Last week I got to chat with none other than the analogue audio domain’s number one champion, The Absolute Sound magazine’s Mr Michael Fremer (also previously of Stereophile and AnalogPlanet mags).
If you haven’t already done so, do check out Michael’s online magazine Tracking Angle which features the full gamut of audio interests… music reviews spanning all genres and formats with an emphasis on vinyl records but also including digital streams and downloads, CDs, SACDs “and maybe even a cassette or two”. There are also reviews of all manner of hi-fi components and kit, with an emphasis is on entry level to moderately-priced gear.
Anyway, we had a good old ramble, mulling over all things analogue – kicking off with the 2 / 3 track ‘masters’ of Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue and the Classic Records / Analogue Productions UHQR pressings; then meandering onto mastering by luminaries such as Bernie Grundman and Kevin Gray; then we veered onto the market for R2R tapes (genuine masters, commercial 15ips 2-track and 7.5ips 4-track tapes, and ‘grey market’ copies); which led us onto R2R tape players – and a bit of ‘show and tell’.
I hope you enjoy our chat! Here it is.
Dave Denyer: The Reel-to-Reel Rambler 