Justice and fairness are difficult for man to implement in a world of overwhelming inequalities, where the lotteries of birth or geography so substantially influence the course of a life. Perhaps justice is probably only achievable in the mind of God, given the complexities of the universe. Yet time and again we are confronted with injustices that make us wonder whether we couldn't help out a bit, and engage in battle with the forces that persistently exclude, repress, ignore or revile the different, the adventurous or the visionary.
Of course, sometimes it takes a certain sort of technological advance to open the doors of change; the Industrial Revolution for example, at least created the possibilities of increased freedom, and thus change. For P.W.B., the developments in information technology have led not only to the exciting new developments and techniques, but the internet is at last providing a way around the tyranny of the establishment. The only downside that I can see to this is that information technology is, at least in part, also preoccupied with higher numbers – clock speeds, hard drives, monitors, memory – that we could easily remain in the blind alley that we are currently in, at least in the world of Hi-Fi. Yet the internet is proving to be the possible sword of righteousness, and the reader will see at least three articles, two of them international in origin, in which the internet has played a crucial role. This is exciting progress. We no longer have to wait for the magazines to have a change of heart, as any interested or open-minded, and perhaps IT-literate person can access the content of Newsletters and P.W.B. ideas. And it works.
Since Christmas, there have been extraordinary (even for P.W.B.) developments in Leeds, that have built upon all that has gone before, and have established how patterns that are beneficial to our senses can be 'downloaded' into our own homes, quite without a Modem. Kevin Kehoe writes of this still astonishing process, but there have been yet more startling advances. Whilst I have become somewhat used to the sound and vision at home continually improving – between the fitting of new devices – the experience of playing a new, almost untreated CD that produced the finest sound yet at home was something to behold. Readers will find the whole of this story in the New Product section, and I hope some readers will have access to these discs that reveal what is possible. Unfortunately, such tests should carry something of a warning, because it is not easy to return to the drab and smothered sound that we previously championed as Hi-Fi. In ones dreams one would hope that something of Peter's work would enter into recording/transfer processes, such that by the final stages of 'Mastering the Disc' the end result would be supreme, and quite without the need of little Foil bits that so consume our time.
But of course this work is a necessary step to other delights, and follows on from the Albert Hall experiment etc, where P.W.B. techniques can be experienced without the need of doing anything more at home. Yet the delights that are also now available in the form of a new Label really need more thought. Whilst the 'invisible download' of advances forged at P.W.B. HQ, thanks to the processes of Morphic Resonance (which still seems to be the best name for the process) seem to be at least recognisable, the effect of a translucent sticker stuck to a piece of equipment upon our senses is perhaps more disturbing. Peter is constantly wary of that part in us that lives by the rule 'Never mind the quality, feel the width'. That such a small piece of plastic, with obscure signs and writing printed upon it, can impact upon our senses at all is nothing short of miraculous. That it can access the truth of a recording, or at least allow us to access the core of a piece is quite devastating. Yet how does one overturn all that tells us that it cannot be so. Yet not to try these new Labels is to deprive ourselves of something that literally takes us into a different world, in terms of experience, and in terms of opening our minds to a universe still evolving. The sound one hears, the music one experiences simply cannot be described in the terms usually consigned to the description of a piece of equipment. Perhaps words like 'magnificent' must suffice.
I suspect readers of the Newsletter over the years will have noticed that I have moved away from describing any possible theory that would explain these phenomena, as this is also a field I feel increasingly unable to do justice to. However, there are experiences and thoughts that can be related. Firstly, I feel increasingly aware that P.W.B. devices bring one yet closer to the core of an emotional or musical event that even the process of recording has disturbed. Recordings, of whatever shape or form, interfere with what might have been a natural form of some type, and distortions way beyond the harmonic type confuse us, such that our minds must reassemble from the twisted fragments what we can of the original. I think we get closer all of the time; but I think it is also true that PWB devices allow us to experience the true worth of a piece of equipment. Under ordinary circumstances, I don't think we can really know whether a product is better than this or that. I suspect that only when fully treated could products be reasonably compared, and the results might be surprising. For myself the latest surprise has been that of the Minidisc. As you may know, these small discs (almost like floppy discs for PCs) store less than a quarter of the information that can be stored on a CD. However they are small, very flexible and are ideal for many situations e.g. travel. They can also produce the best sound that you have ever heard. No kidding. With the new Label, a portable Minidisc player has yielded sounds so detailed and pure that one could retire in a state of bliss. Of course a similarly treated CD player sounds even better, but that is not the point. One could argue that we hear so little of the potential content of any current recording that pushing up bit-rates is rather missing the point. It's like driving on full beam in fog; it just gets more in the way
And so it is now time to leave the reader to his, or her own thoughts on these matters, and to thank all of the contributors again, whilst leaving one more idea. Last year May Belt gave a very successful talk to a group of interested listeners and it is hoped that this can be repeated in London in late Spring (late May) possibly. The date and venue will be announced to a select group of invited individuals, and the event video-taped, so as to create a valuable document of the ideas that underpin Peter's work, and the forum in which they were discussed. If interested individuals could let myself or May Belt know of their desire to attend, we can let people know the all important details.
