Sheffield Lab Albums - yay or nay?

[Pluto]

We all know how tube adds distortion…

While the headline distortion numbers may well be worse than they are with solid state amplifiers, one of the beauties of tube front ends is their inherently excellent overload capability. This can be of paramount importance on a live performance when there are no second chances.

With state of the art modern digital kit we can usually get away with recording a never-to-be-repeated live performance at a safely low level so as to be certain that nothing overloads. The levels can easily be increased in the calm of post production.

Back in the day, it had to be right on the night and the best possible overload performance of your mic. amps. was a helpful load off your mind.

 

[JoachimStrobel]

While the headline distortion numbers may well be worse than they are with solid state amplifiers, one of the beauties of tube front ends is their inherently excellent overload capability. This can be of paramount importance on a live performance when there are no second chances.

With state of the art modern digital kit we can usually get away with recording a never-to-be-repeated live performance at a safely low level so as to be certain that nothing overloads. The levels can easily be increased in the calm of post production.

Back in the day, it had to be right on the night and the best possible overload performance of your mic. amps. was a helpful load off your mind.

That is the mystery that I do not I understand. Digital has much better specs than DD, no doubt. And I am no believer in vinyl sounds better. I still claim that DDs have a live feeling to it that beats Digital, whereas the overall sound quality in digital is for sure better.

 

[watchnerd]

That is the mystery that I do not I understand. Digital has much better specs than DD, no doubt. And I am no believer in vinyl sounds better. I still claim that DDs have a live feeling to it that beats Digital, whereas the overall sound quality in digital is for sure better.

Reverb effects via acoustic feedback.

Common to LPs.

 

[Pluto]

That is the mystery that I do not I understand. Digital has much better specs than DD

A mic. amp. is a totally analog component. In general, tube mic. amps. will have a rather better overload margin than their solid state counterparts. There is nothing mysterious about it. If you are recording a live performance with no retakes or editing possible, you would choose mic. amps. with the best possible overload capability.

When most of the famous direct to disc recordings were made (mid seventies), digital recording was little more than a pipe dream.

 

[JeffS7444]

I think part of the direct-to-disk appeal was that it seemed live and unedited, and if the performances were imperfect, they were authentic. As far as I know, no one was doing pitch correction on the fly back in the 1980s.

 

[Brent71]

Good. Great examples of how good recordings can be in any format.

They did record a number, maybe all, in parallel to an early digital recorder (gigantic thing!)

No, the safety recordings were done to analog tape at 30 IPS. Those analog tapes were the source for the CDs reissues years later.

 

[DonH56]

No, the safety recordings were done to analog tape at 30 IPS. Those analog tapes were the source for the CDs reissues years later.

Not the safety recordings, they had a big (Sony?) ADC console machine sitting there in parallel. I don't know if those files were ever released.

 

[egellings]

I listened to LPs using headphones, which eliminated any effects of acoustic feedback from speakers on sound quality.

 

[restorer-john]

Sounds to me like direct to disk had far more downsides than upsides.

But the immediacy and tangible connection to the artists is amazing, especially where they'd talk/make comments in between songs/tracks.

 

[Timcognito]

I bought Dave Grusin's Discovered Again, Sheffield first pressing new when all there was LP and tape and later as an XRCD and swear that to this day the LP sounds more real when I compare them. My vinyl setup is nothing special.

Remotely related; What is the effect of the RIAA correction on LP playback, if any?

 

[watchnerd]

But the immediacy and tangible connection to the artists is amazing, especially where they'd talk/make comments in between songs/tracks.

I have the Riverside Monk/Coltrane box set where there is a lot of that kind of chatter, and other outtakes.

It was kind of fun....once.

 

[egellings]

RIAA correction is absolutely essential for LP playback. Without it, notes near 20Hz about 20dB down, and notes near the upper limit would be overemphasized by 20dB. Youd have a screechy, skinny-legged sound without the correction. Unlistenable.

 

[watchnerd]

RIAA correction is absolutely essential for LP playback. Without it, notes near 20Hz about 20dB down, and notes near the upper limit would be overemphasized by 20dB. Youd have a screechy, skinny-legged sound without the correction. Unlistenable.

My Decca EQ'ed LPs are going to disagree.

