Two terms I don't understand - please explain


Hello...

I've read through this forum as well as forums on other sites and there are two (2) terms that I don't understand: "Slam" and "Prat" when discussing turntables, cartridges, etc.

Could someone kindly explain to this idiot what they actually describe?

Thanks and regards,

Jan
jsmoller
Well Rnm4, a blurred attack is better described as a blurred attach, not something to do with PRaT. That's my point.

I like Caspermao's assertion, that PRaT is just a lazy cliche. I add that it never made sense as an acronym in the first place because the word in the acronym don't match the attributes trying to be described.

Dave
So when we were all hanging out and boogieing to a transistor radio did that have prat?
Dcstep, I have a Magnasonic DVD player that loses the beat. A pal has an old Pioneer changer that's even worse. From reviews that appeared in UHF Magazine long before I bought my first CDP (in 1999), the phenomenon was more widespread and farther up the scale in the early days.
When attacks and decays are not accurate, the music *will* lose "pace, rhythm, and timing." So in that sense I do believe the acronym makes at least enough sense to be used. PRaT also sounds a little cooler than something like AAAD (accurate attacks and decays). Can anyone think of any other ones to use?

"That CDP has PRaT" is a bit easier to say than "That CDP is very good at not blurring attacks and decays." It's just a way to generalize. Some acronyms just exist, and while they may not be perfect, they've become the generally accepted way to refer to something.

So I guess what I'm saying is, I think a lot of us are going to continue to be "lazy" and "cliched" and just say "PRaT."
04-30-08: Tobias said:
"Dcstep, I have a Magnasonic DVD player that loses the beat. A pal has an old Pioneer changer that's even worse. From reviews that appeared in UHF Magazine long before I bought my first CDP (in 1999), the phenomenon was more widespread and farther up the scale in the early days."

I've never heard of this, but I assume it must be true since you say so, however I wouldn't describe that as a lack of PRaT, but that the CDP was a worthless POS that no one should consider. I've only been in digital since the late 1970s and never witnessed a CDP skipping a beat, so that's a new one on me.

Dave