Ok Im getting a lot of emails about
"how do I do this?"
"Can you sell me your preamp and or software?"
"Can I buy all your gear and have Exclusive rights for It?"
(just in, Ive been offered 100$US to "hand over" everything to a CD Company in the US who specialize in Remastering 78's. They give me 100$ , I refrain from using my own technology for good. Eh? how insane)
After saying "no thanks" its been a recerch project and a passion of mine that isnt finished yet!
I get very angry and quite rude reply's.
Which startle and confuse me. some are very very vicious and demand that I take all my content offline as they want to "steal my work" for their own gains. That is the most polite of em (over 40 emails and counting)
all from well meaning sorts that are just like me. People with a passion for restoring.
This I admire and respect. (the polite ones!) But, As Ive tried to state before and will again...
This whole restoring 78's and other mediums has been my passion for over 20 years,
It only all came "just right" after the purchase of some mighty fine stylus's
which were a gift!! I could never afford them, and unfortunately as they are wearing out which
is now the case I'll never afford to replace them.
after 20 years of reading (off and on) 1000's of electronics and audio magazine which
spanned back to 1939, I learned a great deal on the reproduction of the mediums.
as well as a first hand look at the technology at the time. I also have collected many
old player and promptly "pulled it to bit's" learning the "secrets"!.
Apparently when I was very very young. I never wanted toys, I wanted old electronics gear
to "play" with. I had old Transmitting gear, a Full desk with TT's from the late 40's, dozens of raidos tape decks all manner of stuf . I got my amateur Lincence when I was 12 (but never used it!!)
this gave me a incredible "start" to my learning on how the original discs were cut. This and reading of 1000's of mags which were very technical about the recording process.
This was the start!!..
I then started a radio show in the late 90's. and was playing big band swing type material.
I was totally disappointed at the quality of the sound from these "NEW REMASTERS" for the most part had come from "respected"
companies. I started hearing the same "dubs" on many a CD release. most were made by RCA in the late 50's!! this and the always annoying for me "reverb on mono releases" which I can't stand (although I know some people actually like this stuff)
I started to play with preamp designs and came up with a few idea's of my own.. Bought several different types, Pulled em to pieces and finally came up with my final design. Sparing nothing just the Highest of FI for my preamp.
Believe it or no,t a lot of my "restorations" I played "on air" between 2005-07. No one cared or noticed, It would take me hours and hours to prepare each show with discs that no one had heard for 60 years, while other presenters played crappy cd's of the more "popular" songs "in the mood" "sing sing sing" etc and got all the listers, respect and job offers so i got very dispondant with it all and for about a year "gave it up"
Applied for thousands of IT jobs, got a Degree in 99 and have stayed very currant, including building and designing Digital Cinemas For ******** ******.
I was the head IT guy there or i should say the ONLY IT guy there!! and helped install and design 100's of systems, In the end after they wouldn't pay me 30 hours overtime then i asked to be paid more than AU16$ an Hour for the IT, Electronic repairers (fixing all manner of gear) I did and the Metalwork every day This was not possible so I quit, Tried to get the dole to hold me over but was denied this as i had quit my job. had to live on handouts etc.
so to say when i was rejected over 2769 times for jobs Aplications in a 12 month period was pretty bad. when I had done SO MUCH it work in a 3 year period than most IT professionals today.
So last year I got "back on-track" I had no turntable, couldn't in a million years afford one so bought one on ebay that was broken "beyond repair" I got this for nothing and quickly had fixed the hundred or so "broken Tracks" on the circit board (most needing nearly microscope work)
Fixed it fine!! (ok it still needs work every week or so) but it is a direct drive model with variable speed. just what i need.
found I had a few boxes of 78's I had won at an auction about 10 years ago. so started to transfers what I new would be "different", being involved in a few Radio stations I kinda know what's available and whats not (or at least whats on poor sounding "Grey" market cd's).
Then it struck me after hearing some new cd's of transfers, that my "transfers" might be sort of unique. and believe me that's been the aim for the last 5 years of a hard very hard slog.
My whole aim in this field is to firstly obtain a job in this kind of work, or at least a job in archives (which has been my dream for as long as i can remember I'll even work as a cleaner in an archive!)
so to "give away" my years of rescherch overnight is kind of insulting to me as i can only hope you can appreciate and respect.
all I want is to be able to work for someone who can appreciate my work and a paid job!! not much to ask is it!!
so to the 30 or so people who email me (more coming each day!). I'm very sorry, this merge "skill" of mine is not to be given away, I can not provide schematics or Software Packages of my "rig". It's not just the tools you need to do this but a very good "ear" and the experience and the knowledge of 60 years of recording techniques that you could never learn from "the Net" .
would you ask a painter for his palette and brushes and expect to paint like him... think about it..