 

[Timcognito]

RIAA correction is absolutely essential for LP playback. Without it, notes near 20Hz about 20dB down, and notes near the upper limit would be overemphasized by 20dB. Youd have a screechy, skinny-legged sound without the correction. Unlistenable.

Thank you, I knew that. I should have said a another but necessary link in chain does it have deleterious effects.

 

[egellings]

Not familiar with Decca's EQ, but it must be quite different from the RIAA version. If that's the case, then RIAA EQ certainly would not work for your Decca LPs.

 

[watchnerd]

Not familiar with Decca's EQ, but it must be quite different from the RIAA version. If that's the case, then RIAA EQ certainly would not work for your Decca LPs.

Many pre-1955 records used something other than RIAA:

5.3.6 Replay Equalisation | International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives

www.iasa-web.org

In addition to RIAA, I have a few records with Decca, Columbia, Capitol, and Vox curves.

 

[Brent71]

In "Peace Train"....

....is that a pump organ??

Yes. Etsey Reed Pump Organ- Victor Feldman on Side 1, Joanne Grauer on Side 1.

 

[Brent71]

Good. Great examples of how good recordings can be in any format.

They did record a number, maybe all, in parallel to an early digital recorder (gigantic thing!)

I need to correct my previous reply to you about them using analog. I've since read that at times these used both analog AND digital recorders in parallel with the cutting lathes. In the liner notes for Tower Of Power - Direct (Plus!) Doug Sax wrote that the earlier CD release (CD-17) was transferred from a Mitsubishi X-80 at 50.4 kHz sample rate. The 20+ -> 16 Ultra Matrix CD version was transferred from the 30 IPS 1/2" master tapes.

 

[posvibes]

I must have been 15 or so and my best friend's brother said come and have a listen to this, so we trundled into his bedroom probably no bigger than a condemned man's cell, full of books, bed and bookshelves with no room to swing a cat (we'd tried). From memory I can still see the glow of the orange lamp of a black faced Sansui amp, a pair of small ecru coloured grills on a pair of AR speakers and a Sansui turntable, and he let rip with "I've got the music in me" by Thelma Houston, was it the LA Express playing along?

One of the earliest seminal moments for me concerning Hi-Fi, the drums on that track were like they were playing right there in the room. Crazy.

 

[Brent71]

I must have been 15 or so and my best friend's brother said come and have a listen to this, so we trundled into his bedroom probably no bigger than a condemned man's cell, full of books, bed and bookshelves with no room to swing a cat (we'd tried). From memory I can still see the glow of the orange lamp of a black faced Sansui amp, a pair of small ecru coloured grills on a pair of AR speakers and a Sansui turntable, and he let rip with "I've got the music in me" by Thelma Houston, was it the LA Express playing along?

One of the earliest seminal moments for me concerning Hi-Fi, the drums on that track were like they were playing right there in the room. Crazy.

They 'named' the band Pressure Cooker after a comment Doug Sax had made during the recording sessions. They were some of the best-of-the-best studio musicians, some of whom had worked with Lincoln Mayorga, or on the previous 3 Sheffield Lab albums (Lincoln Mayorga & Distinguished Colleagues, Missing Linc Vol. II & III). I don't think any of the musicians need any introduction, they're all 1st class session players.

• Thelma Houston – vocals
• Larry Knechtel, Lincoln Mayorga, Mike Melvoin, Michael Omartian – keyboards
• Larry Carlton, Dean Parks – guitar
• Reinie Press – bass guitar
• Jim Gordon, Jim Keltner – drums
• Gary Coleman, Victor Feldman – percussion
• Chuck Findley, Paul Hubinon – trumpet
• Dick Hyde, Lew McCreary – trombone
• Jim Horn, Tom Scott – saxophone
• Richard Perissi – French horn
• Morgan Ames, Jim Gilstrap, Myrna Matthews, Marti McCall, Lisa Roberts, Jackie Ward – background vocals
• Mike Melvoin, Michael Omartian – arranger
• Lincoln Mayorga – conductor

Technical

• Doug Sax, Lincoln Mayorga – executive producer
• Bill Schnee – recording engineer
• Christina Farley – album design & photography
• Pat Nagel – cover illustration
• Mike Reese - lathe operator