This
page demonstrates the stereo performance of the restored Wollensak 5750 EV
reel to reel tape recorder.
Method:
The
music file was created by plugging the pre-amp outputs of the tape recorder
into the line input of the computer and having the computer record it as
a "raw" WAV file. The file was compressed from WAV format to MP3 format
using Apple's iTunes, for delivery across the Internet.
It
is important to note that MP3 compression actually lowers sound quality by
removing some of the audio information from the original "raw" - WAV - file.
This is unavoidable due to bandwidth needs.
There
is a popular misconception that because MP3 is so widely used, it actually
improves sound, which is not the case. So what you are hearing here,
nice as it is, is somewhat
less than the actual performance of the Wollensak 5750 reel to reel
tape recorder!
The
Musical Selection:
The
music is a selection from the Spellbound Concerto by
Miklos Rozsa. The source tape is Number D2T 230 from the Columbia Tape Club "Rhapsody
in Blue and Other Favorites", a 7-inch pre-recorded reel tape running
at 3 3/4 ips, copyright 1966 by Columbia Record Club. The recording, like
the Wollensak 5750, was purchased on E-Bay.
Miklos
Rozsa was a brilliant Hollywood film composer who wrote a number of great
film scores, including: King of Kings, Quo Vadis, Ben Hur as well
as Spellbound
Concerto which comes from the Alfred Hitchcock film, Spellbound.
You can find some CDs that have the Spellbound Concerto on them
around the Internet, just search for "Spellbound Concerto" by Miklos Rozsa.
Trivia
note: The score to Spellbound incorporates the use of a
Theremin, that eerie 20th century electronic instrument often used in early
sci-fi films. However, this sampling does not have a theremin sound on it.
For a video of
playback performance, please click here.
For a sample of
recording performance, please click here.
Please
note that ClydeSight Productions DOES NOT rebuild or sell vintage
reel to reel tape recorders, nor can we help anyone involved in such a project.
The tape recorders shown in these pages are part of a personal collection
and are not for sale. We Do Not recommend
that unqualified or inexperienced persons attempt to restore vintage audio
equipment.
Visit
www.clydesight.com Master Site
Web site copyright ©ClydeSight
Productions - 2007
