The dedication of electric recording co. (ERC) in producing exact facsimile reproductions is fanatical, but to me at these prices it seems an excercise in futility. Nostalgia for the rich.

The owner started with reissueing a handful of classical titles from the golden age that have become trophies for the rich, like the Martzy Bach set, Kogan violin concertos or Mozart à Paris. The originals all cost thousands in (near) mint condition. He has gone to great lengths to recreate these records like they are ’objects of desire’. The records apparently sell out quickly, so there clearly is a market. But in the end they are just stop gaps for the serious collector. Why? Because they’re beautiful and expensive reproductions and not the real thing. Collectors buying them will continue to lust after the originals. Why? Well, that’s how collectors are wired. Believe me, I know.

The sonics are not the prime concern either, because some of these trophies did not sound outstanding to begin with. Let’s take Kogan’s recording of the Tchaikovsky Concerto. Last time I checked the market value for a blue/silver label original is on the wrong side of 5k, so the ERC reproduction at say $350 would seem like a bargain, right? Wrong. For that money you can still find an original semi-circle 2nd label pressing, which will sound identical to the 1st blue/silver label. Great performance to be sure, but sonically it’s just an average late ’50’s early stereo EMI recording, nothing special.

The ERC reproduction may look exactly like a blue/silver original, same paper stock, same lamination, the works. But will it also sound the same? Very unlikely. Even with the use of the exact same hardware of the 50’s (meticulously restored and/or ’upgraded’ with ’mined silver wiring’ and what not), those tapes are now over 60 years old. It’s no mystery that magnetic tape slowly looses some of its magnetism, no matter how well they were stored. This translates to a loss of dynamics. There’s no way to make up for this loss, which may be the one reason why most reissues - even the best audiophile ones - sound less dynamic than the originals.

I personally would never pay this sort of money for a reproduction, but apparently there are plenty of folks that do. So the effort is not wasted and it accomodates a demand. Nothing wrong with that I guess.


@bdp24  Yes, it got me as well. 

As a former dealer, the more you spent on ANY item was a great thing to me!  You want $100K speakers?  Yes, sir or ma'am, we can do that!!

Given that I could lock the door at the end of the day and spend as much time as I wanted listening to everything in the shop, I was VERY lucky and came to enjoy the products I LIKED.  It was never my job to force someone to like what I did, but I tried to guide people based on their budget, room, etc. the best I could.

We carried MANY lines--evidently people have different tastes and likes and so forth, so instead of one maker of all audio stuff, there are many.  Imagine that! 

Cheers!

@edcyn  Now you're talkin'!

I did not realize that was a NYT comment.  Whatever.  Some have too much time on their hands, I guess, or are frustrated journalism professors or something.

Vinyl is cool, but then I sold the Mayorga albums in the mind-1970's at my shop, so I kind of like it.  Also, I have a row 6' long as I am old and was "stuck" with using vinyl most of my life.  Poor me!

Cheers, and stay well!
@lowrider57, hmm, I took the line "So unbelievably clueless" to be referring not to Fremer, but to the writer of the NYT article. I could be the mistaken one.
Any excuse for some people to talk down the NYT. And Fremer is clueless? I don't think so.
He's the first to admit his speakers are uber expensive, but he has the means and music is his livelihood and passion.


What in the world are you talking about?  Take a walk around the block or something.  You have been inside too long, I fear.

It is an article about quality vinyl.  Period.  If you don't like vinyl, go somewhere else.  Some of us do.

Good grief!


"Cutting" grooves. You got to love the way the Times is so cluelessly triggered they put scare quotes around cutting. I did get a kick out of the writer being impressed with "mined silver for extra purity." Not your regular old copper or silver that I guess the Times thinks grows on trees. But did you know, Michael Fremer, his speakers cost more than $100,000! So clueless. So unbelievably clueless.

But hey, tart it up with enough flowery phrases and photography, just the kind of pabulum Times readers go for.