David Waelder

I believe that the first film recorded with a Nagra was “Black Orpheus” by Marcel Camus in 1959. (Open to correction on this point.) Scenes with musicians playing are customarily done to playback and have been for a long time - well before “Help!” was filmed. However, the function switch in the photos posted here seem to show the Nagra III in record mode. Perhaps there was a separate playback operator (a standard practice) and the mixer might have been recording a guide track for dailies or to catch ad-libs between verses. But I’m guessing. Nice photos; thanks for the post. David And, come to think of it, sync playback with a Nagra III would require the use of an SLO resolver not seen in these photos. Internal resolving circuitry didn’t become available until the Nagra IV-L and the 4.2.

Gee, just when it was getting kind of fun. I expect that Lucas probably makes good quality components today and I wouldn’t be uncomfortable driving a car with Lucas electrics. However, the reputation for iffy devices is well earned. I purchased an MG in 1973 and had many occasions to curse the electrics. I had batteries actually freeze in the winter; replacement with lower cost Delco cells corrected the problem. Failing point sets were the worst. The hard fiber block that rides the distributor cam was so soft that it would wear away in fewer than 1000 miles causing the points to close. Only a month after a tuneup, the car would fail to start. Things are better now and all is forgiven (but not forgotten). Let me close with a few Lucas sayings: • The Lucas corporate motto: “Get home before dark.” • Lucas holds the patent for the short circuit. • Lucas – Inventor of the intermittent wiper. • Lucas – Inventor of the self-dimming headlamp. • The three position Lucas switch – Dim, Flicker and Off. David

According to Moss Motors, the changeover occurred in 1968. All the '68 MG'S (and all British-Leland vehicles going forward) were negative earth. David

We've probably all experienced the late night Comtek search, rummaging through the pockets of all the chairs by flashlight. There's no magic remedy. But I have had relative success with a combination of techniques. Like others, I leave a box for Comtek return in a prominent place at Video Village. I have a sign attached to the box identifying it as the place to leave headsets and packs. I also label the receivers - DIR, PROD, SCRIPT, AUX-1, etc. Ideally, one might personally hand the appropriate unit to each recipient but, in use, I find the practice is self-leveling. They sort it out by themselves. This provides a handy reference when a pack goes missing - one can identify the likely culprit and work accordingly. One can't really label an unlimited number of units so the plan has its limits. But my own practice helps keep things manageable. I reason that only a limited number of people need to hear the track at high quality levels. One could argue that the number really needing this mathematically approaches zero but I think it's good practice to provide the best I can to a key handful. So, I have about a half dozen Lectro R1a receivers (plus a set on another frequency for boom and utility) and I handle the overflow with a bunch of the old Comtek PR72 units. Losing an older Comtek is much less painful than one of the expensive Lectros. David

Some years back I conducted a series of range tests of antennas for the 695 Quarterly (now Production Sound & Video). Covering all the ground of transmitting and receiving antennas required several articles starting in the Spring of 2010 and ending with tests of the Mini-Mite and Miracle Whip antennas in the Summer of 2011. In the very first article, Spring 2010, I reviewed how the tests would be conducted, measurements made and results interpreted. We made some initial tests to establish base-line expectations. At that time, I made some tests of the performance of a Lectrosonics SMQV at different power settings and with different antenna configurations. We made range tests with whip antennas with the receivers at different heights and with SNA600 antennas at varying heights and diversity spacing. Just to make things interesting, I also checked performance with antennas cut to half the recommended length mounted on the transmitter. The half-length antennas worked fine but they consistently had a penalty loss of about 1/3 range. That is, in one test a range of 562-feet at 50mW output dropped to 358-feet with the half-length whip. (The numbers are a precise measurement of measured range in that test but, as the copy explains, range experienced in a series of tests is a bit more spongy.) The Quarterly magazine can be found online at: http://www.local695.com/Quarterly/ The particular issue with the half-length test is available here: http://www.local695.com/Quarterly/695QuarterlyPDFs/695-Quarterly-2010-Spring.pdf (Those early issues, regrettably, are archived only as complete issues rather than as individual articles. But all the material is available.) David

It was exactly the ambiguity that made me choose the picture. It was taken on a location shoot in Texas about ten years ago. David

I believe you are looking for a "press bridge." That is a piece of gear designed to accomplish distribution of audio signals to multiple recipients. PSC makes a press bridge: http://www.professionalsound.com/specs/pr_bridge.htm David

