Sony to release mono Miles Davis set

[erwbol]

Both the mono and mono backup tapes were lost. The stereo backup is what has been used for all reissues since 1992.

According to Mark Wilder, Columbia's practice at its 30th Street studios in 1959 was to use four tape decks simultaneously: a prime mono deck and a mono backup, for mono LP release; and a prime three-channel deck and a three-channel backup, for stereo LP release. The mono tapes have since disappeared. The backup three-channel tapes (the ones we heard) were sent to the vault, where they rested untouched from 1959 until 1992.

http://www.stereophile.com/thefifthelement/206fifth/index.html

Edited September 5, 2013 by erwbol

[AmirBagachelles]

Sometimes you get lucky. Freakish coincidence, but managed to avoid over-buying this particular stretch of MD. My musical enjoyment these days, sad to say, is low cool -- iPhoned by wire to computer speakers, a clock radio, a bluetooth POS. So mono is cool too. I love the Dylan set, so I will look forward to this. Looks like few/none of the bonus tracks that were on the individual enhanced releases will be included.

[CJ Shearn]

Not the same thing.

I know, I was joking

[Clunky]

Not the same thing.

I know, I was joking

Hmm ... what happens if you hit the mono button when listening to the re-chanelled stereo of the first CD issue of Milestones. Does that restore the sound back to it's original balance etc??

When it comes to Milestones I significantly prefer my mono Fontana vinyl to either of the cd versions I have. I assumed this was simply a matter of vinyl prowess rather than the benefits of monaural reproduction.

Edited September 5, 2013 by Clunky

[J.A.W.]

Not the same thing.

I know, I was joking

Hmm ... what happens if you hit the mono button when listening to the re-chanelled stereo of the first CD issue of Milestones. Does that restore the sound back to it's original balance etc??

Simply put, it combines the signals from both channels including the information carried by those signals; in other words you can't get rid of the rechannelling artefacts or any other artefacts that were not present in the original mono signal. Same goes for combining the signals from both channels of a stereo recording when you hit the mono button, you won't get a pure mono signal.

[king ubu]

And if you don't have a mono button? Any negative effect when playing mono recordings?

[AllenLowe]

the Van Gogh Collection?

[jazzbo]

As Hans says, you won't get a pure mono signal, and you won't get the mono mix.

Flurin, shouldn't be a problem. With mono lps you can often get less surface noise played with a stereo cartridge but a mono'd signal.

[king ubu]

Thanks! I thought I read a rather differing statement a while ago. But not being an audiophile helps anyway, I guess

[J.A.W.]

As Hans says, you won't get a pure mono signal, and you won't get the mono mix.

Flurin, shouldn't be a problem. With mono lps you can often get less surface noise played with a stereo cartridge but a mono'd signal.

Some purists say you can only get a pure mono signal from mono LPs when played with a mono cartridge. I have no idea if this is true and I'm not sure mono cartridges are available anymore.

[Teasing the Korean]

Some purists say you can only get a pure mono signal from mono LPs when played with a mono cartridge. I have no idea if this is true and I'm not sure mono cartridges are available anymore.

This is true. With a mono LP, the surface noise and sound from the stylus traveling through the groove are in stereo with a stereo cartridge. Some of the sounds disappear through phase cancellation when you switch to mono. Also, minor clicks and pops on either side are reduced when you switch to mono, as the center (musical) signal increases by +3db relative to sounds on the side.

Edited September 5, 2013 by Teasing the Korean

[J.A.W.]

Some purists say you can only get a pure mono signal from mono LPs when played with a mono cartridge. I have no idea if this is true and I'm not sure mono cartridges are available anymore.

This is true. With a mono LP, the surface noise and sound from the stylus traveling through the groove are in stereo with a stereo cartridge. Some of the sounds disappear through phase cancellation when you switch to mono. Also, minor clicks and pops on either side are reduced when you switch to mono, as the center (musical) signal increases by +3db relative to sounds on the side.

