DBX encoded QS Quad record

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jefe1

2K Club - QQ Super Nova
Joined
Dec 14, 2004
Messages
4,424
Location
Los Angeles
I'm not sure where this entry should go so feel free to move this thread......
Well here goes:

I recently found several quad lps in a thrift store and came across this oddity:

Richard Strauss Don Juan, Dances from Salome, Till Eulenspiegel and Rosenkavalier Walzes performed by the Cincinnati Symphony orchestra Thomas Schippers conductor.
This is on Turnabout QTV-S 34666

This is a QS encoded disc. The thing is I already own a regular quad copy of this lp but the one I found has a silver sticker on the cover stating dbx encoded disc with the number SS-3005.
The record label is also changed from the regular quad version, it has the dbx logo on the bottom and below the record number appears this warning: Use only with dbx decoder.

I have never seen a dbx encoded record before and wonder how many quad records were encoded this way.
I also wonder how this would be played, were there 4 channel dbx decoders made?
My old Yamaha cassette deck has dbx noise reduction built in so I guess I could tape this record then play back with dbx but I would be adding more noise to the playback.

Anyways, I would welcome information from anyone who knows anything about these DBX encoded records and how they can be decoded for 4 channel playback.

I will be looking thru my record collection for other items that don't appear in the discography. For instance I have a Canciones Y Danzas de Espana appearing on the Peters Int'l label that is an unmarked SQ recording , identical to the European release which is quad labeled. There is also a CD reissue of a later release by the the same group, Hesperion XX that is SQ encoded like the original vinyl release.

I have also picked up some late Angel classical records which bear a double box logo instead of the old double circle and omit the SQ label and am wondering if these might be unmarked SQ recordings. A Mahler symphony number 9 conducted by Klaus Tennstedt and Mendelssohn 4&5 conducted by Andre Previn come to mind. The record numbers begin with SZB and SZ respectively.

Anyways there certainly appears to be more out there to be rediscovered....

Jeff
 
I remember when DBX records appeared. I think it was the early '80s or late '70s. It was "after quad". I remember seeing a DBX copy of "The Wall" in a record store and thinking about picking it up, but didn't because it was $17. Well, the last one went for almost $1000 on eBay.

Anyway, the Turnabout QS LPs were single inventory, so there was no stereo LP produced. If they decided to encode the LP with DBX encoding, I don't think that would have screwed up the QS encoding, as the two are different algorithms.

Interesting deal. What do the rest of you think?
 
I'm not sure where this entry should go so feel free to move this thread......
Well here goes:

I recently found several quad lps in a thrift store and came across this oddity:

Richard Strauss Don Juan, Dances from Salome, Till Eulenspiegel and Rosenkavalier Walzes performed by the Cincinnati Symphony orchestra Thomas Schippers conductor.
This is on Turnabout QTV-S 34666

This is a QS encoded disc. The thing is I already own a regular quad copy of this lp but the one I found has a silver sticker on the cover stating dbx encoded disc with the number SS-3005.
The record label is also changed from the regular quad version, it has the dbx logo on the bottom and below the record number appears this warning: Use only with dbx decoder.

I have never seen a dbx encoded record before and wonder how many quad records were encoded this way.
I also wonder how this would be played, were there 4 channel dbx decoders made?
My old Yamaha cassette deck has dbx noise reduction built in so I guess I could tape this record then play back with dbx but I would be adding more noise to the playback.

Anyways, I would welcome information from anyone who knows anything about these DBX encoded records and how they can be decoded for 4 channel playback.

I will be looking thru my record collection for other items that don't appear in the discography. For instance I have a Canciones Y Danzas de Espana appearing on the Peters Int'l label that is an unmarked SQ recording , identical to the European release which is quad labeled. There is also a CD reissue of a later release by the the same group, Hesperion XX that is SQ encoded like the original vinyl release.

I have also picked up some late Angel classical records which bear a double box logo instead of the old double circle and omit the SQ label and am wondering if these might be unmarked SQ recordings. A Mahler symphony number 9 conducted by Klaus Tennstedt and Mendelssohn 4&5 conducted by Andre Previn come to mind. The record numbers begin with SZB and SZ respectively.