Bruce Bisenz employed, I think, the best solution to the unruly cable problem. He rewired all of his headsets to incorporate a permanent yoke that "Y-d" down to a connector. He had a number of cables that he might attach to that Y-connector - straight, coiled, mono and stereo. The connector provided a weak point that could pop before a cable would be stressed to the breaking point and aging or compromised cables could be easily replaced in the field. Of course, he is handier than I with a soldering gun - an essential skill as the Sony cables employ Litz wire (or something very similar). My own solution is less elegant but has worked well for me. I simply thread a length of nylon climbing line through the coils to limit the expansion of the coiled cable. By affixing the nylon line with O-rings at each end, I provide some slack to prevent damage when coming to the end of the line. This is similar to the clever rerouting employed by Dave Pulmer and others but may be easier to undo. David

I ran a series of tests of transmitting antennas for the 695 Quarterly (now Production Sound & Video) a few years ago. We compared the standard telescoping antenna with the Comtek Phase Right, Comtek Mini Mite and Remote Audio Miracle Whip. Measuring distance to drop-outs and interference with clear line of sight, our experience was similar to A Few's; the antennas all had about the same range. However, the Comtek and Remote Audio units were all complete antenna systems while the telescoping whip relies on the chassis of the transmitter for ground plane. This means that the transmitter must be used on the top shelf of the cart for enough headroom to extend the whip. Because the other antennas are deployed remotely, the transmitter can be anywhere convenient. The tests were published in the Summer 2011 edition available here: http://www.local695.com/Quarterly/3-3/ A direct link to the tests: http://www.local695.com/Quarterly/3-3/3-3-testing-the-transmitting-antennas/ David

Yes, of course, a 220-volt circuit feeding a standard Edison outlet. Good catch. (Fat fingers) David

I assume you mean that you are using the jumper plug on the Pilot-in tuchel connector. The crystal sync signal is routed from the crystal circuit board to the pilot record head through pins in the Pilot-in connector. This is an elegant way to activate the crystal function by plugging in the jumper or deactivating it be removing the jumper. your copy seems to indicate that you are doing all this appropriately but it’s worth asking to be sure. David

I’ve not heard of a problem in New Mexico (You’re from NM, aren’t you?) but I was working in San Francisco once and we fried a light because some random outlets were wired 120-volt. I understand this is an occupational hazard in old San Francisco buildings. David

I’m not a service technician so i can only respond in a general way but the problem you describe is common to the portable Nagras. I’ve experienced it with the IV-L, the 4.2 and the IV-S. The good news is that, once stabilized with your finger, the operation is good. Of course, it’s a nuisance. I think that service instructions for any portable Nagra ought to be applicable to your machine. Regrettably, I don’t have those manuals but they are likely to be more easily sourced. David

I haven’t actually investigated this issue so the following suggestion is just speculation - Wouldn’t it be possible to make interconnecting cables that would pass signal to the recorder while not passing phantom power back to your Cooper mixer? Perhaps an in-line isolation transformer? Apologies if you have already considered this and there is a reason unseen by me that makes this solution impractical. David

This has been an interesting discussion but, I think, largely irrelevant to making movies. Probably you (the OP) and everyone making suggestions has seen the movie Bull Durham. As you will recall, the characters played by Kevin Kostner and Susan Sarandon both took active roles in preparing Tim Robbins' talented but erratic pitcher for better things in the majors. Sarandon has him wearing ladies' underwear beneath his team uniform. Of course, frilly underwear doesn't confer any advantage but it does distract an overactive mind so the pitcher can work from muscle memory. Trying to find strategies to conceal a clumsy microphone choice may serve the same end. One is engaged in making active preparation to perform sound recording responsibilities in a situation where real preparation, given the limits of equipment and budget, is probably impossible. A single radio transmitter/receiver set is only minimally useful on a dramatic film. Except for the occasional Shakespearean soliloquy, dialog in films involves at least two players. A single radio set is not really useful to record two or three people. It may have some utility as a plant mike but that's a different concealment issue and the present microphone may be entirely fine. I think you need to tell the director that, except for a few special situations, you will be working only with the boom microphone. If sound cannot be successfully recorded with that rig, he will need to cover the scene in close-ups or medium shots. If that doesn't work for him, he will need to resign himself (herself?) to the necessity of looping. This is not something to lament or be anxious about. Many fine films have been recorded with a single boom microphone. Moreover, by focusing attention on that approach and not wasting time and energy on halfway radio measures, production can proceed efficiently. With limited resources, it is a perfectly reasonable way to make a movie. David

