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JBond

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  1. Quick index to select posts, click the blue links below 42 Jeff’s movie list 307 Nixon Resigns Picture 364 CIA the Second Recorder 455 Nagra II Video 146 Meet Jeff (Youtube) 319 “New” The Nagra JBR updated Feb 2018 373 “New” The Nagra Story, updated Feb 2018 478 The Third Covert recorder 151 My Nagra VPR-5 400 The Nagra SN (Copy ) 479 The 1966 Covert recording 220 A different kind of Soundman 333 A Special Gift 404 There’s only One, Nagra I 480 The Fourth Recorder 225 What I found out about the Nagra I 335 The Nagra DH Difference 405 Great Nagra Collection “Vienna Collection” 482 Finally Fifth and Final Recorde 232 Conversation with Stefan Kudelski 337 The Yellow Recorder 422 An appropriate answer 430 What happened to - Serie Noir? 252 The First Nagra III 347 CIA issued Recorder 425 Early Nagra SN serial #’s 363 Dating & "New" Reverse Record 268 The Sony and the Telefunken 790 GREAT Nagra III Collection by BGAULLIER 952 Earliest Known Nagra III by PiO 576 The Nagra IS Differences by DELA #27 Senator Mike Michaels interview 681 1st 1959 Nagra III by Antonine 922 Jwsound gets Attention from Nagra Audio 154 Marilyn and the 1960 Nagra III Video 962 The Gold SN - Test 466 Video - Movie Sound Effects 282 1969 Zuiko 1st Microcassette video 906 “New” The Nagra SN Series - from Prototype to Production 1960 -1971 to 1999
  2. Thank you Mungo I appreciate you posting that.
  3. Thank you, Suebutcher looks like you have a nice clean Nagra III there. As for the heads, other people may know for sure that I think will post the answer to your question. From your post you know much more then I do about oscillators bias current and stuff, way over my head. Before getting to the oscillators part of your post I would have said the heads were probably produced at different times and they just ran out of blue wire. But I'm glad you posted it because many people private message me questions and don't post them instead. When someone messages me its one on one and most times I don't know the answer. When you post it here on Jwsound you could be asking thousands of people for the answer. Instead of just me. Thanks for enjoying the thread. I enjoy people like you posting and adding questions and pictures to the thread. I hope someone can answer you soon so you can buy the right one.
  4. Another Telefunken on eBay, serial P 62 1725 N Pilot Model But this one the serial number is in the correct year for the NP. As you can see highlighted it still fits in my database within the correct years for a Pilot, further proof serial numbers were the same consecutive numbering whether Telefunken or Nagra machines. The blue arrow shows the first known Pilot Nagra, branded Telefunken. I could be wrong, but to date, no one has shown me a serial number out of sync with the years Nagra produced. That's a cool name, TELE FUN KEN I wish I knew the story behind them and Nagra. It's clear, the USA was not Nagra’s first customer base, even with the so-called Commissioned By JFK’s SN. The Nagra SN was first sold in Europe. The SNST many years later was the US model.