For those that wish to discuss anything further, or contribute to the next Newsletter, the methods of communication remain:
Richard Graham 28th March 1999
P.W.B. Newsletter
P.W.B Electronics
18. Pasture Crescent
Leeds LS7 3QB
Or for you sophisticates
E-mail – to Newsletter@belt.demon.co.uk
Progress at P.W.B., I think, was once heralded by quantity – Foils came thick and fast, and one was usually applying something new and magnetic somewhere, very regularly. In recent years though, there have been few additions to the catalogue of still worthwhile products. (Bizarrely, even the oldest PWB product is more effective than ever, by virtue of the fact that their current production techniques morphically resonate with all past products.) Yet when something does come along, it really …. Well….
I cannot remember when I first learnt of the new device – I think early 1999, when Peter spoke of techniques that were radically changing the sound of CDs using Minidiscs – but I had some interesting experiences en route. Firstly, as a demonstration of the new processes, Peter encouraged me to listen to two of the free CDs that come with the Gramophone magazine. As I usually buy the Gramophone these discs were to hand. Peter wondered what I thought of these relatively untreated discs ( I had only the customary two strips of Rainbow Foil on them), asking what I thought with a wry smile in his voice. One of the discs had an excerpt of Wagner's 'Die Meistersinger', from an old mono recording, which I owned (fully treated at that,) so I could compare the sampler disc with the full set of (and presumably better transferred) discs. So the battle began…
I immediately telephone to complain to Peter that this sampler disc was pouring forth some of the most vital, liquid and detailed sound that I had ever heard. Further, the sound from the sampler disc exceeded that of my fully treated disc, not enormously, but significantly so. You can imagine my complaint – all other discs sounded dull compared to this treated disc, and that even a fully treated disc (which includes the following Foils and Films and disc and cover : Rainbow, X, Black 26, Blue, Safehole, Communication, Comfort, Q, Frosted, Grey/Clip, Front/Back plus pens, sprays and creams!) resembled a pallid facsimile. Peter reassured me that a new Passive disc, for insertion into the CD case when playing a CD would help this matter. This Passive disc duly arrived, but the sound wasn't as good as the sampler disc which had improved – beyond a joke! – further, and that the sampler disc did not need the Passive disc anyway, adding yet more salt to the wound. If this sounds churlish, or a touch of pearls before swine, remember that the risk of using PWB products is that ones brain or mind starts to expect the new better standard of perception and all else seen or heard is fogged in mediocrity. It is hard to bear the latter, although treating ones photograph/using a photograph wallet clears much of this perceptual smog wherever one goes. However, it was important to complain, even though I realised that if the record companies could take on Peter's work, the consequences would be extraordinary.
Peter responded by sending a little sticker, like many of the recent ones, forged from translucent plastic. The sticker, or Priority Label as I think it should be known, was to be applied to the CD player to see if it helped my grievance that I had seen (heard?) heaven, only for the vision to be in the form of a sampler disc of limited appeal, and thus feel it to have been snatched away. I first fitted the Label with Blutak to the CD player lid, and played a favourite disc. The experience was unexpectingly jaw-dropping, but somehow more, as I could not believe the new step in naturalness that had emerged from my speakers. It is difficult to describe, as it seemed so un-Hi-Fi, although there was more detail on offer, more sumptuous tone to instruments and voice, and a firmer, more rhythmic bass. Yet the feeling of 'rightness' was quite something, and I found myself thinking of the old Linn products test of assessing the melody. This wasn't just a case of appreciating the glorious tunefulness of the new sound, it was more like receiving a Rosetta stone that somehow unlocked the mysteries of the music – it made much more sense, and communicated. Rapt attention to the music was now an effortless pursuit, and the riches flowed from those shiny little discs.
