Check out the new Tape Project website at tapeproject.com, now with online ordering. Inventory is updated every week, so stop by often to see what we have in stock.

Author Topic: Sound In The Round Tape  (Read 7045 times)

Offline steveidosound

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 484
    • View Profile
Sound In The Round Tape
« on: July 30, 2009, 10:13:45 AM »
I guess the post by the new person got pulled because  it was too close to a for sale post. We don't do that here.
I was just about to reply with the following:

Does it list the contents on the box or tape label?
I have a much later 4 track 3 3/4 ips tape from GRT with the same title (not volume 2) that has all the standard stereo sound effects that used to be popular like ping pong games, trains, planes, parades going by, thunderstorms etc. 
I just noticed it says  "a Concertapes production".
« Last Edit: July 30, 2009, 10:16:06 AM by steveidosound »
Steve Williams

you don't want to know what equipment I listen to...

Offline ironbut

  • Global Moderator
  • leader in spreading disinformation
  • *****
  • Posts: 2503
  • rs1500>repro amp#1
    • View Profile
Sound Effect Tapes (sound in the round,..)
« Reply #1 on: July 30, 2009, 11:04:50 AM »
Hey, the original post may have been deleted but this seems like a dandy time to bring up these "Sonic Spectacular" tapes and other such guilty pleasures.
The young folks among us probably won't know this, but sound effect records and tapes were pretty darn big in the early days of hi-fi. Especially with the advent of Stereo and the record companies efforts to get folks to replace their mono record collection with the new technology. These records and tapes featured stuff like steveidosound mentioned (I always had a special spot in my heart for gun shots and the guy coming in the door stage left, walking through, and leaving though a door,stage right).

So here it is folks. What's your favorite?
Here's mine;

Bob and Ray Thow a Stereo Spectacular subtiled; Bob and Ray Visit Dr. Ahkbar at the Castle
 with Skitch Henderson, Lena Horne, The Melachrino Orchestra, Radio City Music Hall Organ, Sauter-Finegan an Schory's New Percussion Ensemble.
RCA CPS-199 7 1/2 ips half track
Being a scifi horror fan, what more could you ask for. This was released in 1958 and I found it in a used record store and I'd guess it had only been played a couple of times. It's wound tails out which I believe results in proper storage winding by those who don't know any better.
Great sound (a little hissy as any tape of this era is), funny and a huge variety of sounds and music. I've seen this on eBay for bargain prices but not very often.
steve koto
 Sony scd 777es(R. Kern mods)> Vpi Aires>Dynavector XX-2mkll>Bent mu>CAT ultimate>CJ premeir 140>Magnepan 1.6qr(Jensen xover)Headphone Eddie Current Zana Deux>AT ad2000,HD800 ,Metric Halo ULN-2 (battery powered),
 HE Audio Jades

Offline Ben

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 304
  • Bring on the music
    • View Profile
Re: Sound In The Round Tape
« Reply #2 on: July 30, 2009, 11:19:08 AM »
I don't have any, but I do notice they come up about once a month on ebay.
Did anybody ever use them for sound effects, things like radio plays?
Set 45,Open baffle speakers,Otari 5050,,Pioneer DV-79AVi DVD/CD/SCAD player

Offline steveidosound

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 484
    • View Profile
Re: Sound In The Round Tape
« Reply #3 on: July 30, 2009, 11:27:32 AM »
Wow! That must be good. Sounds more like "The RCA "all stars" present a stereo spectacular".
I have some vintage Schory on vinyl and some of it is quite good.
While on this subject (sort of) there were many records and tapes of music produced in both the early stereo era and some in the mono early HiFi era, where the music itself was tailored to provide a "demonstration" of how good the sound could be with lots of hard panned left/right percussion big brass choirs, high piccolos and low tubas etc.
Typically the sound on these is NOT that good but there are a few gems. And they are fun to listen to every so often.
Steve Williams

you don't want to know what equipment I listen to...