  5. Another Nagra Rarity The first Known, Nagra III Pilot model serial number 61 1245 on eBay now and has been for the last few weeks. Looks like Germany’s Telefunken Nagra III units were the first to have the pilot models in early 1961. Not 1962 like all known Nagra information states about the NP model. So, I guess Hollywood recordists were not the first in history to use the NP Nagra Models. Why did Germany need a Pilot Model in 1961 before anyone else? I say early because according to my Nagra serial number database below - look where the highlighted model fits in. Its also the first Telefunken Nagra I have seen with a readable serial number and No its not a different set of serial numbers for the Telefunken Nagra’s, still consecutive numbers. Nagra did not sell many Nagra III recorders per year in the early years. Also note it still has the "B" reference not NP on the serial number plate. The mysteries of the Nagra continue…
  6. Thanks for posting that eBay link pverrando (where have you been)? To see better pictures of the Russian Nagra Copy go to my index of select posts on page one. Or click on #400 below ONNO everything you need to know can be found here in the index #906 below The index can be accessed below or from any page on Nagra Stories by hitting the back arrow. < PREV Quick index to select posts, click the blue links below 42 Jeff’s movie list 307 Nixon Resigns Picture 364 CIA the Second Recorder 455 Nagra II Video 146 Meet Jeff (Youtube) 319 “New” The Nagra JBR updated Feb 2018 373 “New” The Nagra Story, updated Feb 2018 478 The Third Covert recorder 151 My Nagra VPR-5 325 My Nagra Source 400 The Nagra SN (Copy ) 479 The 1966 Covert recording 220 A different kind of Soundman 333 A Special Gift 405 Great Nagra Collection “Vienna Collection” 404 There’s only One, Nagra I 480 The Fourth Recorder 225 What I found out about the Nagra I 335 The Nagra DH Difference 482 Finally Fifth and Final Recorder 232 Conversation with Stefan Kudelski 337 The Yellow Recorder 422 An appropriate answer 430 What happened to - Serie Noire? 252 The First Nagra III 347 CIA issued Recorder 425 Early Nagra SN serial #’s 363 Dating & "New" Reverse Record 268 The Sony and the Telefunken 952 Earliest Known Nagra III by PiO 576 The Nagra IS Differences by DELA #27 Senator Mike Michaels interview 681 1st 1959 Nagra III by Antonine 790 GREAT Nagra III Collection by BGAULLIER 922 Jwsound gets Attention from Nagra Audio 282 1969 Zuiko 1st Microcassette video 154 Marilyn and the 1960 Nagra III Video 466 Video - Movie Sound Effects 906 “New” The Nagra SN Series - from Prototype to Production 1960 -1970 to 1999 962 The Gold SN - Test
  7. Why don't you post a photo of what you have and I'll tell you what you got. Include the serial number. Thanks
  8. Thank you very much Scott, your pictures certainly would be a great addition. Remember, you guys played a huge part in who made "THE NAGRA" famous.
  9. Nice pictures guys and thanks for the descriptions. Philip Perkins Wow, I see what you mean when you said it all adds up to 82,000 or more. You have a lot of nice equipment, who's that young guy in the first picture? tourtelot Nice, Now thats a Soundman who is proud of his cart. Your pictures are great just what I am looking for thanks for them. Beautiful pictures. What year? I hope the Senator will add pictures too or contact me and give me the description to his photo so I can include it. If you only have real photographs You can also just take a picture of the photograph with your phone as I did in the first picture. Although I took the picture to show that it was a picture. You can simply frame it and no one will no its a picture of a picture. They really come out great and its easy to do. What is more fitting on JWsound to see all these pictures again in one place, I know some are already here scattered around without descriptions and people will never find them or see them again today. I'm dedicating as many pages as needed here on Nagra Stories to The Soundmen and their Nagra's. So let's see the Soundmen with their Vintage Reel to Reel Nagras and Soundmen today with Digital Nagra pictures Just as long as its a Nagra and you set the scene with the description. I think it will make a great section here on Nagra Stories and I know everyone would love to see the pictures with the stories told and shared. Thank you I'll leave it alone now and will see what happens. Besides my knee is getting sore, It's starting to sound like I'm down on one knee. Scott Smith, Don't think I forgot about you, I know you have them. Jeff, come on man, your pictures are great and you have many of them, that's what I need if this is going to work. Thank you Philip Perkins and tourtelot for starting this off.
  10. The Soundmen and their Nagra's.  Ok Nagra Stories just turned a new page “42” over 1000 replies with over 182,000 views, Can we finally see some classic soundmen pictures posing with their classic Nagras? It's what I started this thread for over three years ago. Pictures from your archives and a description of what you were doing at the time. The world is watching the world is waiting to see them on Jwsound Nagra Stories. Enough with this Jbond shit let's finally see it. Jeff I know you have them Crew I have seen them Phillip you have them too Glen I saw them, Usually with women all around you. and many others here on Jwsound have them also. It's time, I have put the time in, post when ever I could its getting old. Now let's see the soundmen pictures with Nagra recorders. Hell, Nagra Audio itself is watching, let's see the famous Nagra pictures in use. The guys on the ground in the early years that made Nagra famous. You know once you post others will follow. Let's finally post some pictures of soundmen with their Nagra equipment, Digital or Analog new or old as long as its Nagra show us what you have used and what you use today. The Senator will start off, Let's go guys you know you have it. You know we want it. Let's see it.