Peter was uncertain as to whether these Labels would be commercially available, as they took a great deal of work to produce – and consequently would be costly – and no-one would imagine the actual leap that would result from such a funny little sticker. The Passive disc, I understand, was to be sent free of charge to all Quantum Clip owners, but the new Label, well…
Time will tell whether my begging Peter to release this Label to P.W.B. customers was the right move. I could not see how it could not be good, especially for myself. The Label has been through some transformations since then, and it is now so much better than before, working synergistically with other treatments and devices, to astounding effect. There may be some places that are better than others for this Label, but it goes well anywhere. Initially it seemed wonderful on anything with either a Laser or Loudspeaker drive unit (attaching one with Blutak to a tweeter frontplate was almost comically effective as it improved the sound, or my perception of both speakers!) The usual P.W.B. sites yielded their usual rich harvests, such that one stuck to the TV improved the sound from the CD player, whilst one on the Minidisc player improved the TV picture, and so on.
At the time of writing this, I have just tested the finalised version. I would hope that the experience of others will confirm this, but I now feel that these Labels do take one to another level, into another world. I tried one on a little portable Minidisc player – with its high compression rates – and it was quite simply some of the best music I have ever heard. Such experiences make a mockery of the current obsession with higher rates of information transfer. One could argue that, with P.W.B.'s work, we are only starting to perceive what is stored/contained in a recording; trying to make these more complicated rather misses the point.
As usual, I would urge the Newsletter reader to consider trying one of the Priority Labels, especially if they have a Dome(s), as the two work well together. They will not be in the reach of everyone, but fear not. The work on this Label has filtered into all other products which are now more effective than ever, even if you fitted the device ten years ago! However, if you do proceed, I don't think you will be disappointed, unless you are after the sort of metallised harshness that masquerades as Hi-Fi in other places.
Before stopping though, I think it important to emphasise that this new Label is a dawn rather than a sunset, and much more extraordinary things are coming, and one really needs to keep an open mind for these. I have sampled something today which is in its early stages. If it comes to fruition, we are all in for the biggest shock yet.
RG
3 weeks ago I decided to reduce the space needed for my CD storage. The CDs with their booklets were moved to sleeves. The jewelboxes were then thrown away. While doing this I noticed a complete collapse of the sound. With a few treatments the music is now back to it's previous quality, perhaps even better.
Because this might be an interesting topic for your newsletter I promised Mr. Belt to write something about my experiences.
You may state my address, telephone & e-mail. It seems that I am Mr. Belt's only customer in Holland and I would really like to discuss some of my experiences and ideas with others.
About three years ago I realized that not buying a CD player was not the answer. Having spent some time in strict LP-only company, I began to dislike aspects of their somewhat esoteric views. I bought myself a CD player and with the help of Peter Belt began to close the gap between what I heard and what should be heard.
LPs can be listened to all night long without fatigue, even with very basic treatment, but listening to CDs used to be limited to 30-60 minutes a day. Now of course everything is much better and I am convinced that, with proper treatment, a CD is in it's own way as good as an LP.
In the meantime I had bought many more CDs than the living room could handle. More than half of them were stacked away under a bed and in boxes. To get to them was too much work and for more than a year I only listened to the CDs that were easily available.
Of course something had to be done and I decided to store the CDs in special sleeves from now on.
Now 10 or 11 CDs could stand were there had been only 4 previously. I had a feeling that this would not go unnoticed and I rang Mr. Belt for advice. He could not give me and I had the impression that he thought that this must be one of the worst ideas that he had ever heard of.
The effect was frightening indeed. With 3 garbage bags full of empty cases, homeless back-papers and a lot of mostly Frosted Foil wasted I started to feel that I had done something very, very bad.
Listening to Sir John conducting Vaughn Williams ''Tallis Variations' I only heard tired strings. The violinists played as if they had been lifting weights before. They were trembling, their hands were shaking and I tried the only thing that Mr. Belt believed might work: use the Quantum Clip. It did not help, neither with nor without Clip Foil.
Other CDs were played with the same effect.
Many things were tried but no real improvements could be noticed.
In the end everything was very simple: make contact with the sleeves yourself, make them feel welcome and forget everything that Mr. Belt has said. I signed a sleeve and there it was. I wrote 'welcome' and some happiness returned. My favourite foils, X-Film and Rainbow, were attached and a further, enormous, improvement could be heard. Other Foils did not add much to this.
Clipping the sleeves now had the expected effect. A last essential treatment is to wipe the playing side well and the printed side lightly with the Morphic Liquid. Never before did I notice such an improvement from it. I am not sure whether this is caused by an ordinary cleaning action, by removing dust that comes from the tissue inside the sleeve, or that it really is changing something else. After all the CDs are now stored with the playing-side in direct contact while previously this contact had not been there.
To summarize: - sign all the sleeves with your name.
- write something to relax the atmosphere.
- apply X-Film and Rainbow Foil to all sleeves.
