Messages

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Re: Old vinyl

From: Jeff S
Email:
Remote Name: 172.150.152.63
Date: 11-Oct-2002
Time: 02:16 PM

Comments

I used to feel the same way about the noise factor whenever I made duplicates, Len. You can't add to the original without distorting it.

But, digital recording, transfer and duplication is a whole new realm. It allows us to, not add to or tweak what is already there, but remove what is not supposed to be there.

Putting a needle down on fresh vinyl can be a rather comforting thing, as I hear the rumble of the lead-in grooves go through the woofers. I would set my volume level to it. And any absence of clicks or pops would remind me how well I am taking care of my LPs.

But the rumble, pops and clicks were not intended to be there. Modern re-mastering software can be programmed to find these distortions and remove them from the music and leave behind what is supposed to be there.

Furthermore, when Mickey's carefully crafted original tapes (hiss noise included) were transferred to vinyl, they had to have their dynamics squeezed down to the limited volume range of an LP. And an 8-track or cassette for that matter. The volume changes had to fit between the rumble at the bottom, and the distortion at the top, about 50 decibels. What Mountain Retreat's engineers were able to do is expand the volume range on the vinyl to be more like that of the masters. CD’s allow about 100 dB’s for this.

So, what you get in the new boxed set is not the sound of the "original" LP’s, but the sound more like the Master tapes, yet without the hiss. The way Mickey intended it.

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