Joël-François Durand's "Telos" 12 inches arm

A really nice, out of the choir, arm...

MSRP? USD 19.500, of course!

Building our own headshell?

A project for the retired, TV haters, unemployed or... simply for the most clever and skilled among us...

Thanks a lot to LencoHeaven and to the cool guy from South Africa.



I'm also investigating on my own path, for a Lemo/Camac-based DIY headshell/arm connecting... and more, MUCH more:-)))

Who says those 4 shitty miniature headshells-wires/contacts are THE only viable way to connect a cartridge to arm to pre-amp?!?!

Just thinking about Decca's proprietary sliding contact for their International arm and cartridges... so cool!

Standards!?!

Fuck standards!

A Lemo's 4-concentric contacts male & female... WOW!

Easter

The poor white dove is in troubles... as Peace is a rare find, these days... 

Ivan's Choice - Locust

First Locust record in 12 years! Mark Van Hoen, who made a string of influential releases as Locust on R&S records in the 1990's, all but retired the alias at the end of that decade. The record showcases prime examples of Van Hoen's compulsively hypnotic beats and abstracted pop vocals—already hallmarks of his collected work since 1993—manipulating a global variety of samples in Celemony's Melodyne software to weave a unique sonic tapestry, as inviting as it is intricate. Paired with Sherman's evocative synth improvisations—an immediately visceral element new to Locust—these collaborators have crafted a shattered landscape that bridges two persectives of progressive movement in electronic music under a single name.




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The Vario's MRT speakers from Italy

Let's call them "Righteous" and "Lefty"?!?



These speakers are... good for kids room!

... but - looking at the "tweeter" - funny:-)

Thomas Mayer - The Tubes Bard

My friend Thomas REALLY is... 

Indeed.

His always enriching technical AND entertaining posts are a WEB highlight.

... and, almost forgettin': his gears are among the VERY best money can buy...

Musings?

Embarassing new fashion...

A newly restored Robbie Basho's track!

Thanking Kyle for his nice labour of love... here is the free download...

Robbie would love ALL the interest and positiveness, money unrelated around his music!

A good Cat!

Repetita juvant!

Sure he's not an audio industry slave... a truth seeker and a passionate music lover... his Forum is a Goldmine for Audio, Music and related... always full of news and in-deep discussions.

Ladies & gentlemen, here is Roman Bessnow and his Macondo in the background.


Meooow!

R P G or the art of sound diffusing and absorbing

WOW...  

I'd wish to live here!

Commune villas... an awesome place, few km from Beijing.

In China... yes!

The "only" audio system my wife would like...

... after I hauled my system in my studio, years ago:-)))

Integration and understatement... and hidden gears, as she likes... mmmmhhh....

Cool!

The ultimate drum kit

More impressive than Dafos, Les Percussions de Strasbourg and Ondekoza:-))))

... and look at the smile:-)

"Compact-Cassette" hommage

50th Anniversary for cassette... here a cool (not compact:-))) hommage!

Allnic's Puritas, Arche' headshell and Oyaide HSR-AG Silver wires

Arrived!

It's serial # 48 - which means that at least 47 lunatics already bought it:-))) - coming in the cool titanium finish... an expensive headshell, but a Swiss watch-like miniature masterpiece...

Coming without wires, I had to chase for the ultimate coloured-code cartridge wires... after extensive browsing for alternatives, I choose...  

OYAIDE

HSR-AG

HEADSHELL WIRES - 5N PURE SILVER

Rhodium Plated Brass Tips

Silk Insulation

The mighty ALLNIC Puritas will be soon playing at its VERY best, ever!

Yeah!!!

Sony Super Metal Master - THE ultimate master cassette

Hideously expensive, BUT this very Sony's "Super Metal Master" cassette tape when used for live recordings makes your SONY TCD5 or WM6DC happy and performing like an open reel tape recorder!

His Bobness' Chronicles - Bob Dylan's "New Orleans Series"... an exhibition at Palazzo Reale, Milan, Italy

... tomorrow - March 10th, 2013 - will be VERY last exhibition day... it's free... why don't take a chance, if in Milan:-)))?!?

Bob Dylan's is also talented as an oil-on-canvas artist!

The Saturday Disk - Arvo Part's "Fur Alina"

A marvellous piece of piano music, as recorded on July 1995 and issued by ECM New Series in same year... a truly surprising disk I wasn't aware of introduced to me by my friend Edoardo during a listening session I'll remember for years, yesterday evening...

Like Maestro Part says on disk forewords, this music, part of tintinnabuli series, is like a white, pure light... like a prism, the listener sensibility and passion and "understanding/enjoying" makes possible the creations of "colours"... pale, beautiful colours which soooo beautifully dress life and silence.

A superbly light and deep, sooo easy to the soul, kind of music, indeed.

Some trivia... on track 4, "Fur Alina" second variation you'll find a burglar hidden in the (sonic) background... and trains and an aircraft... and the piano pedals and strings muting are pretty awesome: you can hear a seldom heard brushing, harp-like sound, like a feather strumming the piano strings... a truly incredible resolution!

The piano (and the other piano and strings pieces) are recorded in a church in Frankfurt and the pedals and Alexander Malter's - the superb pianist - puffing and breathing and clothes rubbing (!!!) are very lively captured.