- use Quantum Clip on all sleeves.
- wipe both sides of CD with Morphic Liquid before every playing
With this treatment my music sounds differently than before and perhaps even better. When the CDs were still in boxes, I never seriously considered those. No foils were applied, nothing was signed. This time the packing had to be treated very seriously because otherwise I might have stopped listening to music altogether.
One strange thing is left to answer: new and untreated CDs sounded much better than the Belted ones at the time the sleeves were still untreated. Removing the foils from the 'Tallis Variations' confirmed this impression.
And... such things have happened before and will happen again. Your newsletter never touches these issues. This is very unfortunate, because I think that they are as much a part of the World of Peter Belt as all the jaw-dropping experiences your newsletters are so full of.(An interesting point: any contributions on this matter? – RG)
All the foils, Domes, Clips are extremely potent. Because of reasons unknown and beyond my influence they sometimes lead a life of their own and do things that are contrary to what they are intended to.
This not a matter of proper or improper treatment. They have been in our house for a few years now and have become part of our lives. Their effect is based, it seems, on creating some sort of contact between the listener, the music and the handling agent, the equipment.
Is there a mutual influence and are the foils becoming as moody and arrogant as I can be?
Regards, Dirick v. Behr
Ravelijn 67
1383 BH Weesp
Netherlands
tel/fax: + 31 294 416562
e-mail:
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Important Note.
Dirick v. Behr describes 'signing' articles. It is important to note that when 'signing' any article, it is very important to use the P.W.B. Red 'X' Pen.
May Belt.
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'The sudden surge, for no apparent reason, in sound quality recently hit me with the same resounding shock that I recall from my first use of the Foils, Cable Ties, and the wonderful Q-Clip.
The thing was, this time I could not figure out an explanation for it. No new Belt device had come into my possession! I had not been particularly active with those I do possess. In fact, the sound lift was so noticeable that I made one of my rare phone calls to P.W.B.
It was Peter I spoke to and it turned out that he was in the process of 'programming' the Master Devices at P.W.B. HQ.
Pause for thought – Man in Leeds tweaks an odd collection of devices, man in Birmingham detects considerable hike in sound quality from Hi-Fi!! Isn't that something?? It is like demonstrating a Mobile Phone to a man from the Eighteenth Century. The mechanism is just not inside the head to grasp it.
In spite of all the Belt papers of explanation, the Newsletters, the Sheldrake books and Richard Graham's own articulate explanations, the fact is that it still 'floors' me when I dwell upon this phenomenon. I find myself in my mind, urging May and Peter on. Where will it all lead? Implications. Implications.
The truth is I find myself taking more care when crossing the street nowadays – I might be flattened by a bus and miss something or, more importantly, fail to live to see the Belt's gain the recognition that they deserve. I know Richard Graham has said on a number of occasions that we are getting more rational, even laid back, when talking of the Belt effect these days. It's too true, but, on occasion, I ponder upon it and all the implications.'
Kevin Kehoe
It is often convenient for us to locate an image of Man as ignorant, and not in possession of true knowledge, in the past, as this flatters us that we know what's going on. But even if we could grasp something yesterday, there is no certainty that the 'Universe' would not have evolved further by today, in ways surprising and obscure. To observe something present, and not search for the vestiges of yesterday too readily, may allow us to move forward. This means being suspicious of, yet trusting our senses.
I myself ring P.W.B. regularly because of the leaps that Kevin describes. Some days these leaps take the breath away, and are clearly akin to a true blind scientific study, as we cannot know P.W.B.'s activities from afar.
Communicating all of this is of course as gratifying as Kevin's Mobile Phone analogy – where does one start? Despite my suggestion of feelings of complacency, there remains the 'shock of the new' for all ourselves, which handicaps all attempts at communication – is it really true? Yet whilst typing this I listen to a Minidisc player, producing its ludicrously 'compressed' sound of an analogue recording, and it may just be the best sound that I have ever heard. Who wants to hear that?
RG
I happened upon the P.W.B. homepage on the "net" purely by chance when logging onto the What Hi-Fi home page.
That was the first step!
Upon reading the assorted newsletters I was left with the impression that this was either a "bunch of loonies", a "wind up" or the Hi-Fi equivalent of "alternative medicine".
Whilst not considering myself to be overly gullible but at the same time holding the belief that a lot of things in this world cannot be explained by conventional wisdom or accepted scientific theories (I refrain from using the word "fact"!) I felt that at the very least P.W.B. deserved a fair hearing. (Pardon the pun!).
I must admit that I had an initial difficulty in contacting P.W.B. as there is no postal address listed on their home page.
