402 Aural Exciter (1975-1976):
The 1st Exciter
The 402 exciter was the first model made by Aphex and was responsible for the biggest #1 albums of the era. The 402 was a sub-mini tube unit developed by Curt Knoppel and made available by lease sometime in March 1975. There were supposedly only six units ever made, and only three are currently known to exist. Most of the units seemed to have been available to lease until 1976 in the Los Angeles area. The units were retired in 1977 upon the release of the 602 Exciter.
Above is a 402 Aural Exciter turned on. The two channels also featured a limiter.
“AX402/D4” is printed on the sticker to the left. Unfortunately, the exciter modules themselves were taken out long ago, most likely in an effort to prevent someone from copying the design. Therefore, this particular unit only has the inputs/outputs. Efforts to restore it have proven unsuccessful. Because, of course, the exciter module is almost impossible to acquire. There is a high likelihood the unit above cannot be restored.
The 402 is just as mysterious today as it was 50 years ago, mainly because few even knew it existed. Furthermore, almost no photos of the unit existed. To put this into perspective, it took me 15 years to find one, and unfortunately, the unit I acquired was purposely “destroyed” (from what I’ve been told) by having the exciter cards removed. Because of this, the unit you see pictures is essentially a shell.
You can see bird poo all over this once icon unit used to mix the most important albums of all time. Once the exciter cards were ripped out, there probably wasn’t much used for it anymore, and it was likely stored somewhere. It was almost lost to the “Sounds of Time,” a place where music history can be lost (or live) forever.
People also confuse the 602 with the 402. This is probably because some of the early casings of the first 602 units look similar the 402. However, the units are very different in design. The 402 was a tube unit. The 602 was solid state. Back then, however, this was not well-known.
According to a 1980 interview with Marvin Caesar, the 402s were difficult to repair in the field, likely due to the sub-mini tube design. This is what caused Aphex to develop the solid-state 602 units.
Featured Albums:
The 402 gained notoriety as a mysterious, secret weapon used to create numerous #1 albums of the era. In fact, the 402 was responsible for being on some of the most important albums in the history of modern music. These include:
Rumours by Fleetwood Mac was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry, being deemed “culturally, historically, or artistically significant” by the Library of Congress.
Rumours by Fleetwood Mac was released in February 1977 and considered one of the greatest albums of all time. Supposedly, the 402 played a part in literally saving the entire album. The grueling and tiresome recording process took too long, and over time, the fidelity of the master tape was ruined over the continued use of rewinding the tape. “Rumor” has it they sent most of the mix through the 402.
From musictech.net:
“One of the first major albums to make use of the Aural Exciter was Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, recorded at The Record Plant in California in 1976. The lengthy overdubbing process had a negative impact on the condition of the 24-track master tape, and by the time the project had reached the mixing stage the worn tape had rendered many of the sounds dull and flat. This is where an enhancer such as the Aural Exciter came in to its own, restoring some life and top-end sheen to the tired sounds.”
Rumours spent a record-breaking 29 weeks as #1 on the Billboard Chart. Ironically, it was displaced by another album which utilized the 402…..
Simple Dreams by Linda Ronstadt, considered the First Lady of Rock, finally displaced the Rumours album upon its release in September 1977. Ironically, the album also used the 402 Exciter.
Simple Dreams was mixed by Val Garay, one of the earliest users of the 402 and Aphex products. The album spent 5 weeks as #1 on the Billboard charts. Not only did it displace Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours album from this ranking, it also knocked Elvis Presley out of the number 1 position on the Billboard Country Albums chart after “The King” had held it for fifteen consecutive weeks following his death in August.
Above are Val Garay’s Grammy nominations for best engineered recording for Linda Ronstadt’s Simple Dreams and James Taylor’s JT.
Hasten Down the Wind is the seventh studio album by singer-songwriter Linda Ronstadt. Released in 1976, it became her third straight million-selling album. Ronstadt was the first female artist to accomplish this feat. The album earned her a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance
Recorded in March 1976, Linda Ronstadt’s Hasten Down the Win is considered one of the very first album to utilize 402 Aural Exciter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncEay3D_8yIhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTUhnIY3oRMhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv9El6fCxY8&list=PLEQhUVjEPAq-zwqX_EPcntnMLq9qEivy9https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyA4n9u1qZA&list=PL044l3x5bRzbm1g8jGPADxBzDhosRmVHP&index=9
JT is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter James Taylor. It was released on June 22, 1977 via Columbia Records. Recording session took place from March 15 to April 24, 1977 at The Sound Factory in Los Angeles with Val Garay. Production was handled by Peter Asher.
The album peaked at number 4 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the United States and was Taylor’s highest-charting album since Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon. By January 31, 1997, it was certified 3 times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. At the 20th Annual Grammy Awards, it was also nominated for Grammy Award for Album of the Year, but lost to Rumours by Fleetwood Mac (Wikipedia).
Vintage Magazine Information
Below are incredible early articles relating to the Aphex 402 Exciter and early incarnations of Aphex. Most of these articles were acquired from a “deep dive” in worldradiohistory.org, and I suggest you check it out.
More articles coming soon.
Gallery: Aphex 402 Aural Exciter
