how were copies of vinyl made in "third-party" countries

I know a lot of audiophiles in Hungary, they swear by US LPs and CDs as if God created them. The grass is always greaner....

and I just looked: my 90s Hungarian LPs are absolute crap while 70s and 80s are delightful. So much for capitalism :)

I agree with the terrible quality of pressings which came from Russia and Czechoslovakia, same with their CDs.

I also look for the country of origin of the band and it's record label. There are so many UK albums with good SQ. I have also found that many German releases are superior to US, maybe it's better QC or they don't have the philosophy of cranking out product.

One more thought; I've found Decca pressings to be outstanding. I have an issue with the budget Angel releases, they sound like they were made with inferior masters. No resemblance to Decca or London.

my 90s Hungarian LPs are absolute crap while 70s and 80s are delightful. So much for capitalism :)

I wouldn't condemn an entire economic system based on a few bad LPs.  :)

@russ69 

I used the smiley, I was joking. The real proof of "greatness" was the Trabant. And don't ask me about the our shoes (and not even running shoes) and clothes, they lasted months at best.