Offline steveidosound

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 484
    • View Profile
Re: Sound In The Round Tape
« Reply #4 on: July 30, 2009, 11:38:18 AM »
Ben, I once used an elevator sound off of an Audio Fidelity stereo sound spectacular record for a live sound gig for a band that required sound effects for a novelty song - "Bathroom of Your Heart" recorded by Johnny Cash. All the sound effects were in order on a cassette and I had to play them on cue during the live performance. I have a reel to reel tape (to remain on topic) of that concert and we did pretty well with most of them. Most of the other sound effects were recorded live by me and the guy that was going to do the song including a toilet flush (with reverb!) at the end.
(uh... this was around 1974)
« Last Edit: July 30, 2009, 11:40:15 AM by steveidosound »
Steve Williams

you don't want to know what equipment I listen to...

Offline ironbut

  • Global Moderator
  • leader in spreading disinformation
  • *****
  • Posts: 2503
  • rs1500>repro amp#1
    • View Profile
Re: Sound In The Round Tape
« Reply #5 on: July 30, 2009, 02:29:32 PM »
I don't have any, but I do notice they come up about once a month on ebay.
Did anybody ever use them for sound effects, things like radio plays?


Hi Ben,

During a short stint in college radio all the sound effects that we used to use for producing ads were on vinyl (I believe on cart later). It was quicker to cue up to the exact spot you wanted (or at least it seemed that way) and the turntables used were designed for that (high torque so you could turn the record by hand back and forth, find the spot and hold it, turn on the motor and release the record when it was time).

Foley work for film is a whole different story since the sound of the effect needs to match the others sounds to maintain continuity.  For a gross (in every sense of the word) look at this world, check out the pot burner called " Blow Out" with John Travolta. A cheezy remake of "Blow Up" where Travolta is a foley artist that accidentally records a murder with his Senheisser shotgun mic and Nagra. There just a few nice scenes of a bank of Ampex 350's (I think, I haven't seen this in years) and just enough to get a taste of what foley work is all about (I think??? Anyone who really knows, please chime in here before I dig this hole any deeper!)
steve koto
 Sony scd 777es(R. Kern mods)> Vpi Aires>Dynavector XX-2mkll>Bent mu>CAT ultimate>CJ premeir 140>Magnepan 1.6qr(Jensen xover)Headphone Eddie Current Zana Deux>AT ad2000,HD800 ,Metric Halo ULN-2 (battery powered),
 HE Audio Jades

Offline steveidosound

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 484
    • View Profile
Re: Sound In The Round Tape
« Reply #6 on: July 30, 2009, 03:26:41 PM »
If you listen to uh...tapes (he said trying desperately to keep this somewhat on topic) of old radio shows you can hear which sounds were from records and which ones were made live during the broadcast with the other live voice actors. As time went on more and more of it was from pre-recorded sources, first records, then tape. I think this is where the distinction  for film work as I have heard it explained to me at a recent visit to a foley studio with the AES, comes into play. As Steve said, the sounds have to match the other sounds and also the actors actions on screen, so foley became matching up sounds not recorded live on the set that a person makes with the picture. The most obvious thing might be something like footsteps. A sound disassociated with a specific action by a person is a sound effect and not foley, even if it has to match the picture, such as an explosion or a siren. As it was explained to me, the jingle of the keys being removed from the pocket and the lock being turned is foley, but the door opening is a sound effect...
« Last Edit: July 30, 2009, 04:04:02 PM by steveidosound »
Steve Williams

you don't want to know what equipment I listen to...

Offline stellavox

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 234
    • View Profile
Some other "sound effect" 2-track (stereo) tapes
« Reply #7 on: September 24, 2009, 01:26:53 PM »
Let's see what comes to mind:

One of the first Capital Demo tapes (ZA-1?) has some neat sound effects including a ride on a ferryboat in New York harbor.  When the whistle blows - I'd swear the low frequency extends down to DC.  There's also a (left to right) bowling alley.

Sonotape/Westminster: There is a tape of sounds from the New York Subway; Ferrante and Teicher have a tape (Latin America Adventure) where they take "liberties" with the sound of the pianos (if you want to call that sound effects).

Mercury: one of their original Demos was racing car sounds from the (1957?) Indianapolis speedway (MS2-6). And I think they released parts of the Civil War "soundtrack" on 2-track - cannons, et.al.

Then there are two versions of "Re-percussion" (which may be the topic of the deleted post) on Concertape and Urania.

Finally Audio Fidelity - Railroad Sounds (AFST-1841)

Charles