Zenith Records

Zenith Records is an Australian vinyl record pressing and manufacturing company based in Melbourne. Despite its name, the business is principally a pressing plant and production-services operation rather than a conventional record label. It manufactures vinyl records and provides related physical-media services, including record pressing, sleeve and jacket production, print finishing, and engineering support for the wider vinyl industry. The company was established in 2005 by Australian hip-hop artist Pegz, who was also associated with Obese Records. Its creation addressed the limited availability of locally operated vinyl pressing capacity in Australia. Pegz acquired and repaired pressing machinery that had previously been used at Nick Phillips's Corduroy Records pressing plant. The equipment had itself formed part of a broader history of independent Australian record manufacturing: presses and related infrastructure had operated at facilities including Modern and Sundown, while the plant's cutting lathe had previously been used by EMI in Sydney. Zenith progressively refurbished and upgraded this inherited machinery in an effort to bring its output closer to international pressing-plant standards. The plant originally operated in Richmond, Melbourne, before relocating to Brunswick East in 2013. The move gave the company a base from which to expand its manufacturing and finishing capabilities. Its services support record labels, artists, distributors, and other music businesses that require physical vinyl products. The available reference material does not identify a complete customer list, detailed genre specialization, or a separate roster of artists signed to Zenith; the company should therefore be understood primarily as a manufacturing and production partner rather than as a consumer-facing artist label. Zenith broadened its industrial role in 2018 when it began developing internally engineered products with outside CNC machining and engineering firms. A prototype pressing mould or die was developed in 2019, followed by further modification and investment in CNC machining equipment. With a lease on the neighboring factory, Zenith established a modern CNC machine shop staffed by two engineering machinists, according to the reference account. Its engineering department subsequently produced and exported moulds, spare parts, consumables, and other engineered solutions for vinyl record pressing plants. In 2020, the company added two dedicated gluing lines for inner paper sleeves and record jackets. Bringing these processes and print-finishing work in-house was intended to reduce supply-chain delays and improve control over the quality of sleeves, pockets, and gatefold jackets. This development positioned Zenith as a more integrated manufacturing supplier, able to combine record pressing with several stages of packaging production. In 2025, Zenith installed four Pheenix Alpha AD12 automatic record presses. The company stated that the installation tripled production capacity to approximately 6,000 records per week. This represents the most recent capacity expansion identified in the available material and indicates an ongoing investment in automated vinyl manufacturing. Zenith's current profile therefore combines legacy Australian pressing equipment, modernized production infrastructure, packaging operations, and specialized engineering for the international record-manufacturing sector.

Zenith Records was established in Melbourne in 2005 by Pegz, an Australian hip-hop artist associated with Obese Records. The business was created as a vinyl record pressing operation at a time when locally available pressing infrastructure was an important constraint for independent Australian music companies. Pegz purchased pressing machinery from Nick Phillips's Corduroy Records pressing plant and repaired it so that it could operate at a standard intended to be comparable with international pressing facilities. The machinery brought together several strands of Australian record-manufacturing history. The presses and associated infrastructure had previously operated at independent Australian facilities including Modern and Sundown. The cutting lathe had earlier been used by EMI in Sydney. Zenith progressively refurbished and upgraded this inherited equipment rather than treating the plant as a static collection of old machinery. The company's early location was in Richmond, Melbourne. In 2013, Zenith relocated to Brunswick East. The new site became the foundation for subsequent expansion beyond basic record pressing. Beginning in 2018, the company worked with external CNC machining and engineering firms to develop products for the pressing industry. A prototype mould or die for record pressing was produced in 2019, and the design continued to be modified and improved. Zenith later acquired CNC machining equipment and leased the factory next door, creating a dedicated machine shop. The engineering operation was described as employing two engineering machinists and producing moulds, spare parts, consumables, and other engineered solutions for vinyl pressing plants. These products were also exported. Zenith expanded its packaging and finishing operations in 2020 by installing two dedicated gluing lines. One supported inner paper-sleeve production and the other supported jacket gluing. Combined with in-house print finishing, the lines allowed the company to reduce dependence on external supply chains and to exercise greater control over the quality of sleeves, pockets, and gatefold jackets. This made Zenith a more integrated supplier, covering multiple stages of physical-record production rather than only the pressing stage. The company's most recently documented expansion occurred in 2025, when it installed four Pheenix Alpha AD12 automatic record presses. Zenith stated that the new presses tripled its production capacity to approximately 6,000 records per week. The available material does not provide a full account of the company's financial performance, employee count, customer roster, or corporate ownership structure beyond its founding association with Pegz. It also does not identify a separate label roster. Zenith is therefore best characterized as an active Australian vinyl manufacturing and engineering company whose work serves the broader record industry.

