Wonder what people would think of the sound if a digital EQ was put in there to flatten the curve as much as possible.
That would completely depend on whether or not you told them about it.
Tim
Two Tapes for Your Consideration!
- Thread starter MylesBAstor
- Start date
That would completely depend on whether or not you told them about it.
Tim
TP-021, Kurt Elling, Flirting With Twilight
TP-022, Willy and The Poor Boys
TP-024, Nat King Cole Sings/George Shearing Quintet Plays
Pretty sure that is not what he meant. He is saying the reaction from people would depend on whether they knew digital technology was used or not. Equalization given those curves would most definitely be audible to everyone so that isn't a question.
Wonder what people would think of the sound if a digital EQ was put in there to flatten the curve as much as possible.
I can't say what 'people' would think, but I'd be pissed.....
lots of people use digital EQ every day on lots of originally analog recordings. in some situations it's maybe the right thing. if digital EQ helps then it's good. ideally you have a room and synergistic system where digital EQ lowers the performance.
but you are not referring to room digital EQ, but EQ as applied to the recording and playback of tape.
with tape, EQ is applied to allow the recording to be optimized with the head design like RIAA EQ with vinyl cutting due to the physics of that process (to keep the stylus in the groove on heavily modulated passages). then the same EQ is used to play it back. there is more than one EQ profile.
with my 'Tim deParavicini modified' Technics RS-1700 I not only had a switch to choose NAB or IEC, but also a custom EQ Tim developed.
as far as treating the signal to digital EQ first, and then recording onto tape without the normal analog EQ process, I suppose theoretically you could solve some issues maybe......while dumbing down your recording and ending up with a kludge.
why bother doing tape if you are going to homogenize the analog feed first with decimation + DSP?
obviously plenty of digital recordings have ended up as tape masters or even vinyl. so we have examples of lots of digital interaction with analog. maybe some involve digital EQ? do some use digital EQ and not analog EQ for tape? I don't know.
I have a few tapes which started life as a digital recording. some sound very good. as good as if they started life as a pure analog recording? hard to know, but I have my opinion.
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Years ago, Chesky cut an LP and sent me the test pressing. I listened to it and then called David to tell him the LP had no upper octaves etc. David obviously then called his engineer who then called me and immediately lambasted me saying you don't know what you are talking about, I have perfect pitch, etc. So I just nodded up and down on my end of the phone, let him finish his rant and then hung up. An hour later his engineer called me up and sheepishly admitted to me that he discovered that they used the wrong EQ. So yes, you are absolutely correct as usual Mike!
Wonder what people would think of the sound if a digital EQ was put in there to flatten the curve as much as possible.
Huh? What!? If it's all analog -- then, use a great analog EQ. May I suggest a GML 9500?
Actually, this reminds me of THE Show, where we heard a test pressing, i.e., vinyl, that sounded FABULOUS and I was later informed the performance was recorded -- digitally in PCM.
I would have liked to hear THAT digital file!
Huh? What!? If it's all analog -- then, use a great analog EQ. May I suggest a GML 9500?
Actually, this reminds me of THE Show, where we heard a test pressing, i.e., vinyl, that sounded FABULOUS and I was later informed the performance was recorded -- digitally in PCM.
I would have liked to hear THAT digital file!
I've been listening to a 2xdsd rip of that test pressing the last few nights, it is fabulous! that recording on that test pressing was originally a 48khz DAT which had been released as a redbook CD and has been burned into all our collective consciousness's over the last 10+ years or so as the most popular demo track. I've probably played that redbook CD track at least 5000 times. so it's improvement is so remarkable due to our strong reference imprint.
now as a 45rpm test pressing that 48khz recording has found new life! I'm told that soon it will be released as a 45rpm title.
what you will want is the 45 and not the 48khz file IMHO.
Yes, I believe you're right, Mike -- that Nils Lofgren title will be released according to Chad...this isn't a secret -- is it?
not any more!
no worries, I can't think of a reason not to talk about it.
not any more!
no worries, I can't think of a reason not to talk about it.
Hehe -- thanks!
Much success to Chad!
Hehe -- thanks!
Much success to Chad!
he really knows how to scratch our itches!
so often marketers/sellers do not really listen to their customers, I mean really listen. Chad really listens and gets it. and I think that he is great for our hobby.
My late grandfather in law, may he rest in peace, wasn't. He hated cheese with passion. My wife would make him chocolate cheesecake and not tell him. He would eat it, enjoy it, and compliment her on how great it was!
Let's not get pissed over what has not happened though. We are just chatting and yes, he is being sarcastic. I understand that and my deck is switch selectable between the two profiles. The DSP idea I am talking about could not only fix the frequency response, but provide far more accurate implementation of these standards although that may not matter because the same was not used in production.
I am just thinking out loud about the dichotomy of higher speed bringing better high frequency but less bass. And the general fact that frequency response is all over the place from deck to deck in the link Myles provided:
On another deck it looks like this:
Yet another system does this:
I look at these and see an issue and was thinking outloud about investigating solutions to it. That's all. Not saying there is a solution or you must use it.
For me personally, and for the author in that article, this is a problem. No two people with two different decks are hearing the same thing. Those variations are clearly audible and if there is a way to correct them, I like to experiment to find out.
I bother with tape not because analog is great. I bother with it because what is produced with them, i.e. specifically mastered music, sounds great to me. I don't attribute that value to it being analog as you do. I attribute it to mastering that is buried in the tape, and no digital transformation is going to undo it. The correction can invert the flaws that exist.
I also love the visual experience of watching tapes turn.
And yes, I realize even if this works, you have no use for it. Not hoping to set up shop and sell this if it works.
.
Analog tapes, Chad...I mean...all-the-way analog tapes!
fully licensed analog tapes from Chad is a stretch. the titles he operates with are very desirable and main stream. most rights holders are not likely to be very interested in that. he would need to cash in lots of chips to get that to happen, so would need to see a big enough market to rationalize the risk.
I don't see it. and I have been on him for years about it.
what you see now is that the tape market is mostly about selling great quality recordings of unknown artists where the rights holders to the music are the tape sellers; with the exception of some 2nd tier Jazz recordings. otherwise there is no margin to make it a business considering the costs. which is fine if those recordings are one's you will play enough to rationalize the investment.
Chad would have to charge the moon to sell tapes of the titles he handles.
Bruce B
WBF Founding Member, Pro Audio Production Member
I look at these and see an issue and was thinking outloud about investigating solutions to it.
amir..... +2/-2dB at below 200Hz is pittance in what some of these rooms measure. The worst graph is +3/-3dB. I have never heard of a room that is within those specs from 20-200Hz....
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