Playing around again with posting my own video. Not trying for HD rips or anything fancy. Just want the ability to post an occasional clip of my own choosing when it isn’t conveniently available elsewhere, and to do it as cheaply as possible. Which means not buying an expensive video editing suite. This time around I wanted to see if I could get the 16:9 aspect ratio working.
The first few months after starting this blog, I spent a lot of time and effort figuring out how to post video. Keep in mind that was in 2006, before YouTube took over. In fact, Google bought YouTube only one month after I began blogging. Adobe had purchased Macromedia and its Flash technology just 18 months before then. Flash video, with its .FLV files, was the only way to post video, but since the introduction of HTML 5 it’s fallen into disfavor, although not quite into disuse. The last time I checked, the BBC was still using Flash.
Thanks to YouTube, it’s rare for me to capture, edit, and post a video clip. But being the old retired guy that I now am, I have a new video capture setup, and I thought I’d play around a bit. Editing is still a pain, but otherwise there’s nothing to doing video compared to the bad old days.
This is from a first-generation Roku player, almost 10 years old.
This is from a DVD, with the opening to an outstanding, mostly forgotten, film called “The Red House.” Julie London at 20!
Record Store Day ten days ago reportedly set a sales record in both the US and UK. As the CD format dwindles in popularity against online streaming, the resurgent ancient LP continues to gain strength. Ironically, one of the oldest and biggest names in phonograph cartridges, Shure, announced today that it is discontinuing its phono-related products.
Niles, IL., May 1, 2018—For more than 90 years, Shure has been committed to manufacturing and delivering products of the highest quality, reliability, and value. This commitment requires consistency in materials, processes, and testing, as well the capacity to react to fluctuations in demand.
In recent years, the ability to maintain our exacting standards in the Phonograph Cartridge product category has been challenged, resulting in cost and delivery impacts that are inconsistent with the Shure brand promise.
In light of these conditions, and after thorough evaluation, we have made the difficult decision to discontinue production of Shure Phono products effective Summer 2018.
Given our decades-long history of participation in the Phono category, we recognize that this decision may come as a disappointment to our channel partners and end users.
We are grateful for the support and loyalty demonstrated for Shure Phono products through the years and we are proud of the impact that these products have made on our customers’ lives and the reputation of the Shure brand. We believe that the proud legacy of Shure Phono is best served by exiting the category rather than continuing production under increasingly challenging circumstances.
Shure will continue to bring reputable, high quality products to market and we look forward to meeting and exceeding customer expectations on our current and future offerings. As Shure expands into new markets and product categories for audiophiles, our enduring commitment to premium performance and technological innovation will remain at our core.
I use a Shure M92E in one of my turntables, and fortunately I have several factory-sealed replacement styluses (nobody says “styli” anymore, do they?). My first Shure was the very popular and affordable M91ED, like the one pictured above. I was only seventeen when I bought it, and I remember being astounded by how much better it sounded compared to the bottom-of-the-line Pickering cartridge that came with the stereo I’d purchased months earlier with money from my part-time job. I recall the M91ED cost $20, which is equivalent to $120 today. For that much money the best cartridge currently available is probably the Nagaoka MP110, from Japan. Audio-Technica, also in Japan, continues to manufacture a line of cartridges, as does Ortofon in Denmark. They’re the two biggest remaining names in the business, with Grado holding its own in America, but not without some quality control problems that I have experienced myself. My A-T and Ortofon cartridges are both excellent and durable. Viva vinyl!
Now that I’m on the subject, I pulled out an oldie from college, my Ortofon FF15E. I figured I needed a cartridge from Denmark to go along with my Dynaco A-25 speakers from Denmark. Yes, I really did think that way. Still do, I suppose.
I’m going to give it a spin, despite the wear on the stylus from long ago, to hear how it sounds compared to my newer Ortofon cartridge. But right now I have to get back to not eating anything, because tomorrow I’m having a colonoscopy. You can read about my first colonoscopy, ten years ago, at this link. The prep this time around was much easier than the awful stuff I had to drink last time.
At this link is one of the countless examples where user forums are often useless for technical support. Here is the question:
In the Sound control panel, when you select a speaker and click Configure, it opens a new Speaker Setup window and asks you two questions. The first one is stereo vs. surround (I have stereo), the second gives you the option to select them as full-range speakers. I’ve attached a screenshot.
My question is simple – all other things held equal – what does it actually DO if you select them as full-range? What EFFECT does it have if you select them as full-range versus not selecting them so? I mean just within Windows, in terms of processing or output I assume. Not even thinking about the speakers.
My question is simple so I’d prefer simple answers please, I’m just trying to zero in on what this option actually does.
Thank you,
Chuck
The answer, and the follow-ups, are apparently from a Microsoft representative, and not only are they are not simple, they are nonsensical techno-babble. But I also think that Chuck made his question less clear by saying, “Not even thinking about the speakers,” as the effect on how speakers sound is all that matters.
I determined the function of the setting for myself a long time ago, by using my excellent Sony SRS-BTX500 Bluetooth speaker. Not using full-range mode on an audio device in Windows 10 is an equalization setting that severely cuts off low frequencies.
What I don’t get is why Microsoft leaves full-range mode off by default. Without it, my Sony sounds thin, and using the speaker’s own bass boost button to compensate makes the sound boomy and awful. Being forced to choose between thin and fat sound wasn’t right, and that set me looking for the answer. This is the fix, assuming you need a stereo setup:
Doing this made my SRS-BTX500 sound just right with the unit’s bass boost kept off. Full and balanced, and not at all boomy.
Once again I turn my attention to the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. BBC Radio 4xtra is repeating a 2010 feature on workshop creator Delia Derbyshire. One point about Delia’s incomparable interpretation of Ron Grainer’s Doctor Who theme that seems obvious, but isn’t mentioned, is that one of the sounds is evocative of a Ben Franklin glass harmonica. The programme is also available on this YouTube video.
A few years after this documentary was produced, Paul McCartney revealed that he had a great interest in the Radiophonic Workshop, and had even made a point of meeting Delia, with the intention of trying an electronic backing to “Yesterday.” Nevertheless, the most experimental Beatles production to be released isn’t by Paul, but is John Lennon’s “Revolution 9.” One of Delia’s recordings in the documentary, with voices and a heartbeat, sounds as though it could have been an inspiration for Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon.”
In the year 2525, will the only present day recordings to survive be on the discs that are aboard the Voyager spacecraft? The Smithsonian is busy retrieving and preserving records and tapes, and so is the British Library. But even if these recordings from over the past 100 years remain available 500 years into the future, will there be equipment to play them?
