I also think there are a few characters over at Hoffman who think their superior listening and fault detecting skills (and I use that those words with a healthy dose of sarcasm) could lead them to an invitation to sit in on future mastering sessions with Gray and co. One poster has more than hinted he wouldn’t be satisfied with any explanations regarding Black Fire until he has heard the master on Gray’s rig for himself. Dream on......
I think the entire debacle is a great shame, doing more harm than good. 60 year old tapes are usually beyond reconstitution, such as fixing dropouts and pitch, without the aid of digital tools. The perpetrators just don’t seem to be able to gain any sense of perspective and proportion. Few engineers or label directors will ever want to take on another project like this if this is the likely outcome. I really do hope the series continues to sell well, I haven’t finished collecting yet! - although there will certainly be none of the other Andrew Hill titles I was hoping for.
KEVIN GRAY SAYS:
Wow and Flutter on Blue Notes: Scotch (3M) 111 was the very first U.S. recording tape formulation produced in quantity in the U.S. It was released in 1948 and was about all there was in the U.S. until 1964. About 90 percent of the recordings I master from that period are recorded on 111. All the RVG Blue Notes from that period are on 111. It is a red/orange iron oxide basically glued to clear acetate. It bears no resemblance to modern tape. Acetate is very unstable over time. It becomes extremely brittle. You can pull on it slightly and it breaks. This tape never wound totally smooth on the reel, but that has also gotten much much worse over time. The biggest problem occurs when the tape was wound off at high speed, as opposed to being played though. This might occur when a tape was perhaps wound to the head to copy one song. Then the rest of the tape is wound off in “Fast Forward”. The result is that the tape cinches slightly and if left that way develops a permanent curl or ruffle. This is very common on 111. Once this has happened the tape does not wrap smoothly over the playback head and tends to wander slightly. This is clearly visible as the video shows. Another problem is that NONE of the recorders from the 50s and early 60s had constant tape tension, which all modern tape recorders have. The tension would be higher at the end of the reel than the beginning. This also took a toll on tape. The 2nd generation 3M tape was Scotch 201. Although the oxide changed (dark brown), the base was still acetate, and the same problems exist. Around 1965, 202 was released, which was on modern mylar/polyester. But RVG used both 111 and 201 for several more years. So the tape wandering over the heads as opposed to staying flat does introduce speed anomalies. How could it not? And it isn’t consistent from tape to tape. Some wind smoother than others. Fast winding, as mentioned before, things like temperature and humidity in storage, and age have taken a toll. There are other factors effecting speed, such as sticking splices. The adhesive in the splicing tape oozes with age. It can’t be cleaned off very effectively because of the brittleness of the tape. Someone said “The Japanese CD from 2014 didn’t have the problem.” This would have been made from the copy in Japan’s Blue Note archive made in the 1980s. The masters are not sent to Japan for any reason and the master was 30 years younger then. I’m not surprised. And the CD doesn’t have the issue of stamper centering, like the LP does. I hope I have cleared up this issue for you. Best, Kevin Gray Cohearent Audio, LLC
