Re: [ARSCLIST] 1937 shellac test pressing outperforms audio CD

["Richard L. Hess" <arclists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 11:12 AM 2009-04-03, Eric Jacobs wrote:
> On Thursday, April 02, 2009 11:10 AM, Michael Biel wrote:
>
> > But they could be harmonic ringing of the mechanics of the cutter
> > head--the other mechanical device in the chain.  You have to
> > consider the source feeding the recording head--the microphones
> > and amplifiers.
>
> Indeed!  I'm hitting the drawing board looking for a ringing coil
> somewhere (mic, cutter, or cartridge).  Time for me to double check
> *everything*.  I've heard that the Westrex cutters were more prone
> to ringing than the Neumanns, but I don't know what cutters were in
> use at RCA in 1937.

My first summer job in audio was 1971 in the audio design lab at 
Fisher Radio when they were still in Long Island City, NY.

I had been using Stanton 681 EE cartridges for a while (and still use 
them for my personal listening as I don't do professional transfers 
of grooved media). The lead engineer in the lab showed me his scope 
photos from a CBS test record which clearly showed ringing on the 
Stanton and none on a Shure M91ED which he gave me to try. I thought 
it sounded dull...but his scope photos couldn't lie...it was obvious 
that the Stanton was adding something!

A few years later, someone -- I think it was published in audio -- 
had taken a scanning electron microscope to these very same CBS test 
records and, low and behold, there was RINGING recorded in the 
grooves! I wish I could find that article again!

I went back to the Stanton, feeling far more justified that I was 
listening to what was cut into the grooves -- whether it was supposed 
to be there or not. Using a cartridge that didn't show the ringing 
was like "wearing rubber gloves for leaky fountain pens" as another 
one of my mentors, the late Hans Schmid of ABC used to say.

I'll go back to tape now and let the others in this thread use this 
information as they see fit (or not). I hope it was marginally 
useful, but you all probably knew this anyway.

Cheers,

Richard


Richard L. Hess                   email: richard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Aurora, Ontario, Canada       (905) 713 6733     1-877-TAPE-FIX
Detailed contact information: http://www.richardhess.com/tape/contact.htm
Quality tape transfers -- even from hard-to-play tapes.