Category Archives: Audio Processing

You know, I kept seeing that 3D stuff, and seeing that 3D stuff, and never getting it. Then I saw the same clips with a great audio system, and what do you know…the pictures looked better. 

Roger Nichols Needs Help

 

Once upon a time, Roger Nichols turned his back on a lucrative career as a nuclear engineer, turning audio knobs instead, and the world’s been a better-sounding place ever since. From his decades of work with Steely Dan, John Denver and other artists, Roger proved his production prowess while stretching the limits of technology. When the available gear couldn’t do the job, he’d invent solutions, such as the 1978 Wendel sampling drum computer (the first drum replacement device) or the Rane PaqRat, which transformed a lowly ADAT or DA-88 recorder into a 24-bit mastering deck. And if that wasn’t enough, his Digital Atomics company developed a vacuum desiccation system for tape restoration that offered an alternative to tape baking. Over the years, tracks Roger engineered (such as Donald Fagen’s The Nightfly) became established as standards for speaker demos in audio showrooms and AES booths—in either case, some pretty tough customers. 


 

This article originally came from Mix AudioBites by George Peterson
ROGER NICHOLS NEEDS YOUR HELP | AudioBites

 


On a personal note, Roger was always a caring and giving person, whether serving on NARAS boards, or volunteering his time to lecture to college students and AES sections. In fact I was convinced Roger into spending a week with me doing production seminars for the audio community in Buenos Aires, Argentina. A little off the beaten track, but Roger was quick to give up his valuable time for the benefit of others. Between his amazing legacy of recorded work (Steely Dan, Donald Fagen, John Denver, Rickie Lee Jones, Take 6, Johnny Winter, Placido Domingo, Roseanne Cash, The Beach Boys and so many more) and his benevolence in helping others, he has given so much to our industry. 

 

Now it’s time we helped HIM out.

 >>>You can donate to help Roger via PAYPAL. Any amount, large or small, is appreciated and will make a difference. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
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When not working on MIX stuff, George Petersen records and performs with the SF Bay Area-based rock band ARIEL. Click herewww.jenpet.com/ariel.html and check ‘em out.

Art of Mixing Motion Pictures

‘Our primary rerecording format remains 5.1-channel soundtracks,’ considers ‘Doc’ Goldstein, VP of post-production engineering at Universal Studios Sound. ‘But we can accommodate other multichannel formats and always have our eye on the future requirements of filmmakers.’ The ubiquitous 5.1-channel format involves three screen channels (left, centre, right) plus separate surround channels beside and behind the audience (labelled left-surround and right-surround) in addition to a low-frequency extension/LFE channel that carries reduced-bandwidth material (hence the ‘0.1’ label).


Read the rest of this fine Mel Lambert/ProAudio Asia article at:
The art of mixing motion pictures – Pro Audio Central

Part 2 of article, speaks about the Iosono Sound Audio System: 
Iosono Surround Sound – a perfect companion to 3D releases?


Such material is carried to audiences on analogue film using one of three data-compressed formats: Dolby Digital, which optically prints the digitised audio between the sprocket holes; DTS, which uses a time code track on the film to synchronise a companion CD-ROM that carries the multichannel audio; and SDDS – Sony Dynamic Digital Sound – which uses a similar technique to Dolby but, as we shall see, can accommodate additional screen channels.

Dolby Digital premiered in 1992 with Batman Returns, while DTS launched a year later with Jurassic Park

Meanwhile, reacting to a need for a more immersive soundtrack experience and to provide additional panning options …

The first Digital Surround EX release, in May 1999, was for Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Earlier this year Dolby unveiled …

There is however another 7.1-channel format that offers extra behind-the-screen loudspeakers. …

According to Gary Johns, SVP of Sony’s Digital Cinema Solutions, there are roughly 7,000 screens worldwide equipped for SDDS 5.1 playback, with fewer than 1,000 screens outfitted for SDDS 7.1. ‘…

‘Of the formats beyond 5.1, we have seen some 7.1-channel mixes,’ Universal’s Mr Goldstein offers. …

All current analogue film releases also carry a two-channel optical Dolby Pro Logic soundtrack that contains…

In addition to the IMAX presentation format that uses a 70mm film or digital file…

Tomlinson Holman, formerly with Lucasfilm’s Skywalker Ranch and now president of TMH Corporation, has been advocating several playback formats, including a 10.2 configuration. Co-developed with Chris Kyriakakis of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, and first demonstrated …

‘The difference is not the placement of the speakers,’ Mr Holman stresses, ‘but rather the type of speakers and the information sent to them. 12.2 would use both surround-diffuse and surround-direct channels.’ …

Multichannel Mixes for digital cinema

The advent of digital projection with playback from hard-disk servers rather than analogue film …

‘Beginning in April 2011,’ points out Charles Flynn from the DCinemaCompliance Group, …

The ability to carry uncompressed audio to audiences at enhanced bit rates and sample rates will extend filmmakers’ creative options, …

Sony Pictures Studios’ postproduction complex features five state-of-the art dubbing stages that are ‘capable …

SoundToys Donates to Gulf

a series of concerts held on July 1st that featured simultaneous shows at multiple venues from coast-to-coast. Over twenty-five venues held charity concerts, from The Roxy in Hollywood all the way to The Press Room in Portsmouth, NH. The benefit was a great success, demonstrated by the droves of music fans that attended to show their support for the Gulf. All of the money raised by ticket sales and online fundraising platforms will be donated to the fishermen and their families who have been directly affected by the spill, as well as to the restoration of wildlife and wetlands.

