Record companies released stereo demonstration albums that showcased how sound could move from left to right,
creating a sense of movement
Posted on 12/12/2018 9:31:34 AM PST by ETL
'Crazy Eddie' founder Eddie Antar
Many people though Antar was the pitchman, but it was actually radio DJ Jerry Carroll. The company went
bankrupt in 1989, and Antar was indicted on charges of securities fraud and insider trading. He eventually
pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges and served time in prison.
Now we have 5.1, 7.1, 7.2.... and software to create it.
Fun stuff to play around with and the sound is impressive. Don’t know about dynamic range since there are digital compression techniques now — Dolby Digital, DTS vs analog.
In college in the ‘70s I survived with a simple mono one-box record player and an handful of LPs. Oh the humanity! I was envious of a good friend who had a great stereo system, vast LP records, and cassette collections, so spent much time in his room when possible. Well, because we were good friends, too.... and because he had a great stereo, ha ha.
QUADRAPHONIC never really took off................
My dad had a quadrophonic receiver.
The funniest was that there were actually Quadrophonic 8-Track players.
=======================================================================
Quadraphonic sound
Quadraphonic (or Quadrophonic and sometimes Quadrasonic) sound – equivalent to what is now called 4.0 surround sound – uses four channels in which speakers are positioned at the four corners of the listening space, reproducing signals that are (wholly or in part) independent of one another.
Quadraphonic audio was the earliest consumer product in surround sound and thousands of quadraphonic recordings were made during the 1970s.
It was a commercial failure due to many technical problems and format incompatibilities.
Quadraphonic audio formats were more expensive to produce than standard two-channel stereo.
Playback required additional speakers and specially designed decoders and amplifiers.
Two ears, two speakers. That’s why quadraphonic sound never took off.
There Goes My Heart--Joni James (1958)
Now we have 9-speaker “surround sound” systems.
“QUADRAPHONIC never really took off................”
Nope. I never had a full quad system although I got an interesting sound back in the day with two stereo systems with a speaker in each of the four corners. I also had quad headphones which I used with my Teac 4-channel reel-to-reel for my homebrew recordings.
I wonder if Phil Spector is still threatening to shoot people over the issue of stereo recording:
Despite the trend towards multi-channel recording, Spector was vehemently opposed to stereo releases, claiming that it took control of the record’s sound away from the producer in favor of the listener, resulting in an infringement of the Wall of Sound’s carefully balanced combination of sonic textures as they were meant to be heard. Brian Wilson agreed, stating: “I look at sound like a painting, you have a balance and the balance is conceived in your mind. You finish the sound, dub it down, and you’ve stamped out a picture of your balance with the mono dubdown. But in stereo, you leave that dubdown to the listener—to his speaker placement and speaker balance. It just doesn’t seem complete to me.”
Stereo was no different.
Stereos makes it easier to host parties that make people want to dance!
<cue.shiningstar>
My first experience with stereo was in the late fifties when two local radio stations each broadcast one of the two stereo tracks. You had to have two radios, one on either side of you, to get the experience.
Later in life, my favorite stereo system looked like a pair of cushioned black and white dice rolled into the living room. One die was a speaker and record storage; the other was the turntable. The cubes were maybe two feet to a side and rolled around on rollers. I used to get hammered and lie down between them and listen to Richard Burton doing Hamlet.
Moving in Stereo - The Cars
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5oPZFDci80
“QUADRAPHONIC never really took off................”
I remember paying .25 to sit on the floor of a round room in Panama City, Fl. to listen to a demonstration of quadraphonic stereo in the early 70s. It was state of the art at that time.
Two ears, Two speakers.. stereo in HiFi.. makes sense to me
Where’s muh old Victrola? Can I get a retrokit to make it stereo too?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.