Nagra still in use?

[Christian Holm]

Hi! I am new at this... :D

Purchased a nagra IV with a dolby SR stereo module.

My question is if any one still uses 1/4" nagra IV or similar?
If so:
Tape... which?
What about postproduction and dailies?!

[Neil Uchitel]

Hi,

I'm not sure if what I got in post went through the prism converter, but I've gotten plenty of tape-recorded dailies in my time. I'm just saying that when it comes to dialog, there are many more reasons to stay digital than to to use the Nagra. Of course, it's been used for countless productions, etc., but going directly to disk is both a clarity and a workflow improvement. Its not a bad machine to have (if it's kept calibrated) - i'm certainly not going to knock it's successful history - but if I had one, I wouldn't choose to use it for dialog unless something about the production made creative sense to use it. I'd rather just make it easier and record on digital. 96k or even 192k if you want much better resolution. I wish more guys would record at 96k.

Cheers,

Neil

[Christian Holm]

I agree on most of your thoughts... But this is why since none of us used the nagra (and the sr module) I would like to get some input of experienced Nagra users.

Yes 96k is a good thing! :D but in a "big" production it´s a lot of data and takes big amounts of power from your DAW´s.

The hole chain from actors with nice voices.. the right mic a good preamp(transformers!) and some nice acoustics is for me the most important part for clarity and to get a excellent recording. The recording medium is a possibility to give sound(the tape) or just collect the material on a hard drive (which is practical and efficient of course)

And then we have post... were we can give sound also of course but need good original recordings and are really happy to have big resolution and whats the sample rate on analog?

Still maybe u are right! :D thinking of doing a test when i have the time.


Neil I must say... your homepage is very nice! :D
Nice studio setup also!
curious of the monitor u are using... And is that dorrough meters I see? :)
Never used those meters here in europe... how are they?

[Marc Wielage]

If your goal is just to get the "warmth" from analog tape, you could try doing what many music producers do.

Record the session (dialog, in your case) to digital, and use those tracks for post. For the final mix, bounce the entire dialog mix to analog tape, then back in to Pro Tools (or whatever digital sound platform you're using). This will give you the sound of analog with the convenience of digital.

I don't think the inconvenience and expense of analog tape makes sense for most productions, not as of 2009. On the other hand, I saw a Nagra IV-S being used on the set of M. Night Shyamalan's Lady in the Water, and the movie was edited on film, on flatbeds. I don't think either technique helped the film (financially or artistically), but it proved that with enough time and money, you can do anything.

[Scott Smith]

Marc:

Wow, I wasn't aware that M. Night Shyamalan did "Lady in the Water" on analog and a flatbed. Did he do a traditional film mix too? (Who has the hell still has a full-up film dubbing operation left?).

While I spent a long part of my career working in analog (starting with Nagra III and Ampex 351 recorders), I agree in general with Marc's assessment that there is little be gained by going this route for dialog, especially given that nearly all feature films are released digitally now. Not to mention the hassles of properly aligning a Nagra for the currently available tape stocks, which is not a project for the feint of heart.

On the other hand, I still do some music work in analog, usually with SR noise reduction (or occasionally on 1/2" 2 track). Yes, there is still a difference, but with good converters such as the Prism, the gap is narrowing.

--Scott D. Smith C.A.S.

[Christian Holm]

There is a difference... :D
But as you say the hassle of managing analog Vs the outcome.

Need to make some tests.
Step one read Nagra manual, step two get hold of tape stock.

Thanxs for the input.

Carl Christian Holm

[David Carmiggelt]

Christian, be well aware that 1 1/4 tape is just 20 minutes of material.On a normal production that means 4 tapes a day ( 80 minutes : 7 or 8 EU per tape, if found)If you use the Nagra say 150 days a year.....600 tapes a year..I think you should drop the idea,but that is up to you.
Regards, David C

[Neil Uchitel]

Thanks for the compliments! That's an older picture, so I don't use that monitor anymore. I've got an LCD screen now (Sharp Aquos), but soon that will be replaced by a projector with a perforated screen. Dorrough meters are extremely accurate and they're used in nearly every post house. You can get analog or digital meters at different calibration levels.

Again, like Scott said below, I think for dialog analog is really not worth it. But, like him I definitely do analog for music. I love to record drums to 2" tape with Neve preamps. The sound is just wonderful.