The Technics SL1200

I used to own a cheap copy of a Technics SL1200 made by a company called SoundLab. It had a rubbish USB audio output and to say it wasn't robust is an major understatement. When the rather poor cartridge developed a fault I decided to throw the baby out with the bath water and start again.

So what turntable to choose? Taking into account my limited budget, I decided I definitely didn't want one of the ubiquitous Pro-Ject or Rega turntables. Having owned a Pro-Ject Debut deck for a few years I knew I couldn't go back to lifting the platter and moving a rubber band between wheels to change speed. Little weights dangling on pieces of nylon thread and a platter that takes an age to stop spinning when turned off aren't features I look for either. So what I wanted was something of better quality than my current deck but with the practicality of an SL1200 copy. Well, what about a real SL1200?

The SL1200 with its original Stanton 500 cartridge

The debate about whether the SL1200 is truly an 'audiophile' turntable still rages on Internet. The issue of belt versus direct drive finds me firmly on the direct side of the argument. Every belt drive deck I have ever owned has displayed noticeable wow and driven me to distraction. Similarly I have never noticed any added motor noise from direct drive and find the brake a useful function. With a high quality cartridge there is no reason why an SL1200 can't sound miles better than any entry level 'audiophile' turntable.

Having watched eBay auctions for a month or so I realised a few things. I needed a seller near to me as posting a heavy turntable with breakable parts is best avoided. Prices vary wildly depending on the cartridge installed and they are often sold in pairs. An original example in excellent condition will fetch between £200 to £250. Other criteria included an intact dust cover, working lights, to not have been gigged and totally unmodified (some of those Ortofon Concorde cartridges, blue neon lights and 'custom powder coatings' look dreadful).

The Rega Fono Mini is a marvel

Having won a suitable deck I couldn't help but be impressed by its solid construction. An SL1200 is made of a solid rubber base and weighs in at a hefty 12kg. On recommendation form a work colleague I ordered what turned out to be an essential element in improving the sound of my vinyl: a phono pre amp. Its amazing how much difference a little black box costing just £85 can make to the sound of a deck. The Rega Fono Mini is an amazing product that I recommend without hesitation. It even has a USB out so digital conversion is just as easy as any cheap USB equipped piece of junk. I have also thrown out the Technics slip mat and added a decidedly "non-slip" rubber mat and ordered a Denon DL110 cartridge.

The thing about playing vinyl on this set up is that it is a complete pleasure. Not only is the sound rich and punchy but the laborious nature of traditional turntables is eradicated. The SL1200 is very easy to live with and its practicality makes me more inclined to throw on an LP rather than an mp3; something I was not inclined to do with my old decks.

The critics and Hi-Fi snobs may sneer but the Sl1200 suits my needs and sounds better than any other turntable I have ever owned.

The remastered CD isn't quite in crisis yet, not with Crises anyway

Crises by Mike Oldfield has always been one of my favourite albums. As a fan of the sound of the Fairlight CMI and eighties music in general, the twenty minute title cut really has everything for me. The second side opens with the hit single ‘Moonlight Shadow’ and the Jon Anderson collaboration ‘In High Places’. Nobody needs pretend ‘Foreign Affair’ is anything other than filler but the intricacies of ‘Taurus 3’ soon banish it. Proceedings close with Oldfield’s take on "heavy metal" in ‘Shadow on the wall’ which features some of co-producer Simon Philips best drumming (gated snares and all!!).

The new deluxe and super deluxe editions take the original 1983 masters and see them baked one last time for mixing in pro tools. The new masters are obviously louder but seem to offer more stereo separation without losing too much of the dynamics. It’s a good job and these tend to be few and far between in the loudness wars.

 

The 5 disc ‘super deluxe’ box set is a lesson in how to make a great reissue. Other record companies should take note (EMI I’m looking you squarely in the eye here, the ‘Electronic’ reissue was a complete shambles). The fact that Oldfield himself has completed the new 5.1 surround mixes and seems to have generally been involved in the project is telling. This is a considered and worthy re-release of a great album.

