paramatrix

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robreed

Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
15
Location
Ceres Ca
does anybody know anything about the sony paramatrix decoder ?
I know that it never went into production but it was built and have seen pictures of it . The description of it sounded as though it worked something like a TATE
and what happened to the prototypes ?
how good were they
 
does anybody know anything about the sony paramatrix decoder ?
I know that it never went into production but it was built and have seen pictures of it . The description of it sounded as though it worked something like a TATE
and what happened to the prototypes ?
how good were they


I remember the thread in either 'High Fidelity' magazine or 'Stereo Review', it was called a "parametric equalizer" and that was the last I heard...
 
A parametric equalizer is NOT like a Paramatrix SQ decoder. Robreed is correct, Paramatrix is from Sony and similar to Tate. Parametric equalizers control the parameters, hence the name. SAE was the biggest proponent of these. The parameters are center frequency, bandwith and amplitude (volume.) A parametric equalizer adjusts all three. A graphic equalizer works on fixed frequencies and fixed bandwith. It only allows the amplitude (volume) to be controlled.

Linda

I remember the thread in either 'High Fidelity' magazine or 'Stereo Review', it was called a "parametric equalizer" and that was the last I heard...
 
A parametric equalizer is NOT like a Paramatrix SQ decoder. Robreed is correct, Paramatrix is from Sony and similar to Tate. Parametric equalizers control the parameters, hence the name. SAE was the biggest proponent of these. The parameters are center frequency, bandwith and amplitude (volume.) A parametric equalizer adjusts all three. A graphic equalizer works on fixed frequencies and fixed bandwith. It only allows the amplitude (volume) to be controlled.

Linda

Gotta correct you there Linda - Paramatrix was CBS' professional cancellation SQ logic decoder and only 5 were ever produced in prototype form. It used axis-crossings (phase sensing) to determine SQ channel relationships and vector cancellation to remove/reduce crosstalk. Unlike the Tate II and Shadow-Vector, it was only optimized to decode the 3 front SQ positions and the 3 back SQ positions, not the 360 quad circle - so it ignored sounds to the sides, just like the Full Wave-matching Logic decoders do. Sony had nothing to do with the design or build - it was a Dan Gravereaux work. CBS intended to reduce it to chip form and release it to the consumer market as the 'ultimate' SQ Logic system but abandoned it and re-directed all funds when they got on the Tate DES bandwagon (CBS put a lot of money into the Tate IC's development).
 
Thanks, Disclord. I stand corrected. I had briefly searched on line, but could not find any explaination of Paramatrix's design, only that it existed, which I knew already. At that point, I worked for CBS' Pacific Stereo. We carried no SQ, got no information on SQ, and there were no dedicated SQ releases. SQ was on life support by then. After a couple years of Quadraphonic bliss, the party was clearly over. We also sold far more gear in the late '70's than in the early '70's, simply because the economy was better and more people were on the component hi-fi bandwagon. Very heady days, even though Quad was absent.

BTW: I strongly recommend using parametric equalizers, though few people understand how they work.

Linda
 
OK.

Dumb question of the day: What is a parametric equalizer, how does it benefit music listening and who made them (the good ones)?
 
A few hifi manufacturers did parametric equalizers. SAE was the biggest proponent with both stand alones and built into their preamps. Nice gear, RIP SAE.

Parametric equalizers adjust the parameters. They adjust three aspects of each frequency: volume level (+ or -) , center frequency and bandwidth (frequency range of each control). You could choose 10khz or 12khz as your center frequency of your treble control. You can also choose a very narrow bandwith to emulate a notch filter, or turn up all the highs using a wide bandwidth. It's easier to zero in on specific problems with room acoustics. Many have been sold as pro music gear. A parametric eq that does 2 or 3 bands can allow greater control than either a 5 or 10 band graphic eq AND a much more desirable frequency response curve. Oh yeah, and a little thing like more accurate sound. I owned 2 equalizers for Quad briefly. Today, I listen on my main system flat w/no tone controls. If you need eq, parametric is a great option.

SAE 1800 2 band parametrix eq w/separate Right and Left channel eq: http://www.audioscope.net/images/sae1800.jpg

Linda
 
Here is the studio quad unit tascam issued.

100_4307-001.JPG
 

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