I would like to address the matter of working for consistency so that the material can be edited smoothly. This is a concern and a good mixer will be mindful of the need to record lines that can be intercut shot to shot. However, I think consistency should be a secondary goal, not a primary focus. I believe a successful location mixer will attempt to get the best results possible in each shot and not degrade results, at least not significantly, in an effort to maintain consistency. Just because the master was lousy is no reason to do second rate work on all the close-ups. (And, I'm sure that the advice from experienced contributors like Crew and Tom Visser and the others doesn't intend that you do anything of that sort. But it's easy to take good advice and follow it too rigidly.) So, to restate, try for the best sound possible in each set-up but be aware, as you work, that consistent tone is also important. But don't hesitate to jettison an iffy miking approach if you have a chance to make a significant improvement. (The editor may throw away the sound from the compromised shots and make the assembly with the better material.) David

Kit necessities will vary a bit according to the assignment. The one constant in my life has been a Swiss Army knife. I used to carry their "classic" model, a small knife that fits in the watch pocket of jeans and features scissors and a small screwdriver. Recently I've changed to the "Rambler." It's the same length but just a bit fatter to accommodate a functional Phillips-head screwdriver (as well as the other tools). Of course, my kit also includes Leatherman and Gerber folding tools but the little Swiss knife is always in my pocket (unless flying). David

My first bit of advice is to use a professional freight expediting company to handle transport rather than trying to deal with the gear as excess baggage. There are a number of companies that provide this specialized service. RockIt Cargo comes well recommended (although I must caution that the last time I traveled internationally with gear was more than 15 years ago): https://www.rockitcargo.com You'll also want to research Customs issues when flying with gear. I would think that the US Virgin Islands would not present Customs issues for a US citizen but, since you may travel on an international flight, I think you would, at least, want to have copies of purchase receipts to establish that your gear was acquired in the States. Better, register the gear with Customs before leaving (you take your cases of gear with a written inventory to a Customs office and they inspect the cases and stamp your inventory). A Carnet might be good if there is any chance you will island hop to another territory. A case for your cart is ideal - I would offer to loan one but you are on the east coast so that's of limited benefit. If a case is difficult to acquire, you can arrange to have your cart crated. That's bit expensive and adds to the weight of your shipment. An alternative might be to have it "palletized." Your freight expediting company lies the cart on a pallet and "cocoon-wraps" the whole business in plastic. Take pictures of each case, both closed and open to show the gear, so you have a record of what was in each case and how it was packed. Time permitting, print a photo of the interior of each case, label the contents, and affix it to the lid or simply lay it in the case. That provides a guide for any customs or TSA official who might open a case and wonder what all those tech (and possibly ominous) devices are. It can also discourage opportunistic shrinkage by establishing what is supposed to be there. Larcenous baggage people sometimes hesitate to grab things if their presence is documented. David

From The Third Man: "Holly, I'd like to cut you in, old man. There's nobody left in Vienna I can really trust and we've always done everything together. When you make up your mind, send me a message - I'll meet you any place, any time, and when we do meet old man, it's you I want to see, not the police. Remember that, won't ya? Don't be so gloomy.After all it's not that awful. You know what the fellow said– in Italy, for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, they had five hundred years of democracy and peace – and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. So long Holly." I understand that Orson Welles improvised the dialog in that second paragraph. In any event, the historical perspective expressed is a little wonky; the Swiss at that time had one of the most formidable armies in Europe and the cuckoo clock was a German product. And I think (but I'd have to check) that both Leonardo and Michelangelo were active before the ascension of the Borgias. But it's a memorable speech and it comes unbidden to the forefront of my mind whenever I hear the words "cuckoo clock." David

Outstanding! David

It's my understanding that Ron Meyer licensed the design from Skyline. I don't know when in the course of development that happened but I'm pretty sure I recall him saying that he had an agreement. For those not familiar with the history (and my own knowledge is spotty), Ron used to work for Audio Services Corporation, the company founded by Richard Topham Sr. While employed at ASC, he worked in repairs and also developed products for the company. In 1986 he amicably split from ASC to start Professional Sound Corporation. And, subsequently, Audio Services was dissolved in the course of a legal dispute between the east coast Audio Services (the original ASC started by Richard Topham Sr's brother, Ron) and the independent west coast company. A new company, Location Sound Services, owned by the employees, was formed from the personnel and resources of west coast Audio Services. David

These decisions are rather like choosing between a Porsche and a Jaguar or Maserati. There are differences, to be sure, but no wrong choices. It's an enviable position to be in and, if you later reconsider, you might sell one to purchase the other choice with only a moderate penalty. A few years ago I was faced with a similar choice. I needed to move from the Neumann 140/150 system I was using. They sound great but I had too many difficulties using them with a radio link. I ended up getting a matched set of Sennheiser 8050's and have been very pleased with them. They are sensitive to handling noise and need both a delicate touch from the boom operator and a very good shock mount. But I was working with experienced boom operators so I could rely upon good hands. For a shock mount, I acquired a Rycote Invision with the suitable suspension parts and have not experienced any problems. I understand that the very expensive Cinela is even better but the Invision works very well. If you are doing narrative work, then I think you should not be spooked by the stories of difficult handling. But if you regularly work documentary or reality work, you might be wise to choose the most foolproof rig available. (Always remembering that in a foolproof system, the fool is always bigger than the proof. - Edward Teller) David

I saw Dunkirk a few days ago, in an IMAX theater, and the experience still inhabits my subconscious. It is a relentless and immersive experience that comes as close as I can ever recall to taking me inside the events as if I had lived through them myself. Over about a week the retreating forces of the British Expeditionary Force, pushed onto the beach at Dunkirk, were continually harassed by advancing German soldiers and strafing planes. The peril was incessant and Nolan's movie replicates this as faithfully as he can in a movie theater. The roar of low-flying planes is thunderous and bombs and bullet strikes seem close enough to feel concussive. After watching for nearly two hours one has an acrid, gunpowder taste of the event. It is bravura filmmaking. But, having said that, I also noticed that I struggled to hear some of the dialog, I lost not just the occasional word but often whole phrases and lines. There's not much dialog in the movie and events and action drive the account rather than words. Still something was lost. I don't know if the theater (AMC in Burbank) was 70mm IMAX or the true 15-perf horizontal projection of original IMAX. I suspect the former. It seems there may be substantive differences from theater to theater and format to format. David

I think this plan is risky. While it's natural to assume that if you are hired on for a six-month show, you will be with the production until wrap, that's not necessarily the case. Even if you don't have a falling out with production, there are other reasons why you might not see the show through to conclusion. You might have a family emergency that forces you to withdraw or the production might have a funding problem or a key player might have an accident that forces a temporary shut-down. It's an extra complication if you are linked to the show by a not-yet-completed financial transaction. What would happen if you had to withdraw? You would leave the purchased gear behind, of course, but then the production would need to hire someone willing to work with that gear arrangement. I think a savvy Production Manager would be disinclined to become entangled this way and the proposal from you makes you appear weak and needy. David

While there is a rule of thumb for pricing rentals it is often ignored and the situation in the field is akin to the Wild Wild West. Companies renting technical equipment (as distinguished from car rentals or vacation homes and the like) will often figure on charging 1% of replacement value per day. So, a $10,000 recorder might be expected to rent for $100 per day. There are several exceptions to this expectation: 1. Anything that is particularly rugged and/or exempt from rapid obsolescence would be rented at considerably less, perhaps only 0.5% daily or even less. A C-stand would be an example of this sort of pricing. 2. Anything either fragile or needing frequent tuning or subject to rapid obsolescence would be rented for more, perhaps 2% of replacement value or even more. Examples would include radio mikes (subject both to tuning needs and to obsolescence forced by transmitting frequencies lost to cell phones) and electronic cameras. The cameras are often hot items for a year or two and are then supplanted by a new model. 3. Anything that is a specialty item rented only occasionally will be priced higher. For example, a production has only occasional use of a 500mm lens or an ultrafast lens, say, f1.1 and those articles go for a premium price. In sound, an earwig rig, while not especially expensive to purchase, might rent for more because there is only occasional call for it. Equipment is usually supplied with the necessary accessories like cables and batteries at no extra charge although rental houses would certainly charge for extras beyond the minimum need. So a recorder would probably be provided with one, maybe two, rechargeable batteries but extras would cost more. Most independent operators provide a fairly extensive inventory of back-up gear at no extra charge although that doesn't necessarily extend to significant pieces of gear. A collection of cable adapters and things of that sort are not usually inventoried and invoiced but a spare recorder or mixing panel might be. And, of course, everything is subject to some negotiation. A TV series, booking personnel for twelve weeks of continuous work, might negotiate a package price for gear a bit less than a commercial with only a one or two-day booking. David