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Messages - mikel

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16
Rock With Me Baby / Re: first impressions of TP-017, 'Rock With Me Baby'
« on: August 14, 2010, 12:42:59 AM »
ok; i've just played the 45rpm 2-disc Lp set (i don't think there is a DTD of this recording); and then reel A, and i've just started reel B.

in my life of listening to recorded music, TP-017 is easily the most real recording i've yet heard. there is simply no evidance of what i am hearing being a recording. no, it's not real life in terms of degrees of things. but the sense of any sort of microphone, tape recorder or 'stuff' is missing. the background is dead dead quiet.....i mean quiet. the voice, the guitars, the harmonica, everything just exists in space like they would if those things were in the room. there is simply no character to identify the music as a product of something. in that way it sounds real. if i was forced to explain in what way it does not sound completely real i'd say there is a very very slight veil compared to if Little Hatch (was still alive) and playing in my room....and maybe the energy of the music is slightly less than fully real, but not much less.

i've not lived through the recording process and lived with work parts of studio recordings so maybe this is standard stuff. but evidently when it's live to 2-track of a completely acoustic, very simple recording with (i would guess) no EQ or limiting with the best gear, modern tape formulations and it's absolutely nailed then this is what you can get.

really spooky shit. what do you do for an encore? i suppose this might be the tape to try a 1/2". i cannot imagine what that might sound like. the Lp is very good, but fogetaboutit......it cannot touch this nohow noway.

Oh, and the music is wonderful. just don't drool all over the tape or your remotes.

Little Hatch is in fine form and there is simply great tunes, tuneful playing, and an emotional content which jumps out at you.




17
Rock With Me Baby / first impressions of TP-017, 'Rock With Me Baby'
« on: August 13, 2010, 12:57:12 AM »
it's late and i'm tired. i had 25 people in my room tonight for an audio club meeting, and a few stayed till after 11pm.

we played about 40% RTR tape. the 2 tracks we played from 'Rock With Me Baby' stand out as the best of the best of the tapes we played. holographic, vivid, alive, compelling. i like the music. alot. but even if you only 'sorta' like the music this one will grab you.

is this the best tape yet? it might be.

when i recover from my 'event' i will listen all the way thru and expand on these comments.

18
Hi Mike,

I'm going to have to send my regrets this time. We have too many things stacked up right now to be able to get away. Maybe we can work out some time for me to come over and hear your setup after we get finished with the move into our new office.

hi Doc,

too bad. sorry i did not get the word to you earlier.

you know you are always welcome whenever it works out for you. for sure the Tape Project tapes will be stars of the show.

best regards,

mike

19
Kinda short notice, and we're pretty swamped at the moment with a new album shipping, a new kit to get out and a new office coming together. But Eileen and I will see if we can adjust our schedule so we can stop by.

yes, my bad about the short notice, sorry. but it would be great if you and Eileen could make it, i would sure enjoy it and i know the club members would too. you have my address on file, let me know if you need any directions.

20
our local audio club is having this month's meeting in my room and any tape heads are welcome. there will likely be 15-25 attendees, it will go from 6pm to 9:30pm. we'll likely play tapes at least one third of the time or more depending on the flow. i will have the new 'Little Hatch' tape for the meeting (scheduled delivery today).

i live in North Bend (exit 31 on I-90). e-mail me for directions; [email protected]

i'll be playing the tapes on my Studer A-820 feeding a King-Cello repro....and i have 3 tt's.

i have room for 20+ in my room and my room does have air conditioning.

21
Tape Project Albums - general / Re: What's shipping next?
« on: August 11, 2010, 06:12:52 AM »
got my shipping notice for (i assume) 'Little Hatch' for delivery later today. i've been looking forward to this one for awhile as i'm very curious how Chad's stuff can sound.

tomorrow night i'm hosting our local monthly audio club meeting in my room. i should have 15-25 attendees and the focus will be on both vinyl and tape. 'Little Hatch' will be a fun one for that i would think. any tape heads are welcome to join in. 6pm--9:30pm. actual meeting 7:30pm -9:30pm.

e-mail me for directions; [email protected]


22
Oh and where's that $57K check for the table-not to mention the table is what, 4x the price of the tape deck (assume it was the top level UHA Tascam)?

Exactly my thoughts, Myles--my joyous sonic experiences with tape makes me think these super 'tables are obscenely overpriced. Something is just wrong!