But rest assured I still love hearing your comments about my "restorations". It can be quite irritating after posting 10 or more 78's to find no one has commented on any of em!! this can "slow" my work down considerably. But as you are here because you LIKE my work , have it
yes have it for free and enjoy!!
Plus If you know anyone who would needs some transferring work .. let me know..!!
I know all this is is a Hobby, at it remains for me, as it always amazes me when I hear a disc Ive not transferred before. The thrill of a band playing a familiar song with a different arrangement still gives me a kick! and to be honest My preferred "take" on these discs are the RAW dubs. these are the ones I listen too!! like some, I have my Own De-clicker built in my head!!
I transferred some 40 78's today (moving interstate to find work. and don't want to lug em there)
some nice material like Joe Daniels (some i had "put off" as they are badly Scrashed)
most of em at the bottom of my "pile" but hey most were a revelation!!
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5 comments:
Dude - seriously - fuck those people asking you for all that crap.
I do restoration work as well and it is very time consuming, labor intensive and requires a good ear as well as special skills which you don't pick up in a manual or book.
I sell my remasters rather cheaply. Some take 5 or more hours of work, plus more time for artwork reproduction and I give them away for $20 - $40 U.S. dollars. I have people constantly lowball me and some claim that my work isn't worth that much as "anyone with a turntable and a computer can do it".
I really do admire your skills as 78's aren't easy to do. I especially admire your fake stereo technique.
Keep up the great work. I appreciate it and I am sure many others do as well.
Work is hard to come by here in the states as well but I keep my hopes up. If you lived close by - I would definitely start up a company with you.
Good luck and don't let those a-holes bring you down.
- Luis
right on.. that's exactly what the "truth" of the matter is.
Iv'e spent years "dressed in rags" so to speak to be able to do all this. I had to take a loan out to buy the $100 Turntable (which arrived dead) and only last night showed signs of breaking down completely. This a can't afford to pay back!!. It's been well over 10 years since i had a "holiday" or "ate out" or enjoyed life like most of humanity can do.. Ok that last satement kight sound "kinda" sad but it's true. Ive just been holed up doing this and working for child wages in crappy jobs while desperately tryng to pay the rent.
And when some "kid" comes along and basicly demands that I tell him "everything I Know" or he'll "tell his dad" or "find and kill me and steel my stuff" It get's a bit wierd. these people artue that "everything is on the net" and sooner or later they will find out how I do it.. well great I say. that's what I had to do, And if though hard work and trial and error they get to do what I can do then they have really acheved something.. but just to come to me and beg for my "property" for nothing because thy have loads of cash and grandad said
"it would be a good idea If i set up a 78 cd company, he seems to like the old boring music, so give me your plans and software"
This really insults me to the core.. as i LOVE the music I restore. in fact im a fan of about 100 years of music. nothing "bores" me.
then I get irate emails and even one or two "real" letters
from the parents of these children I insult so..
Most of those letters treat me with no respect and in fact "Blame" me of the psychological problems of thier children since I "denied them of their rightful future" by saying no to just handing over my own software/hardware.
This I find strange.. I mean most of these "parents" are my age!!
and for the most part live very comfortable lives.
so that's one part of it and since I posted that post. ive had my email box filed every day with requests for my gear.
but it's great you can sell your work for that kind of money!! it sounds like a fourtune to me!!.
but remember all my restorations take 10-20 seconds to do. they are just meant to be "demos" the real restoration work I'd do if I was paied. I leart that from a freind who put lots of his "out of print" Lp's on a blog a few years ago. his stuff was good too. (well admittedly I built him my RIIA version of my pr-amp tweaked a little to "open up" the top end)
his work was "stolen" by somebody downloading all his tracks and burring them to cd's then selling them on amazon for ridiculous amounts.
this broke the My friend's heart.
He had this whole Lp to mp3/flac down pat. his transfer's were truly inspiring (ok i had a hand in it!!) but some a-hole ripped him off!! when we contacted the "seller" he wrote a barrage of abuse back to us, a legal letter from his aternoy etc etc.. funny thing is that my mate put a 17-20 khz tone. "morseing" his name and address at least once per side!!
now the only reason he set this LP page up (all OOP Lp's too) wa sthat he loved 50's "space pop" and other forms of early stereo Lp's, had just retired had loads of money at his disposal so the Stealing of his work was'nt the problem, it was that he was very proud of his work and would like the listener to know how much he cared for his work. and seeing his work being peddled by another with no credit was too much to take. so he shut his blog down which upset him as he thrived on the "comments" by other users to his transfers.
