Nothing lasts for ever

[sandall]

Thursday night, the  beacon-lighting in front of an expected 100 or so public turned out to be well over 500 in a complete circle, but that's another story. A request for a bit of music to fill at least half an hour, so out came the wind & strings compilation I've been using for at least 15 years. It sounded awful. Bearing in mind that this was a 2 horns, battery-powered amp & portable CD-player set-up in the middle of a park there were a lot of possible suspects. However a change to something more ceremonial sounded ok & the speeches were fine. Having checked everything next day it turned out that that particular CD (recordable CD-Audio) had failed since last used. Note to self: add all the CDs to the prep check-list (even if they have been recently used)!!

Edited June 4, 2022 by sandall

[sunray]

On 6/4/2022 at 11:25 AM, sandall said:

Thursday night, the  beacon-lighting in front of an expected 100 or so public turned out to be well over 500 in a complete circle, but that's another story. A request for a bit of music to fill at least half an hour, so out came the wind & strings compilation I've been using for at least 15 years. It sounded awful. Bearing in mind that this was a 2 horns, battery-powered amp & portable CD-player set-up in the middle of a park there were a lot of possible suspects. However a change to something more ceremonial sounded ok & the speeches were fine. Having checked everything next day it turned out that that particular CD (recordable CD-Audio) had failed since last used. Note to self: add all the CDs to the prep check-list (even if they have been recently used)!!

You were lucky...

A few years ago for annual Mayor making, I checked the national anthem CD way before the event started and it was fine. pressing play when needed was just noise. Fortunately we always cue up a cassette in a different machine so 2 seconds of noise was all it took to hit plan B.

[sandall]

I've had a few dicey moments with Big Ben for Remembrance Sunday events (where the margin for error is zero) with CD/DVD players going to sleep just before needed, so I now always have a tablet & a CD running within 1/2" of sync, but I haven't met a CD just going horribly distorted before. 

[sunray]

3 hours ago, sandall said:

I've had a few dicey moments with Big Ben for Remembrance Sunday events (where the margin for error is zero) with CD/DVD players going to sleep just before needed, so I now always have a tablet & a CD running within 1/2" of sync, but I haven't met a CD just going horribly distorted before. 

I find it's a right pain when people hand over their phone and expect me to play their music, it tends to go to sleep as they turn away. All of my Remembrance services where they've asked for something have wanted the Radio 3 service. Generally it tends to be a Sally Army (or a cadet) trumpet or bugle.

The outer edge of the CD had gone a sort of brown/gold colour, it was only the first track affected... which was of course the UK national anthem.

 

EDIT: One service I did for years with 2 pairs of horns and 60W amplifier (running on a pair of 7AH gel cells and volume at about 3) somehow got convinced to 'use a mates system'... I happened to be free and paid my respects to find a 5KVA deisel running and with 15" JBL's in each corner sitting on matching bass bins. Guess who got the job from then on.

Edited June 5, 2022 by sunray

[mac.calder]

I don't do playback from CD's any more - haven't for about 6 years.

Takes seconds to rip a track from a CD. Minutes to rip the whole thing. Saves much heartache.

I had a client about 8 years ago who was renowned for their cringe radio spots rock up at their 10th anniversary event, about 15 minutes before rehearsals, with an armload of cassette tapes wanting very specific time codes to be played on cue - some times 2 or 3 radio spots would be on the same tape - half the tapes were in random positions... So...  rewind, zero the counter, get to the vicinity of the cue point and RIP - USB straight out of the desk into the PC, and grabbed each section into audacity and top and tailed the clips - It was probably faster than playing through them all in rehearsal and then recuing them ready for playback on the night - and significantly lower stress.

Additionally, commonly reused stuff thrown into google drive means it is nearly always available to me even if I don't have my laptop. 

 

[kitlane]

13 hours ago, sunray said:

 

The outer edge of the CD had gone a sort of brown/gold colour, it was only the first track affected... which was of course the UK national anthem.

 

You perhaps know this, but CDs scan from the centre outwards (i.e. the first track is nearest the hole). 

[sandall]

10 hours ago, mac.calder said:

I don't do playback from CD's any more - haven't for about 6 years.

I had a client about 8 years ago ..........with an armload of cassette tapes wanting very specific time codes to be played on cue - some times 2 or 3 radio spots would be on the same tape - half the tapes were in random positions...

I often get given totally unfamiliar phones at the last minute, & at one time did a lot of dance competitions where every track was somewhere in the middle of an unlabelled TDK C90 cassette, but wherever possible I'll go for the lo-tech solution, hence portable CD player rather than expensive laptop, especially if I can't stay with  the kit all the time.

[sunray]

2 hours ago, sandall said:

I often get given totally unfamiliar phones at the last minute, & at one time did a lot of dance competitions where every track was somewhere in the middle of an unlabelled TDK C90 cassette, but wherever possible I'll go for the lo-tech solution, hence portable CD player rather than expensive laptop, especially if I can't stay with  the kit all the time.

In my experience it's always the high tech option that fails but I always thought because I'm a dinosaur.

I too have done loads of dance stuff at village fetes etc. When they hand me a pile of cassettes I make them stay there to ensure they're correctly cued then I put a sticker on them with a running order number. If 2 tracks on a tape which are not consecutive they stay with me to re-cue it.

[sandall]

50 minutes ago, sunray said:

 I'm a dinosaur.

We dinosaurs once ruled the world🙂

[sunray]

3 hours ago, kitlane said:

You perhaps know this, but CDs scan from the centre outwards (i.e. the first track is nearest the hole). 

Plonker Sunray... schoolboy error yes I do know but terribly written. I'l set myself some lines to write.

The disc had discoloured from both edges of the silver but the middle of the recorded area was still looking silver.

I'm not sure that makes any more sense either.

[sunray]

1 hour ago, sandall said:

We dinosaurs once ruled the world🙂

I'd like to think we still do but...

[GR1]

I toured with Harry Secombe in Pickwick so sandall : 'When I rule the world.' ... every day will be ?

Harry was a very nice guy and as sound engineer for the tour we got on very well.

[sleah]

16 hours ago, sunray said:

In my experience it's always the high tech option that fails but I always thought because I'm a dinosaur.

Me too. Although I love to embrace the latest technology and see how I can use it, I wholeheartedly agree!

It never ceases to amaze me how you can check, test, rehearse, test, rehease and check again - all works flawlessly. Take a break when litterally nothing changes or is touched, come back and it it doesn't work for the show when you REALLY need it to! Who says true AI doesn't exist? In our world it's a sadistic b*****d!

[sunray]

2 hours ago, sleah said:

It never ceases to amaze me how you can check, test, rehearse, test, rehease and check again - all works flawlessly. Take a break when litterally nothing changes or is touched, come back and it it doesn't work for the show when you REALLY need it to!

Isn't that always the case?

[sunray]

13 hours ago, GR1 said:

I toured with Harry Secombe in Pickwick so sandall : 'When I rule the world.' ... every day will be ?

Harry was a very nice guy and as sound engineer for the tour we got on very well.

I  was lucky enough to work as sound op with him for 2 shows at the local council theatre in 1972/3. He didn't like how he sounded and asked our SM if we'd try his mic. Sadly our system used Reyrolle plugs and was told "No it doesn't fit". One of our follow spot ops heard that and told me. I checked with Harry then sorting through the box of tut found a Reyrolle plug and an XLRf, soldered them together and tried his mic.

I can never forget his appreciation as everyday I feel the rib sticking out where he broke it giving me a bearhug and lifted me.

He was one of the truly great guys to work with, unlike some of the artists I met there.