Rich:
Quessing that your first FRIDA is the one (originally BBC) that I sold you, it's good to see that you are happy with the move away from Stellavox for concert recordings. As a portable machine (albeit AC-powered) with 11" capacity, it really seems to have no equal.
I wonder what changed in the market to prompt Lyrec to go in this direction? Clearly field recording had been working with 5"/7" reels for decades, so why did the BBC and the Swiss want to move up to 11"? Or did they want to use the same machine in the field and the studio? Or, did they just get tired of dealing with Nagra -- with IV-STC's in the field and TA's in the studio costing "too much"?
And, now the FRIDA is reborn for playback . . . if you can find one!
Mark Stahlman
New York City