Kip

hummmmm. there is the factor of the amount of software one has when considering expensive tt's. not that one needs to spend $57k to get a great tt. but putting together a state of the art tt set-up is not cheap in any case. and while Valin's cred is not what it once was, i would agree that the best vinyl can somewhat approach tape. i also think the UHA Tascam can be bettered by many decks with the better repro output electronics. that change for me certainly widened the gap from the best vinyl to tape.

in any case the review was a big positive for the Tape Project.

23
Tape Project Albums - general / Re: What's shipping next?
« on: August 07, 2010, 08:22:36 PM »
Starting to print the Little Hatch artwork today. We should see the first albums going out early next week.

excellent news!

24
gosh, that sounds like a fun time to me......i might get up to Woodinville Saturday afternoon if i can leave work early. i used to live in Woodinville back in the 80's to early 90's.

Mike

25
added note; the guys added 2 bonus cuts, a Glyn Johns mix of 'Time to Kill' and a Todd Rundgren mix of 'The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show' to the 2nd reel. they both sound good but i did not go back and do any comparison with the original tracks. it was just nice to get 'more stuff' and i appreciate it.

26
i was a fan of 'The Band' back in the day and still am, but i was never that familiar with this album or had listened to it that much. i had a couple of pressings, a recent Capitol reissue and a very clean original pressing with 'RL' (Robert Ludwig) in the deadwax. listening to both recently, the Original is not surprisingly much better.....more clarity, better smoother top end, and more body and decay. before i listened to the tape today i again listened to the original pressing.

On the surface this album is an enjoyable listen, if a bit dark and brooding compared to most Rock.....or even the Band's earlier Lps. But after listening to it a few times recently i have come to really enjoy it and get into it. it is quite well recorded and muscianship is top notch. each cut has it's own vibe. it's not cookie-cutter rock'n roll.....more cerebral in a way....but more rewarding after savoring too.

the original pressing (on the Rockport with Lyra Olympos) is good; but in this case the tape is many levels better. in fact; it's really a whole different experience on tape. the Tape has maybe double the soundstage size, as well as dramatically more clearly rendering each instrument. dynamics and clarity are similarly better. i recall hearing a cut of this at RMAF and for whatever reason i did not have nearly this good an impression then.

this will be a demo tape for me for sure and will be played often. great job guys!


27
Tape Project Albums - general / Re: What's shipping next?
« on: May 27, 2010, 06:11:18 PM »
i just got my UPS shipping notice.....so TP-016 tomorrow afternoon...thanks guys!

28
General Discussion / Re: Improving Room Acoustics
« on: May 24, 2010, 06:14:44 PM »
Yikes!  210 lb per sheet and 1/4-inch steel plate?!!  I guess it is literally bullet-proof.  How is it installed?  Welded?  And what about the ceiling?  What holds it up?

my room already had the whole room cocooned in a sandwitch of 5/8th" sheetrock<->1/2" soundboard<->5/8th"sheetrock. so the Quietrock was screwed (with very long screws) and glued to the drywall surface.

it is possible the metal layer is aluminum, but i think it's steel. i know they had a special blade on their saw to cut it. there are specs on the website for handling.

i did not use it on the ceiling but as long as it was screwed into studs properly anchored it should hold the weight just fine. normal sheetrock is not light.

29
General Discussion / Re: Improving Room Acoustics
« on: May 24, 2010, 05:57:18 PM »
thanks Doc and Steve,

glad to be of help.

btw, my long time contractor, who did the original work on my room as well as the Quietrock project, about wanted to kill me after fighting the Quietrock. it's kinda nasty stuff to work with since it must be cut with a metal saw and it's so heavy. not for the faint of heart.

but it did exactly what my acoustic designer said it would do.

i think i ended up paying about $175 per 4"x 8" sheet. the drywall supply place had it in stock, so you can get it easily.

Mike

30
General Discussion / Re: Improving Room Acoustics
« on: May 24, 2010, 01:53:28 PM »
if you are needing to do the maximum amount of isolation in the very minimum of depth, there is a great product perfectly designed for that; Quietrock 545THX. read about it here.

this product is used over drywall, it weighs about 210 pounds per 4'X8' sheet (costs approx $200 per sheet). it is a constrained layer design including a 1/4" layer of steel. it will create a 50db barrier at low frequencies and a 90db barrier at high freqencies in 1 and 3/8th inch depth.

green glue would be when you have 4" to 8" of depth and can use multiple layers of drywall. it still won't do what Quietrock will do.

if you are living in a condo or apartment and don't want to lose square footage to isolation Quietrock is 'the Bomb'!

i used 14 sheets of it in my room to solve a bass response imbalance problem. it created equal room boundaries on both sides of my room and solved a problem i had.

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