Re: [ARSCLIST] looking for advice on cylinders

[Susan Stinson <Ststinso@xxxxxxx>]

Hello, Tom:
Actually, no, they don't.  As we are experiencing in the development of
our cylinder laser playback system, the laser beam picks up whatever the
groove modulation has to offer, including particles of dust, wax, and
malformations caused by mould activity.  It seems, reasonably, that once
the mould has arrived and done its _thing_, there is no fix.

We have entertained other theories in retrieving the original signal
from wax, all probably terribly expensive if they are even possible. 
Sometimes we have to face the reality that a thing is as good today as
it will ever be again; our time is better spent on caring for more
artifacts that will benefit from that care than on one thing for which
there isn't much chance of improvement - not that we allow it to suffer
further damage.  It's like medical triage up to a point - stabilize the
neediest and then go on to the rest.  Resources in this business are
quite strained most places, so we have to be as practical as we are
idealistic.  

Susan


Susan T Stinson, Curator
Belfer Audio Laboratory and Archive
Syracuse University Library
222 Waverly Avenue
Syracuse, NY 13244-2010
315-443-3477 / fax 443-4866


>>> tflists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 09/19/05 6:44 PM >>>
Hi Ms. Stinson:

Thanks for this very interesting post.

Question -- do the new laser-scan methods have a way to focus through
or
compensate for mold?

-- Tom Fine

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Susan Stinson" <Ststinso@xxxxxxx>
To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> I would point out one thing here that we have learned over the years
-
> it isn't really helpful to remove the mould, even if you can.  Yes,
the
> presence of the inactive mould makes  the recording noisy to play
back,
> but removing the mould leaves pits and other holes that makes
playback
> less attractive.  We concluded that it's better to leave it alone.
>
> Sue