"D.M. Procida" wrote in
message
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I was interested in how heavily modulated vinyl could be, so I popped
an old record (Long Hot Summer Night, Jimi Hendrix, Track Records
1968) under the microscope for a look. And what did I find? Two
adjacent grooves clearly broken into each other:

http://81.174.169.10/odds/grooves.jpg

Was this a really common back then, or is this kind of thing a rarity?

I had a friend with a Bee Gees record. On the first song, there was a
very audible pre-echo of the opening moments (it was something very
loud, "Tragedy" perhaps).

I never really investigated it. I presume it must have been print-though
from a badly stored tape, but I guess it could have been a very
badly-cut record.

Pre-echo can be either - tape or disc. Master tapes were usually
wound and stored tail out to prevent print through caused by storage.
At Decca, we tried to avoid winding by using forward or reverse
play as this gave less winding tension on the reel, and reduced printing.

Iain