Travis In Austin
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Posts posted by Travis In Austin
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The Audience is listening . . . TO KLIPSCH!!
I just posted:In THX theaters there is usually
a trailer that plays right before the movie starts that blows your ears off that concludes by saying "The Audience
is Listening" Get theaters on new installs to agree to play a trailer
before the movie starts which shows off the superb sound
and all kinds of effects, professionaly produced. At the end the words
come up on screen,"The audience is listening to" and then the Klipsch Logo pops up
underneath. I believe there are thousands of people who go to
theaters every week who have no idea they are listening to Klipsch. If
they like the sound in the theater, they will buy Klipsch speakers for
their home and home theater.Travis
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In reference to "The Tape Project" tapes.....Does anyone have one that they would be willing to let me Audition on my Studer? Reason I am asking is, before I consider spending this amount of money on 10.5 sub-Masters, I would certainly love to know if it would be worth it. I am totally sure that the quality is there, I would just like to hear one to prove it to myself. If anyone has one that they would be willing to ship to me for a week, I would be glad to pay the fees both ways.
Hope this made sense......
Happy too.
Take your pick:
Saxaphone Collossus
Waltz for Debbie
Creek Bank
I will call you at office if you give me a good time to get address, etc.
Travis
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Hi Travis,
1/4" 2 track nearly finished , a year and a half restoration ....
I'm finally getting the MR70 done. The head stack is off to JRF so just waitng now and finishing the restoration. Enjoy,Did you ever get this up and running? Very curious to hear what your experience has been with this beautiful restoration.
Travis
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Well, more like$150 or so for Aqua Lung, but I was close. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Jethro-Tull-Aqualung-Reel-to-Reel-4-Track-Tape-Discrete-7-1-2-IPS-QUADRAPHONIC-/221135766473?pt=Music_Other_Formats&hash=item337cb803c9
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I still have my old TEAC A-2340-R simultrak deck, and a DBX II 4-channel noise reduction unit for it...even have a few, but not many, pre-recorded tapes, that may or may not be any good...Jethro Tull "Aqualung" in quad...LOL!...and at least one by CSNY...guess which one! Can you say "Deja Vu"?
HDR, you should be spinning that tape, and I am sure they will be
just fine as not exposed to any temp/humidity extreames for very long.Your
Jethro Tull Aqualung in quad is worth at least $100, and may have gone
for easily in excess of of 200. Quad tapes, on average, command the
highest prices on PR tape.Travis
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Travis, I don't know where you aquired those s/n ratio numbers but, my individual deck came with a Test Report directly from Revox/Studer and the record/sync/reproduce s/n ratio numbers are 66 & 65 @7.5ips respectively.
Yes the Otari has the ability to play at 3.75ips but you have to go into the back of the deck to change it.
I was going from memory, but I pulled out my Studer Service Manual on the A810, and my numbers were correct. I was using Linear RMS numbers for 30Hz - 20Khz which is the same as the numbers I was using on the other decks. I wanted to keep Apples to Apples.
The test report sheets I have from Studer were typically done using RMS A WEIGHTED values. Weighted values, as with all manufacturers, have higher S/N ratios/less noise compared to Linear RMS values. The numbers can vary depending on whether it was done using IEC (CCIR) curve or NAB. You will always have lower ratios/more noise using IEC Eq than NAB, it is just a function of the EQ. But that test report means just about as much as the mileage numbers on a new car unless you have two other pieces of key information. The amount of NanoWebers-per-meter it was recorded at and on what tape; AND, which heads they are talking about on the test. The specs I used were from Repro heads. On prodecks you can also repro through the Record heads, it is how you do sound on sound recordings/Simul Synch. There are differenct specs for Repro heads and records heads on pro decks, and this is true with Studer. The test report should let you know that. I was using 510 nWb/m specs on the numbers in my original post to keep apples to apples and oranges to oranges, it is the whole reason this data is included with the specifications in the Ampex, Otrari and manuals. I could actually get in excess of 76db of S/N from a Studer A810 using Ampex GP--9 and recording at 1040 nWb/m (+9Vu) but it woldn't tell you how it compares to other decks. It is easy to convert the numbers from the test sheet to what it would be equiq. to other recording strength and tape.
