Scratchiness in High End

[Guest]

What causes scratchiness in the high end in some organs (particularly Schlickers and that organ in the Sound of Music)? It almost sounds like a "grating" sound. What causes this?

[Guest]

Re: Scratchiness in High End

Quite a few things can cause this:

1. Poor recording or playback equipment

2. Too many mixtures in the registration

3. Mixture or other small pipes placed too close together which causes interference such as pipes pulling each other out of tune or newly created overtones fighting with the notes being played.

Im sure some there are MANY other factors.

PleinJeu

[soundboarddude]

Re: Scratchiness in High End

I concur!

Most specifically with #1 (at least for older recordings). Although you may have nice playback equipment, recording equipment wasn't as great as it was back then. You have to remember, the Sound of Music was done 40+ years ago.

The rest just depends, like PleinJeu said, on the organ's physical design and voicing.

[Guest]

Re: Scratchiness in High End

I heard one of these organs in person and it still "screeched" in the high notes. I heard one of these organs in purpose. Can't remember what it was. Think it was either a Schlicker or a Reuter.

[soundboarddude]

Re: Scratchiness in High End

Hmmm.... Very odd indeed.

I've heard screechy Reuter mixtures before, so it wouldn't surprise me.

[MD1032]

Re: Scratchiness in High End

Sounds like too much high end to me. When I set up my organ to use the Flautina, the Octave, and the Mixture III at the same time, things get pretty screechy unless I fill in some reeds and stuff to balance it out.

[Havoc]

Re: Scratchiness in High End

Often the highs are made louder in order to compensate that highs are faster attenuated with the distance. So if the organ is in a rather large space, and the recording is made rather close and/or the building is empty during the recording, it can be that the highs are rather extreme.