Anyways there certainly appears to be more out there to be rediscovered....

Jeff

These days, Mobile Fidelity has the rights to the Turnabout and Vox Surround Sound recordings and have issued several now as Surround Sound Super Audio CDs.

As to Hesperion XX, they now record for the Alia Vox label and have released several Surround Sound Super Audio CDs.
 
Hi Jeff,

As for the DBX encoded disc. I have a few Turnabout titles in DBX that have the sticker affixed to them. To play them back I use a rack mount DBX type 1 encoder/decoder box with a phono input and connect the matrix decoder to the output of the DBX unit. A few Turnabout titles were issued in DBX and Non-DBX matrix quad. I am not sure how many titles were issued that way from memory, but I imagine I have a list somewhere. Most DBX discs I have seen are stereo.
There are 4 channel DBX encoders/decoders but these are not required to playback matrix quad, they are primarily used for multi-track recording.

The Peters Label issued many recordings from other foreign labels and I imagine that there are a few that are labeled as quad on the original label that we have missed in the U.S.

I recall the Angel prefixes of SZB and SZ and have found some to be quad. I do not recall the double box logo. Where I have seen the prefix, I seem to recall the circle logo.

I'm not sure where this entry should go so feel free to move this thread......
Well here goes:

I recently found several quad lps in a thrift store and came across this oddity:

Richard Strauss Don Juan, Dances from Salome, Till Eulenspiegel and Rosenkavalier Walzes performed by the Cincinnati Symphony orchestra Thomas Schippers conductor.
This is on Turnabout QTV-S 34666

This is a QS encoded disc. The thing is I already own a regular quad copy of this lp but the one I found has a silver sticker on the cover stating dbx encoded disc with the number SS-3005.
The record label is also changed from the regular quad version, it has the dbx logo on the bottom and below the record number appears this warning: Use only with dbx decoder.

I have never seen a dbx encoded record before and wonder how many quad records were encoded this way.
I also wonder how this would be played, were there 4 channel dbx decoders made?
My old Yamaha cassette deck has dbx noise reduction built in so I guess I could tape this record then play back with dbx but I would be adding more noise to the playback.

Anyways, I would welcome information from anyone who knows anything about these DBX encoded records and how they can be decoded for 4 channel playback.

I will be looking thru my record collection for other items that don't appear in the discography. For instance I have a Canciones Y Danzas de Espana appearing on the Peters Int'l label that is an unmarked SQ recording , identical to the European release which is quad labeled. There is also a CD reissue of a later release by the the same group, Hesperion XX that is SQ encoded like the original vinyl release.

I have also picked up some late Angel classical records which bear a double box logo instead of the old double circle and omit the SQ label and am wondering if these might be unmarked SQ recordings. A Mahler symphony number 9 conducted by Klaus Tennstedt and Mendelssohn 4&5 conducted by Andre Previn come to mind. The record numbers begin with SZB and SZ respectively.

Anyways there certainly appears to be more out there to be rediscovered....

Jeff
 
A DBX wall album, that is probably the only disc that is not in my Floyd collection!

I remember when DBX records appeared. I think it was the early '80s or late '70s. It was "after quad". I remember seeing a DBX copy of "The Wall" in a record store and thinking about picking it up, but didn't because it was $17. Well, the last one went for almost $1000 on eBay.
 
Hi Jeff,

As for the DBX encoded disc. I have a few Turnabout titles in DBX that have the sticker affixed to them. To play them back I use a rack mount DBX type 1 encoder/decoder box with a phono input and connect the matrix decoder to the output of the DBX unit. A few Turnabout titles were issued in DBX and Non-DBX matrix quad. I am not sure how many titles were issued that way from memory, but I imagine I have a list somewhere. Most DBX discs I have seen are stereo.
There are 4 channel DBX encoders/decoders but these are not required to playback matrix quad, they are primarily used for multi-track recording.