Every deck with IEC/NAB selectivity will have lower ratios in IEC than in NAB, that is why specs on Pro decks typically list both sets of numbers of each EQ. The S/N Ratio for IEC, which I assume is the curve you are running for Tape Project tapes, @15 IPS, using 510 nWb/m (+8 Vu) the manual says 66db S/N for 15 IPS and 64 db for 7.5 IPS. Those numbers are for regular 2.0 mm heads, not butterfly, but it is not that much of a difference.If your test report was done at 1040 nWb/m those would be extreamely disapointing numbers.
So your deck is right at specifications for A Weighted numbers, which equate to 61db RMS linear, which is also from the manual, and the numbers I used to keep apples to apples. And those are impressive numbers, extreamely quiet, but I wanted people to understand you don't need a studio deck to get great sound and no hiss and why Ampex was a standard for so long Ampex. 10db difference is 10x more or less noise.
Travis
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My TEAC 3340S only has a 55db sn and it is
really quiet. I can only imagine some of these other decks.Bruce,
I always really liked that TEAC 3340S, it was pretty much a TASCAM Pro deck. -
I'm still using my Akai 747. I have recorded from cd and dvd (audio) to tape and the result is better than the source. I'm going to keep this unit.
Boxx and Mallett,
Boxx, you have a great deck there! You should keep it. In seeing the discussion about the various decks in this thread it reminded me that it is the "HEADS ARE WHAT MATTERS MOST" (HWMM). Boxx, your deck has some of the best heads ever developed and were used on both their Pro and consumer decks, Glass/Crystal Ferrite. The critical path for tape is obviously first the source itself; that being the tape--the condition it was in, how it was stored, etc. The next step is the heads, and it is the most critical part of the whole chain as far as reproduction is concerned. There is too much about head design and build to go into here but it is what made Ampex the gold standard in recording, not Studer, MCI, 3M, Otari. To compete these companies would either inovate better tape paths (I.e., 3M and Isoloop) or offer a lower cost alternative. Ampex had a whole department of engineers that did nothing but R&D on heads and everyone was chasing them. A few of the asian manufacturers were able to catch up towards the end, Teac/Tascam (they were licensed to build Ampex last machines) and another was Akai.
After the heads, but nearly equally as important on a Pro deck, the key is to get the tape to move over the heads in the exact same location, at the exact same speed, over and over again. This is what the transport system does and this is the main difference between Pro and consumer decks. Good Pro decks had to be able to operate all day, going backwards and forwards 100s of times per day. They also have to be easily calibrated for the varous types of tape they had to record on or play back from (calibration is called allignment). You only need to see a Studer A Series deck operate one time to know what a great transport system it has. You can actually hear it and see it with your eyes and ears.
The Pro decks had to come up with a compromise between head wear and duribility. It is important if you are getting a Pro deck to use for playing tape at home (Repro) to know what the primary design and use of that particular deck was for. Was the primary purpose mastering, editing, repro quality, recording, playback in radio stations, education, etc? Because, depending on what the purpose was, you are going to either have a compromise in the transport, recording and/or Repro quality.