  11. Mr. Zero has no money. Not Mr Teas, he's loaded after the union jobs But the real Mr zero has no money. Bidder #02 has no money he is just a zero plus 2, maybe he bought some popcorn, batteries or something and got some seller feedback but in reality he’s still a zero. If you look at the bidder list below you will see the proxy bids. Bidder # 74 was a legitament bid on May 8th he put a high bid in at 7,000. On May 9th bidder 117 was the last legitament bidder he placed a bid of 8000.96 On May 10th bidder 211 placed a high bid of 82,000.00 really a sore looser If he couldn’t afford it he figured no one will have it. He should really be kicked off ebay because he is the one who escalated it. On Sunday May 12th Mr Zero place a high bid of 82,600.00 and his pal #02 was runner up. https://www.ebay.com/bfl/viewbids/323800376818?item=323800376818&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2565&showauto=true Phillip is right, it was just a pissing match. The roosters were all having sex with the Nagra
  12. Your Mr. Zero Ha, I knew it, I knew it was you. Well done Mr Teas👍 you didn't win the lottery, those union gigs finally paid off.
  13. So wonder how Mr zero is going to pay for it? 82,600.00 is a big nut to crack. This is the time after the sale where the buyer starts to have a warm sensation on the back of his neck wondering if he made the right decision. Maybe he's thinking he could always just resell it if he doesn't like it. After all, #02 wanted it for 82,500.00 he can always sell it to him, so he looses 100.00 bucks. No big deal.
  14. The eBay bidding decipher, I have been there many times since 1999. Use to be the bid list showed the real buyer ID. You were able to look them up and see their ebay history what they bought or what they bid on in the past. I would research what they bought in the past and was able to determine how much they would spend and see what their high bid was with everything they bid on. Win or lose, everybody had a high bid that you could see what it was. Some people bid in fives like 5.50 , 55.00 155.00, etc. some go the extra mile and bid 56.00 or 57.00. If the high bidder at the time was always ending up with 5 or 6 I would then bid 58.88 with great success over the years. Most people end in 55, ie 155.00 or 1,555. 00 etc. I always end with 8.88. Like 1588.88. 108.88. 128.88 etc. Ten years ago eBay decided to make it fairer and hide the identity of the bidders. So this is what happens now. In the bidder list below, the auction starts out with bidder #02 making the first bid, soon #15 puts a legitimate bid in. Then on May 8th, the " zero" bidder takes over once it hits 8,600, the big time "zero" now pissed off because he has no money and places a bid of 82,600.00 or more. From that point on everyone tried to be the high bidder. What I don't understand Is why someone would risk their 532 eBay trading feedback and place a binding bid at 82,200.00? Does he think it's not binding because the price was too high? He placed the bid. In the past when zero started bidding like that on something I wanted, I would message the seller and say I was going to be a very serious bidder on your item. But I will not bid against a person with no feedback, no money and just signed up yesterday and is bidding your item up and will never pay you. The seller has the right to remove and block a bidder. So now, 02 and zero, two losers, took over the auction and the seller just watches with much excitement. When the seller comes to his senses and deletes 02 and zero, 532 - a legitament eBayer is going to be sucking swamp water. What's he going to say - I was only kidding, really I was just bidding up the price. Pay up or never use eBay again. If I were him, I would delete my bid of 82,000.00 as soon as possible. When the seller relists the recorder it will go for less than 8k Unless the zero is some very wealthy tycoon on his $10 million yacht off the coast of Greece and Mr zero fell in love with this Nagra T as JonG and I did and 86,000.00 to him is like $25.00 or $30.00 to us. https://www.ebay.com/bfl/viewbids/323800376818?item=323800376818&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2565&showauto=true
  15. What a sweet looking Nagra, I feel bad for the seller. The zero feedback bidders messed up his auction. Unless they pay. 😳 Note the serial number. https://www.ebay.com/itm/NAGRA-TI-EXCELLENT-WORKING-CONDITION-POWER-SUPPLY-INCLUDED/323800376818?hash=item4b6401a5f2:g:q50AAOSwlYNc0Zza
