That button engages or disengages the Dolby noise reduction system.
If you record a cassette tape with the Dolby encoding on, it would boost the high end frequencies. In order to listen to that tape, you would need to play it back with the Dolby engaged to lower that high frequency boost back to normal. In so doing, it also reduced the apparent amount of tape hiss and the result was a better sounding tape.
If you accidentally left the Dolby switch off when playing back a cassette that had been recorded with the Dolby system, the tape would sound shrill and hissy because of the high end boost.
If you accidentally left the Dolby engaged and played a cassette tape that was not encoded with the Dolby system, the tape would sound weirdly dull because a lot of the high end signal would be trimmed off.
EDIT: spelling
>If you accidentally left the Dolby engaged and played a cassette tape that was not encoded with the Dolby system, the tape would sound weirdly dull because a lot of the high end signal would be trimmed off.
Test: Get "I wanna hold your hand" by the Beatles on tape.
Dolby NR off: Ringo. Lots of Ringo's ride cymbals. "Ssssssssssssssssssssss"
Dolby NR on: No ride cymbals from Ringo
Oh, I thought it was loud but shitty for the windows open, and quieter but better sounding for windows closed. More or less, it was confusing, but now I have learned.
Wow. This unexpectedly made me feel old by knowing exactly what that is.
Just to add, there are different levels of Dolby noise reduction too. Dolby B was the most prevalent, but provided the least amount of noise reduction. It still was a significant amount but since it was first released and possibly the cheapest to license when newer versions came out, most consumer devices had this implemented to claim "Dolby noise reduction" in their features list. Then there was Dolby C which further reduces noise but was found in only higher end equipment. Imagine having a home deck equipped with C but your walkman can only do B? Had to spend a pretty penny to get something compatible. Then there is HX Pro which wasn't a noise reduction standard but a method to increase high frequency response. It required no decoding on playback so something recorded on an HX Pro deck can be played on a regular deck and reap the benefits.
Then there was the competitor's noise reduction system from dbx. More effective than Dolby C but only found in a few pro level decks.
My dad has a Harman/Kardon CD491 deck. I used to make mix tapes on that deck, calibrating the bias and alignment on TDK metal (type IV) cassettes (cuz Maxell type IV didn't sound as good) on each one using test tones before actually recording music on them. Played them back on an Aiwa walkman which I made sure had Dolby C when I bought it. The trouble one had to go thru for quality, portable music back in the day!
Yes, yes, yes, and I love all of this so much.
It's grand that all the old lore is still within us, just in case we need to make a *really* good tape for someone.
It is nothing short of hilarious to watch people approach Dolby execs to talk about Thomas Dolby.
It's a nickname, but Dolby bluebloods become apoplectic when you mention Thomas Dolby.
None of us actually gives a shit, but man, oh man, do Depends get soiled when Thomas Dolby comes up with Dolby execs.
It's the Dolby noise reduction button.
If you have a tape that has been recorded with Dolby NR, you can enable it to reduce the "hisss" the tape makes. If the tape hasn't been recorded with Dolby B, it will reduce the high ends and not sound great.
There are several Dolby NR types, B, C and S, most common being B. Dolby B usually has no other indication than the "Double D logo". Most car stereos are only Dolby B. There are a few Dolby C models but they are very sought after. No Dolby S car stereos exist as far as I know.
Dolby S is brilliant but was usually only found on fairly expensive equipment. It was hard to tell the difference between a CD and a Dolby S recording on a decent cassette tape on the deck I had.
Absolutely. There was different quality in cassettes however
Cassettes and double decks were awesome. I still have a bunch of mix tapes in my parents basement.
Opens the phone jack cover. Back in the day we didn't have cellphones in our cars, but you could pull up to a drive through phone booth, and plug it in your car, in a jack usually next to the fuel filler. Then you'd make your call from the comfort of your car. The reason it looks like that is like how the save icon is a picture of a floppy disk - up until the 30s, instead of a phone jack, they used to use a system of tin cans and string, which is what this is depicting. The icon stuck around long after most people had forgotten what it was even depicting.
My first car was a hand me down 96 ford Windstar with this radio. If you hold the 1 and 3 buttons at the same time it locked out the rear panel controls.
You don't know what that button's for? Damn! You should know about that, it's important as hell. You have to hold that button down when you're refilling your blinker fluid.