For example, the Studer A810 has one of the best transport systems every built. It has locate and editing functions that are incredible and the machine is very easy to allign. BUT, they only have average Repro/Record specifications. The S/N ratio is 61 db for the regular heads, and only 62 db for the highly prized and sought after Butterfly heads. The 1 db increase in the signal to noise ratio is due to the butterfly heads having a 2.75 mm track width vs the standard 2.0 mm width. Mallett, your beautiful TC-765 has the exact SAME S/N ratio as that, with 4 tracks compared to two tracks on the Studer. A Studer A810 at 7.5 IPS, which is the speed the better precorded tapes play at, has a frequency response of 30Hz to 16Khz. Those are perfectly acceptable numbers for a Pro deck, and at 15IPS the high end jumps to 20Khz on the Studer which is where you want it. But for the person wanting to primarily play 7.5 IPS precorded tapes at home, this is not really the deck to have (setting aside for the moment that the Studer is 2 Track and most people are going to want a 4 track deck to play tapes on). Mallett, your TC-765 has a FR of 30Hz - 25Khz at 7.5 IPS, which is exactly what you are looking for in a good home Repro deck. There is nothing that can be done to change those specs on either deck other than to replace the heads with something else and completely rework the electronics. I'm not talking about relapping the heads, or buying new ones, those specs are for brand new heads, in perfect alignment. Electronics after the head will not improve S/N ratio or FR. HWMM
Otari MX5050 BII2 series are great decks. They were designed for radio stations, for primarily Repro purposes, and also used in a lot of universities and educations instutions. They can be abused by kids learning, and at radio stations where they probably didn't have a full time engineer to align them and maintain them. They were a much cheeper alternative to getting Ampex or Studer if you were simply going to be playing the most recent 7.5 IPS 2 track version of America's Top 40 over your radio station. Stations would receive their syndicated programming on 1/4" two track tape and someone would pop it on the Otari hit play and then watch a program sheet to know when to hit pause so they could play a local commercial from their CART machine.
Otari MX5050 BII2 with the 4 head option are very popular with folks who got into the Tape Project because they Repro 2 Track at 15 IPS, in the IEC/CCIR equalization, which is the speed and equalization of Tape Project tapes. The BII also came with a 4th head option that allows you to Repro 4 track consumer tapes with NAB equalization used on US prerecorded tapes. (Canyonman, does Otari have 3.75 IPS playback speed also?). It is easy to switch the EQ on the back of the deck with the flip of a switch, and you change from 2 track to 4 track by sliding a switch on the head stack. So you have ONE deck, and it can play back both Tape Project tapes and prerecorded 4 track tapes. BUT, again, it is HWMM. The S/N on the Otari on 2 track at 7.5 IPS/IEC is 62db, which is very respectible, better than the Studer. On four track/NAB it is also 61db. That is less S/N which of course equates to slightly more noise than your Sony Mallett. The FR at at 7.5 IPS on the Otari is 20Hz to 18Khz, Mallett that is 10 on the bottom end of your Sony, but you have more top end.
Another deck that is very popular with Tape Project customers are the Technics decks with the Isoloop type transport. They are available in a number of models that have both a two track and 4 track Repro capability. However, they are only available with NAB EQ, unlike the Otari, and so a lot of folks with that machine both tube Repro amps from Bottlehead.com that you wire directly to, guess what, THE HEADs, that offer NAB and IEC Eq, and balanced inputs and outputs (that is a topic for a whole different discussion of why it is nice to have balanced inputs/outputs on a deck, but unless you have balanced electronics up the line, like BAT, not worth discussing at this point). Bottleheads has two head preamplifiers available, one is about $800 or so and another that is someting like $4K. By the way, MX110 and other vintage Mac preamps have a built in head preamp that sounds absolutely stunning. It is not difficult to do the direct wire on this if anyone wants to try it out. The FR response on the Technics heads are stunning, 20Hz to 25Khz at 7.5 IPS, and 30Hz to 30Khz at 15 IPS which is as good or better than just about any deck out there, Pro or consumer. They are not as strong on noise, 60db S/N ratio.
Before I talk a talk about consumer decks let me bring up the gold standard, the Ampex ATR 100 series machine. Tape Project tapes are recorded on these machines. There is a very good reason for this--it is the HWMM. The S/N Ratio ofr 15 IPS/IEC is 74db! That is over 10x quieter than a Studer. The FR at 15 IPS is 20HZ to 20Khz.
As far as consumer decks for listening to 4 track prerecorded tapes there are a lot of different ways to go. Towards the end, in the 80s the top of the line consumer decks were achieving some remarkable things, they were every bit as good as Pro decks in terms of Repro. They don't have the beautiful fluid transports of a Studer or an Ampex, but than who plays R2R 12 hours a day, 200 days a year at home to where you would even need that. The Akai, the Technics, the Revox all have superior Repro capability than most Pro decks because they were designed for primarily hi-fi repro in mind and used heads designed primarily for Repro and HWMM.
