mikefilosa

Richard - is the bottom supporting cart your design? How is it for balance? Looks great, and I like the (what appears to be a ...) handle bar near the front wheels... MF

I've been looking too.... Interesting and economical, but I can't see how it get's it's power.... do you use this one ? MF

32 tracks ? Yikes.... MF

I am curious has to how everyone is monetizing these investments - are you charging for AAs, as used ? Or are you bumping up your package rate ? I've been interested in changing up my own operation and getting away from Lithium AAs altogether... I am about to eliminate regular use of 9v in my day-to-day, too. MF

FWIW, lately I have been taking firm steps towards email confirmation of all rates and terms on every job I can. At the head of the email is: "please hit me with a quick reply to let me know this 'made it' to you and that we are in agreement of all terms and points" Regardless of distance, even if it's just downtown, in the terms of engagement I stipulate: 1 - Rate for labor, usually based on ten, then specifically "OT @ 1.5x" 2 - Travel time and rate, if applicable. Some places are clearly 1/2 day drives, some 1/4. Though not fair in my opinion, few people here charge for OT driving on longer-distance returns to the homeland, so straight time tends to prevail. 3 - Equipment - specifying package contents (extent of detail within reason), specifying Single or Double System sound per "our discussion" 4 - Add-ons and their rates, i.e. additional wireless mics, additional slates, sync boxes, additional client headsets, all billed "as used", which also means as approved. 5 - 50 free roundtrip miles per day, portal to portal, excess at gov't rate (do I bill for 5 miles, no, but at least I could if we go way beyond. That's about $10-12 in daily mileage costs I am happy to absorb as any commuter often does, but beyond that I need to be compensated as a production vehicle. 6 - EXPENDABLES - Lithium 9v, Regular 9v, Lithium AAs, and AAs are clearly stated in the email. To this day, I do not understand why some brethren think it's perfectly fine to throw $2 bills down on the floor all day, but some do - thus clients need to be reminded of the cost of getting things done. Without such stipulation and consideration, one could easily lose $20 or more per day on wireless-heavy day work. 7 - Deliverables - though not as common anymore, disc and tape prices listed if part of the workflow. If there is no on-site data management, I urge them to bring CFs if possible, and am now happy to sell them 4GB CFs if they need them. I may be in the minority, but personally do not like to hand over cards with just the promise of their safe return.... This policy of mine has helped, but honestly was borne from early experiences just like yours - sorry for your suffering. Lessons learned for sure.... and they are complete A**holes for thinking there is no mileage or compensation for 7hrs of roundtrip travel --- you are NOT a loca in that case at all, plain and simple. MF

As long as the marketplace and the country understand that film operations are not wiped away and gone from / in Atlanta, then all is good. And equally as important, I want everyone to know that they were legacy players / generous early adopters in the world of film sound as it has evolved to what it has today, and that history preserved. It was ONLY Cinefilm and DuArt that made such moves, early on, on the entire east coast. MF

Cinefilm is NOT closing. Film is NOT dead in Atlanta. To clarify - Cinefilm remains operating as the premiere lab is has always been. Cinefilm is only closing it's telecine operation, and Crawford Communications will now be handling that part of the operation. Misinformation continues to persist - as I heard stupid stuff yet again while working today. Crawford did not buy Cinefilm, and to my knowledge, there is no official merger. It is very important to preserve Cinefilm's part in the history of hard disk recording for film, for it was commendable. (as only the internet can do nowadays, I guess!) Their lead audio engineer, James Koon, and Jim Ogburn, management, were the very FIRST in the southeast to embrace this technology. When I was able to get the very first Deva into this market (after urging Glen Trew to pursue and thus begin Trew Audio's Zaxcom dealership), the people at Cinefilm got the first demo. Cinefilm was (and IS) a highly trusted lab, developing lots of film for lots of genres and clients from all over the country - shows, commercials, politicals, corporate film (yes that used to happen) and documentaries. Zaxcom's introduction of the amazing automatic 10sec of pre-roll to field recording was of great interest to Cinefilm, and was a primary driver. Cinefilm was cutting edge at the time, having one of the first Aaton / Arri TC readers - the one that read both. They were also verrrrry Pro-Audio, using TC Nagras and DAT machines, but transferring digitally into their SADIE workstations for the actual sync-ing. They were leaders in utilizing SADIE - I believe American operations were also nearby, in Nashville, at the time. James Koon and Cinefilm embraced the Zaxcom Deva immediately, while every other operation in town at the time did not. It was quite a struggle to get things going here - after all, "it's only audio"... and the "newness" was considered a PIA to the others. It took a couple of years for the rest of the town to even remotely catch on, as saving time in telecine and improving delivery for their clients was NOT on their agendas. For Cinefilm, it certainly WAS. Cinefilm, James Koon, and the rest of the staff will always remain dear to me for their part in the evolution of production sound recording here in the Southeast. Cinefilm and film is alive and well in Atlanta. MF

