DISNEYLAND, from A TO D
Last month I outlined the structure of the "new era" Audio Engineering
Society convention schedule. You may recall that the AES decided to cut back
to two conventions per year, rather than the previous three.
Not only was the frequency cut back, but the timing was changed: Instead of Los Angeles every May and New York City at the end of October, there is now only one U.S. convention per year.
Thus the 72nd AES Convention ran from October 23 to 27 at the Disney land Hotel in Anaheim. There is a large convention hall next to the main hotel where equipment can be displayed.
Trouble is, there are no demonstration rooms in the hall, so it was necessary to walk to two other hotel towers. These had limited numbers of demonstration rooms, though there were also some apartment-like "villas" where a few more demonstration rooms were set up by manufacturers.
In spite of the less than desirable venue, the 72nd AES Convention was a good one. Many interesting and pro vocative papers were presented, and there certainly was plenty of new equipment to be seen.
As usual, digital audio equipment occupied center stage and it was hard to pass any group where digital sound was not being discussed. In spite of this, an odd phenomenon was taking place among a number of (mostly lo cal) recording engineers. Quite possibly because of the economic climate and the high cost of multi-track digital recorders, there was a sort of "whistling in the dark" in the oft-expressed idea that digital equipment is still "not fully developed" and really won't make any inroads in the recording studios for quite a few years. This was sometimes coupled with outright bad-mouthing of digital sound in general: "The sampling rates are too low," "Error correction isn't good enough," "Anti-aliasing filters exhibit bad ringing," etc. When someone would mention that the Compact Disc was even at that moment being introduced in Japan, and the concept was going to get a big push, everyone just looked uneasy. How well I remember the same sort of reaction when the LP and then stereo were introduced: "The LP just doesn't sound as clean as a good 78," "Stereo is hokey and has a poor low end," etc.
Obviously, there is always room for improvement-that is the name of the game. There is no doubt that the second- and third-generation digital recorders now coming on the market have been greatly improved in many parameters. There have also been advances in the operational and service aspects of some recorders.
JVC showed an unusually complete digital recording system. Their new second-generation DAS Series 900 system features the BP-900 digital processor. This unit is about half the size, weight and cost of the original BP-90 processor, and the two are fully compatible. The BP-900 measures 17 in. W x 6 in. H x 17 in. D and weighs in at 55 pounds. Extensive use of C-MOS Large Scale Integrated circuits made the size and weight reductions possible. Instead of the 14 modules of the BP-90, the new BP-900 has but six modules. This processor uses 16-bit linear quantization and has switchable sampling rates of 44.1 and 44.056 kHz.
The availability of the 44.1-kHz rate obviously means it can be used for Compact Disc production. Along with the BP-900 is a new remote control unit, the RM-900, which permits location of correct tape position and controls signal level and time-code monitoring, as well as the usual functions.
The AE-900 is the new JVC electronic editor, which features a 16-bit microprocessor and can edit to a precision of 180 microseconds! There is also a new Edit Controller with variable cross-fade capability, equivalent to changing the gradient (angle of cut) in analog tape splicing. The system also has expanded memory for longer edit rehearsal and digital fading. A new item called the System Controller provides such things as auto tape location, signal-level monitoring and-would you believe-synchronization of two recorders for four-channel recording.
The JVC CR-8250 is a 3/4-inch VCR for use with the BP-900. One of the most significant things about this BP-900 digital processor is that it can be used successfully with JVC's Model 6400 industrial VHS half-inch VCR. For the small studio that wants to go digital with professional quality, the BP-900 will cost about $21,000 and the 6400 VCR is just under $2,000. The studio can record with this combination, then have their tapes edited at a profession al JVC facility for approximately $750 per eight-hour day. Incidentally, I and others who have used it consider this JVC 6400 the VCR for optimum results with "consumer" digital processors such as the Sony PCM-F1.
Sony exhibited a production model of their long-awaited PCM 3324, a 24-channel fixed-head digital recorder, very imposing looking in a large con sole. The Record Plant, a major studio in Los Angeles, has taken delivery on one of these recorders and reportedly is very satisfied with initial results, even to razor-blade editing without problems. (Of course there is electronic editing as well.)
Mitsubishi had the innards of their big X-800, a 32-channel digital recorder, exposed. Its complexity was staggering, but nonetheless was very neat and tidy. They also proudly debuted their PCM-XE-1 electronic editor which can be used with both the two-channel X-80 recorder and the X-800. Some of the features of this editor are: Selection of cross-fade duration, rehearsal mode, auto location function, and a built-in SMPTE time-code generator.
Here again is an editor/control unit that can synchronize two transports for four-channel digital recording. Are they trying to tell us something?
---------The DAD-16, Studer's 16-bit digital delay/ preview unit for
analog disc cutting.
Studer entered the digital wars with a very concentrated system approach. The first unit they were showing was the A808 PCM fixed-head, quarter-inch digital recorder. Based on their well-known A800 analog transport, the recorder features 48- and 44.1-kHz sampling rates, with 16-bit quantization. Surprisingly, Studer opted for quarter-inch tape, permitting up to eight channels of digital recording plus two analog channels for cueing and SMPTE time code. One would have thought that with the A800's capability of handling 24 channels, Studer would have decided on a digital recorder with that many channels. The use of 14-inch reels affords more than one hour of recording time. There are several re mote control devices for use with the A808 PCM, and the unit is said to be compatible with both electronic and razor-blade editing.
------- The Studer A808 PCM records eight digital and two analog channels.
Studer augmented their digital line with the DAD-16 digital preview unit. This can be used with analog or digital masters, and can even be used with analog masters for half-speed cutting. The unit is compatible with all cutting lathes currently around. The DAD-16 is claimed to allow disc cutting without phase distortions.
Next in the Studer digital lineup was their unique SAE-16 Digital Sampling Frequency Converter. Just feed in any signal using current sampling rates from 44.056 to 50.4 kHz, and out comes 44.1 kHz for use in Compact Disc production. Finally, a prototype model of the Studer/Revox Compact Disc player was shown, but not demonstrated.
Studer also had a significant new analog open-reel recorder, the A810. I will report on that next month, along with other interesting new products.
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(Audio magazine, Feb. 1983; Bert Whyte )
Also see:
Dr. Thomas Stockham on the Future of Digital Recording (Feb. 1980)
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