I appreciate that most of the "cognoscenti" already know the location but for interested browsers it may be an added boost to business.
After writing to P.W.B. I received a prompt and detailed letter from May Belt. I then proceeded to experiment with the sample of foil she so kindly enclosed with her reply.
Yep! A definite perceived difference but was I imagining it?
I put in a further order for a "Red X" pen.
Another improvement!
The final reinforcement of the value of this upgrade path with P.W.B. came last Saturday.
I had arranged to audition at home a power amplifier to be used in conjunction with an existing Arcam 10 amplifier with a view to buying it.
Having got this expensive piece of kit home and hooked up, I sat back to assess the difference it made.
In a word - it didn't!
I disconnected the power amp and went to the next stage of this voyage of discovery.
Along with the "Red X" pen, May Belt had sent a tiny sample pot of Cream Electret to try.
I "creamed" all the fuses and pins on the plugs then, with some trepidation, smeared a small amount on the tweeters and speaker cones and switched back on…..
I can only describe the difference as immediate and astounding!!
The sound that I had been expecting to hear as a result of a considerably expensive conventional upgrade was there for a £20 pot of P.W.B. "stuff"!
Needless to say I have now ordered a pot (I used a minute quantity sent to me as a sample) and have returned the power amplifier to the retailer.
I don't know how it works and to be honest with you, aside from a passing interest, I don't really care - but I do know it works and I can hear an immediate difference.
(Having said that, I wonder how many laymen could explain the theory of electricity, I for one certainly couldn't).
As for it being a "perceived" as to an actual difference - so what! Even an actual difference is only a perception (think about that one!).
So I am now a confirmed P.W.B. "convert" and would make the following suggestions: -
Well as a newcomer to this phenomenon I think I've taken up enough letter space so I'll end by saying that I still find it quite amazing how much better a sound system can sound by the utilisation of some (relatively) inexpensive devices.Ignore your peers - trust your ears!
John Traynor
I must apologise for not having written to you much sooner. From 1992 to 1996, I have worked with Peter Belt, and I shall never forget how interesting and enjoyable it was. I am very happy each time I am receiving a P.W.B. Newsletter, and would like to congratulate you : please do keep up the good work ! I sincerely hope that the following memories of mine and ideas will be of interest to your readers, and that you'll publish them in a forthcoming Newsletter.
May I introduce myself ? I am French, 33 years old, my main hobbies being music and audio systems since 1977. My first system, bought in the early 80's, included a Rega 3, a Nad 3020i, and a pair of small but quite nice sounding 2 way French loudspeakers of then. By pure luck, I noticed one day a WH SMITH store while shopping in Paris; the only one in France in fact ! Things would never be the same again. The UK magazines made, and still make, for more interesting reading than the French ones : plenty of products news and technical infos, serious listening tests be they comparative or not, DIY ideas, letters from readers on all kind of matters...
I quickly became hooked, and soon I was buying some British Hi-Fi mags every month. I learned many things, and became a really knowledgeable audiophile. Then, one day while checking the latest mags at WH Smith, I noticed a mag talking about P.W.B. I didn't really care at first, for me all this was not serious and credible. However, samples of treated foils were offered, and this is unusual. I sadly never bought that magazine's issue, but willing to learn more, I did for the following ones. Some readers then wrote to say that the treatments made an improvement to their system, others heard nothing. Curious, unsure of what to think, I was to meet Peter at the '90 Heathrow Penta Show.
Let's be honest : at first, I heard no difference while Peter was doing comparative tests : P.W.B. treated, non-treated. I sincerely tried to find an improvement, even modest, but no use. Some might, or even would, have no longer cared about Peter and his " exotic " ideas. Not me, Peter was so kind while we chatted, not pushy at all, that I almost felt sorry to hear no difference during the demo ! I came back the day after, so to try again. That time, things went better : I was beginning to " feel " something. The " P.W.B. effect " is not something we're prepared for, in my opinion. An audiophile mainly learning from reading the Hi-Fi mags is seeking things like " pure treble ", " deep bass ", " open mid ". How many reviewers are looking for living music in the sound, and not technical Hi-Fi ?
To cut short a long story, I was then to create my Hi-Fi company and shop. I wanted to work with Peter, due to my feeling that he might well be onto something important and revolutionary, something only needing a little time and experience to be more easily understood and used to good effect. It took me several months, and letters to Peter, to get him purveying me on a trade basis !