For example, Akai 747 with those great GX heads have a FR of 25 Hz to 33Khz, and a S/N of 65db. WIth built in DBX and using EE tape I think the S/N ratio jumps to someting like 80db or higher.You you have close to 100db of dynamic range, equal to CD.
The Revox B77 has a great transport and respectible S/N and FR.
One of the last consumer decks was the X2000 R, it has a FR of 30 to 40Khz (thats Forty) and a S/N of 65db. You don't even need noise reduction with that good of a ratio, but if you want to put your amp up to full blast and don't want to hear any hiss just punch the DBX NR in and you have a S/N of 100db and dynamic range of over 115db exceeding the DR of CD.
Mallett, the specs on yous deck are incredibly good, and now that you have got it back up to spec I can only imagine how great it sounds. It has as good or better S/N ratio and FR of Pro decks including Studer, 3M, MCI, Roberts, Stellavox, Nagra and Otari because it has heads that were designed and made primarily for playback of 3.75 and 7.5IPS prerecorded tapes. And, HWMM.
I hope to be able to hear it some day.
Boxx, my Aunt and Uncle live half way between Ovilla and Desoto, I would love to hear you deck one day.
Travis
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Dave,
It absolutely amazes me how a thirty or forty year old tape can sound so good. I am sure that it has to do with the quality of the machine and the tape heads. Since I got the Studer, and when I play it behind the Pioneer 909, there is really NO comparison to describe the difference in sound. The Studer is so much more detailed in what you hear, compared to the 909. I am actually thinking about selling it. I can honestly say that tape, in MY opinion is much better than vinyl......YMMV
This last group of tapes I bought (200 +) has some great Organ stuff in it along with a bunch of new tape. I got them all for less than a dollar apiece.....! There are some great "FINDS" to be had in the RtoR tape world.
I agree with you 100 percent about how good tape can sound. If they
have been properly stored and handled the prerecorded tapes just sound
incredible.It is not really fair to compare your Studer to your
Pioneer. I am assuming your Studer is two track, and so you are
looking at about 25khz in bandwith and probably close to 75db S/N ratio (even better if
you are running at 30 IPS) compared to maybe 55db S/N on the
pioneer. If it was a well preserved prerecorded 2 track tape (which were not really made after about 1959) , or a Tape Project 2 track you were listening to on your Studer there is not going to anything better than that in any format. Let me know if you are going to sell you 909. I love mine.Travis
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Went to the ridiculous from the sublime, following with "Giant Pipes," a tape sent to me by DWILawyer a couple of years ago. Extraordinary theater organ, with "Shine on Harvest Moon" and a host of other "standards" played on an enormous, high-pressure theater organ of extraordinary palette and range. Ron groaned a bit, but methinks he protesteth too loudly.
Dave,
I sent you that tape in the hopes that it would rekindle your love of R2R. I am glad to hear that you went to the effort to get that great Sony deck back to 100 percent, and I am glad you are playing that tape. There is just nothing that compares to a good quality tape through a good deck. I brought a still sealed copy of Kind of Blue back to a Klipsch gathering in Maryland at LarryC's place. We put it his Revox, and people were blown away.
Travis
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Hi Mike!
For the CD's I know pretty much they did. I read up on all of it back when they announced this was coming out. The remastering was all done at Abby Road, at the direction of Apple and it's four share holders. Apple told EMI to just do it and get back with them with CD samples when they were done.
The original master tapes (which, as you know, is a two track quarter inch mix down tape, NOT the multi-track recording tape) were played back on a Studer A-80 and recorded to Pro Tools with a Prism analog to digital converter. They were recorded at 24/196. All of the remastering was done on these files with the exception of 6 or so songs that were never recorded in stereo, and Help, which looks like is gone forever. They used George Martin's digital mix from the 80s.
They used some compression (makes it sound louder) on the stereo but on the mono cds. They said there was a critical balance of trying to make it sound good for today's audience where everything has a great deal of compression. They did try and find a limiter that was as flat as possible and say that the most compression they used was about 3db.
