IRENE Bring back old recordings with optics

bikezappa

An experimental physicist named Carl Haber has won wide recognition, and a MacArthur Fellowship, for a revolutionary image-scanning technology that has the power to pull sound from rare and fragile recordings without touching them, and in so doing, to help protect some of the most vulnerable corners of this country’s aural heritage. Over the last few months, a large converted mill building in Andover has become home to the fourth groove-scanning system in the country. The IRENE system in Andover lives at the Northeast Document Conservation Center, an independent conservation lab. In a small back room, a sound archivist has been working daily, scanning all varieties of records as well as older wax cylinders whose grooves are etched vertically and therefore require a special 3-D scanning technique.


http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/2014/04/05/pushing-back-silence-new-technology-and-battle-save-old-recordings/8ccQ3EPHdc7TI6GnxK8QtM/story.html?s_campaign=8315

oldmodman

This is a great method of preventing further deterioration of the very delicate wax and acetate recordings from the dawn of sound.

It might not sound great today. But with the groves saved as digital data future algorithms will be able to make them sound as they did tens and hundreds of years ago, without noise or distortion, before they were deformed by age, heat, and gravity.

bikezappa

I remember that there was a turntable developed that had a laser instead of the cartridge at the time the CD started selling.

I think it was very noisy because the laser would also read all the dust particles in the grooves. There was a high background noise.

Seems like this problem has not gone away but as you state future algorithms may fix that.

steveinaz

^ I remember reading about that turntable as well, years ago.

[Deleted User]

I believe you mean this:

http://www.elpj.com/

Ken

cnh

Kenneth Swauger wrote: »

I believe you mean this:

http://www.elpj.com/

Ken

Interesting. Now all they have to do is "remove" the vinyl disc from the equation and have both the vinyl surface and the laser tracking it as a holographic display that hangs in mid-air. A VIRTUAL TURNTABLE? That, paradoxically, has no weight or need for motors, platters, cartridges, tone arms, etc.

cnh

bikezappa

I'm amazed you can still buy these laser turntable.

George Grand

The Finial laser turntable was about $20k when first introduced.

bikezappa

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ELP-Laser-Turntable-Standard-Model-Record-Player-Remote-Phono-Out-LP-45-NEW-/171070722210?pt=US_Record_Players_Home_Turntables&hash=item27d49c10a2

New never used!