RCA PART 1 Film 1956 - How RCA Vinyl Records Were Made
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
- STOP VIDEO CLICK HERE FOR AUTOPLAY • RCA PART 1 Film 1956 ... RCA film showing the details of how the vinyl record is created from recording to manufacturing the final product
I'm russian. I'm very much interested in tape recording and vinyl collecting.
Have seen this film and decided to buy this record. Well, to say I was glad is to say nothing. I was so very much impressed with the sound of 1956 record! It's deep, wide and musical. Not a "thin" digital sound.
I wonder, how did they recorded onto two recorders at the same time? I mean, how did they synchronized 2 tapes? The recorders are usual Ampex 300, without sync or quartz.
Shows legendary RCA producer Richard Mohr (with glasses) and engineer Lewis Layton (at the console). Thanks for posting!
Using RCA LC-1A "Furnace" speakers as the monitor speakers. Using AMPEX 300-2 for the dual track (stereo) recording and the other AMPEX-300 full track for the mono LP recording. Setup in the auditorium, one can see the two U-47 mics on each side of the front of the
stage for the dual track recording.
This was produced for RCA by Jam Handy, the leading producer of industrial and "commercial" films at that time. The recording of the "Romeo and Juliet" overture, by Charles Munch and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, was among the most prestigious RCA Victor released on their "Red Seal" label in 1956 (it was eventually re-recorded in "Living Stereo")...but RCA's biggest selling artist that year was Elvis Presley.
In the part where the lacquer mastering was being done (starting at 6:53), the tape machine rack-mounted diagonally at an angle on the wall was an RCA model RT-11 (presumably, all RCA LP's, 45's, EP's and 78's in those days were cut using this machine to play the master tapes). The lacquers were cut on Scully lathes made between 1950 and 1955, which were the first with automatic pitch/depth control (but preceded the Model 601 which was introduced in 1955).
@Vladislaw81 There was no need to synchronize. The full track tape was for the mono release, and the two track tape was for the stereo release. This was before RCA started using 3 channels to give more control over the soundstage. It looks like a pair of widely spaced Neumann M50s for the stereo tape, and one RCA44 in front of the conductor's podium for the mono tape. This may have been staged for the film, as RCA normally used separate teams for mono and stereo in the early days.
2:44 That's one cool-looking speaker enclosure for 1956.
@amceagle1 I agree with you on that, that type of recording when played back on quality stereo systems with good speaker imaging gives you a center channel with the ability to pin point where the instruments are in the orchestra.
I forgot you had these videos bill. Very interesting, I have some of the records listed in the video to
Dynamic range and frequency response are two areas in which CD is superior to LP, yet many people denigrate it, which has never made sense.
The unfortunate thing was that instead of taking advantage of the increased range, many producers have used the wide-but-well-defined dynamic range of CDs to compress music more than would have been practical for vinyl without cutting the playing time.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war
I found these in my favorites bill, I love these little informational videos, I watched part two also
I wouldn't be surprised if Elvis' master tapes were played through that RCA RT-11 tape machine as seen in the section from 6:53 to 9:51, when his LP's, 45's, EP's and 78's were being mastered alongside Munch/BSO's "Romeo and Juliet" LP (LM-2043).
Interesting - not a Red Seal Shaded Dog ... but the black label... Richard Mohr is sitting on the left in the recording session. This was prob recorded in two track stereo for future stereo LP productions, yet was prob available for home use as a stacked or staggered open reel release.
This reminds me of the high-fidelity cassette system I bought in 1972 for $149. It was meant for stereo recording at home but had no direct-line recording capability. It came with two microphones and that was it. The only way to put stereo music on a cassette was to play a record on a stereo system and place the microphones in front of the speakers. Since it wasn't direct line you had to be quiet so it wouldn't pick up noises. The end result was pretty lame but it was in stereo. Music on cassettes wasn't very good until the late 70s.
@75capriceconvertible So have I, and a few that the quality control guy missed that were pressed off center
Dig that RCA KU-3A at 4:28.
Yea, more to look at it now, it's the "Plum Shaded Dog" label ... just the film itself has faded ... being an Eastman stock print. Thx
RCA 1956 Vinyl Records
..and I have a slew of RCA and Columbia 2trk RR's .. even staggered 2trks - including the two famous Reiners .. the Sprach and the Heldenleben.
This was a "shaded dog" release in actuality, except before 1958 they used dark maroon instead of red in the background of those labels.
Fully agree with you, having worked with that now "vintage" devices. But they are still great.
I suppose by putting the players with the furniture would possibly make it easier to ship in a boxcar via railroad. More stability to keep the guts stable while the cars go bumpety bump in the marshaling yards
Using AMPEX 300 unit for the initial two track recording. Yet, you'd think they would be using 351-2
is it me or did the record skip at around 5 minutes? GREAT VIDEO!
To think how many people it took back then to make what today would be inferior recordings.
Nowadays, my company flies a custom built array of microphones over the best seat in the house and makes recordings at high digital sample rates/depths, achieving realism that just a few years ago seemed unattainable. It's fascinating to watch these documentaries to see how far we've come in that time.
How far we've come? Hardly. You just witnessed the hayday of audphile recording and production!