Re: [ARSCLIST] Fwd: [ARSCLIST] Dynamic-frequency Range

[David Lennick <dlennick@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Matter of fact, there were recordings we never got, such as a Mengelberg Tchaikovsky
5th on Brunswick, because they didn't pass the "wear test". The range on some of the
Western Electric test recordings in 1923-24 was quite impressive..many of them sound
far better than the electricals we finally began to get from Victor, while some are
very thin because they were experimenting with various filters and settings (which
are marked on the discs).

dl


Don Tait wrote:

>   A very interesting and rewarding reponse. May I add something about the
> dynamic response on the earliest electrical 78s?
>
>   It seems clear that from the beginning the electrical system was able to
> record a huge dynamic range. The classic example that I've seen cited in many
> places is USA Columbia's first electrical release, 50013-D (Black Label):
>
>   Trad.-Andrews: "John Peel"
>   Portugal: "Adeste Fidelis"
>
>   Associated Glee Clubs of America (LIve, Metropolitan Opera House, March
> 1925)
>
>   The dynamic range on "John Peel" is astounding. Finding a copy that wasn't
> chewed to pieces in the climaxes by heavy early pickups is difficult. And
> that's why every company cut back on the dynamic range of electrical recordings:
> the pickups of the time would quickly destory the loud passages on the records.
> Roland Gelatt might have written about this in his publications; some did,
> but I can't remember where for sure.
>
>   I regret that I do not have the equipment to provide scientific data about
> this.
>
>   Don Tait