Thanks for the explanation. I sold my LP collection and turntable long ago and didn't remember how this mono/stereo thing worked.

[Teasing the Korean]

You're welcome.

Back to this box set: While it is tempting, I have accumulated so much Miles Davis over the years that I'm pretty picky about what I buy. I have lots of these in mono on LP, too.

[Teasing the Korean]

Some purists say you can only get a pure mono signal from mono LPs when played with a mono cartridge. I have no idea if this is true and I'm not sure mono cartridges are available anymore.

This is true. With a mono LP, the surface noise and sound from the stylus traveling through the groove are in stereo with a stereo cartridge. Some of the sounds disappear through phase cancellation when you switch to mono. Also, minor clicks and pops on either side are reduced when you switch to mono, as the center (musical) signal increases by +3db relative to sounds on the side.

Thanks for the explanation. I sold my LP collection and turntable long ago and didn't remember how this mono/stereo thing worked.

I should add that you can effectively achieve the same thing by hitting the amp's "mono" button that you would achieve with a mono cartridge.

[jazzbo]

That's how I understand it too. I have a mono button on both my preamp and my phono preamp.

[chewy-chew-chew-bean-benitez]

wonder who has the mono kind of blue tapes....

Edited September 6, 2013 by chewy

[tomatamot]

I wonder why so much people are so negative about listen to mono records.

Did you ever listen to a mono record played with a dedicated ( true ) mono cartridge?

Please do, before you "burn" the mono play.

[Clunky]

Not the same thing.

I know, I was joking

Hmm ... what happens if you hit the mono button when listening to the re-chanelled stereo of the first CD issue of Milestones. Does that restore the sound back to it's original balance etc??

Simply put, it combines the signals from both channels including the information carried by those signals; in other words you can't get rid of the rechannelling artefacts or any other artefacts that were not present in the original mono signal. Same goes for combining the signals from both channels of a stereo recording when you hit the mono button, you won't get a pure mono signal.

It must surely depend on how the re-channelling has been achieved. I recall as a child fiddling with a 10 band equaliser applying equal and opposite dB changes to every second band to spread the sound. Depressing the mono button in I such circumstances must surely recreate the original mono signal albeit with some loss of SQ given that its passed through a 10 band and then a mono button.

I certainly gain some aural satisfaction from using my mono button to improve the sound on the few rechannelled LPs and CDs that I have. It does sound better , to my ears at least. May not be a true mono mix but it's an improvement .

[John L]

I wonder when they are going to start releasing the "mono enhanced to simulate stereo" box sets?

[tomatamot]

I wonder when they are going to start releasing the "mono enhanced to simulate stereo" box sets?

Records in the early sixties.

Box sets late seventies.

Edited September 6, 2013 by tomatamot

[king ubu]

Very interesting - thanks TTK for the explanation!

But since this box is a CD box ... I guess the stylus won't matter much. But does - for CDs - having a mono button or not make a difference?

[Teasing the Korean]

Very interesting - thanks TTK for the explanation!

But since this box is a CD box ... I guess the stylus won't matter much. But does - for CDs - having a mono button or not make a difference?

In theory, no. But I have some CDs containing mono music transferred from vinyl in stereo, believe it or not, so the mono button provides the same function.

[J.A.W.]

In my experience (I used to have amplifiers with mono buttons, but not anymore) hitting the mono button does not erase any artefacts that the rechanelled stereo signal or the mono signal that was transferred in stereo might have.

Edited September 6, 2013 by J.A.W.

[king ubu]

So are you saying all mono CDs have such artefacts? Do they get into existance even if all you do is duplicate the channels?

And do CDDA files need to have two channels? On a computer, you can have WAV files in mono with one channel, no duplication needed ... or do the artefacts necessarily sneek in whilst the mono signal is going through the amplifier?

[Daniel A]

I thought the artefacts mentioned above related to mono recordings manipulated to give the impression of stereo recordings, a practice mainly present on LP releases of the 60s/70s.

Edited September 6, 2013 by Daniel A