SOUND ON SOUND

[Hugh Robjohns]

THX are all about their 'standards' and documenting things so they can charge for a 'THX-approved' marker on manufacturers' products that the hi-fi and home-cinema markets seem to value.

Personally, I've never been convinced that their standards are quite all they should be though -- they are often quite narrowly focused in a way that limits their true value IMHO, and this is a classic case in point!

Still, at least they rate speaker self-noise (kind of) which will please Dave! :lol:

H

[James Perrett]

I know Andrew is special, but he isn't unique -- even I got a copy of that final issue! :-D

I've just been out to the garage to check my collection of Studio Sound mags to confirm that I'm definitely B-list (it ends at November 2001). :(

On a different note - didn't the BBC have grade one and grade two monitors? As I understand it, model numbers starting LS5 were grade one while models starting LS3 were grade two.

[Hugh Robjohns]

The Beeb certainly designated different designs as grade 1 or grade 2 monitors. Grade 1 was supposed to be a necessity when assessing the placing of mics, for mixing, and for quality assessment, while grade 2 speakers could be used in less critical roles (eg, production monitoring)

However the LS3 and LS5 terms originally denoted the speaker's intended application. LS3 speakers were for use in OB trucks and small edit-suites where space was restricted, while the much larger LS5 speakers were for studio control rooms and studio floors.

There were several cases where the same basic design was designated with both LS3 and LS5 numbers, because their physical form or finish was optimised for OB or studio use. For example, the LS5/1 was the studio version of the LS3/1. The 3/1 had the (dual) tweeters mounted in front of the woofer and the cabinet was painted in Hammerite grey, while the 5/1 used the same drivers, but placed vertically one above the other on the larger baffle, and had a veneered cabinet. Similarly, the LS5/11 and LS3/4c are closely related ceiling corner speakers for studio (VT suites, mostly) and OB truck applications.

As it happens, the LS5/8 was indeed a grade 1 (as was the 5/11), while the LS3/5 (and 3/4c) were grade 2s, which may be where the confusion comes from... although, even more confusingly, the numbering policy got a bit muddled in the later years when all OB and studio designs were lumped together under the LS5 designation, including the Beeb's final two in-house models, the 5/9 and 5/12.

H

[James Perrett]

Thanks for the explanation Hugh - my knowledge of BBC monitors is limited to the well known ones - hence the confusion.

[The Red Bladder]

I know Andrew is special, but he isn't unique --

Someone who works here (a young woman) said only yesterday that I was 'inspirational' and that my brain seems to work differently to other people. I was so taken aback that I completely forgot to get her to expand on that topic. I would have loved to have heard more!

This was over a spicy Arabic dish with all the trimmings that I made for the gang, as work kept noses to the grindstone until 10pm. Perhaps the more exotic spices I used had somehow effected her - who knows!

But it just goes to show that you are not the only person to have noticed that I am special! Word is beginning to spread!

[Hugh Robjohns]

:lol: :thumbup: