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JMB

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    Publisher, self-help books.
    Audiophile-nerd, interesting in quality of audio singnals and their influence on the human mind.
  • Interested in Sound for Picture
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  1. Hi Mark, you mention the sound is affected by the QSEF. Could you please open it, and give us a first impression of it's internal secrets? When we see if it is an amp, or a transformer, we would know more. Thanks! To my understanding we did not need this rare QSEF - XLRs with banana ends will do, or the connectors fixed with XLRs. Matthias
  2. Hi JBond, you can update: 1962: 1625 -2529 Thus, unit numbers for this time turn out to be: 1958: at least 36 units 1959: at least 117 units 1960: at least 259 units 1961: at least 644 units 1962: at least 904 units 1963: at least 1106 units 1964: at least 1373 units 1965 - 1966: at least 2.271 units 1967: at least 2.213 units 1968: at least 1571 units Furthermore: BGaullier's list blows up your list in a twofold way: 65 7623 blows up your list (66 6714, but 65 7562 also blows up your list (66 6714) Even BGaullier himself is "blown up" within his own collection, with # 7623 and # 7605: 1965 NP 65 6053 H NP 65 7562 H NP 65 7623 1966 NPO H 66 7605 HPO 66 8021 PHO 66 8366 To my understanding your # 66 6714 cannot be correct. About the "B" at the beginning of serial numbers: I remember somebody asked about it's meaning. I am not sure if anybody replied to it. For me it seems evident: B stands for "Broadcasting", consecutive: this is not a "tape recorder", this unit is for professional use only. Matthias
  3. Good morning, I am happy to come back today to this wonderful thread. We would appreciate to get some support, to put a Nagra IS back into 100% recording abilities. We needed a schematic, for the mic. amplifier. We have the version of 15. 05. 1975 and of 22. 08. 1979, also Version of 12. 05. 75., the latter being only for dynamic mics. There is a third version of circuit plan, to connect the IS to a mic with 48 Volt phantom power. Please excuse poor resolution, I try to fix this. The photo of the mic amp is of the actual IS we have on the desk. Thanks for all hints to get the IS back to full operation. By the way: Some IS have two speeds: 7 1/2 inch/sec is standard. Some have also 3 3/4, which is good enough for spoken word. I start to let my children tell stories on a Nagra IS, for instance with an "ordinary" EV 635a*, directly connected to the mic input, with wonderful results. Being 6 and 7 y.o., they love to tell stories on the tape, and love when their father tells stories, a mixture of true and invented. My son has true joy in stories where someting went wrong, such as the XXL-seagull, who landed right in the middle on the table of our balcony, when my wife wanted to have a little rest with a cup of coffee, all neatly prepared. The seagull looked at my wife, who sat some 3 feet away, walked to her coffee cup, put it's big yellow beak in the coffee, then decided: brrr... this is no good for you, and this is not my "cup of tea" - it took the cup with her beak, turned it to the side, with the fresh coffee running over the tablecloth, and left the szene. Then my wife said some words, and this is our key for the "happy" end for this genre of stories. My daughter loves to load the IS with tape & turn it on record - to my understanding it is possible to let her learn how to operate it carefully. At such, apart from audio quality (!), the IS surpasses all modern devices, which are much-much more complex to be run, especiall if you want to make a longer document. And - 30, 40 years later, with some luck, you will still have the "files", I mean: the tapes. With the IS speed 3 3/4 inch is o.k., this fits well with 13 cm spools. With a Nagra III I would prefer to switch to 9 1/2 inch speed, and take the 18cm spools. Matthias *The Electro Voice 635a was the standard mic for Denmark Radio, who seemed to use quite a lot of IS with the 9 1/2 inch speed. I have one with "Denmark Radio" engraved on it, which I got with a IS with same engraving. 12.5.1975.pdf 15.5.1975.pdf 22.8.1978.pdf
  4. Hi Nick, hi Scott - being kind of flimsy was eventually the main target of the Stellavox recorders, kind of an "answer" to the more heavier Nagras III and 4.2. It's recording quality is supposed to be equal or even a little superior to a Nagra 4.2 S, according to an US-dealer, who sold & maintained both of them. It is a pleasure to let a Stellavox run, especially for recording your own voice, but this is more or less for hardcore enthusiasts, who know how much verve you need to get it all set up; then it get's "inspiring", kind of brightens up all you do, opens up the sky . . . Task: Do you know how to turn any Stellvox into a less "flimsy" unit, giving it a s o l i d (!) tape transport/ rewind, with o n e go? 🙃
  5. Dela, this is a good idea. The capacitor is quite easy to access: you open the top screws, after you take off the top cover we have access to the capacitor. No need to touch the bottom screws! In my ATN it is a SIC-SAFCO RELSIC 1000 µF, seems to be 63 - 75 Volt Dimensions: diameter 27 mm x 43 mm long With such diameter we can get a new capacitor of up to 4.700 or even 6.800 µF. To my understanding 50 Volt would do it. I measured the voltage at the capacitor when ATN was on the mains (230 Volt here in Germany), it showed 22,23 Volt To replace the capacitor in the ATN I choose one 25 x 35 mm, 6.800 µF, with 50 Volt. Matthias
  6. Philip, good idea to check this, with a Nagra III (No. B65, 6393), with original ATN (No. 8690): 5'' spools, with 900 ft tape, 270 meter: ATN: 2:52 = 172 seconds Cells: 3:09 = 189 seconds 7'' spools, with 1.800 ft tape, 540 meter: ATN: 8:30 = 510 seconds Cells: 10:08 = 608 seconds At the end of both tests with the 7'' spools you had to use your finger in order to get the rest of the tape on the other wheel. The cells have improved since the time you remember, I have a set of 10.000 mAh, though the voltage is about the same as with the old Nic-Cad cells. To see how well you can use a Nagra with cells, when it comes to recoding in different places I would never connect a Nagra to the mains any more. Wiith cells no need to check for hum of any kind, which you can fetch from the ATN, easily. Résumé: At 5'' spools fast-wind speed is not an issue at all. At 7'' spools the rewind is both quite "sluggish". But, we can take this to slow down our hectic life, become more patient. Maybe we head towards less events/seconds in the future? Nagra III - the perfect mean to enjoy the p r e s e n t, to make a journey into the past, when people tend to have something we don't have any more: time. Matthias
  7. I begin to wonder if I am presently the only one at jwsoundgroup running a Nagra III on cells and try to charge them with the original ATN & PAR. Anybody else? - I found two interesting manuals for the Nagra III in the net. https://museumofmagneticsoundrecording.org/images/R2R/NagraIIIManual.pdf http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/mbrs/recording_preservation/manuals/Nagra III Instructions Manual.pdf Both give valuable information, as for instance about the power consumption of the Nagra III: Test mode: 85 mA Playback mode: 175 mA Record mode: 205 mA Given these (rel. low) figures a Nagra III could well run for about 40 h on cells with 10.000 mAh, right? We could let run about 40 to 50 7inch tapes on it, with 540 m length, at the minum. With batteries could be up to 60 - 80 tapes - but cells are cooler. How many tapes do you let run through your Nagra/ week? 🙂 Matthias
