Rituals

[Edgar]

Just fired-up my ancient reel-to-reel tape deck -- wanted to see what, if anything, was on some old tapes. Threading the tape over the heads, through the pinch roller, and onto the takeup reel brought back memories of the rituals that we used to go through with R2R. Playing vinyl has similar rituals.

 

Audio used to be participatory. Remember?

 

Watching the reels turn is mesmerizing. 

[veloceleste]

.

[Schu]

I used to like shaving... now I just wish I was hairless.

 

My ears have grown fur.

[Edgar]

I miss manual transmissions, too.

 

It's a sure sign that you're getting old -- missing the good ol' days that were never really all that good.

[Schu]

I still row my own... I prefer it that way. I just have to be mindful not to get into any drag races with automagic ten speeds.

[Racer X]

Does music playback first thing in the morning and upon fall of darkness count ?

[Edgar]

41 minutes ago, Racer X said:

Does music playback first thing in the morning and upon fall of darkness count ?

Not quite the same as running the Diskwasher Discwasher brush over the platter, but it counts.

 

EDIT: spelling

Edited August 25, 2022 by Edgar
spelling

[MicroMara]

Yes Rituals ! Put a record on the tt , changing the pick-up from the tt, put a tape into the tapedeck or let the R2R spinning, cleaning the magnetic heads and tiny wheels, I need these kind of Rituals ! Even to put a silver cd into the cd player is an antique ritual in our days, all physical media.

 

I still love the mechanical machines , have a Tandberg TD 20A R2R , a TEAC V 6030S tape deck, a Micro Seiki DQX 1000 TT. All vintage , all technically 100%. I´m happy to be able to combine classic analog and modern digital components. Ever recorded a live digital recording on an R2R or a very good tape deck and then listened to it again ? Fantastic noise-free playback quality. This recording quality was not possible in the days when we recorded via FM radio or vinyl.

 

[Racer X]

Oh, well it used to be wet one edge of Discwasher brush with large plastic wood handle grip, three times around the record spinning, and then a quick dab of stylus tip with Audio Technica AT607 stylus cleaner in small pyramid shaped amber bottle.  Only then was Iron Man allowed to wreak his vengence.

[Edgar]

11 minutes ago, Racer X said:

Oh, well it used to be wet one edge of Discwasher brush with large plastic wood handle grip, three times around the record spinning,

And the belt-drive table never had enough torque, so we helped it along with a finger pushing on the record label.

[YK Thom]

Do they still sell the static guns? That was also part of the vinyl "tea ceremony".

[Edgar]

31 minutes ago, YK Thom said:

Do they still sell the static guns? That was also part of the vinyl "tea ceremony".

https://www.amazon.com/Milty-5036694022153-Zerostat-Anti-Static-Blue/dp/B0033SHDSS

$99!

I still have mine from the 1970s.

[Schu]

I normally use distilled water...

[Racer X]

I've used Holy water absconded from my local Catholic church.

[Edgar]

32 minutes ago, Racer X said:

I've used Holy water absconded from my local Catholic church.

Is that for playing your Black Sabbath LPs? 🙂

[Islander]

2 hours ago, YK Thom said:

Do they still sell the static guns? That was also part of the vinyl "tea ceremony".

 

Yes, the Zerostat gun is a must-have.  It’s useful for other things, too, like getting those pesky little bits of Styrofoam off your clothes after you’ve been cutting some of the stuff.  Give them a blast of ions and much of it will fall off, then you can pick off the rest of it without it flying back onto your clothes.  You can also make charged balloons fall off the wall.

 

I got my Zerostat gun used about 15 years ago and it still works great.

 

Yes, the vinyl tea ceremony.  Another way to look at it is this:  popping in a CD/DVD/Blu-Ray disc is like using a microwave, while playing an LP is like using a barbecue.  More work, but more soul.

[Islander]

On 8/25/2022 at 2:15 PM, Racer X said:

Oh, well it used to be wet one edge of Discwasher brush with large plastic wood handle grip, three times around the record spinning, and then a quick dab of stylus tip with Audio Technica AT607 stylus cleaner in small pyramid shaped amber bottle.  Only then was Iron Man allowed to wreak his vengence.

 

I’ve still got one of those little AT607 bottles here somewhere.  I was always a bit dubious about what the fluid might do to the glue holding the diamond on, so now I use the Onzow Zerodust gel.  What?  There’s an argument about that?  One guy says the gel goops up not just the stylus, but the cantilever as well, while another guy says that’s not the gel, it’s mold-release from in the groove.  And the minority report is that it’s just vinyl shavings, nothing to worry about.  Hmm.  Ask two guys, get three opinions.  Sometimes I wish I hadn’t Googled. 

[Racer X]

Simple dust remover for me, not so sure about all those other stylus Stylast claims....