  16. No, Thank you, Jeff Wexler, for allowing me to post along with very credited Sound professionals like yourself for the last 3 years. Still amazed by all your and other's accomplishments in movie sound recording. I never posted my collection or stories anywhere as I do here on JWsound. You give us the ability to edit our posts at any time. I can say with great certainty that I would not be here posting today if not for that, my collection and thoughts would have remained private. So thanks to you for that. Most forums only allow you to edit for a few hours; then whatever you post is etched in time for all eternity ... somewhere, never to be corrected if needed. Thanks again, for your comments on my Nagra SN story - it's something I spent quite a bit of time on, and I very much appreciate what you said. Edited just now by JBond
  17. As you can see from the previous video, everyone everywhere time and time again referrers to the old Nagra SN myth, the wrong story, told so many times over and over on the internet. I have yet to be proven wrong with my research and story below. Don't forget to watch the Robert Bouck - Kennedy video as it shows the ties to my version of the Kennedy connection with the Nagra SN. And why the SN is always referred to "as ordered by President John F Kennedy" The closest you'll ever come to the truth. Only on Jwsound, Aren't we the lucky ones. The Mystery of the Nagra “Serie Noire" by RJW The question always asked - What year was the first Nagra SN, the famous Nagra SN we always heard about, actually released? That’s easy; 1960; it’s all over the internet. You can find many sites, articles and tributes to Stefan Kudelski, all repeating these statements: "The Nagra SN Serie Noire was originally ordered by President Kennedy for the American Secret Services" or "commissioned by the Kennedy administration" or "the American Secret Service." The latest 2016 story was written with a few changes: “Kudelski, the high-end Swiss manufacturer of portable audio tape recorders, was approached by the American secret services towards the end of the 1950s to develop an ultra-small recording device. From 1960, unbeknownst to the man in the street, the Nagra SN (for ‘série noire,' or ‘black series,' make of that what you will!) went on sale to selected customers. It would be another eleven years before the device became available to the general public.” (1) Notice the line "make of that what you will". Never have you seen written the Nagra SN was developed, put into production and sold in "1960" other than that latest March 2016 article. Nagra always listed 1960 as the year of the Prototype SN and always without any other information. So many writers over the years just used their imagination and left the reader to "make of that what you will." Nagra SN stories seem to grow on their own over the years, with every writer at the time either copying what others have written or added more to the story. It's easy to do with a secret recorder. Anything you write does not have to be backed up with fact since it was secret. You were not supposed to know the facts or ask any questions. How can anyone challenge if it's secret? Nagra has let the story write itself over the years, and the story just goes on uncorrected. It seems like "make of that what you will" is just what Nagra wanted, just use your imagination, that's the story. Originally, Nagra did start all this by adding the President John F Kennedy connection with their Nagra SN descriptions, always mentioning but never releasing any photos of the actual SN Prototype. Not ever seeing the prototype led everyone to believe this super-secret unknown covert recorder was used by the Kennedy administration. Today such JFK acknowledgments are not found anywhere from Nagra except in an obscure Discontinued Pro products category on Nagra's website. Stated in the description of their discontinued 1999 Nagra SNST-R (the last SN model made), Nagra states "It’s a special version of the historical SN “Série Noire” originally ordered by President JF Kennedy for the American secret services and was even taken to the moon on one of the Apollo missions." (2) Today, that is the only place where you will find Nagra using that JFK statement. Unless you search for it directly, you will never find it. The Kennedy Administration began January 20, 1961, when he was inaugurated as President of the United States, and ended when he was assassinated on November 22, 1963, a span of 1,036 days. (3) Either Kennedy didn’t ask for it or Kudelski never had a prototype made in 1960. If they did have the prototype in 1960, Kennedy certainly didn’t ask for it to be developed. Could both statements be true if the word "circa" is combined with the date 1960? In the 2001 Nagra brochure, "Half a Century of Experience", the paragraph describing the Nagra SN states: "The Nagra SN (Serie Noire) prototype was developed in 1960 but not put into production until 1970, as the miniature components available at the time were too fragile. It used silicon transistors, dry tantalum capacitors and later, surface mounted device (SMD) technology, many years before this SMD technology was adopted by others. This pocket-sized miniature recorder was destined for army and