What's funny about Adam is that whenever he makes a pause , you're never quite sure if he's about to say something profound, getting slightly emotional, or he's holding in a burp. :)
He's so carismatic guy that he doesn't need to edit his videos to cut the pauses. In fact it often gives me a time to process what he was talking about for the prior few minutes :)
not gonna lie as much as i love techmoan the man knows very little about reel to reels, he even admits it, its not a subject of passion for him, they're intense machines that require a lot of love and care and its an entirely separate world from hifi
I was the production mgr for a major symphony orchestra in the 80's, and we used an Nagra reel to reel for recording performances to later replay on local public radio. They were solid and had excellent audio performance. In ten years of performances, (as we gradually transitioned to digital recorders) we never had one fail.
11:26 "I feel like I'm drifting really far afield, but isn't that kinda why you tune in?" YES...yes that is exactly correct🙌🏼 You're story-telling and meanderings are exactly why I'm here. Never stop🙏🏼
The Nagra IV-SJ was my workhorse for 10 years recording machinery vibration data on ships. The SJ has calibrated stepped attenuators instead of pots so vibration levels could be determined on playback. Our Nagras had the expanded cover to take 7" reels. I recorded hundreds if not thousands of reels of tape, lugging that beast up and down ladders on ships. You missed pointing out one of the really neat features ( it looks like yours has it) - the Swiss watch that is one of the idler pulleys. It shows the recording TIME, driven by the tape passing over it. Our takes were usually one minute, which it flawlessly indicated. Something you may not realize, the Nagra IV (at least the SJ, but I believe all of them) is a three channel recorder. The third center track is FM, and can be used for annotation without interfering with the other tracks. Because it's FM, it's frequency response is DC to around 4kHz. This was sometimes useful on very slow speed machines for recording data below 10Hz. The microphone for the cue track has a red LED that lights up when it's keyed. I took advantage of this a few times when somebody was complaining about whatever I was doing. Key the mic, hold it out in front of me, and explain "I just want to record this for my boss to hear." Somehow, most people decide that's a good time to shut up. 😉 I don't recall ever asking my boss to listen to one of those rant sessions.
We used these in film school in 2004. I checked one out of the equipment office one weekend and played old reel to reel tapes my grandfather had recorded back in the 1970’s! It was like time traveling and being in that room. The phone rang and my grandmother picked it up in the background and I heard her voice too! It was shocking!
Hey Adam! Love everything you do, always been a huge inspiration! Aluminum Oval tube, wardrobe tube, and oval marine tube all pulls up that style of tubing for me. Hopefully that helps!
Analog systems always just have so much character. When you turn them on it just feels like they come to life, truly a beautiful thing. Thanks for sharing Adam!
VPR-5. If I win the lottery, it'll be one of my first purchases. Electromechanical work of art both externally and internally. The design, machining, wire routing, etc. It is a 1" analog video tape recorder. The video head is about 4" in diameter and the reels are about 10-12" in diameter just to give you an idea of the size of a running unit. Absolutely amazing.
You're the last person I expected to have this. It's a very rare format. Some of The Beatles' 1969 Let It Be tapes were recorded on Nagra tape. The Twickenham sessions were restored by Peter Jackson for 'Get Back', and they managed to uncover great dialog buried under instruments and pan the different elements to create a stereo from mono mix. It's legendary stuff.
When you say format, did it record in a different format than half-track mono, full-track mono, or half-track stereo? Did it use something other than 1/4" tape?
When I was at the BBC back in the 80s they were still using these for topical news recording. I believe they used 24 AA batteries because you could get them anywhere in the world. Even as working tools they were regarded as a work of Art.
I remember that though in the provinces we used a much cheaper though still wonderful Sony Walkman Pro. I did a few interviews with that when I worked part time at BBC radio Devon. The beauty of it was that is was so small people were not intimidated by it and so relaxed and gave so much more in the interview but Nagra, so beautiful and such a beautiful professional tool of work.
@@ToyManTelevision Found the owners manual on the Nagra site for the IV-S and it apparently used twelve 1.5v batteries with a diameter of 33.5mm which means the thing actually ran on D batteries! You could kill a man with that thing when it was fully loaded with batteries!
@@ianmedium They are very nice and are still going for a lot on ebay - madness, I have a £20 digital recorder which will outperform any tape medium. I get that Nagra are mechanical marvels but still.
Way back when I used a Nagra III for film sound. The III was cool; full track mono with a two-track "pilot tone" head in the middle for sync with a tone from the camera. The pilot tone heads were out of phase so they would cancel out when playing back the full track audio. The build quality of Nagras is impressive, the body carved from a single block of aluminum. Absolutely, in my opinion, the best built tape machine ever made.