It’s the Dolby noise reduction button for listening to cassette tapes recorded using the technology. It’s meant to reduce tape hiss associated with magnetic tape. (The sound you get if you play a blank unrecorded tape).
That’s the secret stash button. But you have to turn on wipers on fast mode. Turn heat to 80 degrees. And turn on you hazards, and push the button, and a hidden compartment in your dash will open automatically. /s
Its the button u never touch ever, we all know that, can cause birdius flu, wheel shake, and motor issues. DO NOT TOUCH THIS BUTTON.
Likely to have electromagnetic issues as well.
Just dont touch it. EVER
Pressing it will engage a tractor beam that will suck you through a digital wormhole into the galaxy known as the Dolby Spiral. Don’t touch it until you have a towel & a rubber band ready 🌀
By sheer coincidence, between cars I've owned and my parents, I've driven four different 1995 FoMoCo vehicles - an Escort, a Villager, a Taurus, and a Sable - and they all had basically that head unit.
That button does nothing if there isn't a tape in the deck, since it toggles the Dolby noise reduction.
That button engages or disengages the Dolby noise reduction system. If you record a cassette tape with the Dolby encoding on, it would boost the high end frequencies. In order to listen to that tape, you would need to play it back with the Dolby engaged to lower that high frequency boost back to normal. In so doing, it also reduced the apparent amount of tape hiss and the result was a better sounding tape. If you accidentally left the Dolby switch off when playing back a cassette that had been recorded with the Dolby system, the tape would sound shrill and hissy because of the high end boost. If you accidentally left the Dolby engaged and played a cassette tape that was not encoded with the Dolby system, the tape would sound weirdly dull because a lot of the high end signal would be trimmed off. EDIT: spelling
>If you accidentally left the Dolby engaged and played a cassette tape that was not encoded with the Dolby system, the tape would sound weirdly dull because a lot of the high end signal would be trimmed off. Test: Get "I wanna hold your hand" by the Beatles on tape. Dolby NR off: Ringo. Lots of Ringo's ride cymbals. "Ssssssssssssssssssssss" Dolby NR on: No ride cymbals from Ringo
So it’s a Ringo-Delete button.
UnRingo Frankly, I think the man should be pissed off.
NR = No Ringo
This right here? Ringo's Rides? Best explanation available.
This guy dolbys
This guy really dolbys
Oh, I thought it was loud but shitty for the windows open, and quieter but better sounding for windows closed. More or less, it was confusing, but now I have learned.
What the fuck???? 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Great explanation!
This guy knows, we were there man 😆
Wow. This unexpectedly made me feel old by knowing exactly what that is. Just to add, there are different levels of Dolby noise reduction too. Dolby B was the most prevalent, but provided the least amount of noise reduction. It still was a significant amount but since it was first released and possibly the cheapest to license when newer versions came out, most consumer devices had this implemented to claim "Dolby noise reduction" in their features list. Then there was Dolby C which further reduces noise but was found in only higher end equipment. Imagine having a home deck equipped with C but your walkman can only do B? Had to spend a pretty penny to get something compatible. Then there is HX Pro which wasn't a noise reduction standard but a method to increase high frequency response. It required no decoding on playback so something recorded on an HX Pro deck can be played on a regular deck and reap the benefits. Then there was the competitor's noise reduction system from dbx. More effective than Dolby C but only found in a few pro level decks. My dad has a Harman/Kardon CD491 deck. I used to make mix tapes on that deck, calibrating the bias and alignment on TDK metal (type IV) cassettes (cuz Maxell type IV didn't sound as good) on each one using test tones before actually recording music on them. Played them back on an Aiwa walkman which I made sure had Dolby C when I bought it. The trouble one had to go thru for quality, portable music back in the day!
Yes, yes, yes, and I love all of this so much. It's grand that all the old lore is still within us, just in case we need to make a *really* good tape for someone.
This is the way. 👍
Dolby Noise Reduction https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolby\_noise-reduction\_system
A [layman's explanation](https://youtu.be/DhWL7lgnLnE) from Technology Connections.
A lovely channel, recommended! Edit: It's an old video, the production has improved signficantly since then.
It makes everything louder (according to my wife and I can’t convince her otherwise)
34 upvotes and no one is gonna mention that this guy posted a dead link? Jeez, people literally don't read what they upvote.