police forces (developed especially for the United States government or, more precisely, the United States Army)." (4) No longer any reference to Kennedy or the Secret Service, it looks like a corrected version of all previous statements. That United States Army statement at the end of the SN description above is new for 2001. It always read before as Secret Service or Kennedy Administration. Now, for the first time, it says the U.S. Army. In my researching about this JFK connection, I did find the use of U.S. Army that may corroborate with the 2001 Nagra statement, but does not prove Kennedy asked for it. That 2001 description is probably the most truthful up-to-date statement Nagra has ever released about the SN. It is documented that Kennedy was known to use tape recorders before and after becoming President. It's also well documented that Robert Bouck, at the time one of JFK's Secret Service agents, was ordered in 1962 to wire the White House with a recording system. He was also told to purchase recorders through the U.S. Army Corps and buy them on the open market so there would be no record from where the recorders came from. Kennedy recorded approximately 260 hours of recordings beginning on July 30, 1962 and ending November 8, 1963. There is no mention of any Nagra brand recorders even though other brands were mentioned. (5) To add to this mystery, Nagra has also stated on one of their website's History section: "…in 1965 the US Agencies start using the Nagra SN secretly." (6) If this statement is accurate, then where are these early 1965 SN recorders today? Doubtful and unsure of this time frame, I contacted Nagra in Switzerland with my questions. In an email dated Aug 4th, 2016, Nagra informs me the 1965 date is wrong: "… the correct date is 1971. The information you have found Nagra Kudelski Group historical milestones) is inaccurate! (We will ask NAGRAVISION to correct it.) Please refer to OUR website for the accurate dates and information. The prototype we have was the original unit designed in 1960 yet never produced. The first “official” SN was not developed until 10 years later circa 1970, and the first units we actually sold in 1971." (7) Nagra has been acknowledging that 1965 date since the year 2000. It was used in their Annual Reports for multiple years on and off as the first year the Nagra SN was used by the U.S. agencies secretly. That statement has now been debunked by Nagra as inaccurate and has been corrected. Nagra no longer makes that statement on any of their latest publications. No evidence to date has been found to confirm Nagra’s original 1965 U.S. statement to be accurate. To the contrary, the first public showing of the Nagra SN occurred when Stefan Kudelski introduced the SN at the London Professional Audio Exhibition in June of 1970. (8) Another document below is the first known Nagra SN price list, dated October 1970, from Hayden Laboratories Ltd. It shows the very first prices of Nagra SN and accessories in its infancy. (9) As further evidence against the earlier 1965 date, the second page of that price list shows that major necessary accessories were still being developed as of the October 1970 printing, such as the carrying case and the remote control, both of which would be essential in covert recording use (i.e., if the recorders were used secretly since 1965 (for five years), the remote and carrying case would already have been successfully developed. Nagra now considers the prototype date “Circa” 1960. (15) By using the word circa, one can now believe the prototype SN was developed after 1960 and during the JFK Administration, making the Nagra JFK connection more authentic. Now it’s possible JFK’s Secret Service agent Robert Bouck did ask Mr. Kudelski to make a secret recorder for the U.S. Army Corps. If correct, this is where the "Secret Service," "JFK," and the "U.S. Army Corps" fits into all of Nagra's past statements. Since JFK’s sudden death, with the fact it was an assassination, it moved the world. With the secrecy involved in Robert Bouck asking for it on the open market and avoiding the standard U.S. government purchasing and documenting channels, it was now best-left alone, so the deal died when Kennedy did. The SN at that time, not yet a functional unit, was put on hold and never fully realized until 1970, just as Nagra states. Kudelski, being somewhat impressed with the outcome of the completed SN and the fact Kennedy did ask for it, never dropped the Kennedy storyline once production began in late 1970 and also never elaborated it either. Nagra used the one part of this SN story that may have been true - that Kennedy did ask for it to be developed - and kept the storyline to their sales advantage throughout the early SN years. The more secret and intriguing it sounded, the more appealing it was for sales. Saying John F Kennedy asked for it