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Re: Some odds & ends...



   From: OwtUvFuel@aol.com
   Date: Mon, 15 Jan 1996 17:53:25 -0500
   Subject: Re: Some odds & ends...

   In a message dated 96-01-14 14:55:59 EST, WFang01@aol.com writes:

   >2) "Tommy" & "Live At Leeds" on the original Decca reel to reel. Since I
   >don't have a reel player. Does anyone know how these "antiques" may sound?
   >
   >

   I suppose it depends on the speed. If it was 15 ips or more, it would be the
   same as a studio master tape and would be the next best thing to a 2"
   24-track. Our old mono 1/4" machine had either 3-3/4 or 7-1/2 ips, but I
   would think either could sound better than vinyl on a good deck.

I don't think it's likely that it would sound better than a good-condition
vinyl copy, and certainly not as good as a studio master tape, because:

a)  Consumer decks never had 15ips; that was only available on professional
equipment.  So a prerecorded open reel tape for consumer use would be at 7-1/2
or 3-3/4 (probably 7-1/2 -- I don't remember what they used to do).

b)  Consumer stereo tapes were recorded in quarter track format, meaning there
were four tracks on a 1/4" wide tape (two channels in each of two directions).
If you work that out, that's narrower tracks than a 2" 24-track.  Master tapes
were 1/4", but recorded half track (two channels, but unidirectional).  So
even if it ran at 15ips, it would be an inferior format to a professional
format (to say nothing of tape stock quality, heads, etc).

c)  In 1970, there was no noise reduction on consumer equipment (Dolby "A" may
have been available in the studio, but I'm not even sure of that).  So this
tape will have tons o' hiss.

d)  Like pre-recorded cassette tapes of today, pre-recorded open reel tapes
were undoubtedly dubbed at high speed, on cheap stock.  More lost highs, and
dropouts. 

e)  Magnetic tape doesn't tolerate shelf storage as well as vinyl.  The tape
can get brittle and warped, and the magnetization of one swatch of tape can
affect the neighboring swatches one turn forward or back (you can sometimes
hear an "echo" on magtapes, where the delay time is equal to the time it takes
for one turn of the reel).

All in all, your tapes are likely much more valuable for their rarity than for
their sound!

Dolby was the biggest advance for consumer tape gear -- cassette tape with
Dolby actually sounded better than consumer-grade pre-recorded open-reel tape.
That combined with the convenience factor explains why open-reel and 8-track
tapes died a very quick death once Dolby became widely used (a lot less
controversy than the CD/vinyl thing).

Ken Traub