Tape Project Forum
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: ironbut on December 19, 2008, 02:26:23 PM
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I just received the latest Stereophile and in M. Fremer's Analog Corner, he has his report from RMAF. Toward the end of the article, he states;" There was also wonderful sound in the rooms...in the Vivid room, Luxman distributor Phillip O'Hanlon played Tape Project open-reel tapes." It even included a somewhat familiar photo of one of the Vivid loudspeakers with an RS1500 loaded with a Tape Project tape behind it.
Perhaps the highlight of the piece is a photo of our own Paul Stubblebine rubbing elbows with Tim de Paravicini and Fremer. I guess black jackets were the order of the day there?
So, although somewhat low key, and considering that these show reports are really about generating interest in the magazines advertisers, not too shabby.
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Saw it too. Cool!
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I thought that rather than start a new thread, this seemed a relevant follow on:
Speaking of nice mention of tape project, this is available online at the Audio X Press web site http://www.audioxpress.com/magsdirx/ax/addenda/media/didden_munich.pdf (http://www.audioxpress.com/magsdirx/ax/addenda/media/didden_munich.pdf)where Jan Didden has evidently his first real R2R experience (as he gets the Studer tape machine mixed-up with Revox [Willi Studer would be turning in his grave]):
"But the eye-opener for me was the direct
comparison of the master tape on the
REVOX with any of the digital sources.
The issue was no longer: ?See how far we
got in 30 years with digital audio.? The
issue was: ?See how close we can come to
that wonderful analog tape after 30 years
of hard work!? For that was what it was.
No question, the digital material was
very, very good, very enjoyable, and listenable
for hours on end. But the analog
tape was?how shall I say it??right.? It
simply sounded the most natural, and it
was quite clear which was the original
sound: the tape was. Listening to some
of the digital sources you could say: ?It
sounds very clear, balanced, effortlessly,?
but then changing to the tape some of
that ?clear, effortlessly? was somewhat
artificial. As though ?natural sound? isn?t
supposed to be extremely clear and clean.
Unsettling."
Well worth the read of the complete article BTW.
cdw
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Curious, I hadn't heard anything about this, but it certainly sounds pretty much like the setup in the TAD room at CES2008. Are the facts correct? That's not a TP reel on the Studer, but we have an early demo reel or two that might be on an AGFA 468 reel - though I don't know who at the Munich show might have had one of those. Next, Keith doesn't do stuff in 192kHz AFAIK, he uses 176kHz because they fold it down to 44kHz and the math works out to what he feels is better sound. Perhaps Keith was there and brought some tapes? Not saying that I'm complaining about the outcome mind you...
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Those are the best kinds of listening impressions to me. The ones where the listener is begrudgingly admitting or just downright shocked at the difference. So many times at those big shows, you have to strain to hear the qualities of what you're listening to and as a result, you just never know if you really heard it at all. But when I've demoed tapes, the guys with good ears can instantly hear the difference (even in a somewhat noisy environment).
Nice find Chris.
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Doc asks "Are the facts correct? "
I would say the facts are quite suspect when he gets a machine clearly labeled Studer confused with Revox. However, the conclusion he comes to IS correct, and well known to those of us with the good fortune to have first hand experience with high-level R2R!
cdw
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OK, I will now show my further ignorance and prejudice.
To someone with a US perspective from a non professional (not a pro studio owner etc.) perspective,
I always thought of Revox as the "consumer division" of Studer.
I have owned exactly one, broken, worn out, low speed 1/4 track, Revox A77 from a radio station, which I only paid a couple of hundred dollars for and I never got working.
Anything better than that has just been something I never would consider paying the multiple thousands of dollars for. The purchase of any model of rare Revox machine with 2 track heads and 15 ips has just been out of the question, let alone the cost of a Studer ! Going by ebay, the cost of even a Revox seems to be like 2-3X the cost of a Tascam or Otari for a comparable machine. Same, only perhaps more so, between a Studer and an Ampex.
I have also never considered a Studer studio machine as it seems like a huge commitment in knowledge acquisition of the particular way it is built (European as opposed to Japanese or American) and the expensive parts cost as well as the initial outlay.
In fact, all European machines I have had any experience with, or owned seemed to me to be rare, exotic and expensive with unfamiliar construction, parts (that are broken that I can't find), layout, and functionality.
So to those of you who "speak the language", I pay my respects for having the diligence to deal with what is undoubtedly a machine of superior engineering and specifications.
Getting back to the topic, what is the exact relationship between Studer and Revox?
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Steve,
Yes, you're exactly right, Revox is the consumer devision of Studer. Confusing the two is entirely understandable especially for those not well acquainted with tape recorders. But for those with some introduction to the subject it's a little like confusing a Dodge Neon with a Mercedes Benz, both fine for their targeted market, but quite different to the aficionado. Hope I didn't come-off like a snob, didn't mean to.
Yes, a Studer is more $, and yes like all R2R they may appear quite exotic at first. But what price beauty? These days pro-machines can be had for a fraction of their original cost. Folks will spend $10K on a turntable or a CD playback setup. For a fraction of the cost in hardware plus a Tape Project Subscription, one can with pateince and/or money have the best sound still yet available. The only reason everyone is not pounding down the Tape Projects doors is nearly no folks (who crave good sound) have had the right R2R experience...yet. Given the cash outlay and learning curve it's quite understandable really.
"what is the exact relationship between Studer and Revox?"
see: http://www.studer.ch/index.aspx?menu_id=1&sub_menu_id=4&url=includes%2fhistory_include.aspx&locale= (http://www.studer.ch/index.aspx?menu_id=1&sub_menu_id=4&url=includes%2fhistory_include.aspx&locale=)
There you'll find:
The brief resum? of the company's history reads as a guide to quality audio. In 1948, Mr. Willi Studer founded his first own business in Z?rich with a staff of 3 people, producing special oscilloscopes for high-voltage labs.
In the following year the company produced the first own designed tape recorder named Dynavox and by the early 1950s a new brand name for amateur products, Revox, was introduced. In 1951 the prototype of the first professional tape recorder, the Studer 27 was used by Swiss radio, making overall recordings of the "Internationale Musikfestwochen Luzern".
In 1955 a new era of professional studio tape recorders began with the development of the Studer A37 and B37. In the following years the portable compact studio tape recorder B30 and the first mixing console studer 69 were established. The growth of the company continued, and in 1960 a new generation of tape recorders started with the model Studer C37.
In 1963 the first fully-transistorized professional tape recorder, the Studer A62 was introduced and in 1964 the prototype version of the 4-channel studio tape recorder J37 based on the C37 transport was presented. It represented the most complex, tube equipped machine ever, which paved the way for the acceptance of Studer products by recording studios all over the world.
In 1967 Abbey Road Studio used two Studer J37 to record the world famous Beatles production "Sgt. Pepper".
In the same year the well known Revox A77 was introduced, with over 400'000 units sold the worldwide best sold tape recorder of its class. This famous machine was used in nearly every studio worldwide. The completely modular A77 was built in more than 50 versions for applications such as broadcast, voice logging, education etc..
In 1970, the Studer A80 professional studio tape recorder with a complete new design concept followed. Built for every possible use, from 1/8" Quality Control for Compact Cassette tape to 2"- 24-track for music production, A80 tape recorders have been installed in nearly every music or radio studio facility worldwide with an number of more than 11'000 units.
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cdw