General Forum

Re: Quadraphonic sound

anampersand — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 16:23:31 GMT

Oops! You're quite right! My mistake... Nonetheless, best of luck to you!

Re: Quadraphonic sound

politician — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 16:03:52 GMT

Thanks anampersand and Jandyt, but if I'm right that's the other Beomaster 6000 (there are two different products with the same name, just as there are two completely different Beogram 6000s).

Re: Quadraphonic sound

Jandyt — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 16:01:28 GMT

Anything to oblige

Andy T.

Re: Quadraphonic sound

anampersand — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:58:55 GMT

This Beomaster 6000 just appeared on Ebay (USA), and has a while to go, but might be worth watching:

Unfortunately, for some reason on my MacBook, the link option is unavailable, but here is the link for copy/pasting anyway:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Bang-Olufsen-B-O-Beomaster-6000-Tuner-amplifier_W0QQitemZ160260848699QQihZ006QQcategoryZ39783QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Re: Quadraphonic sound

politician — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:51:02 GMT

Thanks everyone for all your help! I've spoken to Lee, who thinks he may have what I need, and we're seeing what we can sort out!

Re: Quadraphonic sound

Peter — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 10:39:54 GMT

Through the 3400, very similar. I would possibly say better as the amplifier in the 5500 is not the very best - however it is a very convenient device - I use one all the time! The 6000 is not quite as good but I would be hard pressed to tell the difference.

Re: Quadraphonic sound

politician — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 07:28:36 GMT

Out of interest, if I did get a Beogram 6000 feeding through a Beomaster 6000, or a Beogram 3400 feeding through a Beomaster 3400, how would the sound on stereo records compare to my Beogram 5500 feeding through a Beomaster 5500? Better? Worse? About the same?

Re: Quadraphonic sound

politician — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 07:26:06 GMT

I don't live in the UK (Isle of Man), but I am visiting a friend in Brighton in a fortnight's time. He's also a B&O buff, so a trip to Lee could well be on the cards. Might give him a call to set that up!

Re: Quadraphonic sound

Peter — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 07:14:24 GMT

If you are in the UK, chat to Lee and he can show you both a 6000 and a 3400. The 6000 is a very special machine - incredible to think it was from the early 70s!

Re: Quadraphonic sound

politician — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 07:05:05 GMT

You're right, Peter - I've never seen a Beomaster 6000 in the flesh. From the pictures on Beocentral and this site, it certainly looked as though the controls were along the top, which was why I asked the question. The 3400 sounds interesting - might discuss that with Lee!

Re: Quadraphonic sound

Peter — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 06:33:37 GMT

1. Very rare to find a mint one. And therefore expensive. A lot of these stopped working years ago and were beyond economic repair. Those that are around tend to be cherished - Lee now looks after mine!

2. Ultrasound remote I am afraid - the first B&O one. It does need to be in line of sight .

3. No! You can't have seen one! The controls are all on the top as is the display. Also not wide enough to put the Beogram on even if you wanted to! The top is perspex so will scratch easily so you wouldn't want to put anything on top anyway.

4. The MMC2 would not damage the records any more than they were already damaged.

You could wall mount the 6000 - though it would take a little ingenuity. I would get a 3400 if you were really keen on this idea. Lee certainly has one and could be persuaded to part with it. It actually has a better amplifier than the 6000 though is not remote control.

Re: Quadraphonic sound

politician — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 06:24:31 GMT

Thanks everybody for some really useful input. A few more questions, if I may:

1 How much would a Beogram 6000 and Beomaster 6000 in near mint condition be likely to cost these days? Are these items very difficult to obtain?

2 I'm presuming that since the Beomaster 6000 has its own remote control, it and the turntable cannot be configured to operate via the Beo 4 or Beo 5? Is its own remote control ultrasound, and does it need to be in line of sight of the equipment?

3 Is the Beomaster 6000 stackable (i.e. could I place the turntable on top of it)? I'm a little pressed for space in that corner of the sitting room, and presently have my Beogram 5500 sitting on top of the Beomaster 5500.

4 If I bought some quadraphonic records now and played them using my MMC2, whilst hunting around for a quad turntable and amp, would this damage the rear channels?

Re: Quadraphonic sound

Peter — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 03:14:36 GMT

If you are using CD4 records, the separation takes place in the Beogram. These are the 'real' four track records and are coded by having a frequency range of 20 - 45000Hz. The top part of this - 15000 - 45000 has the rear channels on it which have been encoded before pressing. The decoder in the Beogram restores this information to the correct frequencies and then amplifies all four channels to equalised line level.

The situation is however muddied! There was another format called SQ. This produces a four track output by encoding the rear channel in a totally different way. It uses a matrix system and any stereo record player can be used. The decoding in this system is done in the Beomaster. From my experience, not nearly as good quad reproduction but no special stylus is needed. Have a look here for a guide!

There are another couple of systems (makes you realise why quad bombed!) but B&O didn't cater for these!

My CLs are not bad for quad reproduction. I have a number of MMC6000s and they are all rubbish! Shame as when new, they were my favourite cartridges of all!

Re: Quadraphonic sound

beoaus — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 00:27:26 GMT

Interesting comment on the BG6000 Line level output.... All I would need is a cable and converter of some sort. After all the problems with the PC input cable I'm not sure about delving into creating cables again.

Peter, Do you mean all 4 channels are separated in the DIN Cable? I thought the seperation was done in the Beomaster...

I have a few MMC20CL cartridges which work pretty well.... Also most of my 4 Channel records are good...

Re: Quadraphonic sound

Peter — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 06:38:49 GMT

There are a couple of problems:

1. The records - if they have been played in an unsuitable record player, the rear channels can be wrecked. This because the sound is encoded at 20-45kHz and then converted back by the electronics in the BG6000. A heavily tracking cartridge can destroy the grooves.

2. The suspension of the cartridge will be hardening. Not usually a problem with stereo but to track at 45kHz, it makes a difference. You will probably need a new Soundsmith SMMC20CL. Not cheap!