The Secret Society of Lathe Trolls

Hi All, I know this is an old thread, but just have to correct some errors. Although the Cybersonics was not the stalwart tank of a lathe that a Scully or Neumann is, 10s of millions of hit LPs were cut on them. There were a few on the West Coast. Both Future Disc and Precision Lacquer had them as p...

Hi Todd, I would suggest keeping the DCR of the drive coils 4.7 ohms. There is a network in the SAL which makes the impedance come out a pretty flat 9 ohms. If you start with 8 ohms DCR it will rise quite a bit from there and you will be throwing away power. Remember a nominal 8 ohm speaker usually ...

Actually the Sontec Pitch Computer used a stepper motor. This was designed by Gerry Block. It is still being used by Bernie Grundman, The Mastering Lab, and Stan Ricker. Although I agree that a stepper motor wouldn't be my first choice, it has been done successfully.

The most shocked guy ever was the auction winner...ME. I was also expecting to see it go way high, and bid just slightly over the minimum so I wouldn't kick myself if it stayed low. I couldn't believe it when I was the only bid. I trust Chris, so I would call it a no-brainer. Just checked it out on ...

I think it is a fundamental flaw, not implementation, since the effects I heard in doing comparisons were basically the same, and in two entirely different systems using different electronics. JMHO. As stated in "the paper" half speed was developed in the days before high power amplifiers existed to...

Hi Mark, No, the cutting electronics are not the limiting factor. The SAL74B is 3 dB down at something like 2Hz. Because a velocity device responds to DC doesn't mean its output is flat anywhere near there. Any loudspeaker, including a tweeter, will respond to DC, but you wouldn't ask it to produce ...

Just to clarify one point: My comment about "denial" was in reference to the existence of the Neumann document, not the ongoing "debate" here. -Kev

It's great with me if it's OK with Steve E. Maybe in the technical archives? -Kev

A pretty heated debate on half speed... Let me add to it. First of all the Neumann SX74 has almost no output at 30kHZ. It falls off very quickly above 23kHz. I have measured many of them. There is no 60 to 120kHz on ANY phonograph records, even cut half speed Get over it. I can say with all certaint...

Hi Aussi, Just saw this old post. FYI, In 1995 Mickey Knight of Diacoustic Labs in L.A. had for sale, what he claimed to be the last SX-74 built by the factory. He said he bought it brand new, with all the paperwork, from the estate of Stephen Temmer of Gotham Audio (The exclusive U.S. Neumann rep) ...

Hi Guys, Opcode you nailed it, but a few comments for the newbies. You can make these so called programmers switch diameters, but not speeds, at least not conveniently. In addition to turntable speed it would have to switch lockoff length and safety groove etc. which means changing capacitors and it...

I still blame Hagerman for the whole "4th pole debacle". This is the idea, based on heresay, that the roll off in cutting systems somewhere above 50kHz needs to be compensated for in playback preamps. Hagerman attributes it to a guy named Allen Wright, who said it is in some Neumann manual, somewher...

Oil crisis would probably be Gotham's excuse. However, the BIG increase was 2 years later, in 1975, and the Dollar vs. Deutsche Mark only fluctuated by a factor of 1.3 at worst, not 2.

BTW Does anyone have a Gotham price sheet from 1968 or 69? I seem to recall the SX-68 was about $2500 when introduced, and I think the VMS-66 was about $18,000. That's just my recollection. I would like to have a copy of one of those year's sheets for my archive, as my VMS was built in '68.

Hi Paul and everyone, I have that price list too. What is really amazing is how prices escalated in the next couple years: on the '73 sheet: VMS-70 $33,750 SAL-74 $17,775 (not including head) SX-74 $6500 on the '75 sheet: VMS-70 $47,388 SAL -74 $24,240 SX-74 $8160 Everything pretty much doubled from...

Yes, 1.6 was the last version. And yes, it was designed for .6 rev preview as was the lathe and all Zuma versions. The first Neumann lathe to deviate from that was the VMS80. You are also correct that it delays preview to create the Left Modulation signal needed by the stock Neumann.

I think we should all be thankful the folks at Apollo are willing to deal with our cottage industry. I have helped them a few times in the past when they were having some quality issues and such and they are great folks. Apollo is a small arm of GC. GC could probably survive quite nicely without Apo...

Hi Moritz, No. Something is wrong. Are you sure the signals to the Zuma are in phase/polarity? That would cause it. Also are you sure both channels are going to the Zuma, and I mean check at the analog audio board in the Zuma, the one all the way at the back, not just at the XLRs. One channel only l...

All this talk about curvature isn't looking at how the curvature increases as the groove moves to the center of the disk. You can cut a maximum velocity of approximately 50cm/sec on the OUTSIDE of a 12" 33. Anything higher and the stylus is moving so fast that the back edge wipes out what the front ...

Hi all, I have been cutting for 39 years. I also mastered records at Artisan Sound Recorders, Kendun Recorders, Location Recording Service and MCA/Whitney Recording Studios on your list. None of these mastering facilities exist any longer. Also cut at Future Disc Systems and AcousTech Mastering, not...