Technology

At one point, I asked Henry Platt to explain the tube amplifier and speaker system he designed for us and something about why, for those with an interest in high end tube based audio. From the perspective of radionics and subtle energy, a system like Henry’s has both technical crossovers—similar components and electronic design to early radionics boxes—as well as in the strong aesthetics of that period. Is it possible that these early warm, analog, pulsing, carbon based electronics capture more of the full bandwidth of nature than our silicon digital tech does today?

From Henry:

“The speakers are Stephens Trusonic 80FR, one of the best full range speakers from the “Golden Era” of American HiFi. They were marketed between about 1958 and 1965 by the Stephens co. of Culver City, Ca, and are still highly regarded by collectors and listeners today. Full Range means that it is only one driver reproducing the full audio range. Therefore there is no crossover network to divide the frequencies between multiple drivers. With single driver you get a coherent sound in the midrange, where in conventional 2 or 3 way speakers there is a crossover network separating the sound between low and high frequency drivers. The result in theory is a more coherent sound.

“Yours are the 16 ohm version and are housed in reflex style cabinets small enough to fit on a desktop but big enough to do some decent bass.”

“The Amp is a stereo type 45 Single Ended Direct Heated Triode amplifier. Power output is 2 watts per channel. The driver tube is 6SL7 dual triode. The output transformers are made by James.”

“Again, the amp was built with a smaller footprint in order to keep with the desktop theme.”

“Single ended means that there is only one output tube per channel, not two in the conventional push-pull topology of most tube amplifiers. The output tube, the RCA 45, is a three element directly heated triode. Directly heated means that the filament is coated with a strontium/barium mixture that gives off electrons when heated. The 45 was designed at the end of the 1920’s for home radio use after the first dynamic loudspeakers were invented. By the mid 1930’s 45’s were rendered obsolete by the introduction of the pentode, a five element tube such as the ubiquitous 6L6 found in guitar amps. Some audio amp builders on the fringes swear that the type 45 is the purest sounding tube ever made. The single ended direct heated triode amplifier and the single full range speaker are the simplest form of audio amplification, and in some ways perhaps the most direct.”

THEORY

Some years ago I ran across a website which described an effort to prove the healing power of a cat’s purr. It seems that some nursing home patients were enjoying weekly show and tell sessions involving pets. Volunteers would bring their pets to the home and let the patients hold and pet them (the pets, that is). Someone noticed that those patients who had held purring cats appeared more relaxed and indeed, it was determined that their blood pressure and cardiac rates were lowered as a result of holding the cat. Some believe that powerful healing frequencies and vibrations exist in the near infrasound region. These frequencies exist in a spectrum where signals may be both heard and physically felt. Even low levels of infra-sound are tangible as well as audible.
The purr generator is a device which generates a signal at approximately 25 Hz. This coincides with the frequency of vibrations given off by a “happy cat” and has long been thought to be therapeutic. People holding a purring cat experience a sense of relaxation and well being as the cat’s purr vibrations are transmitted to the person’s body and ears. A second channel similar to the one described above is also provided. This second channel differs from the first in that it may be offset in frequency by approximately +/- 2 Hz. The adjustment for that offset is referred to as the DEPTH control and when properly adjusted can provide a dramatic spatial effect along with the intense heterodyne products in the 0 – 2 Hz range.
Each channel is provided with a switch which allows selection between the normal purr frequency and a variable pitch high frequency generator. When HF is selected, the output of the selected channel can vary from approximately 20 Hz to over 900 Hz. Either or both channels may be operated in HF mode, and the pitch controls may be adjusted for different spatial effects as desired.

OPERATION

SETUP

Apply power to the high power amplifier and set gain controls to approximately mid range. Be sure that the POWER switch on the generator is set to the OFF position.

Adjust the SPATIAL, OFFSET, SLAVE GAIN, and MASTER GAIN controls to the mid range position. (Pointers straight up)

Apply power to the generator. The device is now providing aural and vibration drive to the power amplifier. (The spatial effect is minimal when set up as above.)

PURR/SPATIAL MODE

Lie on the bed and adjust the SLAVE GAIN and MASTER GAIN for a pleasing level of vibration. Ideally, both controls should be adjusted to the same approximate level to insure balance.

Adjust the SPATIAL OFFSET for the most relaxing level of “roll”. This point is most frequently found in the vicinity of the 10 o’clock position of the knob pointer. It corresponds to approximately one second of offset.

Place the intent into the witness well and adjust the field magnet to your “critical position” point. A stick plate may be used to assist adjustment if available.

Fine tune the system for optimum results. Note that the SLAVE PITCH and MASTER PITCH controls are NOT used in this configuration and should remain in the switched off position.

The generator is now producing a signal whose primary goal is to provide relaxing and potentially healing body vibrations in the frequency spectrum of a cat’s purr. The sound produced is secondary but also helpful in this mode. The frequency of the master oscillator is fixed at approximately 26 Hz and the SPATIAL OFFSET control allows the slave channel to be varied between about 24 and 32 Hz. Slave frequencies adjusted to below 26 Hz may produce lower vibration levels due to the frequency response of the high gain power amplifier. It is recommended that the SPATIAL OFFSET control be adjusted between the 8 and 11 o’clock positions to insure balanced drive to the vibration transducers.

BROAD SPECTRUM MODE

To experiment with the broad spectrum mode, set ALL controls to the 12 o’clock position. The generator is now operating pretty much as before with the following exception…. Both the master and slave generators are freely adjustable using the MASTER PITCH and SLAVE PITCH controls independently. The MASTER GAIN and SLAVE GAIN controls operate just as before. Using the PITCH controls, the frequency generated by either channel may be adjusted to between approximately 21 Hz and 950 Hz. The SPATIAL OFFSET control is inoperative in this mode since frequency selection is now made by the PITCH controls only.

With both PITCH controls set to the 12 o’clock position, the generator provides a purr frequency almost the same as that produced in the original setup. Higher frequencies may be selected simply by rotating the MASTER PITCH control to the desired frequency and setting the SLAVE PITCH control for the desired offset. Interesting heterodyne frequencies may be generated in this manner and those frequencies may be set to provide beats which occur in the EEG range and upwards. This can be useful when experimenting with audible brain entrainment and in this situation the use of headphones is highly recommended.

The vibrations produced by the high power amplifier will of course diminish as the frequency increases and in this mode the aural stimulation is the primary goal. You should note the point at which mechanical vibration ceases for future reference.

Bat Box II: This smaller, more portable version of B.B. I , also designed and made by Gordon was conceived of by Laurie as an instrument called the "Scratch Glove". A small microphone extension was worn on the wrist (not pictured) that enabled the user to gently rub their fingers together, producing a very vivid ‘scratch’ sound not unlike that of a needle scraping a record on a turntable. Depending upon the finger motion, syncopation and many nuanced scratch sounds could thereby be produced. We envisioned this device also having other sonic instrumental potential given the extensively varied nature of ultrasonic signals, few of which have ever been explored for this purpose.

Bat Box 1: This invention was conceived and designed by Gordon Salisbury for exploring the sonic spectrum of ultrasound, of which bat radar pulses are a part. We used it to acquire sounds that later became a part of the "Sounds of Unseen Worlds" loop library and the "Sonic Painting" video. Ultrasound is a whole world of sound we cannot hear with our ears, but is very ubiquitous in nature.

Wearable Art Device:

‘Radionic Socks’

Ozone Design Inc. , 224 W 29th St, NY, NY 10001.

Two dimensional radionic circuits incorporated into socks with radionic tattoos allow the wearer to perform radionic operations with applied intent.