Inner tracks vs outer tracks

I read an interesting example of this on Peter Gabriel's "So" album. "In Your Eyes" was slated to the the last track on Side A, but Gabriel and engineer Daniel Lanois realized that because it was such a bass-heavy track, they would have to start off Side B with it as the bass is more pronounced on the outer part of the record than on the inner.

I don't know the acoustics/physics behind this, btw.

The curvature of the record is greatest with the inner grooves which would effect tracking and low frequency modulation the most ie its a form of distortion.

Records are 100 year old technology. Good stuff and a beloved format by many including me, at least records from the golden age, but flawed in comparison to modern technology in many ways.

Tracking a record  is like trying to write legibly on a rollercoaster.  Not easy!  

It’s not that bass is more pronounced on the outer grooves versus the inner grooves, it’s that  in the outer grooves the stylus is moving with greater velocity. this allows for a wider frequency response, both bass and treble can be more extended, and better sound quality in all ways, compared to the situation in the inner grooves, where the stylus velocity is reduced due to the reduced circumference of the LP at the inner grooves. As someone else aptly mentioned, it’s analogous to using tape to reproduce sound: high speed wide track tape is sonically superior to low speed narrow track tape for similar reasons related to the physics. To put it another way, it’s the law.

Good point!

Of course low frequency noise and distortion with outer grooves also tends to be typically most noticeable from record warp and other common defects in record structure and that is where a better tracking rig will clearly shine the most over a lesser one, ie where the roller coaster ride is the most extreme.

Double whammy there. Record rotation velocity is highest and warps also tend to be most pronounced with the outer grooves.

I don't worry about "inner groove distortion," as even with my simple old Linn table it's a "meh" issue...but if it is an issue the simple solution is to just listen to the first couple of tracks...problem solved.