“In recognition of such an important cause, we will be donating 100% of our online sales from July 15th to the Gulf Coast Restoration. SoundToys would like to support those affected by this spill through any means possible. If you’ve had your eye on any of our products, July 15th is the day to buy,” said Ken Bogdanowicz, CEO of SoundToys. For more information, please visit http://www.healthygulf.org/.

On Thursday, July 15th, 2010, SoundToys will donate 100% of its online profits to the Gulf Restoration Network. The Gulf Restoration Network is a non-profit organization working to provide assistance to the people, wildlife, and wetlands affected by the BP oil spill. We are pleased to offer this contribution to the Gulf Restoration Network at such a critical time.

The idea to help this cause came to life when the Gulf Restoration Network recently partnered with music venues across the country to put on The Gulf Coast Benefit, a series of concerts held on July 1st that featured simultaneous shows at multiple venues from coast-to-coast. Over twenty-five venues held charity concerts, from The Roxy in Hollywood all the way to The Press Room in Portsmouth, NH. The benefit was a great success, demonstrated by the droves of music fans that attended to show their support for the Gulf. All of the money raised by ticket sales and online fundraising platforms will be donated to the fishermen and their families who have been directly affected by the spill, as well as to the restoration of wildlife and wetlands.

“In recognition of such an important cause, we will be donating 100% of our online sales from July 15th to the Gulf Coast Restoration. SoundToys would like to support those affected by this spill through any means possible. If you’ve had your eye on any of our products, July 15th is the day to buy,” said Ken Bogdanowicz, CEO of SoundToys.
For more information, please visit http://www.healthygulf.org/.

Apple’s Audio Logic

Essentially it’s because it doesn’t have to. Aside from the company’s legendary need to control every aspect of the way it appears in public, something that’s difficult at an event staged by someone else, the products, much to the chagrin of the competition, seem to a large extent to sell themselves. Brand recognition for Apple is off the charts since the iPod and iPhone, and although pro audio, like pro video, is an important area for the company to compete, it’s a still a niche market in the wider scheme of things. You don’t build up cash reserves in the tens of billions of dollars by selling high-end music software or even high-end Macs to run it on. That honour goes to the consumer devices.

 

[Editor: There have been a few articles in the last weeks speculating on the when and where of Apple’s declaration of support for the professionals in their marketplace. The meme is catching on that with Apple worth billions now, they not only don’t need the pros, or to be selling the pro equipment that they rely upon…too much of a niche. One who believes that clearly doesn’t understand the philosophy of niche markets, the failure of Sony or the philosophy of Steve…who, by the way, was recently noted for return emailing an editor who wondered if FCP was going to be improved. Steve gave a short comment that he will have to live up to…one expects that there will be a new version of FCS that will leapfrog the market once again.]

For the rest of this MacUser article, go to:
Audio – Apple’s clever decision to tie Logic into the Mac
10:58AM, Thursday 6th May 2010 

Most people’s experience of computers starts with a PC, cheap and ubiquitous as they are. For anyone who studies music technology, on the other hand, it’s much more likely that your lab will be stocked not with beige boxes but with iMacs or Mac towers. …

When it comes to the software, on the other hand, some gentle prodding is needed, especially since all the major music programs run almost equally well on Mac OS X. Here, things start to get a little less clear cut – …

On acquiring the company in 2002, Apple immediately discontinued the Windows version of Logic, signalling its intentions to establish the Mac as the dominant platform in the audio world. …

For those who didn’t need all the bells and whistles, Apple created Logic Express, which was and is still a remarkably capable piece of software. …

Ultimately, it’s hardware sales that keep Apple growing at such a rate. …

This, of course, is understandable and good business: nobody could ever claim Apple didn’t know a thing or two about selling. …

Hollin Jones

Avatar in Spanish, or French, or German-Slate

Avatar in Spanish, or French, or German

While Americans generally associate dubbing with out-of-sync martial arts B-movies, the technique is no joke for audiences around the world, where most of the big-budget films are from the United States. How does dubbing work?

First, pick your languages. Big Hollywood movies are always dubbed into French, German, and Spanish, since those respective countries all have sizable film-going communities. There are often two Spanish versions, one for Spain and one for Latin America. Otherwise, the decision depends on the type of film and its perceived market value in a given country. Animated films are dubbed into more languages than live action, since animation is primarily aimed at children who may not be able to read subtitles. Disney’s The Princess and the Frog, for instance, will be dubbed into 38 languages, while the studio’s live-action offering The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is only scheduled for nine.

Read the entire article: 

Avatar in Spanish, or French, or German