scrypt
Head-Fi's Sybil
- Joined
- Jan 22, 2002
- Posts
- 2,382
- Likes
- 125
In anticipation of the intriguing sound exhibit that's about to open at MoMA, I happened to revisit Tristan Perich's 1-Bit Symphony the other day, which is formatted as a standalone synthesizer/sequencer assembled by hand and attached to a CD jewel case --
-- which the listener hears as a new performance (in terms of the sound itself, not the notes or timing) whenever the switch is turned on.
I also listened briefly to Perich's pop version of the same idea, 1-Bit Music.
Unfortunately, you can't adjust the volume when listening directly through the out each synth/album, which means that you have to either solder/attach a volume control cable to your headphones or use them with an amp.
The alternative is to court tinnitus.
This made me consider whether there's any benefit to my listening to an analog synth through a little amp as opposed to the headphones jack when confecting a sound.
Questions:
If you were to use a portable amp to listen to the 1-Bit Symphony, which would it be (perhaps a darker amp with appropriately relaxed headphones to soften the abrasive highs, unless you crave that sort of thing or listen at extremely low volumes)?
Do you think there's any benefit to listening to the direct out of an electronic instrument through a headphone amp as opposed to the one which is build into the instrument itself?
The second question is specific to vintage synths, cf. the kind originally made by Sequential Circuits, Oberheim, Moog and Waldorf. I seem to own more than a few.
-- which the listener hears as a new performance (in terms of the sound itself, not the notes or timing) whenever the switch is turned on.
I also listened briefly to Perich's pop version of the same idea, 1-Bit Music.
Unfortunately, you can't adjust the volume when listening directly through the out each synth/album, which means that you have to either solder/attach a volume control cable to your headphones or use them with an amp.
The alternative is to court tinnitus.
This made me consider whether there's any benefit to my listening to an analog synth through a little amp as opposed to the headphones jack when confecting a sound.
Questions:
If you were to use a portable amp to listen to the 1-Bit Symphony, which would it be (perhaps a darker amp with appropriately relaxed headphones to soften the abrasive highs, unless you crave that sort of thing or listen at extremely low volumes)?
Do you think there's any benefit to listening to the direct out of an electronic instrument through a headphone amp as opposed to the one which is build into the instrument itself?
The second question is specific to vintage synths, cf. the kind originally made by Sequential Circuits, Oberheim, Moog and Waldorf. I seem to own more than a few.