Quite simply, working with Peter is the best thing that happened during my 7-years long hi-fi trading experience. Anyone with an open mind and a real liking for music cannot but realise that treating a system or even objects in the house with Peter's products not only improves the sound, but does it in quite a remarkable and unique way. I have tried and sold thousands of various products, and my mind is firmly made up. Say you have £1000 to spend, on a new CD player. Buying a very good one priced at £950 is not the way to go ! You'd better take some more time, find and buy the player you prefer at say £700, and keep £300 forward some P.W.B. goodies. Once properly treated, this cheaper CD player will astound you !
I used to recommend simple, neutral components to my customers, suggesting that trying one or two P.W.B. items would further help their understanding of what is important in Hi-Fi. By far, it is the CD Electret Disc I have sold the most. You can't design an " audio accessory " more useful, easy to use and idiot-proof. It doesn't look like much, but it does wonders for most CD players.
This you must put first on your buying list.
Being ahead of one's time sadly is not the best path to immediate success. To date, there's no " P.W.B. Edition " tasty CD player from Marantz, or " Peter Belt Signature " flagship loudspeaker from Kef. Established UK manufacturers have all heard about P.W.B., but self-pleased and seeking to please most people ( mediocrity ? ) they won't move a single finger to let things improve really. Why on earth don't they at least use basic ideas from Peter ? No-one would care to see some internal cable with a reef-knot ( factory made ) inside an amp ! Do you really care if only uneven numbers of bolts are used to screw together things in a loudspeaker ? When you left some CDs in your freezer overnight, and discovered them sounding better than ever - and for free ! - the day after, didn't you feel strange ? Compared to someone like Peter, do we really know much about real Hi-Fi ?
Have you read the February issue of What Hi-Fi ? See page 41. The mag is not doing its job by not naming Peter, while writing about his very own " free and simple " ideas. What a waste... Is this meant ? Try it for yourself, that's the message; and I prefer this to some past negative reviews made by people with no ear or mind. What Hi-Fi must be blamed for not informing new readers that Peter Belt is the man behind these unusual helps to get a better sounding system and more friendly home. Peter Belt is no man of the past, care about what he says and your understanding of things will improve. That's going forward, unless I'm stupid.
I'd like to come back to my recent trading experience, both at the head of a shop, and as French agent for TDL, Pink Triangle, J.A.Michell, LFD, Ruark, Sonic Link, Lumley... I have also sold P.W.B.'s goods for five years, and that was definitely the most exiting and interesting part of my job. I have learned more from Peter than from anyone else. I still have a handful of friends in the trade, most of them to whom I have demonstrated what can be done, but they are afraid by the very and obvious meaning of it. As if Peter had gone too far; so far that denying the evidence and keeping their usual, flawed products is the only wise thing to do. Doing otherwise could bring a revolution, and customers would not understand / appreciate. The older, the bigger the hi-fi company, the less likely it is to include Peter's work in the design of its goods. Sad but true.
Well, back to my favorite goodies, I very much like the foils and magnadiscs. Foils ( 170 mm long ones ) are very interesting in that just one treats over one hundred items in the house ! How's that in terms of value for money ? The various foils are complimentary. Try only one, and you won't get a clear idea of what's possible with all of them. It's the classic case of " when one plus one doesn't make two, but rather three ". As for the magnadiscs, it's the same. Have you tried the green one on your TV screen, in the lower right part of it ? If no, do, and you'll understand that P.W.B. is not really about Hi-Fi. Same if you put the green magnadisc onto the window in your listening room. Strange at first, but soon you're too happy with the results that you don't care exactly how it works !
Cream and Sol Electret are also old favorites, complimentary products that give their best if you also use them inside your audio, video or electronic components. Easy to use, they don't change the look of things ! However, they will take more time from you, as you must apply everywhere they are of use. I for myself treat every solder joint on a PCB, when applying Sol Electret.
The remaining products from Peter are all good, but somehow my customers and I have encountered less obvious or interesting improvements from using them. Having worked with Peter for years, I just can't remember every item I tried at his friendly asking, but I recommend you start with the ones I mention above. No surprise if they are proven treatments, affordable and easy to apply.
If you're already a " veteran P.W.B. follower ", I can only but invite you to try the latest products, and search for new ideas. Found a new way to use an old limpet; for example ? Let us know ! If given the chance, please do demonstrate what P.W.B. can do to your friends. I would also like to hear from people abroad, willing to exchange experiences with me. I'm French, I have already found papers on P.W.B. from Italy, Portugal and the USA. Anyone from Quebec ?
All the best.
Jean-François Le Douarin
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We have developed a new Green Magnadisc which has a green surface on both of the magnetic faces. This much improved, double sided Green Magnadisc is ideal for the positions described in the above article.
The price of this new type, double sided Green Magnadisc is £15 each.
May Belt.
