[Vintage-Audio] Re: Vintage-Audio-V49#4; Too Many Highs

[Phil Barnes-Roberts WA6DZS]

vintage-audio-request at mailman.qth.net opined  on 08/25/2008 01:01 AM:
> Subject: [Vintage-Audio] CDS With Too Many Highs?
> From: "Duane Fischer, W8DBF" <dfischer at usol.com>
> Date: Sun, 24 Aug 2008 20:48:34 -0400
> To: <vintage-audio at mailman.qth.net>
> 
> Hi All,
> 
> Today I listened to a just released digitally recorded CD by a Southern 
> Gospel Quartet that a close friend of mine sings the Low Bass for. Now 
> either the old blind dude's ears are failing or these digitally recorded 
> and mixed CD products have way too many highs! It is difficult to find a 
> term that describes them correctly. They are definitely intense, almost 
> to the point of being a piercing sort of sound. Not what I find pleasant 
> to listen to. I had to trim 6Db off the upper midrange so that I could 
> listen to it without just getting up and shutting it off.
> 
> Some of the other commercially recorded CDS do not have such intense 
> highs, others do. However, it does seem to be much more common if the 
> recording is done by someone with digital recording and mixing gear in a 
> "home" or "small studio" environment. Is this the fault of the person 
> doing the original recording, the person doing the mixing or the digital 
> equipment itself?
> 
> I also noticed that the bass guitar was distorted on certain low notes. 
> I attribute this to recording it too hot to start with and then 
> incorrectly adding reverb to emulate a spacious large studio sound.
> 
> Maybe I am blaming the wrong entity? Instead of being a factor in the 
> digital recording world or because it is done using digital technology, 
> perhaps it is due to the person doing the recording and mixing not 
> knowing the correct way to do it?
> 
> Is the public willing to accept these sub standard recordings because 
> they listen on sub standard audio systems and do not know the 
> difference? Or has the term "music" gone the way of the old water 
> wasting toilets that actually flushed with one press of the handle? I 
> HATE these new ones! But I suppose somebody does sell a lot more plungers!
> 
> Duane

The subject came up a week or two ago on 'For the Record with Samm
Brown', Sunday afternoon (14:00 PT) on www.kpfk.org, archives available
for a while on the Website, currently back into July; Play, Download or
Podcast.

The conjecture was that the person doing the mixing had been listening
at rather high levels (to get that fine detail, and maybe from habit?)
and had given him/herself some high-end hearing loss along the way.

Early-in-the-day mixes, with rested ears, are apparently quite different
from late-afternoon work.  Sounds likely.

-- 
'---O=o=O---'
73, Phil Barnes-Roberts WA6DZS < Mailto:pbarnrob at acm dot org >
"You can't change the past, but you can ruin the present by
worrying over the future."  --Author Unknown