Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 1998 - 56

-Typical multi-track hard disk playback unit: AKAI, model ORB.

AudioBox-'
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Richmond

~ Sound Desi9" Ltd.

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Typical asynchronous multi-track hard disk playback unit: the
Audio Box by Richmond Sound Design.

David Smith also discussed the advantage of CDs in the rehearsal process, particularly as it applied to dance sound: "One of the things to also bear
in mind is what sort of perfonnance you are doing. For those who are doing
dance, CD is the way to go because you can give it to them and they can rehearse \vith their boombox. ] would never go with any other system for dance
playback, because the choreographers want to take it home \vith them, and
they can take home a CD, and they can't take home a Minillisc."
An audience member added to the discussion, saying, "Dance also
needs CD players that have variable pitch control." This allows on-the-spot
minor changes in tempo, something needed by all dancers when they are
faced \vith adjusting to the differences between the rehearsal space and the
perfonnance space.
There are a couple of other issues that potential buyers should consider
before investing in compact discs as a playback medium. First, compact discs
systems require the theatre to invest in a CD burning system, and these burners are not necessarily the devices tllat theatres want to use to play back their
cues (they typically don't have auto cue, direct access, and other important
functions). Second, CD playback devices are not as user-friendly as other sy terns. Sound board operators must take the readouts of track numbers from
the CD and make the mental translation to the corresponding cue nunlber or
sound name. This could increase operator errors. Also, when the director
wants to change a sound cue, insert a new sOlmd, or move a cue to a different
spot, tlle designer \viII most likely have to burn a whole new CD. However, for
many users, these disadvantages are outweighed by the advantages. CDs are a
very stable and cost effective medium, and inexpensive players are available
\vitll fairly advanced features that allow quick starts of cues, automatic cueing
to the next cue, and tlle ability to go directly from rehearsal tapes to insertion
in tlle show or tlle production playback sy tem. Another major advantage of
compact discs is tllat just abont everyone has a CD player. This makes it easy
for tlle sound designer to share cues or even the whole show score \\~tll tlle
director, production team, and perf011llers.
MI~IDlsr

Minillisc systems are cUITently in use in many tlleatres across tile counuy. If a
de facto standard has arrived for a piece of sound playback gea.t; tlle
Minillisc might be it. Why then do so many people seem to be embarrassed to
admit that they use it? TIle reason for the somewhat seedy reputation of
Minillisc sy tems comes from tlle way it digitally encodes audio. The
MiniDisc compresses standard 16-bit digital infol1l1ation into 8-bits using a
compression scheme called Adaptive TransfOlm Acoustic Coding (ATRAC).
Dave Tosti-Lane sUl11malized tlle controversy over tlle audio quality of
Minilliscs: "MiniDisc is a pretty remal'kable piece of equipment. We all know
what we're supposed to tllink about the MiniDisc. We all know we're supposed to think tllat it sounds like crap, and you could never use it because of
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all of the lossy reduction, data reduction. On the face of it, it's true-the
anlOunt of data that gets recorded on that MiniDisc is only twenty percent of
tlle amount that you could record on a CD-R. So, a CD-R cL1ta rate is 1.4 Mbit/
second, the MiniDisc is recording at a data rate of about 292 kbit/second.
TIley have a very elegant scheme of data reduction. My sense \vith tlle
Minillisc is it's peIfectly acceptable for basic cueing. ] don't like to use tllem
\\~th really loud cues. My own personal bias is tllat tlley're a little bit granular
in sound at very high levels. Again, sometimes] wonder...whether maybe I'm
reading that into knmving it's a MiniDisc. ] can also hear some differences
\vith specific l)pes of cues. For instance, a wind cue, something that has a lot
of high end in the sound, the algorithm has no choice but to think of tllat as
noise. Il's designed to deal \vith popular music and hiss is not something that
you want to play back in general. So, my own sense is that those cues just get
a little bit odd on that kind of sound. So, it's hardly a be-all and an end-all, but
at $300 dollars, it's a pretty inexpensive medililll to work \vith." [The list
price for tlle consumer model is $350.00, but street prices are l)'Pically below $300.00 -ed.]
If it weren't for the controversial character of the audio encoding
scheme, the MiniDisc might be a perfect replacement for the standard twotrack ATR. Il's relatively inexpensive, starts up qUickly, automatically cues to
the next cue, provides for track titling so the sound bOal'd operator can verify
that the deck is cued up to tlle correct cue, and provides a host of sinlple editing functions that allow tlle designer to fix cues on the spot. For example, tlle
scene change tllat was supposed to be twenty seconds but is actually thirty
seconds could be fixed on tlle spot by peIfornung a sinlple non-destructive
edit that looped one section of the cue for tlle extra ten seconds. TIle following comments attest to the inherent attractiveness of tlle Minillisc f011l1at. One
session a~ndee reported: "] work \\~th students who are tlleatre students,
and not even sOlmd students, and tlley really take to the MiniDisc player. Il
looks like tlleir cassette player at home and operates the SaJ1le way. ] have
some students that look at the computer system and say, 'Tll do tlle next
show." TIlat is one benefit I've seen \vitll Minillisc."
Tom MaI'dikes, SITTs new Sound Conunissionel; also spoke of his expeliences \vitll MiIUDiscs: "] just finished doingA Comedy ofErrors for MissOUli Rep on Minillisc, and what was really great about using MD was that by
building cues on Pro Tools, we could make a lot of changes, keep using tlle
same MD and just add new cues on to end of it, rename, and we are set. TIle
operator has tlle unit right in front of llinl and is looking at big cue numbers
and big cue names. It is so much faster tllan reel-to-reel or CD buildups. In
te11llS of that kind of flexibilil)', it was pretty fantastic. Sound qualil)' is about a
Bgrade. ] say use MDs if tlle sound quality is not absolutely critical. Aloud
cue sounds better on reel-to reel analog. Acue tllat fades out is difficult for
bOtll tlle MD and CD f011llats. That \vill improve when we all jump to 24-bit/
88.2kHz light?"
There a1'e some issues tlUll users of MiniDiscs should understand, espe-

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 1998