The Peters Label issued many recordings from other foreign labels and I imagine that there are a few that are labeled as quad on the original label that we have missed in the U.S.

I recall the Angel prefixes of SZB and SZ and have found some to be quad. I do not recall the double box logo. Where I have seen the prefix, I seem to recall the circle logo.

Interesting. The ones I remember from Turnabout and Vox were either DBX encoded or QS encoded. I don't recall any that were both !
 
A DBX wall album, that is probably the only disc that is not in my Floyd collection!

Mark, how about a CX encoded disc of "the wall" Gotta be the rarest, i have one and it is not listed anywhere.
 
I also wonder how this would be played, were there 4 channel dbx decoders made?
.

Jeff

Jeff:

DBX did make a four channel encoder/decoder in the 1970's and if I remember correctly it was the Model 224. I own one but haven't seen it in years. It is in one of the countless boxes in my storage room.

Justin
 
Thanks for all the information guys.

Thanks Phydo for letting me know about the existence of a 4 channel dbx decoder. However, as I only own one dbx encoded record now I won't be looking for this. Marks solution sounds simpler at least from the standpoint of the amount of cables to hook up. I have still yet to hook up the two routers I picked up, I don't know how I'm going to fit all this equipment in my cabinet,might have to start a second stack....
As I already have a copy of the "plain QS " Turnabout disc I can enjoy the music that way.

And yes, I am aware that Mobile Fidelity has reissued some Turnabout quad lps as SACDs. I picked up a few at Towers going out of business sale.

Regarding the Angel records prefixes of SZB and SZ I have seen them used with a double box logo on late issue Angel records and wonder if this was a transitional symbol used to denote quad recordings when the era ended and nobody wanted to publicly label quad recordings anymore.
 
Thanks for all the information guys.
Regarding the Angel records prefixes of SZB and SZ I have seen them used with a double box logo on late issue Angel records and wonder if this was a transitional symbol used to denote quad recordings when the era ended and nobody wanted to publicly label quad recordings anymore.

I think you are correct in your line of thinking. There was no reason to market quad at that point.
 
I'm not sure where this entry should go so feel free to move this thread......
Well here goes:

I recently found several quad lps in a thrift store and came across this oddity:

Richard Strauss Don Juan, Dances from Salome, Till Eulenspiegel and Rosenkavalier Walzes performed by the Cincinnati Symphony orchestra Thomas Schippers conductor.
This is on Turnabout QTV-S 34666

This is a QS encoded disc. The thing is I already own a regular quad copy of this lp but the one I found has a silver sticker on the cover stating dbx encoded disc with the number SS-3005.
The record label is also changed from the regular quad version, it has the dbx logo on the bottom and below the record number appears this warning: Use only with dbx decoder.

I have never seen a dbx encoded record before and wonder how many quad records were encoded this way.
I also wonder how this would be played, were there 4 channel dbx decoders made?
My old Yamaha cassette deck has dbx noise reduction built in so I guess I could tape this record then play back with dbx but I would be adding more noise to the playback.

Anyways, I would welcome information from anyone who knows anything about these DBX encoded records and how they can be decoded for 4 channel playback.

I will be looking thru my record collection for other items that don't appear in the discography. For instance I have a Canciones Y Danzas de Espana appearing on the Peters Int'l label that is an unmarked SQ recording , identical to the European release which is quad labeled. There is also a CD reissue of a later release by the the same group, Hesperion XX that is SQ encoded like the original vinyl release.

I have also picked up some late Angel classical records which bear a double box logo instead of the old double circle and omit the SQ label and am wondering if these might be unmarked SQ recordings. A Mahler symphony number 9 conducted by Klaus Tennstedt and Mendelssohn 4&5 conducted by Andre Previn come to mind. The record numbers begin with SZB and SZ respectively.

Anyways there certainly appears to be more out there to be rediscovered....

Jeff

Peters International quad LP's were generally QS. Every one I have features a QS logo on the rear, so it could have been released here as a stereo version, but the SQ encoding may still be intact.
 
