DAT-heads Digest #398

Contents:
  looking for jim carroll shows (CjC)
  Re: emphasis (Tom McCreadie)
  Re: Pre-emphasis ("Gary Davis")
  Maxell DVD-R's 35 cents Office Depot ("Gary Davis")
  dat tapes (Stephen Stroud)


From: CjC <catch_the_dyin_sun@yahoo.com>
Subject: looking for jim carroll shows
Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2005 10:49:03 -0800 (PST)

anyone have these?

2/12/05 middle east, cambridge

Joe's Pub (New York, NY) 24 August 2003
Howl Festival: "Rock Poets" benefit for FEVA with Lou
Reed, Thurston Moore, Lee Ranaldo, Ed Sanders, and
Karen Finley. Carroll also made a surprise guest
appearance with Lenny Kaye's band a night or two
earlier.





                
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From: Tom McCreadie <mccreadi@xs4all.nl>
Subject: Re: emphasis
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2005 00:24:03 +0100

Bob in #397:

 >If you playback on a DAT deck that supports emphasis (I believe all of
 >them do, by the way) the digital output will have valid digital audio
 >data, and that digital data will have the preemphasis flag set.
 >When you route this into a computer, via whatever means, the resulting
 >WAV files which are created cannot store the fact that the data needs
 >preemphasis.  There is no preemphasis flag in the WAV format.  I am
 >not aware of any common digital audio format for computers which has
 >the ability to store the preemphasis flag.

Agreed. Interestingly, though, some RME soundcards at least have a handy 
capability to detect or set emphasis bits: the incoming emphasized digital 
signal from a DAT is recorded as a H/D wav file with its emphasis skewing 
unchanged, but the analog monitor-signal does get automatically 
de-emphasized, so that you listen to the correct frequency response.  This 
frequency-skewed wav file now on the H/D contains, of course, no data to 
reveal its preamphasized condition, but if you now manually check an 
emphasis setting in the RME soundcard software, you ensure a correct analog 
monitor signal during all editing/mastering work - and the flags do get 
reinserted if you export your wav as a digital stream back to an external 
DAT, stand-alone cd recorder etc.

 >Now, if you are suggesting that someone could use the *analog* outputs
 >from a DAT deck that supports preemphasis, yes, this would work, but
 >you are introducing a whole bunch of extra noise and hassle in the
 >process going from digital > analog > digital just to remove the
 >preemphasis.  It is especially problematic to get the analog input
 >into a computer without introducing all sorts of RF noise.

Marc was already wrestling with one crapped-out audio channel, so it's 
unrealistic for him to pursue ultimate fidelity on this project. [In cases, 
though, of being shackled with a soundcard with poor A-D, a workaround is 
to borrow a 2nd DAT recorder and run: DAT1(tape play) DA > AD DAT2(record 
mode, no tape) > s/pdif DD > PC.]

Having had the chore of needing to fix the preemphasis on close to 130 
concert tapes, I've had plenty of chance to dabble with all three suggested 
techniques (and a even a 4th - analog domain deemphasis filter in audio 
preamp tape monitor loop) This had all started when a friend helped me out 
with transfer to H/D thence CD of my Aladdin's cave <g> of vcr/Sony PCM 501 
tapes (all with preemphasis) from the 1980's and early 1990's. Alas, he 
chose to transfer digitally to pc via his new Sony PCM 601...and the rest 
is history <g>. The majority of the rework jobs were done by digital 
equalization of the H/D wav file using the Waves software plugin - Waves Q 
10 Paragraphic preset "DAT-CD de/pre-emphasis". In honesty, on loudspeaker 
playback I could hardly distinguish between the 'end product' of the three 
approaches (cd flags; digital wav equalization; PCM501 > A>D > soundcard). 
The Waves plugin got the nod then for speed and convenience...ironically, I 
later got round to testing its response and was dismayed to find it's shape 
differing a fair amount from the theoretical emphasis curve.

Tom
'Music is the greatest silent force in the world' - Lionel Richie





From: "Gary Davis" <g@hoxnet.com>
Subject: Re: Pre-emphasis
Reply-to: g@hoxnet.com
Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2005 15:48:01 -0800

I think the suggestion was to play it back analog, then record it 
analog on another DAT deck or CD recorder, and then transfer it to 
the computer.  Doing an analog transfer between two studio-quality 
digital recorders does NOT significantly hurt the quality, and can be 
useful for any number of reasons (mono'ing one channel to both, 
EQ, volume adjustment, etc).

--Gary



From: "Gary Davis" <g@hoxnet.com>
Subject: Maxell DVD-R's 35 cents Office Depot
Reply-to: g@hoxnet.com
Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2005 17:17:38 -0800

In 50-packs, $34.99 each, buy one get one free.
Check the label for "Made in Japan."
--Gary



From: Stephen Stroud <stroud@sympatico.ca>
Subject: dat tapes
Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2005 22:26:23 -0500

    hello there, i'm new to dat, just bought a d8 and i'm wondering 
about what tapes i should use, or better yet what tapes should i avoid 
using, i know when i started trading audio tapes maxell was "the" tape 
to use but i know their cdrs arn't very good, what about their dat tapes?

anyone that can point me in the right direction would be a great help, 
also i live in canada near toronto, if you know a good place around 
there to buy tapes that would be great, or am i better off ordering them 
online?

anyway thanks



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