The farmer and his plow - When I set out to build a record cutter

[farmersplow]

https://vimeo.com/1154240899?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci
Farmers you can start plowing now!

The image was already a fascinating interpretation of my logo. But now that it's in motion, it beats everything. You live up to your name (FILMTOOLS). Thank you very much!

[farmersplow]

Here is a short video demonstrating the precision of the microscope with its mount.
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vid 122_02.png

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vid 122_02_8.mp4

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Greetings from Austria,
Thomas

[misjah]

Post some cuts. Would love to hear. If it sounds anywhere near how it looks its promising

[farmersplow]

Here are a few cuts, as requested:

Yesterday, I took an hour to make a few recordings.
All recordings were made without special mastering for vinyl records and were cut (only) with the standard settings. The reason for this is (I think I already mentioned this) that I don't know how to do special mastering. Theoretically, I could, but I lack practice and experience with it. So I didn't use a de-esser, compressor, or make any special adjustments. I think with good knowledge of mastering and practice, you can get a lot more out of it. Especially with tracks like “Time” and “Singing Winds,” if you raise the quieter parts a little, you can get far away from the background noise – but as I said, I don't have the knowledge to do that. Nevertheless, I think the results are excellent. Both in stereo and in bass and treble. All recordings at 0db (5cm/sec).

Since it's not about the music but about the editing, I only made excerpts from the recordings.

1 - American Idiot - Green Day

2026_01_22 cut American Idiot - Green Day.mp3

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2 - Run Fay Run - Isaac Hayes

2026_01_22 cut Run Fay Run - Isaac Hayes.mp3

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3 - Singing Winds – Santana

2026_01_22 cut Singing Winds - Santana.mp3

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4 - Time - Pink Floyd

2026_01_22 cut Time - Pink Floyd.mp3

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5 - Metropolis - Adam F

2026_01_22 cut Metropolis - Adam F.mp3

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Greetings from Austria,
Thomas

[zdenek]

Good recordings, but maybe the high frequencies can be turned up?

[zdenda.jircik]

Hello Thomas,
you have so great result. The sound is nicely open and pleasing to my ears.

I did a comparing by ears with youtube records for fun. I think you are so close, that a really small deviations in sound spectrum could be easily compensated by EQ (or a little mastering proces). I think that some raw songs after mastering process would be available on the internet. I can find any for you , if you want a try.. It would be interesting to compare cutted "mastered" song and same song from the original pressed record. Anyway this is not necessary, because you will have songs for cutting prepared and mastered by a studio (They usually know what to do).

I wish I could also make so great results as you. You have my great admiration.
Zdenda

[farmersplow]

Hello Thomas,
you have so great result. The sound is nicely open and pleasing to my ears...

Hi Zdenda,

Thank you so much! I really should dedicate some time to learning mastering. But all my time is currently spent developing the lathe. I think that's where my strengths lie. Mastering and EQing is a difficult job that requires a lot of experience. So I figure I can't be good at everything . I'd rather leave that (for now) to those who know what they're doing.

(Hopefully, the day will come when I learn it from a professional ).

Thomas

[Semar]

Hello Thomas,
you have so great result. The sound is nicely open and pleasing to my ears...

Hi Zdenda,

Thank you so much! I really should dedicate some time to learning mastering. But all my time is currently spent developing the lathe. I think that's where my strengths lie. Mastering and EQing is a difficult job that requires a lot of experience. So I figure I can't be good at everything . I'd rather leave that (for now) to those who know what they're doing.

(Hopefully, the day will come when I learn it from a professional ).

Thomas

When i look at what you ve build , i don't worry for your mastering studies bro

[displacedsnail]

I'm unusually late to the party on these digitizations, but wow! Really excellent work Thomas, those all sound great to my ears. I'll be excited to follow your progress still as you keep working on your cuts.

[FILMTOOLS]

Hey Thomas,

I really loved the dynamics of the recordings — from the bright highs all the way down to the deep bass. The stereo image also feels spot-on, honestly 1:1 with the original to my ears.

The noise issue seems to disappear once the music gets louder, but during the quieter passages it’s still quite noticeable on headphones. I’d be very curious to invite a few mastering experts from the forum — especially those with real experience cutting — to see what they could achieve on your lathe, if they’re able to come to Vienna. I’m sure the noise can be reduced further. Or you just need to learn it and cut more to see.

