Re: [ARSCLIST] IRENE article and the future

[Marcos Sueiro <mls2137@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Steve,

I figured. My point was that, to my ears, the particular MP3 samples 
presented on the article are not doing IRENE a great marketing job.

Farris,

A couple of points:

Of course, preserving the original carrier is a beautiful thing. A 
system (like IRENE) that enables you to play certain items at all is a 
beautiful thing. However, if the content extraction is more expensive 
and/or time-consuming than traditional methods, and *not of better 
quality*, then perhaps we are not in much better shape.

This has been brought up before, but the idea of a "flat transfer", 
especially with regards to mechanical carriers, is somewhat of a 
fallacy. Just choosing the needle size and mass changes the sound 
tremendously, and it is ultimately a matter of preference; although, 
granted, most engineers will strive to increase the signal-to-noise 
ratio and to achieve a "natural" sound.

All of this, again, is not to diminish IRENE in any way. I certainly 
would not be making judgments on it from --as Steve said-- listening to 
MP3s over my computer speakers!

Cheers,

Marcos

Steven Smolian wrote:
> I've heard these results played back in person at conference.  They 
> sound much better than what you guys are describing.  I suspect there's 
> a problem in the "their finished product" to "your ears via computer" 
> conversion process.
>
> This is the two dimensional scan, much less good but faster than a three 
> dimensional one.
>
> They are looking toward production and are willing to give up better 
> quality to show some return on investment and get copying started 
> sooner.  Those of you who know me have some idea how I feel about this.
>
> Steve Smolian
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Farris Wahbeh" <fwahbeh@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Wednesday, August 22, 2007 11:08 AM
> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] IRENE article
>
>
> > This may be a case of audio engineer vs. archivist.
> > First, these sound samples are extracted from a digital surface map of
> > the media without contact (wowza)!!! What you're hearing is an image
> > analysis of the actual media, not the media itself. In terms of
> > preservation of the actual carrier, that's a beautiful thing. Again,
> > this is from an archival standpoint.
> > Second, even if you were to digitally convert these recordings in an
> > *archival* setting, you would want the archival copy to be flat and
> > unprocessed, so the hissing would be inherent. Other *listening* or
> > *exhibition* copies would be altered.
> > But, yes, IRENE is still in its early stages, which excites me.
> >
> >
> > --
> > Never be afraid to laugh at yourself, after all, you could be missing
> > out on the joke of the century.
> >  - Dame Edna Everage

--
Marcos Sueiro Bal
Audio/Moving Image Project Archivist
Preservation Division
Columbia University Libraries