Philip - I NEVER knew this - thanks for posting the pic and the Coherent history..... (was Coherent a NorCal or San Fran company?) It appears that Mike Denecke, in the history page of the company website, credits Coherent with some of the inspiration that got him thinking about TC slates..... so I guess Coherent developed a system - from field to post -- do you have any pictures of the early slate? http://www.denecke.com/About%20Us/History/history.htm What I can't tell from this "history" is whether or not Nagra was actually the FIRST in the TC revolution... is it possbile that Coherent was? Mike Denecke mentions 1985 and seeing slates and then talking to M. Klemme.... Coherent was a pretty remarkable little company - I had, for awhile, a very early portable Coherent Mixer that I really loved - three or four channels into a mono mix with lotsa switches and features, extra outs, and a VU single meter (needle). They also made an early B/W videoassist box called "The ShotBox" that had a built in still store, and a knob / switch combo that provided either a wipe or a dissolve between two sources.... I'd also like to know more about the driving force or forces behind Coherent, as they have a neat legacy, at least to some of us..... My stereo Nagra was a TimeCode Systems mod and I loved it (still have it...) -- Was TCS a spinoff from Coherent folk ? MF

Marc, I agree with you about SMPTE TC- I do not remember seeing anything but a counter on any Sony or Ampex "portable" (barely) 1" and early 3/4" video tape machines until Sony came out with their 3/4 deck - the big one (5800?, 6800? ) .... Perhaps Charlie @ Denecke can chime in on the evolution of timecode in our business, as it was clearly Mike Denecke driving that bus. He saw the potential for sure! MF

Even better than rack rail - he is using DATA rack rails - and there is probably a better term for them, but I don't know it. Rob Stalder uses these on his fine line of Rastorder Carts, and I am a proud / ecstatic owner of one. These will never need replacing or suffer any rail damage from improper screws or screw accidents, as they hold "Cage Nuts". Cage Nuts lock into those squares, and provide the "threaded bolt" to screw your gear into. If anything needs changing or gets damaged or "buzzed up" in any way, you just replace the Cage Nut. If for some reason you want to use different screws or a different threading, you just replace the cage nut. I think Rob is on the other side of that huge island / continent. I'm betting that Data Racks are far more common in professional sound and video installations in Australia than they are here. MF

Wait a minute - TC recording in the late '70s No way - This might be more recently constructed than that by a decade.... My first TC nagra work was around late 80s I think, maybe 1988, can't remember.... it was a rental machine from ASC ! Does anyone know if the Stellavox pictured is actually a TC machine, a modifed (ala TimeCode Systems Nagra 4S) or possibly laying TC to track 2 for later resolve? This could be a good hlstory thread..... MF

I have been eyeing this as well, but just from a curiosity standpoint. It is a remarkably compact piece of engineering that probably exceeded, by far, most requirements for two track TC.recording back in that day..... wireless was not all that prevalent. I am speculating that the channel strips were lifted from a neat portable Sennheiser mixer from the 70's- they look very similar to the first field panel that I ever ran, back in 1978. I am not sure what the S/N characteristics are going to be here, compared to today's technology and expectations. Whoever constructed this paid a lot of attention to detail and certainly a lot of time pre-planning - and had to be an astute electrical genius, too ! I'd can't remember any provision for "talkback" in those days with other types of gear. Though Tuchels are not speedy, they are certainly solid connectors that get the job done. Whoever "gets it" -- I hope you can get some background on it's design and evolution, if the "creator" is the one on the selling end. MF

WHOA - - this document and chart was produced by the BBC to use with / VS vendors, correct ? For example, an Arri Kit, with normal market rates, pays for itself in 30 - 40 days. 150 days is pure nonsense, even for a newer full-featured LED panel. 5k / 150 days = 33.33 / day !!!!!!! Dedo Kits often rent for as much as a basic EFP Sound package (250) which is a ridiculously tilted rate given the comparisons of investment ..... The only benchmark is to properly assess your market - DO NOT be the low-ball d-bag in this arena. It could hurt you. Check with your local rental houses / options, and match them at least. MF