The CD's were "cut" (I guess it is technically reproduced) from this original 24/196 master digital file, but since CD's are lower resolution than that (whatever CDs are 16/44 point something) they are going to be limited to that on playback.
Which means that the vinyl is going to be SACD/DVD-A quality. I only have one DVD-A quality Beatles and that is Love, and it rocks. Blows the CD remasters away, and with the exception of the MFSL recordings, is better than anything else I have heard out that. So if things went well with the mastering process on the vinyl (and that is a big if, how much eq., how much compression, etc.,) the vinyl could have the potential of being better than anything else out there. I think certainly the Vinyl Mono is going to be the thing to own and will certainly be something I think I want to have. I guess that is going to be limited to 50,000 units as well?
Have you listened to early Beatles in stereo recently? Please, Please, Me, Beatles for Sale, With The? I just have never like all the vocals on one side and all of the instruments in the other. It was very primitive stereo at Abby Road until '69-'70 and I just never liked that sound of it. I have the mono versions on prerecorded tape and they sound so much better to my ears the the equiv. stereo tape where they channeled the instruments so differently than they did with much later on. I think stereo was pretty much a kind of gimmick at the time.
I hope to hear some reviews on these whenever they are out.
Travis
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I sure hope you're right Travis. I have all but 2 of the MFSLs and those are early LPs that don't get much benefit from the higher quality vinyl IMO. There are 2 or 3 I might buy if everyone decides they blow away the MFSLs.
Hi Gary,
I thought the BOX SET Mono CD's blew away everything I had ever heard with the exception of some prerecorded 7.5 IPS tapes. I liked the mono CDs better than most of the original mono vinyl I have, which isn't that much. As far as vinyl to vinyl, I have the MFSL Box Set, which I am sure are the same as the individual LP's you have, and I thought for stereo (with the exception of the six or so songs that were never recorded in stereo) they were a better version than the original pressing stereo versions and I like the MSFLs better than a lot of the CD's. The mastering process was at least 10 times better in 1981 when the MSFL set was done compared to what they were working with all the way up until '69 before recording at Apple.
I will be interested what people have to say when comparing the Remastered Vinyl to the CD's, especially when the mono vinyl comes out.
Travis
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Deep Purple is not in?? I'm not even sure you could have a Rock Hall of Fame that they were not in.
My thoughts exactly. Like I was saying, my thought on the Hall kind of go up and down based on who I have seen get in and who has not made it.
Travis
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So no since getting the vinyl if you already have the box set that came out a couple of years ago with the mono set? They are from the same digital master? Seems like it is just a collectable type thing as opposed to improvement on what had come before. Seems like the MFSL Beatles set is still the best way to go on this for Analog or the prerecorded reel to reel.
Travis?
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Their fan base has really been pushing for them to make it in I kind of go up and down on the Hall. Some years the inductees all make sense, and other years I just don't get it at all. At times I have felt they should rename it the Rock and Roll/R&B/Jazz/Blues/Etc./Anything Else Not Previously Mentioned Hall of Fame.
Deep Purple and Butterfield Blues Band are both nominated and they should both get in ahead of Rush, but they have certainly been snubbed as compared to other artists how have already made it in.
IHMO
Travis
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Congratulations Cornman, those look very very nice. What is the latest on the sound situation so far?
Travis
P.S. I sent you an email Re: seeing if you need any help on settings, etc. I guess you must have really liked the sound of them at Luther's?
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Hey,
Congratulations, I know you will be very pleased on both decisions.
Travis
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Oxxford Suits
Dr. Pepper (from the Dublin, TX plant)
Holland and Holland
Bristol Motor Cars (Fighter T)
Booker's Bourbon
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Wow. Look who the cat dragged in. Call me sometime Travis. Its been WAY too long!
I've owned both the MX110 and the C22 (and a couple others) and I agree 100% with Travis. I much preferred the C22.
Good luck Charles.