Diva! One of my favorite films. I was (and still am) captivated by that film, its music and the Nagra itself. It got me hooked on French cinema, Erik Satie and field recording.
I work at Voice of America and we had around 30 Nagra's of different series (3's & 4's). We kept one for a display case but rest of them went to the GSA as surplus about 3 years ago (including the one issued to me for field recordings); I really wanted to keep mine but the boss said it had to go. I did keep some spare parts as reminder's of how we did things before digital.
That's in amazing condition! Those covers were yellow even back in the 90's when I was a soundman. Used the Nagra IV-S TC (timecode version) in the commercial film business. Very intimidating device when something didn't go right for a newbie soundman at the time. It was the standard in the industry until about 2000 when DAT really started taking over. The S indicates stereo (2 channel). Sound speed!
I tune in for a lot of reasons but you drifting around and thinking out loud is one of the big reasons I keep coming back. It's like we're wandering in the woods and you stop to show us something. about a purple mushroom growing under a tree. Cool.
I found the tubing with "rounded oval extruded aluminum tubing," but others here have had good solutions as well. That recorder is just beautiful, it looks like it belongs on a spacecraft!
Always lovely to hear someone be so enchanted with Nagra machines. I have tried to get one over 30 years and in 2020 I finally got a Nagra IV. Beautiful condition and was a BBC model and used on so many fantastic programmes (Attenborough etc). Its the one thing I have bought for myself and I love it :) The pre-amps are extraordinary and astonishing. Im sure you will have some great sessions ahead
When you were talking about beauty in its functionallity it made me think of a quote my dad likes. Google quotes it to Antoine de Saint-Exupery.... "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." And I really fell like you almost refernce it all the time in your videos feels like one you should hear if you didnt know it already.
This is one of your top 5 Tested videos in my book. I loved it start to finish, *especially* the meanderings 'far afield'. I want to thank you for reminding me about the movie Diva. It was a favorite of mine when it came out and I watched it several times, but it seems to have slipped from memory. Just found it on Prime Video and I'm watching tonight.
The 4S is a FANTASTIC recorder. I have fond memories of blowing the minds of people making portable recordings with DAT machines. The Narga knocks 'em down with ease. 😀
I work in audio electronics repair in Australia. There's just something about reel to reels and vinyl that keeps people coming back to them. We've worked on more reel to reel units in the last 5 years than in the 15 before that. Recently got a 16 track Fostex reel to reel in and the sound quality once it was running again was amazing.
"I feel like I'm drifting really afar upfield, but isn't that kinda why you tune in?".......YES! TOTALLY!!!!.....I almost spit my coffee out when you said that. I actually laughed out loud.... Your ADHD is such an endearing attribute with which you bless us all! Thank you for being so transparent.
A significant part of my early working life was a Nagra IV-SJ, stereo with an FM channel for annotations. A very pleasant tool. (PS, the sound for Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange was recorded in the field on a Nagra-IV.)
“If he can only perform good or only perform evil, then he is a clockwork orange-meaning that he has the appearance of an organism lovely with colour and juice but is in fact only a clockwork toy to be wound up by God or the Devil.” 🔮🕳🔮
I saw Diva in 1981, when I was 16. My brother took me to the Valley Art Theater in Tempe Arizona to see it. It was my first introduction to French cinema. Of course the Nagra recorder was also featured prominently that same year in Brian DePalma's Blow Out, which also left a huge impression on me!
I too have been in love with Nagra reel to reel recorders ever since watching the Conversation on a 19" color TV way back in the day. I still haven't bought one yet. but that day is coming. I can feel it. lol.
Magnetic tape is mesmerizing, sure the sound isn’t as good as numerical device but the grain is beautiful, I recently made a tape delay because of their very peculiar sound and it’s gorgeous to see it working
Adam: I have always wanted a Nagra myself; congrats on your acquisitions. One word of warning about your plan to try to remove the yellowing on the lid: "Retrobrighting," as the H2O2 process is often called, can make the plastic more brittle, so there's that. Further, the yellow will come back within months. Just an FYI.
You are correct. I tune in as much to hear your rabbit hole, historical stories as much as I do for the amazing perspective you bring to observation of the universe around us. Thank you.
This is serious amazing. And I could listen to him just tell stories of technology like Neil Gaiman tells fiction. Please NEVER stop sharing your love of technology.
