HB> Does hiss consist of high-frequency noises?  By this
   > definition if the hiss contains any low-frequency sounds,
   > it won't be eliminated.
"Hiss" generally refers to high-frequency background noise.  "Hum" is
generally used to describe low-freq noise.  With turntables it's
called "rumble", but that's due to mechanical vibrations.  HPF's
(High-Pass Filters) are used to remove unwanted hum, in amp
circuits, for example.
   > And what does headroom do?
Headroom is defined as the region between the maximum recording level
specified by the manufacturer of the equipment, and the amplitude at
which tape overload occurs.  It's specified in dB.  As you can
surmise, the greater the dB headroom, the better.
   > Why is saturating the tape bad?
Saturation, in this case, is the point beyond a magnetic material's
ability to handle any additional flux.  Distortion occurs.  Very poor
fidelity results.
   > What is the purpose of the bias in the tape?
The bias applied to a tape head is an ultrasonic signal fed along
with the music information to keep the oxide magnetization within
the linear portion of its hysteresis curve.  The various tape types
are manufactured for optimum linear recording characteristics which
correspond to the recorder's bias setup.  Which is why you need to
use Hi-Bias tape if you're recording in Hi-Bias mode, Metal tape if
you're recording in Metal mode, etc.  Most tape decks are are
designed to automatically switch to the proper bias levels to
match a given tape.
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 þ JABBER v1.2 þ Would advice from Q be considered a Q-tip?
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