You’ve seen the videos. A 3D printer whirs away, laying down thin circles of plastic, and suddenly, there’s a disc. Someone puts it on a Technics 1200, drops the needle, and... it sounds like a radio broadcast from the bottom of a haunted well. It’s scratchy. It’s distorted. But it is, undeniably, music.
The idea of a 3d print vinyl record feels like a fever dream for audiophiles and makers alike. We live in an era where we can print houses, steaks, and rocket engines, so why not a copy of Dark Side of the Moon?
Honestly, the term is a bit of a misnomer. You aren't printing "vinyl." Most 3D printers use PLA, PETG, or resin. Vinyl records are made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which is a nightmare to 3D print because it releases toxic hydrogen chloride gas when heated. So, we’re really talking about 3D printing "records" that happen to mimic the form factor of a LP. It’s a feat of engineering, but it’s also a lesson in the brutal physics of analog audio.
The Amanda Ghassaei Breakthrough
Back in 2012, an instructables designer and engineer named Amanda Ghassaei changed the game. She didn't just print a circle; she wrote a script to convert digital audio files into 3D models of record grooves. This wasn't some low-res hack. She used an Object Connex500, a high-end UV-cured resin printer that could hit a resolution of 600 dpi.
Most people don't realize how tiny a record groove actually is.
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A standard vinyl groove is measured in microns. For context, a human hair is about 75 microns wide. To get a 3D printer to replicate the microscopic wiggles that represent a 15kHz snare hit is asking a lot. Ghassaei’s results were lo-fi, roughly equivalent to a 5-bit sampling rate with a 11kHz sampling frequency. It sounded crunchy. It sounded raw. But it proved that the geometry of sound could be manifested through additive manufacturing.
Why Your Desktop Printer Will Probably Fail
If you’re sitting there looking at your Ender 3 or your Prusa thinking you’re about to disrupt the music industry, I have some bad news. FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) printers—the ones that use a spool of plastic—are generally terrible at this.
The nozzle on a standard FDM printer is usually 0.4mm. That’s massive compared to the tip of a turntable needle.
When you try to 3d print vinyl record files on an FDM machine, the "grooves" end up looking like a plowed field. The needle will just bounce around in a canyon of plastic ridges. You might get a rhythmic thumping or a vague ghost of a melody, but you're more likely to just wear down your stylus. If you really want to try this, you need a resin printer (SLA). Resin uses light to cure liquid, allowing for much finer detail. Even then, you’re fighting an uphill battle against the "stair-stepping" effect of layers.
The Physics of the Groove
Think about what a record actually is. It’s a physical map of a sound wave. The needle (stylus) rides in a V-shaped trench. As the record spins, the wiggles in the trench vibrate the needle, which moves magnets or a coil to create an electrical signal.
When you 3D print these grooves, several things go wrong:
- Layer height issues: Even at 0.05mm layers, the "slope" of the groove isn't smooth. It’s a series of microscopic steps. The needle hits these steps like a car hitting a million tiny potholes.
- Material hardness: PLA is much harder than PVC. It doesn’t "give" under the needle, which leads to high surface noise.
- Data density: A 12-inch record holds a massive amount of physical data. To model that in a STL file, you end up with a file size that can crash even a powerful CAD workstation. We're talking gigabytes for a single song.
It's a beautiful mess.
Some makers have tried to circumvent this by printing a "positive" and then casting it in actual silicone or resin to create a "negative" mold, then pressing it with a more suitable material. But at that point, you’re basically just doing a DIY version of traditional record pressing, just with a much worse master.
Real World Examples and Experiments
There have been some fascinating niche projects beyond Ghassaei’s initial work. For example, some bands have released "3D printed" singles as art pieces. These aren't meant to replace the 180g audiophile pressing. They are artifacts.
The "Fisher-Price Record Player" hack is a classic. People have 3D printed discs for the vintage 1970s toy record players. Because those toys use a much larger, more rugged "needle" and the audio quality is already primitive, the 3D printed versions actually work surprisingly well. You can find converters online that take a MIDI file and turn it into a 3D-printable disc for a Fisher-Price player. It’s a fun Saturday project, but it won’t satisfy your craving for high-fidelity audio.
Is it Even Worth Doing?
Probably not for the sound. Definitely for the "cool" factor.
If you’re looking to 3d print vinyl record tracks because you want to save money on buying LPs, stop now. You’ll spend more on resin and replacement needles than you would on a Discogs shopping spree. However, if you are a student of signal processing or a hardcore maker, there is something deeply satisfying about seeing a waveform become a physical object.
There's also the archival perspective. What if we could 3D scan broken, one-of-a-kind wax cylinders or damaged 78s and "print" a restored version? Researchers at Berkeley and the Library of Congress have experimented with optical scanning of records to play them back digitally without a needle ever touching the surface. 3D printing is the inverse of that—bringing the digital back into the tactile world.
How to Try This (The Right Way)
If you’re determined to print audio, don't just wing it. Follow a documented path.
- Use Resin: Forget FDM. Use an SLA printer with the highest resolution possible.
- Software: Look for Amanda Ghassaei’s original processing code on GitHub. It’s still the gold standard for converting audio to 3D geometry.
- Clean Your Prints: Any tiny bit of cured resin "dust" left in the groove will sound like a gunshot when the needle hits it. Use an ultrasonic cleaner.
- Use a Cheap Needle: Do not put your $500 Ortofon cartridge on a 3D printed plate. Use a cheap $15 ceramic cartridge player that you don't mind destroying.
The reality is that 3d print vinyl record technology is currently a novelty. We are waiting for printers that can hit the sub-micron level consistently across a 12-inch surface. Until then, it remains a fascinating intersection of old-world analog and new-world digital—a bridge built out of plastic and curiosity.
Actionable Next Steps
To actually get started with this without wasting a gallon of resin, start small.
- Download a pre-made STL: Don't try to encode your own audio first. Search sites like Printables or Thingiverse for "functional record" to find files that have already been tested by the community.
- Test with a 7-inch format: Smaller prints have less warp. A 12-inch disc is prone to bowing on a 3D printer bed, which will make it impossible to play.
- Examine under a microscope: If you have access to a cheap digital microscope, look at the grooves. If you can’t see the "wiggles" clearly, the needle won't find them either.
- Focus on the Fisher-Price hack: If you want a 100% success rate, buy a vintage Fisher-Price Music Box Record Player and print discs for that. It’s the most rewarding entry point into the hobby.