bass reference; 1/2" master dub of a Reggae classic

[Mike Lavigne]

i thought i had a reference for bass impact and energy, but hearing a recently acquired 1/2" 15ips master dub from a low gen master of a Reggae Classic has now blown that fully apart. and in 1/2" i can keep cranking the volume and there is just so much information that it just gets better and better. at a certain point it's like my whole body was pulsing from the energy and yet i could tell the system was not straining. when you don't have distortion in the source the system can just go with it.

i'm not sure when i might stop grinning. but not any time soon.

there is simply a phyisicality of the music which transcends a recording into real life territory.

spooky.

it's scarey thinking about what the MM7's might be able to do with this. Holy Guacamole!

and i need to install the direct head switch so i can use the King Cello on the 1/2" Studer.

1/2" tape just can do things that other formats cannot. period. it is so meaty and lacking technical restrictions to capture energy. people talk about digital being better in the bass. what a laugh.

i suppose 1" tape is even better but i don't want to have to deal with the constant alignment issues of a 1" machine. let alone the expense of the tape.

and no, i am not at liberty to ID the title, sorry.

 

[MylesBAstor]

Now you've gone and done it Mike.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Now you've gone and done it Mike.

 

[c1ferrari]

1/2", 2-track, 15/30 ips in glorious analog...Yeah, baby

 

[Mike Lavigne]

1/2", 2-track, 15/30 ips in glorious analog...Yeah, baby

+1

 

[Bruce B]

Let's hear it on the Basspig's system!!

 

[rockitman]

Are we talking Bob Marley ? and if so...Exodus or Legend ?

 

[rockitman]

Another great one in the bass dept. Yes - Fragile

 

[Ki Choi]

Let's hear it on the Basspig's system!!

Bruce,

Recently I was at a live concert of 80's music in a place that was relatively small but very nicely designed acoustically. The hall had almost no echos and its odd shape made it very ideal to hear most of the direct sound from all the instruments before any of the reflected sound reached my ears. The musicians were all Vegas style and in high quality levels.

It was the pure bass from the drummer's kick drum that had me gasping for air. There were no boom, no bloated sound or unwanted resonances like what I had experienced under the balcony of otherwise very good Benaroya Hall in Seattle during Allison Krause and Union Station concert before.

I kept thinking, Wow that would make a good recording on 1/2" tape but would it overload the tape...and distort???. The bass had such a huge dynamic swing with chest dumping and pant leg flapping pressure radiating - even being amplified, I told my wife - I could only get that in our house if I had the large format magnetic tape as the source and a pair of Klipschorns or a system with powered subs with capability of moving huge amounts of air very fast for certain... Maybe that what Mike had experienced above...

I won't know until I make the visit to check it out for myself soon...Mike Ki

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Bruce,

Recently I was at a live concert of 80's music in a place that was relatively small but very nicely designed acoustically. The hall had almost no echos and its odd shape made it very ideal to hear most of the direct sound from all the instruments before any of the reflected sound reached my ears. The musicians were all Vegas style and in high quality levels.

It was the pure bass from the drummer's kick drum that had me gasping for air. There were no boom, no bloated sound or unwanted resonances like what I had experienced under the balcony of otherwise very good Benaroya Hall in Seattle during Allison Krause and Union Station concert before.

I kept thinking, Wow that would make a good recording on 1/2" tape but would it overload the tape...and distort???. The bass had such a huge dynamic swing with chest dumping and pant leg flapping pressure radiating - even being amplified, I told my wife - I could only get that in our house if I had the large format magnetic tape as the source and a pair of Klipschorns or a system with powered subs with capability of moving huge amounts of air very fast for certain... Maybe that what Mike had experienced above...

I won't know until I make the visit to check it out for myself soon...Mike Ki

 

[Mike Lavigne]

thanks to Ki, for taking some time from his Father's Day morning to come over and install the head switch on my 1/2" Studer A820. it's a pleasure watching Ki in action, he is like an ace Brain Surgeon around the Studers. i am so happy to get this done as i finally have a few select 1/2" titles and the 1/2" Tape Project titles are 'hopefully' arriving any time now.

now that i can go direct into the King Cello from the 1/2", how does it sound?

a new reference for me. i am listening to a 1/2" tape of a much loved recording right now, and the whole recording process simply melts away, and even though it's a relatively mellow vocal, the dynamics are simply so effortless and easy, it seems real. when Ki was here we did listen to a few cuts before he had to leave, and he mentioned that it's the unrestricted dynamics that 1/2" tape brings that sets it apart, and that is also where real life music separates itself from prerecorded music most clearly.

wow!

thanks Ki.

 

[c1ferrari]

Awesome

Very CooL Mike and Ki
Listenin' to some 1/2", myself, today...a friend's coming over with some of his 1/2" stuff

Happy Father's Day to All

 

[MylesBAstor]

thanks to Ki, for taking some time from his Father's Day morning to come over and install the head switch on my 1/2" Studer A820. it's a pleasure watching Ki in action, he is like an ace Brain Surgeon around the Studers. i am so happy to get this done as i finally have a few select 1/2" titles and the 1/2" Tape Project titles are 'hopefully' arriving any time now.

now that i can go direct into the King Cello from the 1/2", how does it sound?

a new reference for me. i am listening to a 1/2" tape of a much loved recording right now, and the whole recording process simply melts away, and even though it's a relatively mellow vocal, the dynamics are simply so effortless and easy, it seems real. when Ki was here we did listen to a few cuts before he had to leave, and he mentioned that it's the unrestricted dynamics that 1/2" tape brings that sets it apart, and that is also where real life music separates itself from prerecorded music most clearly.

wow!

thanks Ki.

More importantly, did you measure the THD Mike?

 

[Mike Lavigne]

More importantly, did you measure the THD Mike?

no.