Remixes - too much of anything is never enough

I’ve always defended the use of remixes. Yes, they have been used to cynically exploit the record buying public at times, but they have also given much joy. I love remixes that either improve on or drastically alter the way you perceive a track. I have a playlist on my computer entitled “The Best Remixes Ever”. Here are some of the gems it includes:

Front 242 – Rhythm of Time [Victor the Cleaner] remixed by The Orb [the only decent remix The Orb ever did] I forgot about the Depeche Mode "Happiest Girl" remixes when I posted this

Nine Inch Nails – Only [Richard X Mix]

Depeche Mode – Enjoy the Silence [Ewan Person Extended Remix]

Mansun – I can Only Disappoint You [Perfecto Club Mix]

Baxendale – I Built this City [Michael Mayer Mix]

Björk – Hunter [Skothus Mix] remixed by Gus Gus (I used to think the single version of “All Is Full Of Love” was a great remix until I found out it is the original version and that the album version is a remix)

I could add loads of other great remixes and I’m sure most fans of dance or electronic music have their own. But when do remixes get out of control? How many mixes are enough?

In the 1980’s record labels began releasing multiple formats of the same single which all counted towards its chart position (only sales of physical product counted then). Picture discs were a particular favourite tool with free posters also common. As dance mixes became more popular these various formats began to fill with different remixes and in turn spawned more formats. Historically most people have cited Trevor Horns plethora of “Relax” 12” singles as a turning point in the life of the remix. By the 1990’s singles such as Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy the Silence” were being released on no less than 7 different formats. Luckily the digital age arrived and saved fans the maddening task of identifying and procuring every release and remix. Or did it?

The Pet Shop Boys single ‘Vocal’ was released back in June. There were 9 versions of the song released on the CD with a couple more available as exclusives on services such as Beatport. However since its release it has become apparent that there were many more remixes commissioned but not used. These mixes seem to have been released back to the artists who are making them available online, presumably with Neil and Chris’s consent.

The trouble comes in the sheer volume of these ‘official mixes’. Personally I lost count somewhere around the 40^th different mix. Many of them are average, but strangely none of them are terrible. A few are superb. The ‘Drop Jackson mix’ seems to be universally praised amongst fans with the ‘Armageddon Turk Occupy Mix’ and ‘Leonidas & Hobbes Vocal mix’ also personal favourites. So why weren’t these mixes released? Well they have been. ‘Officially leaked’ seems to be the order of the day. If you want to spend hours on dodgy websites duelling with Trojans and spyware looking for that one last dub/edit/instrumental you are missing, then you can. Alternatively you can be happy with your digital download from iTunes and leave the searching to idiots like me. It seems you can never have too many remixes.

Emo heaven is on the way

So, with releases by both Nine Inch Nails and Gary Numan to look forward to this autumn, the Emo and industrial-loving side of me has much to look forward to.

Reznor's free mp3 "Copy of A" sounds fresh and really rather excellent (especially as it's free). The single "Came back haunted" is also a brilliant teaser that leaves me optimistic that "Hesitation Marks" will be a great album. The "How to Destroy Angels" project left me a little underwhelmed, so I'm looking forward to the resurrection of the NIN moniker.

Numan has so far given nothing away regarding his latest effort but, unfortunately, the press release for "Splinter (Songs from a broken mind)" sounds nothing short of desperate.  

 
"Sounding both cutting-edge and classic Numan, it marks his best work since the late 70s, early 80s heyday"

Surely there is nothing worse than stating a well established artist's new work is both cutting edge and classic? Similarly the suggestion that this new album is Numan's "best work" since his chart heyday is dismissive of a large body of his work and frankly sounds, well......desperate.

Numan's last album "Dead Rising Son" only had about three plays in this house. It sounded like a set of left over demo recordings and unfinished songs. Wait.......ohhhh....it was you say? Yes, it sounded like it. "Splinter" simply has to be better.

However, both albums have one thing in common: brilliant artwork Lets hope the music lives up to the visuals.

