Wow I just got the KAB strobe

Unless you have perfect pitch, this is a non issue. As long as the speed is close, the result is fine. The KAB strobe is as good as any other.

0-01-08: Stringreen
Unless you have perfect pitch, this is a non issue. As long as the speed is close, the result is fine.

Well, it's also about tempo as well as pitch. Although there are plenty of variations in tempo for any given musical piece, there have been a few geniuses (especially in jazz) who seem to have an uncanny ability to set a tempo that draws you into the music. I'm thinking particularly of Count Basie, his guitarist Freddie Green (whose nickname was "Father Time"), Quincy Jones, and Oscar Peterson. There is even an album Basie and Peterson did together called "The Timekeepers."

With my direct drive turntables with pitch control, I found that--compared to the tempos Basie set--even a 1% variation made a significant difference in how engaging his band's presentation was.

The KAB strobe is as good as any other.

But it seems to frequently show up as a go-to tool among analog hardware reviewers at Stereophile and Abso!ute Sound.

And of course you can always get the strobe from the source, KAB USA.

Hey Stringreen I'm going to see Lynn Harrell with the Seattle Symphony Friday. 9th row orchestra level, dead center. Woo-hoo!

Hey Johnny53... Next time get off of the orchestra level. The sound bounces off of the floor and is adversly affected. In addition, you will see only the front of the orchestra and not "into" the orchestra. You will not see what the reeds, brass, or percussion is doing..not even if you strain your neck. Next time, get seats in the balcony = right in the front, with no overhang of the second balcony above you. If you look down into the orchestra, dead center, you will see the recording microphones in line with your seats. Never the less, I know even with your seats, you will enjoy Lynn. If he signs autographs in the lobby, say hi from Stan. As far as the exact speed is concerned... all strobes will give you a very good reading. If the table is off slightly you will not hear a great deal of difference..pitch will be recognizable first when a/b'ing, but tempo... no one can tell the difference between mm120 and mm121.

[quote]10-01-08: Stringreen
Hey Johnny53... Next time get off of the orchestra level. The sound bounces
off of the floor and is adversly affected.[/quote]Well, I had to stop working a
couple years ago due to health, so I don't have a lot of spare change for the
best seats. I was able get this seat for $17, which is like student pricing. At
Seattle Symph's price for front row balcony (if it had been available), I
probably would have had to pass. Did you play for the New York Phil or the
Met? I know Lynn and Jim Levine are buddies going back to their Cleveland
days.

My brother studied cello at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
(CCM) from 1968-1973. During that time opera singers Tom Fox and Kathy
Battle were there too (Tom Fox is also from our high school in Cincinnati),
along with actor Dorian Harewood. In the Fall of 1972 Harrell and Levine left
the Cleveland Symphony, Harrell for CCM and Levine to direct the New York
Met. Levine's originally from Cincinnati. So sometimes when he was back in
town he'd stop by CCM to visit Harrell and check out the local talent. Basically
I saw Levine discover Kathleen Battle. My brother studied with Harrell that one
year, and said he learned so much from him it felt like it invalidated all that
he'd studied up to that point.

I'm looking forward to seeing/hearing Harrell again, but I wish he'd still trot
out his Montagnana instead of the DuPre Strad, at least for some of it. The
DuPre has a broader tonality and a deeper bass, but I've never heard a cello
sing in the upper register like his Montagnana.

With my direct drive turntables with pitch control, I found that--compared to the tempos Basie set--even a 1% variation made a significant difference in how engaging his band's presentation was.

And this, good sir is why Regas typically measure fast - so that they're more "engaging". Louder and faster is an age old demo room trick. If you're liking "dead-on" 33.33, maybe you'll like 1% faster more, or even playing a 33 at 45.

I'm just kidding about playing at 45, but my main point is to try to ascribe the correct causality to what you're observing. We all fall into this trap from time to time.

The kind of speed stability that results in "better" sound isn't observable with a strobe disk. Having said that, the KAB is a very nice tool, as is the Hagerman UFO.

For those of us blessed with perfect pitch, I suggest we get out a tuning fork or a musical instrument strobe tuner and listen - to verify that playing at dead-on 33.33 actually reproduces music on pitch - that the disk was actually cut on speed (e.g. A=440 or thereabouts).

Cheers,
Thom @ Galibier