[19] J.S. Bach: Concerto in d, after Vivaldi, BWV 596, Allegro (AAD with preemphasis) 4:50
James Johnson (Flentrop organ)
Recording Venue: Busch-Reisinger Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
Recording Date: 1979
Recording Engineers: Peter W. Mitchell, Brad Meyer
Microphones: four Nakamichi CM-700s, two cardioid capsules in ORTF configuration, two widely spaced omnidirectional capsules
Microphone preamplifier: Mystic Valley Audio custom mixer
Recorder: ReVox A77 ¼" open-reel recorder at 15ips, with dbx noise reduction
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Track information, Track 19
Track information, Tracks 20-31
[20-31] 1/3-octave warble tones at -20dB (DDD). All 0:22 except Track 20, which is 1:01
Center frequencies: 1kHz, 200Hz, 160Hz, 125Hz, 100Hz, 80Hz, 63Hz, 50Hz, 40Hz, 31.5Hz, 25Hz, and 20Hz
These warble-tone tracks were recorded on the Nakamichi 1000 from the output of an Old Colony Sound Lab warble-tone generator, the frequency quoted being the approximate center frequency of each. The generator contains a sinewave oscillator that is frequency-modulated at a rate of 5Hz or so; this is fast enough that the effect of low-frequency room resonances…
Letters commenting on the first Stereophile Test CD appeared in various issues between June 1990 and September 1992:
Thanks for the Test CD
Editor: I am writing to highly praise the duo of Bruce Dunlap and Dan Kolton—I hope they come out with a record, CD, or tape—excellent music...my cats were bemused by the dog recordings!—Brian Paulsens, Grand Forks, ND
Copyright & a long memory
Editor: Do I get residuals for playing in the 1948 High School Band whose recording was featured on the Stereophile Test CD? I can tell you stories of J. Gordon Holt's appearance in…
The best & worst of discs
Editor: It was the best of discs, it was the worst of discs. But it was worth the money just for the microphone tests.
While recorded sound can never sound like the real thing, and listeners pick the kind of distortion they like, audiophiles seem the most offended by realistic reproduction, and seem to prefer some obviously exaggerated and unnatural sound. (Why else would audiophiles go to concerts with funny-looking ear extensions when the real sound is available to all, at no extra charge, with natural unaided ears?)
And why else would they…
The Test CD results
Editor: I had as much fun toying with your first Test CD as I could see that you had in producing it. Ralph, the dog, sounds almost startlingly real as he barks from my speakers. And somehow, I did not expect your resident "Cheapskate" to have such a rich voice. Has he ever worked as a radio announcer/personality?
As to the various microphones, not only was I astounded at the striking differences between them, I was equally surprised to discover how bad some were! Of course, I have not heard J. Gordon Holt in person; but I could tell that the Shure SM-57 and…
Where's the jewel box?
Editor: I was extremely relieved to discover your little note packed with the Stereophile Test CD. You know, the one that says a free replacement will arrive within 8 weeks. The reason for my gratification? My CD arrived cracked in half (due to the misdirected efforts of the letter-carrier in attempting to make sure the parcel fit in my mailbox).
While I in no way intend this letter as a commentary on the postal system (when confronted by me, the letter-carrier said "he didn't hear it crack"), the simple fact is, the CD was enclosed in an ordinary, flimsy…
KA-SLAM!!!!
thump thump thump
thump thump thump
"Hee, hee, hee!" I cackled maniacally as I listened to Däfos at what I jokingly refer to as a "realistic" volume. The Aerial Acoustics Model 10Ts sounded great—dynamic and uncolored, and seemingly impervious to the most spectacular transients. And detailed? I was hearing stuff I'd never heard on the disc before.
thump thump thump
Like that muffled thumping. I'd listened to this track literally thousands of times and never noticed it before.
thump thump thump
Actually, it was kind of spastic—it didn't really go with anything…
Living in the air
I reviewed the Aerials in my apartment, which has a smallish listening room. This forced me to listen in the nearfield—about 6' in front of the plane of the speakers themselves. The wall 24" behind my listening position was treated with RPG Abffusors. The speakers themselves were 7' apart and 30" from my record shelves, which meant the wall behind them was heavily damped. The two-part body of the 10T made tuning for the nearfield far, far easier than it normally would be for a speaker of this size, with such an extended frequency response. Being able to face the…
I reviewed the Aerials in my apartment, which has a smallish listening room. This forced me to listen in the nearfield—about 6' in front of the plane of the speakers themselves. The wall 24" behind my listening position was treated with RPG Abffusors. The speakers themselves were 7' apart and 30" from my record shelves, which meant the wall behind them was heavily damped. The two-part body of the 10T made tuning for the nearfield far, far easier than it normally would be for a speaker of this size, with such an extended frequency response. Being able to face the…
I've heard that song 500 times in the last three years—so why was this the first time I realized that Rodney Crowell was singing backup? Dang! I checked the notes—Rodney co-wrote the song, even. Until I heard it through the Aerials, I was just hearing "generic male harmonies"—suddenly it was one specific voice and personality.
Hmmm. Let's pull out another old friend...ah-ha! Vivaldi recorder concertos by Il Giardino Armonico (Teldec 91852-2). This is early music as death-metal: Vivaldi played at breakneck speed with particular emphasis on dynamic contrast and farfetched modulation. The…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Three-way, floorstanding, dynamic loudspeaker with reflex-loaded bass cabinet and separate tweeter/midrange module. Drive-units: 1" titanium-dome tweeter, 5.3" (136mm) dual Kevlar/epoxy-laminated-cone midrange unit, and 10.7" (271mm) bilaminate composite-cone woofer. Crossover frequencies: 360Hz, 2.7kHz. Crossover slopes: fourth-order, 24dB/octave, acoustic Linkwitz-Riley. Frequency response: 28Hz-20kHz, -2dB, -6dB at 23Hz. Sensitivity: 86dB/W/m (2.83V). Nominal impedance: 4 ohms, 3 ohms minimum. Amplifier requirements: 50W minimum, >100W…