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The P.W.B. Christmas Newsletter was a confirmation of first principles. The Editor's article about purchasing and then treating high-grade Audiolab equipment made me think. "why is it that more expensive equipment sounds better than cheaper equipment?". The answer is that it only sounds relatively better. One is constantly comparing and contrasting.
On the other hand, P.W.B. affects one's whole listening experience. Yes! It sounds better, but better than what? Better than itself? It is after all the same CD and the same equipment. It is our ability to perceive and enjoy that is better. In this sense any P.W.B. improvement is not so much relative as total!
It is this total musical enjoyment that needs to be articulated.
I am not saying that it sounds perfect or even that each instrument sounds completely and utterly real. There is always room for improvement – but the application of say Clip Film to a CD, and the application of the Clip opens up a sense of just-rightness. It suddenly sounds and feels like very good music, played through a very good Hi-Fi. What more does it do? It kind of enhances one's understanding of the piece, removes the feeling of uncertainty about this or that artist, and replaces it with a gladness that after all we sought them out.
These experiences seem to be of quite a different order from the 'Statmat' or 'Reveel' which allegedly produce slight improvements or just 'detectable differences'.
The Editor's experience of using newly purchased highly acclaimed equipment was I believe, that by itself it was not enough to amount to a justification of introducing it. It was only after extensive 'Belting' that the new system became as enjoyable as the old. Audiolab's good build and engineering qualities then came into their own.
This effect appears no different from everyday practice of treating new CDs. (Those that say P.W.B. discourages people from buying new equipment are not quite right. ( May Belt might have something to say on this matter though….RG)) It is not that the harsh sound or muddling effect of a new CD stops us from buying CDs, it is simply that whenever we buy a new CD or LP we are sure to add Foils, Clip the item and/or use the Purple pen before long! The same with equipment. The only difference is that we will not be rushing out to get new equipment in order to upgrade the sound – it is more likely to be to replace old or faulty equipment, or because of the build, styling or reputation of a particular manufacturer. Or because we need a different amplifier to drive certain types of speaker. And yes we may prefer the new sound, just as we like the new CD once the application of the Clip and Foils have made that subtle but profound difference.
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Writing as I am from my own limited use of these devices, I can only report the individual conviction that has formed and been shared with other similar readers of the Newsletter. However, as May Belt and Richard Graham have pointed out – May in her video, Richard as Editor – there is a whole vast 'political' dimension to all this. With certain important discoveries the pattern that underlines them is awareness – interest – resistance – advanced breakthroughs, based on the original discovery – resistance/indifference – eventual awareness on a wider scale – acceptance. May Belt has drawn attention to the parallel in the development of P.W.B. discoveries, with the discovery of antiseptics by Lister in the last century. I feel that P.W.B. Electronics have now reached the advanced breakthrough stage, and it is high time for the next stage to happen.
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Why is this article entitled 'The D850 Enigma'?
Franz Schubert's piano sonata , D850, was a product of the composer's imagination at its most unpredictable. Had an advanced computer program been attempting to reproduce the essence of Schubert's work, it would never have arrived at the D850 sonata.
The first movement seems to have been fed into a Beethoven sampling machine. The second movement is Schubert at his most Schubertian; by turns heroic and achingly sad. The first theme seems to envisage some kind of grand, perhaps Quixotic exploit, the second radiates an infinite tenderness. These themes weave around each other, exchanging emphasis repeatedly; first one is played triumphantly, the other in reflective tenderness – then the roles are reversed. The alternating rhythm of the themes is breathtaking. The third movement juxtaposes the atmosphere of the dance hall, with a mood of relaxed abandon. The heroic theme does return but only as a mocking, or self-mocking fox-trot finale.
Robert Schumann, an early champion of his predecessor Franz Schubert's greatness, was baffled by Schubert's sonata D850. He remarked that he simply could not take the fourth and final movement seriously. Indeed, nothing could prepare one for it! Pinch me! I must be dreaming – this final movement is like the revolving in miniature of a clock-work ballet. It is as if animated figurines of an 18th Century toy-maker have been transposed into piano music. If we are trying to follow an emotional logic from one movement to the next we will, as Schumann understandably did, find ourselves perplexed
CD and LP versions of this sonata that I've listened to include those by Alfred Brendel, Wilhelm Kempf, and Clifford Curzon. All bring slightly different but ingenious insights to the mysterious fourth movement; all treat the first three with heart-breaking intuition. Yet still that final movement hangs in the air like a challenge thrown down (this mixed metaphor is the result of desperation, not careless abandon.)
