redbenjoe said:
jaetee --i was saying//crying that the meters and the volume i get -when recording using my ALC
is very low --so i need to use manual recording to get some good sound --
I just got off the phone with the tech who repaired my SK-71's tape deck. Turns out he has a customer with a JVC M71 who needs parts and was asking me if I had a parts unit... As we were wrapping up that discussion I mentioned the Aiwa and our collective VU meter questions. He made some interesting points that might help us understand what we are seeing. He said the Aiwa's low VU response could have something to do with how Aiwa interprets the IEC standards for 0db in cassette decks. Some companies would set their tapedeck VUs differently from others such that 0db on one deck might register anywhere between -3db and +3db on another. As a representation of those differences, he specifically pointed out to me that, if a deck has dolby, I should pay attention to where a tape deck shows the dolby symbol on VUs. He went on to explain that the double-D dolby symbol is added to VU meters as a sign of where that dolby related "upper limit" is reached on that unit, such that if you push the signal past those symbols, dolby NR basically looses its effectiveness. My Naks that have that symbol show the DD logo at exactly 0db, yet my Pioneer SK-71 (with LED VUs) shows the DD at the +2db mark. He said a Tandberg decks will show the DD at -3db. Since the TPR-955 doesn't have Dolby, this doesn't really help tell us anything specific about our Aiwas, but it does serve to give a great example of the industry wide variance.
Getting back to the TPR, make note of the yellow & red lights located between the VU meters... The yellow light flashes at +3db and the red one at +7db. These are also a form of VU meter and appear to be there to help prevent users from pushing too much signal to a tape during recording. AVOID RED (LOL!) But, isn't that what the VU meters are for in the first place? The fact that those lights are there make think the TPR's analog VU's are most likely set up to register an "average db" meter rating, while those two extra lights are there to indicate the peaks. In my mind, that adequately explains why the VU's are not so active.
In my final post last night I mentioned that I would record another test tape with the TPR. I did so, and pushed a heavier than normal signal to make those lights and meters dance quite a bit. The yellow +3 light was on a lot, and I'd get the occasional flash of the red +7 light. But he analog needle readings were around 0db, maybe a bit higher at times.
Now, during the playback of that same tape, my analog VU meters are peaking much lower, at around -3 db, noticeably below what they were showing during recording. Yet the little yellow +3db light between the meters was flashing briefly during the heavy bass hits. The red one does not flash at all during playback (but occasionally did during recording). So, recording VU readings were clearly more sensitive than the playback readings. I have no idea what caused that.
Now, when I put that tape in my Nakamichi RX-303 (which was recently calibrated to exact specs) it peaks at around +6 db! I was using a cheap, normal bias Maxell UR tape and definitely pushed it into mild distortion range. (on purpose...)
When I asked the tech why the tape deck seems to be tuned to the amp noticeably quieter than the tuner, the tech said that it was likely that way on purpose because of the inherent hiss you get from tape (especially in a portable) and because tapes are recorded differently from tape to tape, user to user, etc... Some are recorded louder than others and setting the tape to amp level lower preserves headroom.
He also said that it is very possible that the internal tape volume might be adjustable, but didn't know for sure. The service manual might reveal that for us. But, if all of us with TPRs are experiencing this then it was likely set up that way from the factory for a reason.
Truth be told, just about all of my boxes seem to give quieter tape playback when compared to the tuner signal. It just seems a bit more pronounced on the Aiwa. To solve this, I just turn up the volume. I never get to max on any of my boxes anyway...
when it left here ---