didn’t hurt either. That statement was the truth, Nagra had every right to use that statement in their advertising. It became the perfect scenario; it’s secret… there is no need to say anymore, and because it was secret, no one could expect any answers. The idea that one assumed it was “used” by the Kennedy administration complicated things because dates, times and facts were not clear if someone truly thought about it. So for many years, Nagra tiptoed around the whole subject, and sadly the JFK connection is rarely mentioned anymore. The 1965 date that was used many times since the year 2000 is now dropped from their latest publications There has never been any credible evidence JFK asked for one or that a usable pre-1970 Nagra SN ever existed. The fact is no one may have known JFK asked for it, except for Robert Bouck and Stefan Kudelski. Since Robert Bouck died on April 27, 2004 at the age of 89, and Stefan Kudelski on January 26, 2013, at the age of 83, maybe no one will. Perhaps the mystery of the Nagra SN is even more mysterious than one may have thought. It is possible, but not confirmed, that Nagra was just enjoying the publicity of the JFK story along with the marketing enjoyment of the intriguing possibilities that others have written into the story. Going forward, we may never see Nagra use that 1965 date or the Kennedy connection again, but they also didn't remove the old versions for reasons that are unknown. One thing is clear - there has been no evidence of a usable, secret Nagra "Serie Noire" (black series) SN recorder, before, on, or after 1970. There was only the one Circa 1960 prototype, nicknamed Serie Noire. Anything else was just a myth that has been kept alive all these years with bits and pieces of JFK and tantalizing dark spy statements like in the 2016 Elektor magazine’s story where we started. Nagra never released any written precise information for reasons as if to say “make of that what you will” which everybody has done over the years. The secret that Nagra kept all these years was not, there was a secret Nagra SN during the 60’s, the secret was, there wasn’t one. This could be just another version to the Nagra Serie Noire Mystery, but to believe the opposite, one would have to believe there was a production of 1960 Nagra SNs that were in use for ten years without anyone knowing about it, even the people who supposedly would have used them. Ten years worth of one brand of recorder does not disappear off the face of the earth without a trace or even a scrap of evidence they ever existed. One would think you could find people today who would have used them, but when people in the “ know" were asked, they don't remember using, seeing or hearing about a Nagra SN before 1970. "I met with some FBI and State Department retirees yesterday, and they could not provide any definitive Nagra details. They all used the recording gear, but they could not recall when their use started or ended. Two of them specifically mentioned the Mohawks! They confirmed that nothing about any Nagra gear itself is (or has been) secret or classified. Its commercial gear, period. Commercial gear by its very definition cannot be “classified”. (10) “Nagra Recorder” and “classified” should never appear in the same sentence unless “ classified ” refers to the contents of the recording or the sources and methods of collection. Commercial Nagra recorders would not be “classified “ even if the manufacturer or certain customers did not want their existence or use to be widely known. (11) “I have not used a Nagra SN before 1970” (12) Legend has it that the SN or Serie Noire (Black Series) was commissioned by President Kennedy for use by the American Intelligence services and the CIA. "I know of no independent factual support for the first underlined part of this statement other than the company's own press and repeated rumors, but I can confirm that Nagras were used extensively by the British, Stasi and other European services. They were also used by the CIA, FBI and other US intelligence and law enforcement agencies.” (13) That said, you would also have to believe this is the world's best-kept secret of all time. No evidence has been found since I wrote this in Feb 2018 that a Nagra SN was used before 1970, just as Nagra now states today. So in the future when you see another mysterious Nagra Serie Noire story, ask, what proof do they have. make of that what you will... Part 6 The Circa 1960 Nagra SN Prototype by RJW In Switzerland there sits the "one" Nagra SN Prototype proudly on display in Nagra's private collection, as it should. Two things come to mind when viewing the first picture. 