  8. Kudelski and his team didn't nourish their customers with loads of information of how to charge the batteries in the Nagra, at least very little information can be found in the manuals. I will soon get a manual for the Nagra IIII, maybe there is more. As for me I would like to get the picture, how things were properly handled at the time the units were sold, with cells at that time having some 2500 mAh, and then proceed from this to our time, when we have cells of up to 10.000 mAh available. Most today's owners / collectors of a Nagra will not care for such considerations, for them it will be fine to have them in their shelves and enjoy to look at their collection. I would estimate: only a few Nagra enthusiasts are really u s i n g their Nagra, for doing a recording once or twice a week. Don't you? But, a true, aligned Nagra, it be a Nagra III or Nagra 4.2, they are true g e ms, far ahead of their time, Swiss engineering, driven by the spirit of a genius from Poland. Make a test: Do you have a microphone, I mean, a ncie one, which can scope with the Nagra? Do you have a tape, let's say a Maxell XL I, or any other nice tape? You have a running Nagra, right? Why not take the mic., plug it in, get some headphones and talk, in "test mode". Do you get any input? Please adjust, until all is f i n e ! Fine means: you hear yourself over the headphone, better and more clearly than in real life. Then: switch to "record", at 19cm/sec - make a short test of your own voice . . . Next, consider: Do I have anything to say, anything somebody might be interestet in, in 10, 20 or 50 years? If so, then choose a time nobody will disturb you, switch off all phones, etc., and - t a l k. As for me, I am not lacking self-confidence. I consider myself to be kind of interesting person, having done so many different things in life I can say something, about life and it's revelations. So - why not you? I am 100% sure the members in this forum, especially in this thread, would have a l o t to tell, if being asked. Why not make the first step, and talk to your children? Obviously, we all need to make the steps in life by ourselves - but, getting some hints from father and mother may not be bad, right? If we had some fun about this, we can make our private collecton - the guys from jwsoundgroup begin to talk . . . Sorry, this was getting quite off-topic. Coming back to the cells: J, I do not quite understand: You state the original Nagra chargers, as for instance the ATN for the Nagra III, were designed for cells 2.500 mAh each. Why not let them charge cells of 10.000 mAh, if they have about the same voltage? To me, I understand it this way: charging means, a flow of electrons from a higher (voltage) level to a lower level, until the lower level has reached it's maximum it can hold. Let's imagine a bowl, taking 2,5 liters of water. I have a little tap, it provides 250 ml/ hour. In 10 h the bowl will be full. If I took a larger bowl, taking 10 liter (= 10.000 mAh), then the water (electrons) will also go inside, it will just take 40 h, inistead of 10 h, right? Would the set of 12 cells in let's say a Nagra IIII, 12 x 10.000 mAh = 120.000 mAh kind of "say": no, no, a current of 200 mA (the ATN-3 provides 250 or 400 mA) is too low for us, we don't like such little currents? Would you reject if somebody gave you 200 cents per day, for free? It may take some 2 full days to charge a set of cells inside the Nagra - but, who cares? And with such a small current, there is no danger of getting the cells hot, right? And, yes, it is true, the best batteries you can get have about 16.000 mAh, which is about 1,5 as much as a 10.000 mAh cell. But - still, I would prefer to let a Nagra run on cells, this is closer to the concept of our genius, to my understanding. Matthias *Stefan Kudelski was borne 27th of Febr. 1929 - he is Pisces-Snake. My favourite book about astrology begins about this particular sign, combining western and eastern astrology: "This deep thinker is bubbly and graceful but only on the strict surface. Underneath roil philosophies and perceptions too otherworldly to share with any but the most enlightened. Pisces/Snake feels everything profoundly and intuits each situation with such force and lucidity that he almost winces at the power of human contact. Sensitivity takes on a whole new meaning in the case of the Pisces/Snake. Intuition is redoubled, second sight emphasized and presentiment so powerful as to be considered a gift. Pisces/Snake is a kind of witch in sheep’s clothing."