I had a chance to buy a pink floyd record the wall recorded on dbx , but i did not buy it at the time . I did not no that pink floyd the wall go's for 1000.00 dollars on ebay If I knew that I would of got it ,but I did not and was thinking that I would leave it for the next person looking the wall .
 
Vox and its subsidiary labels did put out many DBX-encoded records; many were QS encoded. These records sound great when played through a proper DBX disc decoder, but sound bloody awful if not played that way. They sound tinny and compressed. Recording them onto a cassette tape and then DBX-decoding may not work properly, since the parameters for tape and disc were slightly different.
 
Wow.

I had almost every pop dbx disc release, a few sealed.
Snarfed them up in 1985, when they were being blown out of Wherehouse stores along with other audiophile discs. My favorites for listening were Heart/Dreamboat Annie and Pablo Cruise/Worlds Away.

Sold them all in the early days of eBay at a nice profit, though nothing like $1000. My MFSL's of Steely Dan and Pink Floyd went for around $150.
 
I have five dbx encoded QS quadraphonic long playing records. All are on the Turnabout label. To play the discs one feeds the phonograph output (via the tape monitor outputs) into a dbx expander and then into a QS decoder (or QS quadraphonic receiver). I also have the Also Sprach Zarathustra without the dbx enhancement. I have not done a comparison yet. Maybe that will be a good rainy day project.

Turnabout/dbx QS QTV-S 34666 Thomas Schippers Cincinnati Symp. Orch Richard Strauss, Salome, Don Juan, dbx SS-3005.
Turnabout/dbx QS QTV-S 34584 Walter Susskind Saint Louis Symp. Orch. Also Sprach Zarathustra, dbx
Turnabout/dbx QS QTV-S 34603 S. Skrowaczewski Minnesota Orch. Ravel, Daphnis et Chloe, Ma Mere l'Oye, dbx SS-3013
Turnabout/dbx QS QTV-S 34681 Thomas Schippers Cincinnati Symp. Orch Schubert, Symphony (No. 9), "The Great", dbx
Turnabout/dbx QS QTV 34718 Slatkin & Susskind Saint Louis Symp. Orch. A Slavonic Festival, dbx SS3008
 
I have always wrestled with the connection issue. I have a few QS DBX LPs as well, and I given the phase sensitivity of matrix systems is it better to do the QS decoding BEFORE the DBX decoding (requiring 2 stereo DBX decoders), OR to do the QS decoding AFTER the DBX decoding (requiring only one DBX decoder). Cai, you and I have tossed this about in the past. What do you think? Mike.
 
I have always wrestled with the connection issue. I have a few QS DBX LPs as well, and I given the phase sensitivity of matrix systems is it better to do the QS decoding BEFORE the DBX decoding (requiring 2 stereo DBX decoders), OR to do the QS decoding AFTER the DBX decoding (requiring only one DBX decoder). Cai, you and I have tossed this about in the past. What do you think? Mike.

QUADZILLA:

When playing dbx encoded QS records I always had the turntable connected to the phono in's on my QRX-9001, and had my dbx-224? quad decoder/encoder connected between the -9001 and my tape recorder. This decoding chain seemed to work well for me. To be honest I don't know if this was the correct sequence. dbx vinyl was a rather obscure format, the QS encoded stuff even more so, and the only guidance I ever found was on the back of the album cover.

Justin

Justin
 
I own a handful of dbx encoded LPs and even have a dbx decoder, but I don't own any dbx quad LPs. But my gut feeling is that dbx decoding before quad decoding is the way to go. dbx decoding (i.e. dynamic range expansion) shouldn't affect phase elements of the recording, or does it? Sorry, I'm not being very helpful...
 
Well, I have a couple of QS DBX LPs and non-DBX copies of the same titles, so I will just have to try it and see. It is certainly less connection hassle to do the DBX decoding first, but my other concern (besides phase shifts) is that a QS decoder might not react well to such a huge dynamic range ... some extremely quiet bits, then some extremely loud ones. I know that a Tate would overload, that is why there is an input level control. My QSD-2 doesn't have one though. Mike.
 
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