Sonic Maximizers

[junplugged]

I just searched on 'exciter' before i posted a new thread to ask what it was and found this thread. Very funny, great reading while LOLing a lot.

Nice to know, but I don't think I'll be blowing $200 for one soon. Then again, not sure how good it is, I'll try it today, i see there is an 'exciter' effect in my d1600....

 

[Farview]

"louder and therefor better"? That makes no sense at all.

When a/b'ing the louder of the two will be picked out as 'better' by an overwhelming percentage of people. This is why every time someone does a shootout comparison of mics, mic preamps, etc... they always take great pains in matching the volume within a couple tenths of a db. Even if the two things being compared are identical, the louder one will be percieved as 'better'.
Aural illusions are all fine and dandy on a playback system. The end user can listen to their stereo any way they want. On a guitar rig, they don't mic up well, they don't sit in a mix as well, and they contribute to the numbing of guitarists ears. (most don't need any help with this)

On a side note, Fairview...I was checking out some of you pics on your website. Nice little set up. What model Iceman is that in the pics?

Thank you. That is an IC400. It is one of the newer ones. I had a couple of them from the 70's, but the necks started getting goofy from non-use.
That bass in the pictures was given to my by Bill (the buddha of bass) Dickens and is one of the prototypes for Conklin's Groove Tools series.

 

[sucram]

Just because something is popular and used a lot doesn't mean it's good.

Chessrock,
You're not actually saying that every BBE maximizer that's been engaged on a track has been done by an engineer with bad taste or HF hearing loss, are you? It sounds like you feel that the unit has no place in a studio rack. Is that accurate?

You can screw up a sound with a maximizer, an EQ, a compressor, or what have you. How come nobody criticizes those effects, except the 3630 ?

Mind you, i'm certainly not agreeing that it's the answer to the proverbial "next level" of sound, and as i mentioned before, it's not a substitute for technique, but if it makes the sound more pleasing when it's on, who can argue with that? Do you really think that people don't know what they like? Taste is a pretty personal thing.

-marcus

 

[Toker41]

Thank you. That is an IC400. It is one of the newer ones. I had a couple of them from the 70's, but the necks started getting goofy from non-use.
That bass in the pictures was given to my by Bill (the buddha of bass) Dickens and is one of the prototypes for Conklin's Groove Tools series.

Question, is the IC400 neck heavy? I had an IC300, that was way neck heavy, but I thought it was just because of the basewood body (yuk), but when I tried an IC200 with mahogany body, it was still neck heavy, although not as bad. I really want to check out the 400, but if it neck heavy it's a waste of time for anything but recording. I have broken the headstocks off 2 neck heavy guitars already. Go to adjust the mic, and the damn head crashes to the ground!

 

[Seeker of Rock]

Fraview, if this is true, it sounds like we are talking about apples and oranges using the same "fruit" genre. That would seem to make a big difference in Aphex's product and BBE/Behringer/other trying to maket the same thing under a weemingly illusive name, thus a different animal, as was said previously, altogether.
btw, on the guitars...OUCH on the necks. I still have a Jackson Custom Soloist from the mid '80s that was slammed into a CBS (concrete block structure) wall during a rehearsal headstock first. Neck-through body and when they were still strong, thank God!, but still the 2-inch scar remains.

 

[Farview]

Question, is the IC400 neck heavy? I had an IC300, that was way neck heavy, but I thought it was just because of the basewood body (yuk), but when I tried an IC200 with mahogany body, it was still neck heavy, although not as bad. I really want to check out the 400, but if it neck heavy it's a waste of time for anything but recording. I have broken the headstocks off 2 neck heavy guitars already. Go to adjust the mic, and the damn head crashes to the ground!

All Icemans (Icemen?) are neck heavy. You have to use a leather strap so it doesn't slide.

 

[Farview]

Fraview, if this is true, it sounds like we are talking about apples and oranges using the same "fruit" genre. That would seem to make a big difference in Aphex's product and BBE/Behringer/other trying to maket the same thing under a weemingly illusive name, thus a different animal, as was said previously, altogether.

Um, what? I'm sorry but you lost me. I'm not as good as some other people at keeping 3 conversations across 2 days straight.

 

[60's guy]

Easy, killer.

I like that! It's a fitting description.

Read Toker's reply:

I did read it and perhaps you missed my acknowledgement of having read it.

... if you have to resort to using some sort of rack gizmo to "correct" your shitty speakers, then don't you think it's time to just get some new speakers?

What speaker brand/design would you recommend to compensate for a room with poor acoustical qualities, and also compensate for the hearing loss of older guys like me? Serious question, BTW.

Anyway ... detailed enough for ya?

Yes it was. I appreciate your effort.

 

[chessrock]

What speaker brand/design would you recommend to compensate for a room with poor acoustical qualities, and also compensate for the hearing loss of older guys like me?

I dunno, 60's guy, what type of blender would you recommend for toasting bread? What kind of screwdriver would you recommend for hammering in a nail?


First off, I would recommend accoustical treatment to compensate for poor accoustics.

And I would recommend a visit to an ear doctor for a full consultation on the options you might have available as far as hearing devices.

 

[chessrock]

... but if it makes the sound more pleasing when it's on, who can argue with that? Do you really think that people don't know what they like? Taste is a pretty personal thing.

*Terry Cloth polo shirts were once very popular in the late 70's because a large group of people thought it was a stylish-looking fabric.

*Polyester Leisure suits were, at one time, worn by people on the cutting edge of fashion.

*Between the years 1939 and 1945, approximately 6 million Jews were killed by the Nazi regime and its collaborators in the holocaust.


Just because something seems like a good idea at the time, doesn't mean it is.