One of my favorite career activists - Russell Means really rocks !! MF

For deep winter conditions, I have two thermal jumpsuits that I got from a hunting / camping specialty shop - I also have some "flight gloves" - pricey - but they have excellent, superior finger control. This year I went whole hog and added 5 pairs of Tactical 5.11 Cargo pants - real thick and tough - marketed towards the security / police industry. They fit a bit looser and are good when paired with thermals / silks --- True to form, of course, this year is the warmest winter I can remember in Atlanta in my 33 years here - we were in short sleeves a little over a week ago !! MF

And strike "all - in" from the vocabulary....... Sounds catchy, but what a stupid stupid thing to agree to.... MF

And so the battle begins - So, anyone have info about any massive concessions from writers, cast, and management on Arrested Development? (By the way, I loved that show soooo much, couldn't believe it was cancelled, and ended up buying all the DVDs, never expecting them to be streamed... and I don't buy a lot of TV series, I assure you.... ) MF

With apologies, I forgot to add: Such a BS argument about the "value" of an internet-distributed production - to be used to chip away at the workers base - is just that. And such talk should be stopped in it's tracks. Have you seen Hulu lately? THAT is, in some way, is the future...... someone tell our union leaders that. MF

The quality I'm getting on Netflix HD streaming is very comparable to that of my cable. It's really the future we are talking about here - and there have been many top-shelf LCD TVs sold with full internet capabilities in preparation for that obvious future. Maybe a few years ago such and assessment like that might have applied, but not now and definitely not tomorrow. We aren't running 56K no mo... The work is the same - and the professionalism in writing, acting, and production is without a doubt going to be there as the workers strive for the same level as well, because THEIR future relies on the "next season"..... and the next one after that. The NEW MEDIA PARAMETERS of the IA contract ARE INCREDIBLY BAD and are very very dangerous to the future of this business. They are a wide-open hole that needs to be plugged up. MF

I am curious - these ARE shooting in LA right? Anyone know what contract they are falling under, and if the workers are getting a fair shake ? Howzabout the actors and SAG / AFTRA ? What about the DGA ? The Writers ? And what about advertising support / revenue ? Of course, Netflix is going to be pay-for-play, but what about potential product-placement revenues etc..... ? There's money for eyeballs somewhere somehow - can we count on IATSE to protect ours ? THE NEW MEDIA provisions are BS and they need to GO - and not get entrenched. If so, the future is very very bleak. MF

And don't give out any Photobased GPS coordinates either !!!! MF

Not sure what your experience is with tape-based recording, so forgive me if I am off-base, but don't forget that adequate signal strengh and good (but not excessive) tape saturation is important to your S/N specs and results. I learned early that PPM metering is the way to go there, and still prefer "needles" to this day - just harder to find nowadays. MF

Any SQN mixer, save for the SQN-3 (Mono) - FWIW I've always used a high-quality SQN in front of my Nagras. The preamps are awesome, and when there is a need for limiting (for more-than-occasional sonic events!), they are very very good. I preferred the PPMs over the ballistics of the modulometer (sp?) nagra needles, hands down, in keeping things under control. Also consider the routing capabilities, selective monitoring, and the option of working in M/S. Of the field mixers available, I always have considered the SQN to be the cleanest, warmest, most " musiclal - regarding preamps. MF

I am long out of that world - Atlanta has a lot of busy and very good truck sound and RF people that work all over the country. Due to Turner Broadcasting and Fox Sports, unionizing this market would be tough, but they do need some help.... I think the rate has barely moved in the last 7 years... and it is very hard stressful work. I'm curious about the union contracts as they apply here.... 450 or 500 / 10 ? Is there any link to info on this ? If the union rate is not better than that, then organizing will be tough..... especially if stupid "new media" rules creep in there, should they be based on method of distribution of the programming. Might not be a step forward...... MF

That's the one -- and I wish I had one, but not down here... last time I saw one for sale was 2006 - it was near $5k and I definitely didn't have that kinda $$ just lying around! The hand-crank - like a Jack In the Box! Thanks hombre ! This is just another picture..... handcrank on the right a bit less pronounced. Again, of note to me is that the size / dimensions are rather close to your FI Cord...er. An emulation of design and function, perhaps, of the Nagra circa 1957 ? MF