The moment I saw the word "Nagra," I thought of Diva! 😄I watched it a couple of times when I was young; the first time at the 16mm film club at my small hometown's theatre, where I fell in love with the whole film noir, new wave, newer wave, and "Cinema de Look" thing. Diva, Subway, The Big Blue, Mauvais Sang, A Heart in Winter, and many, many more.
The nice thing about linked gain is that, when recording M/S with mics of different sensitivity (my Schopes CCM4Lg was 13 mV/Pa and the CCM8Lg 10 mV/Pa, so bout 2.3 dB different) You can offset one gain knob, lock them, and then they'll track up and down in sync. Wonderfull
Fabulous piece of old technology, I love old practical machinery with knobs, switches and buttons and all dials and connections, everything is tactile and tangible. Fantastic! 👍😁❤️
Another First Class vid Adam and thanks for airing a mutual passion for these incredible recorders. My first exposure to a Nagra was filming a dance sequence on a 747 at Kennedy airport when I was in high school. It was a mono machine and I was running playback of the music. I felt like it was a Swiss watch turned inside out on steroids! A beautiful piece of art. Later I too acquired a Model III and a IV-S. Digital be damned! Nothing sounds like a IV-S! Thanks for sharing this!
Something about the old analog devices has always appealed to me. There's just something about having a bank of meters, switches and dials that a digital display can never replace.
Hah! I recognize that beast... I've seen it many times in Creature Comforts (the original short film - v=PCOWE0EiCyo), never really realizing it was a real thing. So cool! Nice score. :)
There is something incredibly charming about vintage technology. And what a beautiful piece that is. I'd love to have one of my own. Thanks for sharing with us!
For the elongated tube type, maybe reach out to a metal shop or company that deals with metal tubing and materials and they might know what its called?
Where does one find a Nagra? Btw, the conversation was a masterpiece, especially looking back now how serious the technology was used. Brilliant video, thanks for sharing
Talk about an engineering peak. You could wax on for another 17 minutes and that would not be enough. It’s a masterpiece of engineering in every respect: form, function, execution, performance. When engineering becomes art. It found the right home.
Go on as long as you want! Beautiful engineering is something worth reverence. That Nagra evokes something indescribable like a Rollei TLR. Pure function begets astounding form.
Wish I owned a Nagra IV-S for my music studio, but the prices are ridiculous! I use to work with one back in the late 1990s to early 2000s when I was working as a Location Sound Recordist in Hollywood. There is actually a picture of me using one on my IMDb if you search for my real name. Such a wonderful piece of equipment that I hope to own some day...
Kudelski's grandfather was my grand-grand-grand-father. I have a photo and a letter from Stefan to my grandmother, who was super into looking for an old family connections, she found him through the red cross. Unfortunately he never sent any Nagras, so can't give you any hardware lol
Adam I get it !!! Your passion and connection to the sophistication , beauty/ eligiance, the degree of engineering & aesthetics ; is within itself beautiful. You appreciate and care about the time and thought and character put into such things. Cheers
...of course, Adam purchases a Nagra IV-S Audio Recorder! I have always wanted one, I use to use one in film production back in the late 80s, and mid-90s!
There's something special about seeing all the parts move in a device like this. The wheels slowly turning, the tape moving from reel to reel and so on. I always wanted to have a reel to reel recorder since I visited a local radio station as a small kid, couldn't help be fascinated by the physical aspect of it. I did eventually get an old reel-to-reeel recorder when the school I went to was about to throw out some old machines, had lots of fun with that one.
Adam, as I believe that "beauty" is a portal or window that gives us access to the "universe", your statement about "functional beauty" really hit home...Love your interest in the "peaks" of technology.
Pining after a nagra and had review videos playing in the background while cooking and my ears perked up at your mention of Diva, Betty Blue and then City of Lost Children. Formative films for me and not so well known for people of my generation, especially Diva. Wonderful collection of references tied together in a one man conversation about a beautiful piece of machinery. Felt happy to hear them all mentioned together :)
I’m a veteran production sound mixer in film and TV. I’m currently running $10K field mixer manufactured by “Sound Devices” and this is very nostalgic for me. I’d love to have one of these. Well done sir! As a fellow film maker I’ve always enjoyed your content but I had no idea you were so into sound. Very cool!
Three cheers for Nagra, I still use a Nagra V and a couple of Nagra Ares BB+ as backups. Changing sub a bit, it's called rectangular tube (its aircraft stuff) - I used to work, for years at what was the Boeing Surplus Store. before they canned it. Back to Nagra I have used the IV and found the V to be even quieter. The best two channel recorders ever made - I also use Zaxcom. Keep up putting out this great stuff.