Gary, I sent you an email
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Here was a poll on MX 110 vs. C22 vs. Blueberry Peach,
some good comments
http://community.klipsch.com/forums/p/60557/592505.aspx#592505
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I have had the C-22 and the MX-110, if you don't care about a tuner I preferred the C-22 over the MX-110. I would also suggest that you talk with someone like NosValves who update and restore these units, to discuss the pros and cons with each unit in terms of restoration. They will know off the top of their head whether the cans are still available, if you have to go another route if the cans are leaking, the upgrades in caps that are possible with the C-22 that there is no room for in the MX-110, if you are considering mods, etc.
Travis
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Somehow I'm not convinced that the gov't. has any interest in promoting domestic manufacturing. As an example, consider GE's move of their x-ray division from Wisconsin to China where they are expected to invest 2 billion dollars (and GE's CEO is one of the "job czars"):
I think you hit the nail on the head. The government will never sponsor such a website because the Fortune 500 companies would be dead set against it, and so too then would the politicians and the political party that tends to receive a lot of support from corporate america.
I have been going to a websites I have found googling "buy american" and "made in U.S.A", and you find a great list of stuff.
Filson clothing, although some is being made off shore these days, Oxxford suits, dress shoes by Alden Shoes and Allen Edmonds, boots by Luchesse, but only the hand mades, Basis Turntables, Lucky Jeans (they are going off shore too, so you have to watch), New Balance running shoes, Gerstner Tool chests (they have an off shore line too now). There are a lot of great brands, high quality stuff, that is made in USA if you look, but it costs more then imported.
Here is one site as an example that will tell you: http://www.americansworking.com/index.html
As a policy matter, if you want to encourage buying american you typically would offer a tax credit for buying certain goods, or a tariff (tax) on buying imported goods. We cannot impose a tariff on goods from China because they own too much of our debt right now. Which leaves only giving a tax credit for buying american goods, and you won't see that happening because of what I originally stated about corporate america being against "buying american."
But people don't really care about buying American, or creating American jobs do they? They still shop at Walmart by the droves, they led the charge to sourcing in China after Sam died. Economics is a very, very interesting subject to me. What if you offered a tax credit on goods made in USA goods with a cap of say $7,500 for a joint return, half for a single filer? You could even limit it to more big ticked items like cars, furniture, speakers, new home purchase (newly constructed home). There would of course need to be regulations to define what "Made in USA" means, can it be imported cloth or can it, what percentage, if any, of foreign parts can be used, etc.. It certainly has been discussed and thought about by policy makers, But it goes nowhere. Instead, big companies what credits for capital investments. They say they should get the credits so they can ramp up on manufacturing, retool, modernize which would create more jobs.
I don't know what the answer is, or why this wasn't tired instead of stimulus.
Travis
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eliIts all fun and games until someone puts their eye out...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/24/tagblogsfindlawcom2012-legallyweird-idUS90215278320120424
Only in America...
"The woman is recovering from her medical emergency but -- like the man who collapsed at the same Grill in February -- she likely won't be able to sue for her medical bills".
Tigerwood,
Did you know Nancy Quon very well? I knew her very early in her practice, she was dating a very close friend of mine at the time. I have been getting bad news from "Las Vegas every few months it seems recently. Chirs Raliegh and his wife, who used to work for me, now this a few weeks ago.
Travis
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Now the fun begins in finding a good 6U8. I gave two NOS Telefunkens (pink lable) to
Timmikid when I sold my MX-110 to him. He might have an extra he is willing to part with.Travis
Did Sony Ever, Ever Build a Audiophile Level Speaker?
in 2-Channel Home Audio
Posted
They did develop the state of the art digital reel to reel tape recorder that was the standard of the industry starting in the early 1980s in the the early 90s. They were able to offer 24 and ultimately 48 tracks on 1/2" tape in PCM format. They used time encoding so it was very easy to have 96 available. They used a stationary head as opposed to DAT, which uses a helical rotating head.
There was a lot of recordings using their decks with the resolution gettng up to 20 bits at 96 khz. There is a major problem right now, you have to use a Sony to decode it, and those decks, while still in use today, are becoming fewer and far between. The Grammy people, in order to preserve the music that was mastered using digital decks, are asking folks to transfer it back into analog and store it on . . . TAPE.
Travis