advice for an RLA inspired system

I always assumed that sub synths worked by lowpassing, then distorting the incoming audio into a square wave, then passing that to a divide-by-2 counter chip, and filtering the resultant half-frequency square wave back into a sine-ish wave?

Studio45 - Repairs & Building Commotion Soundsystem -Mobile PA

efinque wrote:

studio45 wrote:

I always assumed that sub synths worked by lowpassing, then distorting the incoming audio into a square wave, then passing that to a divide-by-2 counter chip, and filtering the resultant half-frequency square wave back into a sine-ish wave?

Interesting concept.. but technically it isn't a synth as it has no oscillator, just a ripple clock feeding a filter but the good news is you could probably fit it in a matchbox, and it's much simpler to build.

Elliot Thompson wrote:

Here is the Distortion measurements of the dbx 120X.

I'm unsure how this measurement was done, but I would've played a sine wave sweep or test tunes at given levels and intervals and seen how accurately the processor responds to them (in practice you wouldn't have program material or anything below 20-30Hz and most amps have a fixed frequency response/built-in subsonic filter)

That is what the graph is showing you.

What you are looking at is called a loop back. You send a sine wave sweep from the outputs of a sound card back into the inputs of the sound card. By inserting a component between the input/output on one channel while, leaving the other channel untouched, it allows you evaluate how much (in this case) distortion the unit is adding to the frequencies within a 1 Hz - 10 kHz region compared to the pure tone fed back to the sound card.

You cannot generate sub harmonic frequencies without distortion. That is how all harmonic processors work.

Best Regards,

Elliot Thompson

Tomorrow i'm going to look at a bunch of gear from an old soundguy who is selling. seems to be some sort of soundsystem with RLA-waldorf style scoops for lows. does anybody know of Waldorfs or such build with only one brace in the middle with otherwise the same dimensions?

Hopefully this will lead to the start of a new Discobar Starry Knights system. can use some distraction with my father in hospital with corona :(.

So, I think it's best I post a little update...

I started this thread detailing my desire to build a Richard Long inspired system, but it's turned into something I'd never dreamed would ever be possible.

A while back, I went to New York to meet Vinny, who used to build these cabs back in the day. It was great to meet him, but he wanted a lot of money for what I needed. So I came home wondering how I'd ever get the money together to get them built and shipped over.

Then some original cabs popped up at a bargain price, and I couldn't resist...I got them shipped over from Connecticut.

The RLA cabs never came with Berthas, so I spent a year or more searching for some. Then I heard that after Angel Moraes (RIP) passed, some of his spare cabs in storage were being sold. I got 4 Emeralds built by Angel himself and 2 Berthas(potentially phazon built), shipped from Montreal.

In a completely bizarre twist of fate, I've now got what I believe is the only original RLA system in the UK, potentially the only one in Europe. We had our first party this weekend and it was so incredible to see people dancing so freely, and being so completely in awe of the sound. Plenty of DJ friends came to check it out, who were obviously impressed, but also random dancers came, who weren't technically minded or DJs, they kept commenting on how amazing the music was, and how it was one of the best nights out they've had in years.

This is just the beginning, I plan on getting the other 2 stacks out of storage and working in the next couple of months, then begin work on room treatment. The ceiling is really rather low, and you can hear it, so the next phase is acoustics, as well as some amplifier and DJ kit upgrades.

Edited by budney - 21 May 2023 at 6:21pm

Thanks for sharing! First thing that crossed my mind was Living Voice. I'll be dreaming naughty dreams tonight...

Absolutely stunning. Smile

Edited by Andylaser - 14 February 2022 at 2:49pm

"music so loud, that if we move in next door to you; your lawn will die" - Lemmy