I only clicked on this link because I recognized the link to Diva. Great film, I saw it in 1982 at my local review cinema. Thanks for explaining the quality of Nagra recorders
Oh, I'm so jealous! I so want one of these works of art, and its little brother. That's an on-the-shelf in the den piece, perfect engineering and beautiful!
I have one. I tested it out the other day with batteries as I don't have the psu and speed control anymore. Although I do have the original strap. I was quite nostalgic to use all the leavers and knobs and make it make a noise. Thanks for the brief history and the stories.
I've seen these in various films and TV shows. It is so wonderful to have one shown this way. It's amusing to hear how close you get to Bauhaus ideals.
I’ve watched Diva about 20 times. A cinema nearby in Tübingen, Germany showed it every Sunday morning at 11. With a glass of Champaign. Always wanted a Nagra since. And have a deep connection with the movie. Thanks for talking about it, Adam.
Omg, a blast from my past. Working for a film studio, I was sent to Birns & Sawyer to train on the use of the Nagra IVs. Then worked as first unit sound recordist for many years. Good times. Loved the Nagras quality.
What a wonderful piece of gear. Just acquired a U-Matic tape player myself recently, and while it is a whole lot less portable than yours, there is still a sense of beauty in functionality about it, such as you found in yours. They are so much more enjoyable than the "consumer" level stuff that we were sold in later years. Now I may have to buy a Nagra next...
I had the Nagra VI Anniversary Model. I recently sold it, but it was a thing of beauty. When Nagra turned 60, they made 60 of anniversary model. That and a Nagra Seven work wonderfully together.
Diva is a wonderful film - thank you for reminding me to watch it again! (And Pinon is a great actor - you have to see him in Delicatessen if you haven't already)
Thanks for sharing, Adam. I always wanted a reel-to-reel tape recorder when I was a kid in the 80s, now I've found the ultimate one! Glad I didn't waste my money on anything else!
What's funny about Adam is that whenever he makes a pause , you're never quite sure if he's about to say something profound, getting slightly emotional, or he's holding in a burp. :)
He's so carismatic guy that he doesn't need to edit his videos to cut the pauses. In fact it often gives me a time to process what he was talking about for the prior few minutes :)
Usually the burp
Ya
Reminds me of Jeff Porcaro in his Instructional Drum videos.
New wish for a colab: Techmoan and Adam, discussing reel-to-reel machines for two hours.
YEEEEEEEESSS
I clicked on this thinking it was Techmoan!
not gonna lie as much as i love techmoan the man knows very little about reel to reels, he even admits it, its not a subject of passion for him, they're intense machines that require a lot of love and care and its an entirely separate world from hifi
add LookMumNoComputer to that party and the universe would implode!
@@OAPHarmerHerrStarmler the best way possible i reckon :)
I was the production mgr for a major symphony orchestra in the 80's, and we used an Nagra reel to reel for recording performances to later replay on local public radio. They were solid and had excellent audio performance. In ten years of performances, (as we gradually transitioned to digital recorders) we never had one fail.
They are a work of Art !
11:26 "I feel like I'm drifting really far afield, but isn't that kinda why you tune in?"
YES...yes that is exactly correct🙌🏼
You're story-telling and meanderings are exactly why I'm here. Never stop🙏🏼
same
Yes, one hundred percent.
that was the exact moment that I had a smile on the corner of my mouth and also remembered to like the video
Hey Adam, the tubing can be found searching for "aluminum oval closet rod". That's also what that steel oval tubing is used for mainly.👍
Thats a much better match than the tubing he shows from the couple of pics i could see
I concur.
Also found the same listed as "wardrobe tubing" in aluminum and steel at Home Depot and other places
Wardrobe rail in the UK
it's called flat sided oval aluminum tube.
The Nagra IV-SJ was my workhorse for 10 years recording machinery vibration data on ships. The SJ has calibrated stepped attenuators instead of pots so vibration levels could be determined on playback.
Our Nagras had the expanded cover to take 7" reels. I recorded hundreds if not thousands of reels of tape, lugging that beast up and down ladders on ships.
You missed pointing out one of the really neat features ( it looks like yours has it) - the Swiss watch that is one of the idler pulleys. It shows the recording TIME, driven by the tape passing over it. Our takes were usually one minute, which it flawlessly indicated.
Something you may not realize, the Nagra IV (at least the SJ, but I believe all of them) is a three channel recorder. The third center track is FM, and can be used for annotation without interfering with the other tracks. Because it's FM, it's frequency response is DC to around 4kHz. This was sometimes useful on very slow speed machines for recording data below 10Hz.
