OP
Plenty of non- classical music has wide dynamic range
No response to checking on headphones for the rumble, unless I missed it
I didn’t see if you tried the same recordings on SACD or CD…would to see your response
Where do classical vinyl records get their rumble from?
Recently converted back to vinyl from silver disks, I am struck by how much rumble seems to be inherent in the new and used vinyl I am buying.
A case in point, is a recent Deutsche Grammophon (DG) recording (487 7484) of Mahler’s Second Symphony made at a live performance at the Sydney Opera House (I was there). The first set I bought was amongst the dirtiest pressings I have ever had, but the second set was much improved. However, there is a persistent rumble whether played on my Holbo Mk2 air bearing system or my venerable Garrard 301 (new bearing from Classic Turntable Company).
Mahler typically has huge dynamic range, from muted off-stage performers to hundreds of musicians going hell-for-leather.
The rumble could be partly caused by the venue’s air conditioning system, but I hear similar background on a Telarc recording (Stereo 10051) of Saint Saens Organ Symphony made in Philadelphia. Telarc even arranged to have local roads shut down for the recording sessions.
Similar efforts were made by DG when recording the organ at Notre Dame in Paris, where recording was done late at night to reduce traffic noise. My copy includes Dolby Atmos on Pure-Audio Bly-ray (DG 486 1466).
I was beginning to think the rumble was inherent in my tables, but then I played a German Direct Metal Mastered (DMM) set from In-Akustik for Clearaudio’s 40th anniversary (INAK 78051 2LP). It includes some Telarc tracks. This set has the quietest background I’ve never heard. There is virtually no rumble, exonerating my tables.
So apart from the recoding venue’s air conditioning and traffic noise, why do so many classical records seem to have built-in rumble? Could it be from the mastering lathe?
I am really only thinking about classical recordings where the dynamic range approximates the signal to noise ratio of vinyl, meaning that very low-level signals are musically important, while simultaneously bumping against the noise floor.
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Bakelite on their cheapest model but glass has been the mainstay after the Planet and the Planar 2 its always been glass topped with a 100% wool mat. Rega advanced the various fabrication methods of producing their glass platters with a local vendor that Gandy assisted with the engineering and capitalization required to tool up the vendor's shop like he often does with his local vendors. Its a very general practice in all types of manufacturing as a rule to maintaining "just in time" inventories. |
I am interested in the non-classical music that you think rivals classical for dynamic range. Because I am lazy, I asked Google (ChatGPT) about "dynamic range classical music". This is what I got back.
As for checking rumble with headphones, you’d think that would be simple I do have a lesser pair of Sennheisers but because of poor planning I left them in my motorhome parked hundreds of kilometers away in Sydney. I do intend to buy a CD copy of the Telarc Saint-Saens ’Organ’ Symphony in my next ordering round with Presto, but they have some DG records to deliver first Meanwhile in the limited time I have, I have tried the following:
There is an observation I would like to note on the DG Mahler 2. In the concert, William Barton’s "Of the Earth" world premiere came first, but on the records it comes last. There is applause after the Mahler which lasts for about 45 seconds. After that, there is a 30 second gap before the Barton starts. The dishwasher-like background noise persists continuously right through the gap. This makes me suspect the mastering lathe rather than the hall acoustics because I would expect the master tape to have audibly stopped and restarted in the gap. By the way, that dishwasher-like noise gets worse as playback gets further into the record. I have two identical Hyperion records which have very quiet surfaces but produce dishwasher-like noises in the gap between tracks, but seemingly only there. |
Hope it is Aussie wool! They have also used aluminium and ceramic, according to their history timeline: Rega Product Timeline I have not raised the cash to buy the book yet ... |
Anyone with any background on the points I raise wouldn’t have to constantly fact check my omissions (I did mention the original Planar 2 and the Planet in this case) they would be understood. Looking at your avatar kind of looks like you were three sheets already and the rosy color of your complexion suggests the varices have been erupting just below the surface of the skin for decades before you took the photo. Perhaps you put down the Fahstah’s and snuff out the cigarette and do some cushion diving in your living room for the $46 in spare change the book would cost. |
. But I cannot find my good Sennheiser ones! A few years ago, I let my daughter use my house while her new one was being built. To get her stuff in, she ’tidied’ my stuff up. In the end, it was hard to actually get in the front door because of stacked boxes. I don’t think I’ve seen those headphones since.
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