Comparing Stereo Recorders

BARRY BAKER SENIOR ENGINEER, BBC MAIDA VALE PREFERRED CHOICE : STUDER DASH

You said that you couldn't really hear much difference between any of the formats.

I really didn't think there was very much to choose between any of them. I wouldn't have put money on identifying any of the formats and to be honest if they were all running in perfect sync and you switched between them I doubt if you would have heard the switch !

However, you did show a slight preference for format D (Studer DASH).

Yes, I found it hard to put my finger on it but it sounded a little more transparent - I can't really sum it up. It was the most pleasant to listen to.

You also said you thought formats C (0tari + Dolby SR) and D (Studer DASH) were the analogues.

That was almost a guess. I expected the digital formats to sound harsher and more brittle, but I couldn't detect that.

What were you listening for ?

I listened to the various instruments across the formats as they came up. The double bass for example, came through a little stronger on format B (Sony DASH), but not in a way that I thought was problematic. It may have been that B was in fact correct and all the others were underplaying the bass but because all the other formats sounded similar in this respect I was led to suspect that B was wrong.

I was listening to the cymbals for high end response and I found one of the cymbals particularly useful for stereo positioning because it was quite sharp in the picture, and in flicking between the five formats it stayed rock solid.

Let me tell you that the format you preferred, D, was the Studer DASH. And that you hazarded a guess at D and C being analogue - C was the Otari with Dolby SR. How do you feel about that ?

I think it shows me that I shouldn't be prejudiced ! I came here with slight expectations - I expected there to be more difference between the five. I thought that although I may not be able to identify the analogue and digital machines correctly, I did expect to be able to hear a difference. They were so close that I wouldn't be bothered which I listened to. What was B, the one with the accentuated bass response ?

The Sony DASH.

Interesting, because the Studer and the Sony are meant to be similar technologies.

Was it a valid exercise ?

It was a very difficult exercise but I'm very pleased to have been involved with it. I'll be interested to see the overall results to see if other people have been able to hear things I couldn't.

Before I came here, if someone had asked what was the best format then I would have told them it was analogue with Dolby SR. Now that I've done this test, purely on sound quality, I'd tell them that there's not much to choose between them and to go and listen for themselves and see if they can hear a difference.

There are other things to consider, and as I come from the engineering side at the BBC my interest is in whether or not a machine is going to sit and work reliably day-in, day-out and it has to be said that we were listening here in pretty ideal conditions - if we came back tomorrow, would they still all be spot on or would they have drifted ? I don't know.

	Studer + Dolby SR	Sony DASH	Otari + Dolby SR	Studer DASH	Mitsubishi ProDigi
Format	A	B	C	D	E
Preference	2nd	2nd	2nd	1st	2nd

STEVE LEVINE PRODUCER : CULTURE CLUB, BEACH BOYS, etc PREFERRED CHOICE : SONY DASH

Levine was perhaps one of the boldest of our listeners. As a Sony DASH user at his own Do Not Erase Studios, he deliberated at the end of the test and then put his money on format B as being the Sony DASH format and as being his favourite. An act that he can only be admired for because of the difficult nature of the test and the embarrassment he might have felt had he been wrong. As it was, he was right.

I reckon B (Sony DASH) and C (Otari + Dolby SR) are digital machines. A (Studer + Dolby SR) was the worst. I thought B and C were closest - C being a lot harsher and the stereo imaging was a lot better on B.

None of them were very poor. A and B were furthest apart ; A was very boxy. I did hear hiss on A so hopefully it was an analogue!

From what we can gather, and although we didn't have a chance to talk at length, Levine's young daughter Dorothy, who also attended, showed no Preference for any format.

	Studer + Dolby SR	Sony DASH	Otari + Dolby SR	Studer DASH	Mitsubishi ProDigi
Format	A	B	C	D	E
Preference	5th	1st	2nd	3rd	4th

Quotes from the day

Ashley James on the monitors and control room : 'The monitors are set amplitude flat at half a millisecond, which is what we always do. Essentially, it's a good balance. Once you're familiar with the monitors, you can make an objective comparison - whether you'll be able to hear a difference between the different formats is another question again. You can make objective comparisons on quite limited monitors, so the monitors in there certainly give more than enough information for a comparison to be made. People make the most profound statements about monitors, most of which are of very little value.'

Does it sound like you ? Mick Hutton, Double bass (listening to initial playback) : 'Yes it does actually. I've heard him clicking between the five machines and they all seem pretty good to me. Musicians are very critical of their own sound. You can tell minute changes in EQ. They all sound pretty good here, which is unusual. It's all down to the engineer ; this guy is pretty sympathetic. A lot of them don't know about jazz or acoustic instruments.'

(After session - listening in more depth to the formats) 'It's very close I think, what sounds best on the big speakers might not sound best on the little ones. C (Otari + SR) I liked. Some of them seemed a bit boomy but C was quite a tight sound. There again, I'm sure you could get a good sound with any of them if you messed around with the EQ.'

Jonathan Miller, session engineer and house engineer at CTS : 'The pattern I've observed through the day is that D is "nice", A is "Hmmm", and the other three are identical. People do get lost with the others but they always seem to know if they're listening to D or A. D has a richer sound, with more perspective from the original ambience and things like that. I still don't know which is which because I didn't get involved with the patching at all. It's an interesting exercise.'