The microphone for the cue track has a red LED that lights up when it's keyed. I took advantage of this a few times when somebody was complaining about whatever I was doing. Key the mic, hold it out in front of me, and explain "I just want to record this for my boss to hear." Somehow, most people decide that's a good time to shut up. 😉 I don't recall ever asking my boss to listen to one of those rant sessions.
We used these in film school in 2004. I checked one out of the equipment office one weekend and played old reel to reel tapes my grandfather had recorded back in the 1970’s! It was like time traveling and being in that room. The phone rang and my grandmother picked it up in the background and I heard her voice too! It was shocking!
this recorder and a good mic would pic up a fly buzzing around the room.
I love watching Adam geek out on random things. His passion for the things he cares about is always enjoyable to watch.
Hey Adam! Love everything you do, always been a huge inspiration! Aluminum Oval tube, wardrobe tube, and oval marine tube all pulls up that style of tubing for me. Hopefully that helps!
Analog systems always just have so much character. When you turn them on it just feels like they come to life, truly a beautiful thing. Thanks for sharing Adam!
The Nagra aesthetic is literally iconic, similar to NASA, classic Braun, and Eames. Thoughtful, practical, and exact.
VPR-5. If I win the lottery, it'll be one of my first purchases. Electromechanical work of art both externally and internally. The design, machining, wire routing, etc. It is a 1" analog video tape recorder. The video head is about 4" in diameter and the reels are about 10-12" in diameter just to give you an idea of the size of a running unit. Absolutely amazing.
You're the last person I expected to have this. It's a very rare format. Some of The Beatles' 1969 Let It Be tapes were recorded on Nagra tape. The Twickenham sessions were restored by Peter Jackson for 'Get Back', and they managed to uncover great dialog buried under instruments and pan the different elements to create a stereo from mono mix. It's legendary stuff.
Those were not iv-s machines with the Beatles. Those were III mono likely.
@@LikeDotAudio possibly. Or the engineer had no interest in turning a few knobs to make it stereo.
When you say format, did it record in a different format than half-track mono, full-track mono, or half-track stereo? Did it use something other than 1/4" tape?
@@russellhltn1396 it's using ¼ but I'm referring to the tape machine as a way to record the sound. Not many were made and less survived.
@@LikeDotAudio Indeed, the IV-S only released in 1971
When I was at the BBC back in the 80s they were still using these for topical news recording. I believe they used 24 AA batteries because you could get them anywhere in the world. Even as working tools they were regarded as a work of Art.
That’s a giant pile of batteries
I remember that though in the provinces we used a much cheaper though still wonderful Sony Walkman Pro. I did a few interviews with that when I worked part time at BBC radio Devon. The beauty of it was that is was so small people were not intimidated by it and so relaxed and gave so much more in the interview but Nagra, so beautiful and such a beautiful professional tool of work.
I don’t think it was 24…. It’s really small. All the others use 10. 12 volt system
@@ToyManTelevision Found the owners manual on the Nagra site for the IV-S and it apparently used twelve 1.5v batteries with a diameter of 33.5mm which means the thing actually ran on D batteries! You could kill a man with that thing when it was fully loaded with batteries!
@@ianmedium They are very nice and are still going for a lot on ebay - madness, I have a £20 digital recorder which will outperform any tape medium. I get that Nagra are mechanical marvels but still.
Great video! Complete with a shout out to Dan Dugan!, a true hero of the sound reinforcement community!
Diva is one of my all time favorite films, the cinematography is wonderful. Thank you for reminding me.
Way back when I used a Nagra III for film sound. The III was cool; full track mono with a two-track "pilot tone" head in the middle for sync with a tone from the camera. The pilot tone heads were out of phase so they would cancel out when playing back the full track audio. The build quality of Nagras is impressive, the body carved from a single block of aluminum. Absolutely, in my opinion, the best built tape machine ever made.
My father would totally agree with you, he somehow managed to own two Nagra III recorders in the 70s
Diva! One of my favorite films. I was (and still am) captivated by that film, its music and the Nagra itself. It got me hooked on French cinema, Erik Satie and field recording.
I work at Voice of America and we had around 30 Nagra's of different series (3's & 4's). We kept one for a display case but rest of them went to the GSA as surplus about 3 years ago (including the one issued to me for field recordings); I really wanted to keep mine but the boss said it had to go. I did keep some spare parts as reminder's of how we did things before digital.
I have one of the full track mono Nagra III machines and even though it is 60+ years old it still works like new. Absolutely incredible machines!