A true joy to listen to and a recording to die for, indeed.

Enjoy!

Berlin Trivia and Vintage Studio Porn - David Bowie meets Herbert Von Karajan

WOW!

Last week a tour through Emil Berliner Studios was organized by Michael Vrzal of Fidelity Magazine in Berlin.

This very studio was used by David Bowie when he recorded Heroes, Helden in Berlin.

The 'Meistersaal' which was used as one of seven concert halls in the vicinity of Potdamer Platz in the 1920ies is also in this building. It can be used for recordings as well.
In the 70ies it was a lonely place with little buildings around it, except the Berlin Wall a stone throw away.

Rainer Maillard, Producer of Emil Berliner Studios (center) explains the Analog studio.
Of course they have all the digital fancy stuff used in 'modern' recordings as well, but the emphasis of this visit was purely analog.

The studio inherited a lot of gear from Deutsche Grammophon, actually the mixing console is from the late 1950ies and was used for Furtwängler and early Karajan recordings. Built from German broadcast modules like the famous V72 tube mic preamp or Eckmiller faders. In 100% working condition it is still used for analog recordings here. 50 years are quite a lifetime for professionally used gear!

The very Studer machine used for Bowie's recording is still there.
Fully refurbished it is now used for transfering analog master tapes to digital formats for international customers for example.
There was a jazz tape mounted and played, which sounded beautifully direct.

There is a Neumann VMS80 record cutting lathe as well, used for making direct to disc LPs under the label of
'Berliner Meister Schallplatten'.
5 records are on the market already!

The machine is equipped with a Technics built direct drive, nothing you find in the DJ deck or the SP10 though...
Ortofon amps are used to drive the cutting head.

The SX74 cutting head in detail. There is a tube that sucks the freshly cut material from the lacquer disc away.
For cooling the head down some helium gas is flowing across the cutting head, there is a hose coming in at the yellow triangle.
To control the adjustment of the cutting head there is a magnifying device permantenly installed on the right.

There is also another microscope on the left to control the grooves.
For convinience this can be viewed on a video monitor as well, all analog of course..

A dummy lacquer disc is on the lathe. In order to hold it firmly there is a vacuum pump sucking the disc to the platter.
Otherwise it would be pushed away from the force of the cutting head. In production the readily cut disc is put in to a metal transport container as fast as possible, to be transferred to the record pressing company.




A close up of the platter with the holes allowing the vacuum pump to do its job.

These lacquer discs are larger than a 12 inch LP, but not 16 inch transcription size.

The machine was adjusted to 14 inch diameter lacquer discs.

The control panel allowing adjustments of platter speed and groove width.
To make 'Halfspeed' cuttings for example.

If using a tape a source for cutting, the recording engineer needs to hear the music signal a bit earlier before the cutting head does its irreversible job. With this time ahead the engineer can control the width of the groove. To get this little extra time the tape machine offers some special way of having the tape mounted, this way there is a second or so between the signal for the engineer and the signal going to actual cutting head. Obviously the tape machine needs two sepreate playback heads for this.

If used for direct to disc cutting this can not be done, since the signal goes directly from the musicians, microphones, mixing console to the cutting head amps. In this case the record width is put to maximum to allow sudden dynamic peaks in the music to find their place with out overcutting into the neigbour groove.
Apart from the technical aspects, the musicians have to be 100% concentrated if using this direct to disc recording.

In digital recordings they have the ease of mind that they can do endless recordings and editing takes together if a little mistake happens. Not possible in direct to disc though. This way all counting the typical one, two three, four is also between the tracks adding to the captured performance atmosphere on these discs. I hope that a lot of musicians dare to go this route.

Thanks a lot to Rainer Maillard again for opening the studio and showing around.

Thanks to Michael Vrzal for suggesting this visit.

Thanks to Thomas Schick for suggesting such a juicy post and pixes... and thanking LencoHeaven's folks, as well.

Ivan's Choice - Henry Fool's Men Singing

Henry Fool's Men Singing is an ambitious four track instrumental album featuring members of No-Man, I Monster and Roxy Music. Sometimes playful, sometimes intense, sometimes eerie and ethereal, Men Singing is equal parts dynamic drums, spiky guitars and atmospheric washes of fluttering flutes and vintage keyboards. Produced and arranged by band founders keyboardist Stephen Bennett and guitarist Tim Bowness (Steven Wilson's creative partner in No-Man), the album has been mixed by Jarrod Gosling (I Monster/Regal Worm), who also contributes Mellotron, glockenspiel and the wonderfully surreal artwork. Appearing on Everyone In Sweden and Man Singing, Phil Manzanera's legendary guitar skills can be heard in the context of long-form instrumental music for the first time since his celebrated stint in 1970s mavericks Quiet Sun. Other contributions come from Brian Eno collaborator and Slow Electric member Peter Chilvers (bass), lead guitarist Michael Bearpark, Andrew Booker (drums), Myke Clifford (sax/flute) and classical violinist Steve Bingham, all of whom have worked live with No-Man or as part of London underground club, Improvizone. Mastered by award-winning Pink Floyd sound engineer, Andy Jackson.



Intriguing...