It was only when I was privileged to be present at a performance of D850 by one of the most talented and inspired pianists of our time, Mitsuko Uchida, that the strangeness of the work began to recede. What came into the foreground was a sense of the aptness of the ending to the inspired romance of the whole. It was astonishing how, in front of a packed Royal Festival Hall, Uchida seemed to be relating an intimate tale to a group of confidants. Music became a language with grammatical structures of its own – beneath her fingers, interpretations vanished and existences came to life!
One may be foolish to attempt to deliver an account in words of such a performance. One thing is clear – whatever Schubert was saying, it could never have been expressed in words and subsequently translated into sounds. The idea was acoustic from the start.
This sensation matches up with the theories and aesthetics of a Dr Eduard Hanslick, a Professor of Music at University of Vienna, who in 1854 published a slim volume 'The Beautiful in Music'. The core of his theory is that music is not a transcription of experience, or even of emotion, but a thing in itself; an outflow from a purely musical source. With the hindsight of existential thought, it is easy to see how the emotional logic or meaning that Schumann was looking for simply wasn't there! Schubert is giving us a taste of experience itself, devoid of the meaning that we involuntarily force upon it. When Schubert composed this piece he was in the mountains, holidaying in Gastein. His health had taken a positive turn, and he was in the best of spirits. Some inhalations of that pure air from the mountains of that summer travel down to us – and we stumble into this, like an unpredictable reality; the gap in existence where words falter, and even visual images fade – for this moment, being alive is all that matters.
Conversely, Mitsuko Uchida's greatness as a pianist seems to rest in her ability to let one experience the now quality of music itself, afloat on its own energy, and set free from the context with which we well meaningly set to imprison it.
Kenneth Hyam
Ken Hyam raises many important issues in this piece, but I would like to draw attention to just a couple of them. Man has a tendency to ensnare new experiences with a meaning that gives rise to feelings of pleasure, or more accurately, comfort. This applies as much to a new development in music as much as science. But sometimes meaning is not so easily found, and the response is often to reject – how apt for the process of acceptance of P.W.B.'s ideas. Despite this, I do feel Ken is right in his deduction of where the P.W.B. phenomenon is at, and it has perhaps required developments in other areas – the internet or nanotechnology – for us to feel more positive again.
Yet one thing leaps out at me which I think underpins Ken's article and Peter's work. The process of recording, as we know it, introduces distortions into the performance well beyond that measured. It destroys the 'nowness' of the music, and the subtleties, perhaps syntax, of a piece. Our minds work increasingly hard to make up for this – like trying to construct a Keatsian Ode from fragments of pigeon English. It is my belief, at an experimential level, that P.W.B. devices introduce the 'nowness' back into the music, and undo the harm imparted by the recording (and other) process. They shift us from understanding, or perhaps appreciating, to living.
RG
Like Kenneth Hyam, I too hold Ry Cooder in high regard and could add a few more of his albums to those recommended by Kenneth in the last Newsletter. To start with, Ry Cooder is a rarity in that , coming from the rock end of the musical spectrum, he does not carry an ego the size of Wembley Stadium. Something of a musical magpie, all of his albums have a large slice of America's heritage – Blues, Gospel, Soul, Old Time, Hawaiian, Cajun etc etc.
All his musical involvement's are marked by the same qualities – total respect for the music he is interpreting, along with a natural humour and grace. Tracks such as 'Goodnight Irene' and 'He'll have to Go', from the album 'Chicken Skin Music' are lovely examples of collaborations with Mexican and Hawaiian musicians. 'Crazy 'Bout an Automobile', 'Never make Your Move too Soon', and 'Girls from Texas' combine humour and wonderful musical arrangements – found on the 'Borderline' album. Gospel influences can be found on what I think is one of his best albums – 'Paradise and Lunch'. Tracking down the original musicians that have influenced Cooder has been great fun, and I now have quite a collection of timeless music from the likes of James Carr, Arthur Alexander, The Golden Gate Quartet, The Rev. Gary Davis, and Joseph Spence. Being a curious sort, I followed the trail back further through the various strands of past American Musical influences, and stumbled upon such greats as Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys – the Tiffany Transcription series of CDs from the 1940s are ***** good. The Carter Family – which included Johnny Cash's mother-in-law – a series of CDs of their twenties and thirties 78rpm records that sound so good today that it is hard to believe that they are 70 years old. Bunk Johnson's Jazz Band, recorded in the early '40s, the great Hank Williams from the '50s, plus a host more in between – Cooder has a lot to answer for! On this side of the Atlantic we have Richard Thompson in England and Christy Moore in Ireland. Following their respective influences have led to similar gems from our traditional music past – but that's another story.
Kevin Kehoe
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