1) Nagra no longer considers the 1960 date, now “Circa” 1960, according to the name tag. 2) The name Serie Noire is not on the name tag, only SN, When asked about the name SN and Serie Noire, a former employee of Nagra said: It's not "Serie Noire” That expression I only heard from you for the first time. Even at the factory I never heard "Serie Noire." The employees at the time referred to the SN line as SN means "Small Nagra," SNS means "Small Nagra Slow," SNN "Small Nagra Nab," etc. and the IS meant "Intermediate Size." (14) In all fairness, this employee worked on SNs and JBRs from 1977 to 1988, so one would not suspect it would be the same atmosphere as in 1970, but it goes to show it was not a common name to use other than in print. In this second picture above , the Prototype Nagra SN is entirely different from the 1970 production model SN. What stands out the most are the hinged top, no meter, tape heads and the tape path. The only similarity is the reel hubs. Particularly interesting is the pencil drawing on the deck which shows what Mr. Kudelski was thinking at some point in that 10-year development span, drawing in pencil where a meter should go, and other marks only leave us to ponder his thoughts. In this last picture above, the bottom shows a fold out SN type rewind crank but on the bottom instead of on the top like on the production SN. Notice the components used in the making of this very iconic one of a kind recorder. These pictures show the engineering design of the original SN that morphed into the production model SN we know today. You wonder at that time if Stefan Kudelski ever thought the SN would go on to be the most famous covert recorder of all times and become one of his greatest achievements. Stefan Kudelski and family are owed a great deal of thanks and appreciation for their advancements in miniature covert tape recorders. Nagra's highly skilled background in this field with full attention to detail, combined with the ability to produce an ultra-fine quality product, is the reason they are still successful in many different fields. Even today, a part of Nagra is still making the latest in security technology for Government agencies and law enforcement in one of those secret workshops behind the scenes. Sources: The Mystery of the Nagra “Serie Noire”1 Elektor magazine, March & April 2016, p.1272 2 Nagra discontinued Products https://www.nagra.com/group/history Retrieved Feb.2018 3 Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Timeline of the presidency of John F. Kennedy Retrieved Feb..2018 4 HALF A CENTURY OF EXPERIENCE, Nagra Booklet, 2001 5 Reprinted from The Presidential Recording: John F. Kennedy. The Great Crises, Vol. (New York: W.W. Norton),xvii-xx 6 Nagra Historical Milestones https://www.nagra,com/group/history Retrieved Feb. 2018 7 private email to the author from Nagra 8 DB magazine, London Professional Audio Exhibition, October 1970, p41 9 Price list, Hayden Laboratories Ltd, London, October 1970 10 Anonymous intelligence source 11 Anonymous intelligence source 12 Anonymous intelligence source 13 Anonymous intelligence source 14 Anonymous former Nagra employee. Sorry for the missing pictures of the prototype. The pictures of the prototype were given to me by Marguerite Kudelski, Stephen Kudelski's daughter, for my collection as I asked her for them "for my collection." I did not ask to post them all over the internet. For a brief time, I did post them, but I took them down after thinking about it. To this day, Nagra has not released any pictures of the prototype publicly, on the internet, in their videos or on their websites. At this time, I don't believe I should be the one to do that if Nagra has not for whatever reason. They may have their reasons. The pictures can be seen below in the correct context in which they were asked for “as part of my collection." Photos marked with RJW are copyrighted. Any use other than private with or without the RJW watermark is strictly forbidden, without written permission from the owner.
  18. Here is a very cool Nagra III video I just happened to come across, a 1963 # 3980 Nagra III. Made in 1963 and still looks great today. It deserves some attention.
  19. Mike Good question I don't have any clear serial numbers of the two units I have pictures of. Luckily, I put the Sony and the Telefunken in my Nagra Stories Index on page one, otherwise I would still be looking to where it was posted. All I know about the Telefunken is posted here #268 All it would take is one Telefunken serial number and we could see if it's out of sync with the recorded numbers I have. If you look in the 268 post you can see the Sony is a late model Nagra III with the 1967 or later meter and a serial number of 13,000 something but can't see the year. I assume the Sony is a 1968 machine. The Telefunken has the pre-1967 meter and we cannot see the serial number at all. I assume if we could see the number it would fit right in with the chart I made. I think once we see machines with readable numbers we will know right off the bat if it stands out or not.