Treasure it
That's in amazing condition! Those covers were yellow even back in the 90's when I was a soundman. Used the Nagra IV-S TC (timecode version) in the commercial film business. Very intimidating device when something didn't go right for a newbie soundman at the time. It was the standard in the industry until about 2000 when DAT really started taking over. The S indicates stereo (2 channel). Sound speed!
I tune in for a lot of reasons but you drifting around and thinking out loud is one of the big reasons I keep coming back. It's like we're wandering in the woods and you stop to show us something. about a purple mushroom growing under a tree. Cool.
I found the tubing with "rounded oval extruded aluminum tubing," but others here have had good solutions as well. That recorder is just beautiful, it looks like it belongs on a spacecraft!
Always lovely to hear someone be so enchanted with Nagra machines. I have tried to get one over 30 years and in 2020 I finally got a Nagra IV. Beautiful condition and was a BBC model and used on so many fantastic programmes (Attenborough etc). Its the one thing I have bought for myself and I love it :) The pre-amps are extraordinary and astonishing. Im sure you will have some great sessions ahead
When you were talking about beauty in its functionallity it made me think of a quote my dad likes. Google quotes it to Antoine de Saint-Exupery.... "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." And I really fell like you almost refernce it all the time in your videos feels like one you should hear if you didnt know it already.
I used two Nagras for remote recording for years. In a a&b format to not miss a word. They are great to edit on. I love those machines.
This is one of your top 5 Tested videos in my book. I loved it start to finish, *especially* the meanderings 'far afield'. I want to thank you for reminding me about the movie Diva. It was a favorite of mine when it came out and I watched it several times, but it seems to have slipped from memory. Just found it on Prime Video and I'm watching tonight.
The 4S is a FANTASTIC recorder. I have fond memories of blowing the minds of people making portable recordings with DAT machines. The Narga knocks 'em down with ease. 😀
I work in audio electronics repair in Australia. There's just something about reel to reels and vinyl that keeps people coming back to them. We've worked on more reel to reel units in the last 5 years than in the 15 before that. Recently got a 16 track Fostex reel to reel in and the sound quality once it was running again was amazing.
"I feel like I'm drifting really afar upfield, but isn't that kinda why you tune in?".......YES! TOTALLY!!!!.....I almost spit my coffee out when you said that. I actually laughed out loud.... Your ADHD is such an endearing attribute with which you bless us all! Thank you for being so transparent.
A significant part of my early working life was a Nagra IV-SJ, stereo with an FM channel for annotations. A very pleasant tool. (PS, the sound for Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange was recorded in the field on a Nagra-IV.)
“If he can only perform good or only perform evil, then he is a clockwork orange-meaning that he has the appearance of an organism lovely with colour and juice but is in fact only a clockwork toy to be wound up by God or the Devil.”
🔮🕳🔮
@@glyph241 "Viddy well, little brother, viddy well!"
@@glyph241 I ponder if such a concept could exist in what is essentially a dualistic world.
The Conversation, was one of my two favourite non comedy movies for decades, and is still probably in my top five.
I saw Diva in 1981, when I was 16. My brother took me to the Valley Art Theater in Tempe Arizona to see it. It was my first introduction to French cinema. Of course the Nagra recorder was also featured prominently that same year in Brian DePalma's Blow Out, which also left a huge impression on me!
I too have been in love with Nagra reel to reel recorders ever since watching the Conversation on a 19" color TV way back in the day.
I still haven't bought one yet. but that day is coming. I can feel it. lol.
Magnetic tape is mesmerizing, sure the sound isn’t as good as numerical device but the grain is beautiful, I recently made a tape delay because of their very peculiar sound and it’s gorgeous to see it working
Thanks for reminding me of Diva. I was obsessed with this film for years. It filled a gap in my soul and satisfied my need for Chic French culture.
Adam: I have always wanted a Nagra myself; congrats on your acquisitions. One word of warning about your plan to try to remove the yellowing on the lid: "Retrobrighting," as the H2O2 process is often called, can make the plastic more brittle, so there's that. Further, the yellow will come back within months. Just an FYI.
You are correct. I tune in as much to hear your rabbit hole, historical stories as much as I do for the amazing perspective you bring to observation of the universe around us. Thank you.
I've always loved these things. One of the most beautiful pieces of equipment ever designed by man.
This is serious amazing. And I could listen to him just tell stories of technology like Neil Gaiman tells fiction. Please NEVER stop sharing your love of technology.
So pleased you mentioned Diva, as soon as I saw the thumbnail that was the film that popped into my head but I couldn’t remember the name.