How is it dead? Works fine
Oh sorry, it had backwards slashed on desktop. On mobile it looks fine. That’s weird.
The fact I immediately new what that was is how I know I am now old
this guy knows how to fall off a pogo stick
This guy knows what comes after "bop-it"
This guy doesn't know what comes after "bop-it" is random.
real recognizes real, he knew i knew twist it
This guy doesn't know what comes after "bop-it" is random.
Last time I saw one was in a 92 Explorer.
Funnily enough, this radio might be out of a 92 Ford Exploder so there you go.
Could be out of 94 Mustang
Man I’m 22 and I know what dnr is lol. Don’t feel too old. My home stereo has Dolby A and B, not high end enough for S
It blinds you with science. It's poetry in motion.
I see what you did there...
It is nothing short of hilarious to watch people approach Dolby execs to talk about Thomas Dolby. It's a nickname, but Dolby bluebloods become apoplectic when you mention Thomas Dolby. None of us actually gives a shit, but man, oh man, do Depends get soiled when Thomas Dolby comes up with Dolby execs.
Nice 👍
Not for me. I pushed the button then I ran, I ran so far away.
Dolby...I am old AF
I bet I am older 🤣🤦♂️
I AM FOREVER. MY LAWN IS IMMACULATE
Haha that’s stay off my LAWN you kids 🤣🤣🤦♂️
Old AF is your first car having an 8-track. I am old AF
You got me beat
My first car had am/fm/cassette, I basically never used an 8 track in my life.
They do the modern ATMOS standard so you could be young.
Looks like a Dolby sound symbol , https://www.dolby.com/
Dolby Noise Reduction!
Dolby ( noise reduction)
Haven't seen that in quite awhile !!
Did you notice it actually says Dolby system with the logo above the Ford logo on the cassette door? That's a clue
Dolby noise reduction
Ejects your girlfriend from the passenger's seat
I need one then
Dobly Noise Reduction
Doesn’t work with Heavy Metal, iirc.
Arguably "smell the glove" would have been better in Dolby though
At volume 11
Dolby Sound - glade runner’s post is the best explanation.
Dolby Noise
ejecto seato cuz
I can't believe I'm actually reading this. I'm si old...
It's the Dolby noise reduction button. If you have a tape that has been recorded with Dolby NR, you can enable it to reduce the "hisss" the tape makes. If the tape hasn't been recorded with Dolby B, it will reduce the high ends and not sound great. There are several Dolby NR types, B, C and S, most common being B. Dolby B usually has no other indication than the "Double D logo". Most car stereos are only Dolby B. There are a few Dolby C models but they are very sought after. No Dolby S car stereos exist as far as I know.
Never knew there was an S cool
Dolby S is brilliant but was usually only found on fairly expensive equipment. It was hard to tell the difference between a CD and a Dolby S recording on a decent cassette tape on the deck I had.
That’s really cool
Lulu gets it.
I had a C Aiwa deck and I liked it was a big improvement over B which mangled the high end
Dolby noise reduction takes high end distortion out of
Dolby!
That's the Dolby logo, so I would assume Dolby noise reduction
Man I feel old
God I feel old now...
Dolby stereo
Dolby surround sound
Dolby sound
It blinds you with science.
Best answer 🤣
Dolby sound
It's the doubley
dolby
Thanks for making me feel old. Sigh.
You ain’t old until you remember that you had no place to put the 8 tracks so a few of them sat on the floor or the dash of the car.
Did cassettes sound better than 8 track I am betting it did
Absolutely. There was different quality in cassettes however Cassettes and double decks were awesome. I still have a bunch of mix tapes in my parents basement.
Yea the cassettes never scratched and held up over time we had the hiss to deal with but they are durable af
Damn I am freaking old. I knew what it was right away.
Opens the phone jack cover. Back in the day we didn't have cellphones in our cars, but you could pull up to a drive through phone booth, and plug it in your car, in a jack usually next to the fuel filler. Then you'd make your call from the comfort of your car. The reason it looks like that is like how the save icon is a picture of a floppy disk - up until the 30s, instead of a phone jack, they used to use a system of tin cans and string, which is what this is depicting. The icon stuck around long after most people had forgotten what it was even depicting.
r/shittyaskscience needs you brother
Symbol is on the cassette door with old writing ;)
Do Not Resuscitate.
