SIGNALS & NOISE (Letters to Editor) (Jan. 1990)

A Signal Leak

Dear Editor:

I read "Too Many Signal Sources" (June 1989) by Herman Burstein with great interest (who woulda thunk of using a three-head deck and switchbox as a reverb unit?) but was disheartened to see no comment about signal leakage in the units.

I use the Radio Shack model to hook up two cassette decks and a VHS Hi-Fi VCR to my preamp. I've found myself in the situation of recording a program on the VCR while also recording an LP or CD onto cassette. The switches on the Radio Shack controller are set such that I'm monitoring the cassette deck, and the cassette deck is getting its input from the preamp. The sad truth is that I can hear the sound from the VCR--at very low volume, but still quite clearly--during the quiet passages in the audio program. Arrgggh! This happens no matter what switch settings I use.

I have been thinking of investing in a higher priced switchbox, in hopes that this leakage (crosstalk?) would be cured. When I saw Mr. Burstein's article, I hoped for some guidance, but no such luck. Any further comments on this subject?

-Lonnie Brownell , El Segundo, Cal.

Author's Reply: I do not believe that all the tape control units listed in my article can be all things to all people. For example, there is the problem of hum when dealing with low-level sources such as phono, and I mentioned this in the article. I did not investigate the problem of leakage and was not aware that this was a problem because my interest was in operating one signal source at a time.

My experience is limited to the Radio Shack and Russound units. These are made for a specific purpose where leakage does not enter the picture. For my needs, operating only one signal source at a time, they work admirably.

Perhaps leakage varies from one brand to another. If you could purchase several brands on a money back trial basis, you might discover that some have sufficiently low leakage. I am not in a position to investigate further, however, or to suggest modifications.

-Herman Burstein

Getting the Picture

Dear Editor:

I would like to comment on two items in your September 1989 issue. First, James Gillette's letter in the "Audioclinic" column contained an error. The diameter of a human hair is roughly 40 to 60 microns--not 5 microns, as stated. (Check it out with a micrometer caliper, remembering that 1/1000 of an inch equals 25.4 microns.) Second, Bert Whyte's "Too Hot to Handle," in the "Behind the Scenes" column, was excellent. In questioning some of the myths about HDTV, Whyte said much that needed saying. In fact, few people have ever seen a really good, full-bandwidth, 525-line TV picture. It is a revelation. Unless people want to view their TV screens through a magnifying glass, 525 lines can serve for a long time to come.

However, what is still needed is adequate bandwidth for roughly 660 "lines" (330 line pairs) of resolution along the scanning lines and a correspondingly higher color subcarrier frequency. A finer dot structure might also be required for picture tubes. But retaining the present raster specs would make it easier to design an NTSC-compatible receiver that could also display improved transmissions.

-Charles H. Chandler; Malden, Mass.

What Price Records?

Dear Editor:

In reference to the letter from J. Michael Gatien, Esq. (June 1989), I'd like to say that Mr. Gatien is essentially correct in what he says about record club pricing versus record store pricing, but he doesn't give the full story.

Recording artists do subsidize sales through record clubs in the form of a reduced royalty rate--50% of the rate paid on sales made through the regular (record store) channels and nothing on sale and giveaway items (especially the introductory offer!). Despite this, the actual price you will pay per album through a record club is not all that different from what you'll pay at the chain record store, once you factor in the "mailing and handling fee" they hit you with, plus the 25 cents each time you send back the refusal form. Consider that you pay full list price for your first selection, plus $2 or $3 for ship ping and handling. That's quite a bit more than the highest priced mall store will charge! "Bonus" selections, when included, will bring the price you pay down into the "sale price" range you'll find in stores.

While prices from the two sources are now roughly comparable, that does not mean either vendor offers a good deal. For the most part, the chains no longer pay any attention to the list price suggested by some record labels (not all labels suggest a retail price) but charge whatever they think the market will bear. Often, this is actually 50 cents to $1 above the suggested list price. In fact, the regular price at most chains represents a markup of almost 70%! The record label generally gets about half of what you pay on a non-sale title at your typical chain store, so you can't really blame the labels for the inflated prices.

(Remember that the middleman, the distributor, also gets a small cut on each sale.) These stores have only two reasons for charging as much as they do--huge overhead expenses (fancy chromed-up stores in high-rent malls, large headquarters with large staffs and large salaries) and greed (it doesn't take long to get addicted to the tremendous cash flow these stores can produce!). If you are truly interested in getting the most for your music dollar, you should check around your area for an independent dealer-in other words, a non-chain store. The independent won't have the huge overhead expenses--no shiny chromed fixtures, no beautifully landscaped office complex, no large staff of salaried accountants, buyers, and advertising executives, and no high mall rents to pay. Further, you will usually find the owner at the store every day! Your independent store will probably have LPs in stock-try finding them in a chain! Your independent will stock titles that aren't on the charts, representing many different styles of music from around the world, and will usually know something about the music he's selling. If you're looking for an effective special-order source, your independent store can get more for you much faster than nearly any chain store. He deals with dozens of distributors and labels directly, not through a buyer at headquarters who is looking for box-lot discounts (and waiting for box-lot sized orders). And try getting any of this attention from your club! The net result is a price that's usually $1 or $2 under the list price, every day, and even lower on sale items.

My apologies if this is beginning to sound like a plug for independent record stores. I happen to own one, and I have an independent label, too-so I can claim some familiarity with the figures involved.

- Lloyd E. Townsend, Jr.; Imaginary Records Auburn, Ala.

(Source: Audio magazine, Jan. 1990)

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