The moment I saw the word "Nagra," I thought of Diva! 😄I watched it a couple of times when I was young; the first time at the 16mm film club at my small hometown's theatre, where I fell in love with the whole film noir, new wave, newer wave, and "Cinema de Look" thing. Diva, Subway, The Big Blue, Mauvais Sang, A Heart in Winter, and many, many more.
Dear lord are those two pieces of kit eye wateringly beautiful!
The nice thing about linked gain is that, when recording M/S with mics of different sensitivity (my Schopes CCM4Lg was 13 mV/Pa and the CCM8Lg 10 mV/Pa, so bout 2.3 dB different) You can offset one gain knob, lock them, and then they'll track up and down in sync. Wonderfull
I love the aesthetics of Nagra audio equipment. They are a work of art in form and function.
Damn, how old am I? I have worked with the Nagra! At swedish radio! -95. It was a relic already and heavy to carry. but the quality!
It was the last recorder i ever used before going digital DAT recorders. Loved the sound hated the weight!
Fabulous piece of old technology, I love old practical machinery with knobs, switches and buttons and all dials and connections, everything is tactile and tangible. Fantastic! 👍😁❤️
I've wanted the small ones ever since seeing Edward Woodward using one in an early episode of the Equalizer
I just did a search to find out if Nagra was the manufacturer for the tape player I saw in that episode too!
Incredible how quickly the time passed.
I have no interest in the subject but Adam's passion just makes you want to listen. He's remarkable.
YES! Drifting far afield is indeed why we tune in.
I remember when Nagra's where the only thing used for film audio.
Another First Class vid Adam and thanks for airing a mutual passion for these incredible recorders. My first exposure to a Nagra was filming a dance sequence on a 747 at Kennedy airport when I was in high school. It was a mono machine and I was running playback of the music. I felt like it was a Swiss watch turned inside out on steroids! A beautiful piece of art. Later I too acquired a Model III and a IV-S. Digital be damned! Nothing sounds like a IV-S! Thanks for sharing this!
Something about the old analog devices has always appealed to me. There's just something about having a bank of meters, switches and dials that a digital display can never replace.
I think this is a good example of an object that 'sparks joy'!
Hah! I recognize that beast... I've seen it many times in Creature Comforts (the original short film - v=PCOWE0EiCyo), never really realizing it was a real thing. So cool! Nice score. :)
There is something incredibly charming about vintage technology. And what a beautiful piece that is. I'd love to have one of my own. Thanks for sharing with us!
For the elongated tube type, maybe reach out to a metal shop or company that deals with metal tubing and materials and they might know what its called?
Oh WOW!!!! Haven't seen one of those in YEARS!!!!
Where does one find a Nagra? Btw, the conversation was a masterpiece, especially looking back now how serious the technology was used. Brilliant video, thanks for sharing
You can find them on eBay, even today they're surprisingly expensive.
@@SoundSpeeding wow, you're right on both accounts. Thanks for sharing.
Talk about an engineering peak. You could wax on for another 17 minutes and that would not be enough. It’s a masterpiece of engineering in every respect: form, function, execution, performance. When engineering becomes art. It found the right home.
The nagra 4s looks like it was designed to be on an Apollo mission. I would said it has space grade type beauty
Go on as long as you want! Beautiful engineering is something worth reverence. That Nagra evokes something indescribable like a Rollei TLR. Pure function begets astounding form.
I think one was featured in Blowout, as well.
Extruded aluminum tubing, oval profile.
OMG Diva , was the stylish film of its time , I must have seen it 25 times
NAGRA name comes from NAGRAć - "To record" in polish.
Wish I owned a Nagra IV-S for my music studio, but the prices are ridiculous! I use to work with one back in the late 1990s to early 2000s when I was working as a Location Sound Recordist in Hollywood. There is actually a picture of me using one on my IMDb if you search for my real name. Such a wonderful piece of equipment that I hope to own some day...
techmoan could have done an hour on it easily.
Kudelski's grandfather was my grand-grand-grand-father. I have a photo and a letter from Stefan to my grandmother, who was super into looking for an old family connections, she found him through the red cross. Unfortunately he never sent any Nagras, so can't give you any hardware lol
Adam
I get it !!! Your passion and connection to the sophistication , beauty/ eligiance, the degree of engineering & aesthetics ; is within itself beautiful. You appreciate and care about the time and thought and character put into such things.
Cheers
...of course, Adam purchases a Nagra IV-S Audio Recorder!
I have always wanted one, I use to use one in film production back in the late 80s, and mid-90s!
