral groove in which a
sapphire or
diamond needle is supposed to run, from the outside edge towards the centre.
Vinyl records are made in the following formats:
- 12" 331/3 rpm long-playing (LP) format
- 7" 45 rpm (single) format
- 12" 45 rpm extended-playing (Maxi Single) format
- 10" 331/3 rpm long-playing (LP) format
- 10" 45 rpm extended-playing (EP) format
- 7" 331/3 rpm extended-playing (EP) format
- 16 rpm format for voice recording
Some late 78rpm records were also pressed in vinyl.
The sound quality and durability of vinyl records in highly dependent on the quality of the vinyl used.