[time-nuts] PC clock generator without 14.318MHz

jimlux jimlux at earthlink.net
Wed Oct 19 00:15:52 UTC 2016


On 10/18/16 5:06 PM, Tom Van Baak wrote:
>> Hmm.. there's probably film footage of things with a running counter in
>> the scene counting tenths or hundredths of a second (sporting events,
>> nuclear bomb tests, etc.) I wonder if you could see that difference by
>> single framing something like a filmed 100 meter race where they have an
>> onscreen timer.
>>
>> You don't have to go back very far and film cameras used mechanical
>> governors for speed control.. "quartz lock" is a relatively recent
>> addition, and as recently as 20 years ago, you had to pay extra for it
>> when renting camera gear.
>
> Hi Jim,
>
> I recently happened to view the Director's cut of Woodstock. On the bonus disc there's a piece called "Synchronization" with amazing information about the extreme effort it took to sync 3 days of footage of 12 cameras and 8-track audio tape in an era before quartz timing. 60 Hz hum played a role.
>
> Since I know none of you are going to spend 9 hours watching the DVD, I found at least one page on the web with part of the story.
>
> Go to https://www.editorsguild.com/V2/magazine/archives/0107/news_article04.htm and skip way down Chuck Levey's part, or just text search for the word "sync".
>
> He mentions the wristwatch trick:
>    "In 1969, we shot the performance material using AC power in
>     order to stay in sync. It was clumsy. There were cables. The motors
>     were heavy and became very hot. In the rain we kept getting shocked.
>     And don't forget our primitive 'get a shot of your wristwatch'
>     attempts at time code.

We've all done that...  And an analog watch is easier to read in a fuzzy 
out of focus (too close to the camera) shot than a digital watch.


>
> The last sentence wins a prize:
>    "With a laugh, Levey compares the new syncing technologies to those
>     of the original film. "We were glad when it came to the footage
>     of The Who, because Pete Townshend's trademark windmill guitar
>     technique made syncing that passage a little easier," he recalls.
>

who knew that the who was thinking about time-nuts..





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