Those are two gorgeous pieces of equipment!
There's something special about seeing all the parts move in a device like this. The wheels slowly turning, the tape moving from reel to reel and so on. I always wanted to have a reel to reel recorder since I visited a local radio station as a small kid, couldn't help be fascinated by the physical aspect of it. I did eventually get an old reel-to-reeel recorder when the school I went to was about to throw out some old machines, had lots of fun with that one.
Adam, as I believe that "beauty" is a portal or window that gives us access to the "universe", your statement about "functional beauty" really hit home...Love your interest in the "peaks" of technology.
awesome (could you include a Nagra MS as well :))
DIVA is a truly AWESOME Movie
I have only seen it three times. Thanks fir the video on The Nagra
Thanks!
This is exactly why I am here. Videos like these!! Such a cool piece!
Pining after a nagra and had review videos playing in the background while cooking and my ears perked up at your mention of Diva, Betty Blue and then City of Lost Children. Formative films for me and not so well known for people of my generation, especially Diva. Wonderful collection of references tied together in a one man conversation about a beautiful piece of machinery. Felt happy to hear them all mentioned together :)
I’m a veteran production sound mixer in film and TV. I’m currently running $10K field mixer manufactured by “Sound Devices” and this is very nostalgic for me. I’d love to have one of these. Well done sir! As a fellow film maker I’ve always enjoyed your content but I had no idea you were so into sound. Very cool!
Three cheers for Nagra, I still use a Nagra V and a couple of Nagra Ares BB+ as backups. Changing sub a bit, it's called rectangular tube (its aircraft stuff) - I used to work, for years at what was the Boeing Surplus Store. before they canned it. Back to Nagra I have used the IV and found the V to be even quieter. The best two channel recorders ever made - I also use Zaxcom. Keep up putting out this great stuff.
I only clicked on this link because I recognized the link to Diva. Great film, I saw it in 1982 at my local review cinema. Thanks for explaining the quality of Nagra recorders
Grand master of digressing. Sick.
Made my living off a Nagra 4.2 for many years. The STC was a great machine, but the 4.2 was the workhorse.
Yes Adam, I “tune in” because I can get enough of your stories and adventures.
Ramble on Sir! ❤
Oh, I'm so jealous! I so want one of these works of art, and its little brother.
That's an on-the-shelf in the den piece, perfect engineering and beautiful!
I have one. I tested it out the other day with batteries as I don't have the psu and speed control anymore. Although I do have the original strap. I was quite nostalgic to use all the leavers and knobs and make it make a noise. Thanks for the brief history and the stories.
Hi! This is Hainbach, it's good to have you back.
I've seen these in various films and TV shows. It is so wonderful to have one shown this way. It's amusing to hear how close you get to Bauhaus ideals.
13:58: I love how Adam is like he's holding back tears when he says his Nagra is really beautiful.
His talk about Diva is so unexpected and great.
Love the movie Diva, and this old recording technology. This is my perfect video
I’ve watched Diva about 20 times. A cinema nearby in Tübingen, Germany showed it every Sunday morning at 11. With a glass of Champaign. Always wanted a Nagra since. And have a deep connection with the movie. Thanks for talking about it, Adam.
Omg, a blast from my past. Working for a film studio, I was sent to Birns & Sawyer to train on the use of the Nagra IVs. Then worked as first unit sound recordist for many years. Good times. Loved the Nagras quality.
Some of my favorite films!! The Conversation (I love its tie-in with Enemy of the State), Diva... SO GOOD.
It 2.53am here in Australia , I just finished watching Diva . Beautiful film , an opera in an opera ( SBS on demand ) .
What a wonderful piece of gear. Just acquired a U-Matic tape player myself recently, and while it is a whole lot less portable than yours, there is still a sense of beauty in functionality about it, such as you found in yours. They are so much more enjoyable than the "consumer" level stuff that we were sold in later years. Now I may have to buy a Nagra next...
I had the Nagra VI Anniversary Model. I recently sold it, but it was a thing of beauty. When Nagra turned 60, they made 60 of anniversary model. That and a Nagra Seven work wonderfully together.
Diva is a wonderful film - thank you for reminding me to watch it again! (And Pinon is a great actor - you have to see him in Delicatessen if you haven't already)
What a beautiful piece of engineering!!
As a musician, I adore the Nagra. What a wonderful piece of art, excellent finding!
Thanks for sharing, Adam. I always wanted a reel-to-reel tape recorder when I was a kid in the 80s, now I've found the ultimate one! Glad I didn't waste my money on anything else!