  20. As for the eBay link I sent you , none are clean enough for me and all are uncertain to work as you need it to. I would just be patient and keep checking eBay for a clean well taken care of recorder to come up. Or contact the two dealers above to check their consignments. I would hate to see you end up with a beat up recorder that you have to send out for repair. The price range of a 4.2 is nowhere near the high-cost IVS and you should be able to find a nice clean one so just don't jump at the first ones that come along. I don't want to mislead you with the link I posted. I don't recommend any of them after checking out each one. The Russian Federation one is probably the cleanest. But has very few feedbacks. You're going to have to use your own judgment. I would wait for a nice one to come along. If you want to own a Classic Nagra why not get the best one you can.
  21. Hi Eric Ebay has many right now, https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=nagra+recorder+4.2&_sacat=0&_sop=16 I have always had good luck buying Nagras, they always seem to work very well for me. Or should I say work well for my limited use. My problem as a collector they also have to be in near perfect cosmetic condition . The cosmetic condition is more important to me than working perfect in every aspect. But you want to use it so the information posted above is important. You do know the 4.2 is not a stereo machine. Even so many thousands of movies were recorded on the 4.2. It's a great machine. Sorry disregard the other link I sent you., that was a IVL. But the Ebay link is good. The post from David Waelder above is why I told you to post your question here to get answers.
  22. In an interview with Stefan Kudelski, that was shown in that lecture he states about 30,000 Nagra III's were sold. I also posted that interview here #232 Which is where they most likely found the interview for their lecture. I think Stefan Kudelski states about 15,000 too many Nagra III's. It's been a while since I updated my Nagra III serial number chart but most updates would just fill in the early years. The highest in 1968 is around 13,874 I have never seen a 14,000 serial number on a Nagra III and I have never seen a serial number out of order. Or a double serial or "same number" with a different prefix Like B or PHO I know out of 14,000 I show very few serial numbers here and I guess in time we could see a variation but I have yet to see it and I certainly don't expect to. Has anybody? Did anybody notice if she made mention to that 30,000 number in the interview?
  23. This is somewhat of a funny Nagra story. After looking through the French video in the link Dela posted, it's clear it looks like they are referring to some Jbond content. As I first posted this morning, if anyone that understands French can fill me in, I would appreciate it. I would like to know how they are reacting to what I said in that quote in this first screenshot below. I know what I was saying - it would be nice to know how she is interpreting it. I was just saying if Nagra did keep a 1957 Nagra III, they would show it in any of their pictures describing the first Nagra III. Why are they pointing this out? Are they saying the same as me? Or something different? What are they saying here in the next screenshot? This was a very rare hard to find article. It's clear they got it from Jwsound from the yellow markings. It would be impossible to find elsewhere unless you knew about what to look for. What is she saying about it? Showing BGAULLIER nice collection and research also, not bad clearly showing the complete list of Nagra III's 👍 Then I saw this part at the very end of the video. What's this all about? I hope this was not their take from Nagra Stories! Who cares if Nagra showed the wrong year Nagra III in some booklet. Counterfeiting! Falsification! That's a little much, isn't it? Falsification? What are they talking about? I messaged Dela - please take that video down until we know what they are talking about. I don't want to show this video on JWsound if anything was negative toward Nagra. I had no idea of what they were saying and using some of my references to say it. So Dela replies Don´t worry; there is absolutely no negative feelings towards either Stefan Kudelski or Nagra in the lecture. It is one long appraisal of both the recorders and its influence on the different industries (Film, TV, broadcast, anthropology, and surveillance)... Ok, but what about this? Dela said Oops, I just read the text of the slide: It is a summary of a proposed Kudelski project. The proposed system should be capable of detecting, whether a recording has been tampered with or falsified. I haven´t heard more about the project, but I guess that it was a bit ambitious for the time, given that the only tools would have been analog processing... Oh, ok, geez, I guess I overreacted just a little trying to fill in the blanks without any translation. 😳 I also found out you can't copy and paste a video in Google translator. Thanks, Dela, for clearing up that information. So they used my writing on Jwsound as research as part of a lecture, and slide show. Not bad, maybe even a compliment. If I could only understand what they are saying. (No I did not take French in high school, I was in shop class working on a piece of metal.) At least I know someone is actually reading the details in this thread.😎 Anybody know how to translate a video?
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