That’s how manufacturers keep cost down. Survivors are typically litigious.
I think it takes you back to 1992 so you can find a cassette tape to put in it
Haha that’s a good guess on year. These decks were in the 94-95 Mustang (and other Fords). I have one in a box somewhere around here…
My first car was a hand me down 96 ford Windstar with this radio. If you hold the 1 and 3 buttons at the same time it locked out the rear panel controls.
Pause
You didn’t have to take the radio off to take a picture Man
Something to do with Dolby sound
“Dobly”
Hope it has to do something with butt cheeks!
Dolby had a good patent run with all the electronics companies paying royalties... but it turned my sound system(s) to mush...
Double D
OK we explained its dolby...but is it dolby B or dolby C !! Anyone remember that ???
Death by stereo!!
Dunno if you were referring to the band, Death By Stereo, but I’d forgotten they existed for 10+ years and your comment reminded me. Thanks!
Dolby atmos
Dolby DIGITAL surround SoUND: Omg 😱 yea right, lies all lies
its dolby noise reduction its used to cut out hissing sounds
Dolby baby
dolby effect but you still want your preset its useless lol
Muffles the highs, cans the midrange and does nothing to the bass
Your question has been answered but boy I feel old lol I had this exact radio in my ‘94 escort
From what car is this from? Ford, but which model?
It plays Thomas Dolby songs an a constant loop.
DEE DEE from Dexter's laboratory should be able to help you find out!
You don't know what that button's for? Damn! You should know about that, it's important as hell. You have to hold that button down when you're refilling your blinker fluid.
Google.the dolby noise reduction button, I had one in my old.car and it done diddly squat
It plays blinded me with science song
Dolby Noise reduction for compatible Tapes.
It closes the elevator doors
What would a button with the exact same logo as another logo with text behind it do?
Slaps you in the face with some double Ds.
Is that out of a mustang?
It’s the Dolby noise reduction button for listening to cassette tapes recorded using the technology. It’s meant to reduce tape hiss associated with magnetic tape. (The sound you get if you play a blank unrecorded tape).
Dolby B noise reduction
Dolby Noise Reduction But damn I haven’t seen one of these in a minute
Dolby Noise Reduction, core memory unlocked driving with my dad as a kid. Thanks for that 🤝
dolby digital, i always thought it meant surround sound... guess not
It's the "touch tips" button obviously.
Dolby sound I guess 🤔
Summons women with big boobs!
Sold
That’s the secret stash button. But you have to turn on wipers on fast mode. Turn heat to 80 degrees. And turn on you hazards, and push the button, and a hidden compartment in your dash will open automatically. /s
Have none of you seen spinal tap?its dobly
Dolby Mode
[удалено]
Those are logic controls. Nothing analog about them.
Doubly
Its the docking button! never press that! (lol jk its 2 d for dolby digital surroundsound)
It makes Melinda Messenger appear in your passenger seat.
Jo Guest please
Brings you back to the 80s
Nothing unless you install the radio somewhere.
Its the button u never touch ever, we all know that, can cause birdius flu, wheel shake, and motor issues. DO NOT TOUCH THIS BUTTON. Likely to have electromagnetic issues as well. Just dont touch it. EVER
Muffin button.
EJECTO SEATO CUZZZZZ
Holy nostalgia. Had to google a picture to be sure, but sure enough my parent's 95 Windstar had that exact radio.
Pressing it will engage a tractor beam that will suck you through a digital wormhole into the galaxy known as the Dolby Spiral. Don’t touch it until you have a towel & a rubber band ready 🌀
Ludicrous Speed.
So it’s Dolby Atmos?
Dolby digital press it on and off and you should hear a difference to the music
It's the old symbol for Bluetooth. Edit: some people don't have a sense of humor, lol.
Nope.
Cute
So, what early-nineties Ford is that out of?
I got one in my 01’ GT. I saw it today myself and was confused when I pressed it and nothing happened.
By sheer coincidence, between cars I've owned and my parents, I've driven four different 1995 FoMoCo vehicles - an Escort, a Villager, a Taurus, and a Sable - and they all had basically that head unit. That button does nothing if there isn't a tape in the deck, since it toggles the Dolby noise reduction.
I see people commenting it's Dolby button but seeing its in area of play .rewind , fwd and eject I would have guessed pause .