Interesting comparison of old spring tank versus new
Posted: Thu Dec 18, 2008 4:18 pm
I recently picked up a Spacexpander and a separate vintage Type 4 Hammond spring tank. I thought the spring tank was dead, so order a replacement from Accutronics (BTW, they were very helpful and provided great customer support – they have matched their products to the Spacexpander). While waiting for the new tank to arrive, I resoldered the connections on the old Hammond tank and got it working again. Sounded great.
When the Accutronics tank arrived, I A/B’d them and to my surprise they sounded significantly different! The Accutronics tank was much brighter while the old Hammond was darker and duller perhaps. I figured they might be some variation, but not to the degree I experienced. erhpas due ot oxidation on springs or simply (nicely) degraded components on the Hammond?? I haven’t experimented with variation in a mix yet, but I can see how both sounds will have advantage for different applications. For example, the Accutronics may serve well with shimmery phase/flanged hihats as it has more high end frequency to work with, while the Hammond tank did sound great on snares and sidesticks as is. Will report back more after some upcoming mix sessions.
Thought I’d throw this out there for consideration
When the Accutronics tank arrived, I A/B’d them and to my surprise they sounded significantly different! The Accutronics tank was much brighter while the old Hammond was darker and duller perhaps. I figured they might be some variation, but not to the degree I experienced. erhpas due ot oxidation on springs or simply (nicely) degraded components on the Hammond?? I haven’t experimented with variation in a mix yet, but I can see how both sounds will have advantage for different applications. For example, the Accutronics may serve well with shimmery phase/flanged hihats as it has more high end frequency to work with, while the Hammond tank did sound great on snares and sidesticks as is. Will report back more after some upcoming mix sessions.
Thought I’d throw this out there for consideration