Revolutionizing Audio: Amanda Ghassaei's 3D Printed Record

Pushing the Boundaries of 3D Printing Technology with Innovative Audio Recording

The inspiration behind Ghassaei's project was to explore the capabilities of contemporary 3D printers. With the advent of affordable desktop machines and advancements in materials, the potential for rapid prototyping is just beginning to be realized. Ghassaei's 3D printed records serve as a tangible demonstration of the current state of 3D printing technology, stimulating discussions about its broader implications for the future of personal fabrication.

What sets Ghassaei's design apart is her unique technique of converting digital audio recordings into 3D-printable, 33rpm records that can be played on ordinary turntables. Despite the low audio quality, the songs encoded on these records are easily recognizable. The complexity of the 3D modeling required for this project necessitated the development of a computer program to generate the 3D models algorithmically, using raw audio data as input.

The realization of this design involved a meticulous process. Ghassaei first performed a set of test prints containing sine waves of various frequencies to characterize the frequency response of the printing process. She then calculated a Nyquist frequency of 6 kHz, preprocessed the input audio to remove all components above this frequency, and counteracted the mid/high frequency attenuation of the printing process. The 3D models of the records were then generated algorithmically from this preprocessed audio data and printed on a UV-cured resin 3D printer with micron precision.

The records, which have a diameter of 30cm and a thickness of 15mm, offer an audio quality of 11 kHz sampling rate and 5-6 bit depth. They can play for 5-6 minutes per side and are compatible with standard needles and amplification equipment. The project, which started in August 2012 and was completed in December of the same year, was exhibited in Austin, Milan, San Francisco, London, and New York in 2013.

Despite being printed on one of the highest resolution, large-format 3D printers available to consumers today, the challenge was to determine the correct groove design that maximizes signal to noise and fabricate playable records using machines not optimized for this purpose. Nevertheless, Ghassaei's 3D printed records push the limits of what is currently possible given the precision of digital fabrication tools available to consumers today. They serve as a demonstration of the current state of the technology and encourage discussion about the broader implications that 3D printing has for the future of personal fabrication.

With this project, Ghassaei has sparked a conversation around the current state of personal fabrication and its potential impact on our lives in the future. Her design is a testament to the power of innovation and the limitless possibilities that technology can offer in the realm of art and design.