Sometimes, in the analog days, (I began recording in 1957) we used to
develop the image of the waveform on the oxide side of the tape,
itself. Using a solution that did not compromise the adhesive (the
binder that caused the oxide to adhere to the mylar backing), this was
an expensive quick-drying liquid comprised of tiny magnetic particles
that oriented themselves to those of the already-recorded oxide. This
offered a good but tedious alternative to eye-balling and grease-
pencilling cut-points. When dry, the image appeared as ghost-like
white patterns making it easy to cut and edit...assuming one could see
the cut points where the signal was above 4kHz.
Bernie
On May 14, 2009, at 9:03 AM, Scott Fraser wrote:
>
>
> <<Makes me wonder how we ever managed to edit anything before being
> able to see the waveform.
> I don't find using my ears to establish the edit point tedious, its
> the best way to judge the quality of the edit.>>
>
> I spent 25 years editing analog tape on a daily basis with razor
> blades, making 1/16" cuts, etc, so I know all about pre-digital
> editing, & I assure you I used my eyes back then too. That's what the
> China marker was for, to see & confirm the location for the cut. Low
> speed scrubbing on analog machines was far better than the digital
> implementation. When you need to cut a tick lasting mere microseconds,
> & it has no visible vertical excursion due to an overly low level
> recording, that is tedious. Often I redraw the waveform to fix these
> issues. How do you do that by ear, without seeing the waveform?
>
> Scott Fraser
>
>
>
>
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