In the days before digital music, the primary medium for sound reproduction was vinyl records. Sure, there were some who preferred reel-to-reel tapes, but they were in the minority. The turntable was king, and it had to be properly set up. Any audiophile worth his (or her) salt owned at least one or two test records specifically designed for that task.
Over the years, I’ve collected a disproportionate number of such discs (it helped that I worked in record stores for much of my adult life, so I could obtain the ones I wanted at reasonable prices).
In the first part of this series (in Issue 205), the focus was on test records issued by record labels themselves. In Part Two (in Issue 206), albums from phono cartridge manufacturers were featured. This time, we are looking at albums from speaker manufacturers.
Acoustic Research Demonstration Record – Volume 1: The Sound of Musical Instruments (1972)
AR (Acoustic Research, not ARC – Audio Research Corporation) was one of the most famous and highly regarded speaker manufacturers of the 20th century. Edgar Villchur and Henry Kloss founded the company in 1954, producing speakers that bucked the prevailing hi-fi wisdom that said you needed a big ported (bass reflex) enclosure in order to get proper bass reproduction. Their first product was the AR-1, an acoustic suspension woofer in a relatively small enclosure. Acoustic suspension was a method of controlling woofer excursion using the trapped air inside a sealed cabinet, rather than relying on a stiffer, less linear mechanical element.
In 1957, they introduced their first “full-range” speaker, the two-way AR-2. It was very well received, putting the company on sound financial footing. One year later, the flagship AR-3 was introduced. As the model number implied, it was a three-way design, featuring their acoustic suspension woofer augmented by a dome midrange and dome tweeter. Before that, Henry Kloss had left to form rival manufacturer KLH (named for Kloss, Malcolm S. Low, and Josef Hofmann, the company’s founders).
When I was first getting into hi-fi, the AR-3a (with improved midrange and high-frequency drivers) was considered a true benchmark for accurate reproduction. AR conducted a large number of demonstrations around the country, pitting their speakers against a live string quartet and challenging the audience to tell the difference.
It is therefore appropriate that their later demo LP consisted entirely of recordings of acoustic instruments and ensembles, including tracks featuring clarinet, cello, piano, violin, guitar, double-bass, as well as organ and solo voice.
The liner notes state: “AR has developed this record as a useful listening aid in determining the accuracy of a loudspeaker. The highest level of recording skill has been used to capture the sound of familiar musical instruments. Most listeners have heard live a piano or a trumpet or a violin. If the sound of these instruments as heard through a loudspeaker resembles the memory of the live sound, then, chances are, it is an accurate loudspeaker.”
Over the years, AR has been bought and sold several times and is still in business, although it caters to a different demographic now, with wireless outdoor speakers (including a model with a built-in light), earbuds, and the like.
Music to listen to KLH by (1966)
The aforementioned KLH was another well-regarded speaker manufacturer in the 1960s. They branched out to include table radios, portable turntable-based systems, and a reel-to-reel tape deck as well as the classic Model Nine electrostatic speaker system. The KLH Nine was featured as recently as 2006 in a Stereophile article by founder J. Gordon Holt, with an editor’s note declaring it a contender for the title of “Best Available Loudspeaker System, Regardless of Cost.”
Predating the demo disc from his former company AR, Henry Kloss released a collection of music meant to show off KLH speakers. Rather than commissioning proprietary recordings, this release used existing tracks from labels Everest and Concert-Disc. Upon its release in 1966, J. Gordon Holt declared at the time that this was the “best, most musical, demonstration disc that’s come along to date.”
Side One (“Classical”) featured music performed by a number of different lineups, from solo instrumentals to full orchestral tracks. Side Two (“Popular”) showcased big band, traditional jazz, vocal groups, and solo guitar.
Like AR, KLH has experienced a number of ownership changes, including periods with Singer (yes, the sewing machine company) and Kyocera. Within the last decade, current owner Kelley Global Brands renamed the company KLH Audio. There has been a revival of sorts, with new speaker offerings, echoing the classic two- and three-way designs in conventional box enclosures with linen grille cloths. They also produce a number of tower speakers. Some of their products have recently won awards from audio magazines.
Stereo Imaging Demonstration Record (1982)
Ohm Acoustics Corporation is best known for its speakers that feature the Walsh omnidirectional driver. Described as a Coherent Line Source, it resembles an inverted narrow cone, augmented by a directional supertweeter.
Like the KLH disc, Ohm took existing recordings from a number of labels, this time including Vanguard, A&M, and audiophile imprint M&K RealTime records. Because of the Walsh driver’s omnidirectional nature, the performances were chosen to show off its imaging prowess. Odetta, Gino Vanelli, and Oregon are among the artists presented on Side One. Side Two includes a track from the PDQ Bach Ensemble (!) and one from the tape copy of the highly sought-after direct-to-disc audiophile release For Duke, by Bill Berry and His Ellington All-Stars. Also, like the KLH disc, For Duke was a Stereophile Recording of the Month in 1978, with Holt declaring it the best-sounding disc of its type at the time.
The Bottom End and Bottom End Musical Bass & Transient Test Record (1975 and 1979)
In 1969, Jonas Miller had a high-end stereo equipment store in Southern California. Ken Kreisel, fresh out of high school, started working part-time at the store and ultimately became a partner.
As an amateur recording engineer with an interest in electronics and sound reproduction, Kreisel began designing speakers with the aim of accurately reproducing the bass tones and transients present in his organ recordings. This resulted in M&K becoming one of the first high-end subwoofer manufacturers, a pioneer in the three-piece satellite/subwoofer segment of the audio market. M&K subs became quite popular with owners of Quad electrostatics and Magnepan planar magnetic speakers, as those transducers were not known for their strong bass output.
Impressed with the sound of Sheffield Labs’ direct-to-disc recordings after an encounter with mastering engineer Doug Sax, Kreisel created the aforementioned M&K RealTime label, ultimately releasing a number of directly and conventionally recorded albums.
The albums featured here were specifically created to assess and demonstrate the low-end output of the consumer’s system. Both were pressed at 45 RPM for enhanced fidelity. My copy of the 1975 release (with the black and white cover) has absolutely no explanatory text, and the front cover, back cover, and label feature the exact same simple graphics. (One of the drawbacks of buying used albums is that sometimes the previous owner either lost or decided to keep the informational inserts. Thanks, bud.) Both sides are unbanded, and it turns out that they are musical selections. Side One is a high-energy instrumental recording of a jazz ensemble with electric piano, bass, and drums. The bass drum work is impressive, but a bit relentless. Near the end of the cut, a female vocalist does some scat singing. The effect is a little jarring. Side Two features a solo pipe organ.
The 1979 release (with the color cover) has very well-written explanations of the tracks, which consist mostly of recordings of single instruments, along with a few ensemble cuts and a couple of cannon shots. Sounds featured include flamenco dancing, chest organ, Fender bass, pipe organ and saxophone, and wooden harp. Some of the tracks feature multiple repeats of the sounds contained within. The liner notes tell you what to expect from each band if reproduced properly. For example, the description of the first cut, “Cannon Crescendo from 1812 Overture,” states: “If you do not get a sharp impact with a wall bending, pants flapping, low frequency content, you are not getting what is on the record… With a sub-woofer with great transient response, this is an excellent lease breaker.”
The next installment in this series will feature test and demo records issued by publications and more stereo equipment manufacturers.
