The market for all things retro seems to get bigger every day; who would have thought that sweet wrappers from the 1970’s would one day become incredibly collectible and turn up on ebay! Dj equipment and sound recording equipment from the last century has seen a surge in popularity in recent years as a new generation have discovered the history behind MP3 players and music downloads.
Most DJ equipment and recording devices that are made today use digital technology. There are many benefits to this, cleaner sound, less chance of anything being lost or damaged and of course the technology has added to the user friendliness of equipment. But many people believe there are things that have been lost as well.
Twenty five years ago when DJ equipment consisted of a bag of 12 inches and a turntable and recording equipment had chunky buttons and weighed more than a small car there was always something physical about the whole process of recording and listening to music. Analogue recordings had to be stored on something you could hold in your hand; vinyl or tape. When digital took over and converted sound into something resembling mathematics that connection was lost
With the introduction of CDs many predicted the death of vinyl, tape and pretty much anything else that relied on some form of technology that wasn’t processor and chip driven. It was also believed, and strongly promoted by the music industry, that the new technology would improve the listening experience and signal a new era in sound recording. And it did to a large degree.
It was only after the honeymoon period with the new devices and techniques was over that people began to question whether the new sound was in fact better than the older sound. DJ equipment and sound recording had undoubtedly improved but did something get lost with the change?
In the same way that years before there was a debate between the merits of mono and stereo a debate between the merits of analogue and digital began. As with any area where there are two opposing groups of devotees both have their merits and while DJ equipment and recording devices have moved forward the debate highlighted areas where the old was better which led to a marriage of the old and new technologies and the popularity of certain items like USB turntables.
The turntable is not the only item of DJ equipment or sound recording equipment that has not been superseded by something completely different but has taken on the new technology and received a new lease of life.
Multitrack Recorders - The multitrack recorder was invented by Les Paul in the 1940’s. It enabled, for the first time, separate sounds to be recorded onto the same piece of tape at different times. Before the multitrack process everything was recorded at the same time. The technique became hugely popular in pop music and is still used today. It enabled groundbreaking records like The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and The Beach Boy’s Pet Sounds to be made.
Microphones - Microphones convert sound into an electric signal that can then either be recorded and stored or amplified. The principle has remained largely unchanged although the means to record and amplify has had an impact.
Amplifiers - The ability to replicate sound with no loss of quality and in many cases an improvement in quality has come on leaps and bounds since the first electronic amplifiers. Companies like Fender, Orange and Roland have all improved the technology that has been driven in no small part by popular music and live performance.
Dominic Donaldson is an expert in the DJ equipment industry.
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