Pet Shop Button Madness

I think Pet Shop Boys collectors have gone a little crazy. As mentioned in my last piece about their new album "Electric", Neil and Chris released a limited edition of 500 "Playbuttons". These little mp3 players were made available for pre-order on the official website with little fanfare and without a mail out. They sold out in a few days days.

As there was little publicity about these little collectibles, it seems some people missed out. Now
I can understand people may be frustrated at not being able to get hold of something immediately, but I've been a collector for over 20 years and I know that these things come around again. Almost every time I have spent a lot of money to get hold of something at the time of release (Flamboyant promo 12" for £50 comes to mind) it has become available for a fraction of the price about 6 month later. So why spend £100+ on a £15 mp3 player? Or £200 if it comes with a signed postcard?

These buttons may be scarce but I assure you they will creep out of the woodwork in a few months and I very much doubt they will be selling for £100 then. Yes, I have been wrong before about what will increase in value and what won't, but there is still no way an mp3 player disguised as a badge should be selling for the amount they are.

Add in the fact that the "Electric Box" has sold out in a few days it would seem that not only are Pet Shop Boys fans crazy, they also have deep pockets.

Pet Shop Boys are Electric

So "Electric" the new Pet Shop Boys album is out. Make no mistake; it's great. In fact it's the album I've been waiting for since about 1999.

The "Very" album was an obvious high point for Pet Shop Boys fans that not even the eclectic mess of "Bilingual" could dilute. "Nighlife" promised to take us back to the dance floor, but only took us there on crutches with a blind partner. "Release" is best forgotten and whilst things picked up with "Fundamental" and "Yes", our dancing shoes were still collecting dust.

Yes, Neil and Chris are superb songwriters and they have more strings to their bow than a "four-on-the-floor" pound; but albums such as "Release" and "Elysium" just don't cut the mustard for me or the majority of "Pet Heads". We just want to boogie. With lasers.

So Neil and Chirs have given us lasers, they've given us beats, they've given us synth riffs and vocoders in great big heaps in attempt to reclaim their crown as the synth pop kings. Credit should go to production prince Stuart Price who's work is brilliant. If you didn't like "Elysium" or you think they've lost their way, then rest assured, with this album Neil and Chis have reclaimed their crowns and glued them on

Also up for a gold star is Mark Farrow as the design of "Electric" is quite brilliant and ties the whole project together. Add in the innovative "Play Button" edition and the £500 "Electric Box" and you have a perfect release for the newly formed x2 records. I urge you to buy it.

Pet Shop Boys Live. This is my kind of music...

When I go to a concert, I go to see the group in the flesh. I go to hear them perform their music 'live' in a convivial atmosphere.

In reality, I have to stand next to a woman with the worlds largest handbag, who is accompanied by a man with loud verbal diarrhoea. Behind me stands a fat woman who wants to bump into my back every 3.12 seconds, with the only view of the stage possible being the drunken mosaic created by a sea of iPhone view finders.

But forgetting these major annoyances and trying to ignore the guy video recoding the crowd in front of me (I kid you not, he even had an Angry Birds iPhone cover), I try to concentrate on the performance.

"Pet Shop Boys Electric Live" is a stage show like no other. This show was close to being a religious experience and the MEN a cathederal to dance music. I began to fall deeper into the hacienda created by the music and realised standing still was impossible.

The main aspect of the show that stays with me is the lighting design. No, not just the lasers (which are great) but the whole effect of the show lighting. The stage almost seemed to have no limit, the music and lights began to surround us and draw us deeper in.

Highlights of the show are undoubtedly "I'm Not Scared", "It's A Sin" and "Vocal" but it is also great to hear the original 'Demo' version of "I Get Excited (You Get Excited Too)" and the faster paced versions of "Rent" and "Love etc".

Despite a large number of the crowd only seeing the show though their view finders there was a good atmosphere; even Neil and Chis seemed to be smiling.

This concert was somethig to be savoured. A celebration of a genre of music through the back catalogue of one of its greatest exponents.

Truly electric.