About 4 years ago I let some broadcasters have a cd or two of my work on 78's ( i was broadcasting the stuff myself and they wanted to Plug my show with examples) somehow after I left the station one or two of my tracks appered on commecial cd. I spent a year eemailing and phoning everyone at the company who released the cd but they could and would not tell me who thier "compiler" was. this was my work I cried! but they stated it could be any one's work "it's an old song". but there was a glaring fault in the restoration like the old statment "only a mother would know"
I kew where it was (no one else did) and a A-B comparison proved without a shadow of a doubt it was mine. (and to be honest Ive improved a lot since 5 years ago with my use of Noise reduction)
of couse I was well pleased my work could be acsessed on cd , but not so pleased that no one knew who "remasted" the track, A name was on the cd liner notes but it was made up. since my sabre shaking at the cd company the cd has been repressed minus my track. they still clamed i did not do the "work " on the pulled track (to stop me making any claims of payment for the cd's sold)
the only reason I contacted the cd company was to let em hear my other work, as the rest of the tracks on the cd were in pretty "bad" form of restoration. these guys claimed to be the "hope of the next generation" as far as big band recordings went. in my conversations with em. no one at the comany even knew any of the artists tracks on the cd, and refered to any music pre 2005 as music from the "olden days" and "not very good" they were just after the dollar not any kind of musical merit with thier cd's.
this was about the time I gave up all hope at getting any kind of employment doing this. so kept on restoring for my own enjoyment. than I thought "I'd Take a year off" as all my emails to record companies and archives basically said (not a chance of employment in this decade. They thought some of my stuff was "outstanding" but said their employment books were "filled up" for the next 2 decades)
taking the year off was the best thing I could have done. as after 10 years of slog (90% of that Reserch) I had become quite stale in regard to my work.
after buying a Tex beneke CD of transcription Disc cuts (yep Im a fan of tex). and hearing the worst restoration yet (no top end, "artafacts" due to too much Noise reduction, De-clicker artifacts, and Cart Scrape on at least 3 tracks) I thought bugger this if this is the best people can do with these tracks i have a go again.
Since then Ive pulled out all my 78's
which I bought mostly at auction years ago mostly worn steel neddel type jobs.
and I bought a whole load of jazz/swing about 4 years ago in great cond. but mostly UK pressings which are quite "noisy" compared with out AUST ones.
and a great big lot from ebay. it only cost me 20$ but when i got em most had been fire damaged. one side of the disc until about 5 "grooves" in was "crazed". this was kinda annoying as there are loads of great tracks on em but without the Lead-in groove being sort of Clean they don't scrub up very well. and to be honest there were only Joe Daniels and Will bradley-Ray McKinley stuff in there i diddent have.
"anyone with a turntable and a computer can do it"
oh boy how often I hear that old chestnut.
and as you are totally correct in you 1st statement.
Sometimes when im feeling quite grandiose i call this an art.
Yes siree just like any skill that requires you to be able to do something the majority can't.
Ive not put much up on the blog of late as Im trying to Transfer all my 78's in one go.. I have to move Interstate very soon and can't lug any extra with me.
Hey Luis. I could always make up a CD from my tracks and sell it on "your" label you could take what you wanted as a "cut" !!.. It could be like your guest Restorer!
crap Ive gone on for bit. (thats about 30 78's done since I started to write this. (I name and cut em, out later just one great wav file with the songs and me trying out diff stylis every now and then)
shit, i better start "naming" these soon the wav file is 7 hrs long and I have a pile of 78's that goes up to my knees!!
Now if that dosent win the longest reply to a blog comment award what will!!!
Man, do I feel your pain! It seems that this art of ours goes under appreciated time and time again. Then again, a lot of "professionals" claim to know how to properly restore music. All these pro's seem to know how to do only one thing - no-noise the stuff to death.
Nobody appreciates the amount of time, dedication, skill, detail and love that goes into properly restoring/remastering music.
As for selling your CD's - let me look into that. The ones I sell are sold with the original LP. LP+CD is a must as most of the restoration work I do still falls under copyright law. I also only sell full LP's - thus why I take so long to restore them.
Anyway, keep up your good work and ignore the bad stuff. I'm sure there are tons of other people who love your work but don't comment on it.
Have you thought about selling your discs on ebay?
On a side note: Any chance you can upload that Louis Armstrong concert in FLAC? It would be much appreciated.
- Luis
Hey "ade42"
I Agree With What Your Saying.
I Put A Lot Of Effort Into Restoring Stuff And I'm only 12yrs old.
At The Moment I'm Learning About "Color Recovery" From TeleRecordings.
It Is Very Interesting.
I Will Post some More stuff on my blog soon.i will let ya know when its posted.
WOW! nearly two years ago!. fuck, i was only 12 when i made that comment. im now 14. how time flies by
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