I know there are many variables involved, which is exactly why it would be really interesting to explore how far this can be pushed.

Best regards,
Edin

[farmersplow]

Hello Thomas,
you have so great result. The sound is nicely open and pleasing to my ears...

Hi Zdenda,

Thank you so much! I really should dedicate some time to learning mastering. But all my time is currently spent developing the lathe. I think that's where my strengths lie. Mastering and EQing is a difficult job that requires a lot of experience. So I figure I can't be good at everything . I'd rather leave that (for now) to those who know what they're doing.

(Hopefully, the day will come when I learn it from a professional ).

Thomas

When i look at what you ve build , i don't worry for your mastering studies bro

I hope so. Where there's a will, there's a way.

[farmersplow]

I'm unusually late to the party on these digitizations, but wow! Really excellent work Thomas, those all sound great to my ears. I'll be excited to follow your progress still as you keep working on your cuts.

Thank you! It keeps getting better and better. Eventually, it will be better than very good.

[farmersplow]

Hey Thomas,

I really loved the dynamics of the recordings — from the bright highs all the way down to the deep bass. The stereo image also feels spot-on, honestly 1:1 with the original to my ears.

The noise issue seems to disappear once the music gets louder, but during the quieter passages it’s still quite noticeable on headphones. I’d be very curious to invite a few mastering experts from the forum — especially those with real experience cutting — to see what they could achieve on your lathe, if they’re able to come to Vienna. I’m sure the noise can be reduced further. Or you just need to learn it and cut more to see.

I know there are many variables involved, which is exactly why it would be really interesting to explore how far this can be pushed.

Best regards,
Edin

Thank you as well. The noise can certainly be reduced. More experience with cutting would be helpful.

[farmersplow]

What is that???:

Actually, I don't have time because I'm constantly working on improving my lathe. But I thought I'd build something else for it. So I designed a few parts and milled them using CNC. Then I sandblasted them, and here they are, the parts:
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Greetings from Austria,
Thomas

[farmersplow]

What is this??? - Continued:

Some of you will have already figured it out.
Because I'm so lazy and avoid repetitive tasks as much as possible, I built this.
Unfortunately, you can't avoid all tasks, but you can make them easier:
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Greetings from Austria,
Thomas

[zdenda.jircik]

Hmm, I have no idea so far.. You should add some hint..

[farmersplow]

Device for changing and adjusting the diamond stylus:

I built this device for changing the diamond stylus. It allows me to easily view the diamond and adjust it precisely when reinstalling it.

The design was made so that I can use my existing microscope (which is already attached to my FP9 lathe). I just have to pull it out of the holder and insert it here, without tools or additional costs. Even the lighting (mounted on the microscope) is then positioned correctly.
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Here are a few images taken with the screen switched on.
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Greetings from Austria,
Thomas

[farmersplow]

Device for changing and adjusting the diamond stylus:

The magnifying glass can be precisely positioned using the three micrometer screws (see video).
The X-Y coordinator can be used to adjust the image left-right and front-back.
The height micrometer can be used to adjust the distance to the stylus. Of course, the microscope itself also has a rotating drum for focusing.
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The video shows how precisely the settings can be adjusted.
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VIDEO:

vid 124 8MB.mp4

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This makes my life a little easier .

Greetings from Austria,
Thomas

[zdenda.jircik]

Hello Thomas,
It would be so much easier to guess with the arm mounted. Maybe too easy.. Anyway It is so nice work and usefull device.

May I ask how do you align diamond perpendicular to the groove? Do you have any marks on torque tube? I think about this topic for longer time and I have not yet found any precise solution. Or it is not clear to me..

Thank you and have a nice weekend

[drdub]

Hey Thomas,

just took a listen at your sound examples and also did a small spectrum analysis quick&dirty with audacity.
I think de-essing and EQing would do wonders to these cuts - a lot of hf is missing and there is quite some dips in the 7k area.
At least in the american idiot when comparing to an original file.

We do EQ head corrections on all our machines - this would do wonders!

Spinnertown has written awesome instructions on their blog: "How to Map and EQ your Dynamic Cutterhead"

best regards from tirol,

-Markus from Dr.Dub