• 2025

  Automatic press capacity expansion

  [1]Zenith Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Four Pheenix Alpha AD12 automatic presses were installed. Zenith said the installation tripled capacity to approximately 6,000 records per week.

• 2020

  Packaging production expands

  [1]Zenith Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Zenith added two dedicated gluing lines for inner sleeves and record jackets, strengthening its in-house finishing capability.

• 2019

  Prototype pressing mould developed

  [1]Zenith Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  The company developed a prototype mould or die for record pressing and continued refining the design.

• 2018

  Engineering development begins

  [1]Zenith Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Zenith began developing in-house engineered products for the vinyl pressing industry with external CNC machining and engineering partners.

• 2013

  Relocation to Brunswick East

  [1]Zenith Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  The pressing plant moved from Richmond to Brunswick East in Melbourne.

• 2005

  Zenith Records is established

  [1]Zenith Recordsen.wikipedia.org

  Pegz founded Zenith Records in Melbourne after acquiring and repairing pressing machinery from Corduroy Records.

A Melbourne-based, vertically integrated vinyl manufacturing specialist serving record labels, artists, distributors, and other pressing-industry customers. Its differentiation is based on refurbished and upgraded pressing infrastructure, in-house packaging and print finishing, and an engineering division that develops moulds, spare parts, consumables, and other equipment-related solutions.

• Record manufacturing service · 2005

  Vinyl record pressing

  Zenith's core operation is the manufacture of pressed vinyl records for music-industry customers. The plant uses refurbished and progressively upgraded pressing infrastructure with a history spanning several Australian independent facilities. In 2025, the company installed four Pheenix Alpha AD12 automatic presses and stated that its capacity reached approximately 6,000 records per week.

• Music packaging · 2020

  Sleeves and record jackets

  Zenith produces and finishes packaging associated with physical records, including inner paper sleeves, pockets, standard jackets, and gatefold jackets. In 2020, it added dedicated gluing lines for inner sleeves and jacket production. In-house print finishing and gluing are intended to improve production control and reduce delays caused by external supply chains.

• Industrial engineering · 2019

  Pressing moulds, spare parts, and consumables

  Zenith's engineering department develops and manufactures products for the vinyl pressing sector. Its work includes record-pressing moulds or dies, spare parts, consumables, and other engineered solutions. The company developed a prototype mould in 2019, later acquired CNC machining equipment, and exported engineering products to the wider pressing industry.

• 2025

  Install automatic pressing equipmentGeneration change

  Background

  Zenith pursued a substantial increase in vinyl production capacity.

  Action taken

  Four Pheenix Alpha AD12 automatic record presses were installed.

  Aftermath

  Zenith stated that production capacity tripled to approximately 6,000 records per week.

  Production capacity. Approximately 6,000 records per week (2025)

  Source

• 2020

  Integrate packaging and print finishingStrategy

  Background

  External packaging steps could introduce supply-chain delays and limit control over finished record presentation.

  Action taken

  Zenith installed two dedicated gluing lines for inner paper sleeves and record jackets and brought print finishing further in-house.

  Aftermath

  The company reported improved control over sleeves, pockets, and gatefold jackets and reduced dependence on external finishing capacity.

  Source

• 2018

  Move into in-house engineeringStrategy

  Background

  Zenith sought to develop products for the vinyl pressing industry rather than relying exclusively on externally supplied machinery components.

  Action taken

  The company began working with CNC machining and engineering firms, later acquiring CNC equipment and establishing a dedicated machine shop.

  Aftermath

  Zenith's engineering department began producing and exporting moulds, spare parts, consumables, and other pressing-industry solutions.

  Source

• 2005

  Establish a locally controlled pressing operationStrategy

  Background

  The company was created around the acquisition of used pressing machinery and the need to restore Australian vinyl manufacturing capacity.

  Action taken

  Pegz purchased and repaired machinery from Corduroy Records and developed Zenith as a dedicated pressing plant.

  Aftermath

  Zenith became an Australian vinyl manufacturing operation and subsequently upgraded the inherited equipment.

  Source

1. 1Zenith Recordsen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Just for the record, it's dirty work but someone has to dosmh.com.au