  9. Jeff, about sound for movies I can contribute some details: The series "Der Kommissar" with Eric Ode, were made using a Nagra for the sound: some years ago a Nagra 4.2 was offered, with a tape from the set still on the unit. Some weeks ago I got some tapes, being sold as "leader tapes", but turned out to be the master tapes for the series "Ein Fall für Zwei", with Klaus Theo Gärtner and Günter Strack in the beginning, 1981 ff. With the tapes were the orig. boxes, and a little dokument, stating date of recording, supervising engineer, samples taken for the film. To me it was some surprise to see: they used a Nagra 4.2 IRT (whatever IRT means), but in any case it seems to be mono. They used many 13 cm spools (!), though the Nagra 4.2 would take 18 cm easily. They recorded at 19 cm/sec! The quality of the master tapes, with headphones: you are at the set, you can almost kind of "see" the people in the room. You hear just e v e r y t h i n g, even some people talking in the (staircase?) of the big house during the recording. On one tape I checked yesterday I hear a barking dog from the distance, a few times . . . 🐕 Of course everybody at the set hears t h a t dog, the two speakers, one older, the other a younger boy, are performing brave, do not allow themselves to get irritated. The quality of the master tapes is just m i n d b l o w i n g, if played on a 4.2 mono, with AK 702 headphones; it is a true pleasure to listen, how the speakers/ actors perform, how they intonate every detail, different from one take to the next. It is obvious to see, they all had high expectations, they knew what they were doing . . . The master tapes also play very well on a Nagra III, but fo rme better on batteries, my psu (orig. Nagra) gives a tiny little hum to the signal at least at this particular Nagra III (serial no. B65 6393). A properly aligned Studer A80 could scope with the quality, would come close, but would not outperform the Nagra 4.2, except you had stereo on the A80. But, for this, you could upgrade on the 4.2-S. If I had the option to choose for a speech-recording, I would choose the 4.2 (or even the Nagra III, which is excellent too), and use 19cm/sec. When it comes to two speakers, as for instance at an interview, I would perfer a 4.2-S - but, if not at hand, if I had "only" a 4.2 mono, I wouldn't bother. If I ever had to record an important concert, I would take a Nagra 4.2-S and use 38cm/sec., obviously, with a Fostex Field recorder as digital backup.
  10. Hi, let me join the discussion, which I find extremely helpful. I posted on a Nagra Serial no for 1960: B 60 426, but I have never seen it appear here. Today I would like to ask about how to charge a Nagra III. I can remember I found a quotation, saying the Nagras were made to be run by batteries, only this way they reach their full potential. To my understanding/ feeling, this is true. To run a Nagra III on batteries, this leaves out any hum you get from the psu, the sound is as good as it can be. But - how to charge the batteries properly? The ATN-ATU, which you are supposed for charging, says it needed 16 hours to charge 2,5 Ah. I put a set of 12 batteries in it, with 10 Ah each. Now - how long will it take to charge the set? 4 x 16 h = 64 h? I wouldn't mind to charge the batteries this long, but, can I kind of "overload" the batteries? The ATN-ATU is an old-fashioned device, it does not have any electronic in it. Does the little flower-like sensor give any hint once the batteries are charged? When I connect ATN and ATN-ATU to the Nagra III, the blade shits for some degrees, makes 4 segments look white, means it is operating. Will it switch back, once the charging is over? Of course, I could take out all the 12 batteries, and charge them in a modern charger - but, I would try the more elegant way, and let the batteries stay in the unit, as it was practiced before, in the 60ties, obviously. Thank you for all hints. ps: concerning Nagra 4.2 / 4.2-S: Some ATNs have a charger included. They have a little light for status "charging", which seems to be switched off by the ATN, once the process is finished. With a Nagra 4.2 and a orig. ATN-unit as psu/ charger you should disconnect the Nagra 4.2 from any other unit, otherwise you will get a shortcut, which can blow your fuse inside. This fuse is a little bit tricky to find - some older models have this fuse at the right side, once you open the front plate. The later models have the fuse inside the batteriy-compartment, Kudelsky used the fuses as "pins", opposite the fixed pins with springs. Since I for various reasons many times blew the fuse in a Nagra 4.2 I replaced the soldered fuse by a fuse-holder, where the fuse can go in. I made a video of how to put this in the Nagra 4.2. Best wishes from Luebeck/ Germany! Matthias
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