AV Update - 28th November 2009
**A huge thankyou to Mechsta for advising some links in this and the previous update were incorrect. Thanks mate :-) Now fixed.Video ClipsAll clips compatible with Quicktime and the iPod VideoMP4, 320x240, 192kbps vision, 128kbps audio
10 Promo: Women's Indoor TennisDur: 1'01'', 5.4 MB
10 ID and The Towering Inferno mini-promo - V/O by Ken Sparkes Dur: 22 sec, 1.7 MB**Scroll down to see another version of this ID
10 Eyewitness News: Newsflash with Ian Hyslop Dur: 33 sec, 2.6 MB
TVC: The Sunday Telegraph with Ita Buttrose Dur: 31 sec, 2.7 MB
10 Promo: The Benny Hill Show Dur: 32 sec, 3.6 MB
10 Eyewitness News Nightcast: July 4th 1982 - Ian HyslopPlease note: This is a large file and may take some time to download if you're on anything less than a broadband connection. Dur: 6'18'', 34.0 MB**Gotta love this clip. "Prime minister Fraser" and "Premier Neville Wran" are mentioned. Ain't it great :) The early fade at 6:11 and subsequent edit wasn't my doing either. 
10 ID and Prisoner mini-promo - V/O by Ken Sparkes Dur: 20 sec, 1.3 MB**Graphics in this and the 242-39.mp4 cut above are the same while the bed has changed into disco! (and it's 10's remake of Macarthur Park in case you're wondering)
TVC: Village Cinemas - The Exorcist/Friday The 13th Dur: 30 sec, 2.1 MB
TVC: 1224 2WS - Out Of The West Dur: 30 sec, 2.1 MB**Ah the good ol' days of 1224 2WS when they were based at Leabons Lane in Seven Hills, Sydney, with their transmitter at Prospect. Fast forward nearly 30 years and now they're one of ARN's stations with an FM transmitter, 1224 AM now in use by 2RPH. Gee I wish I could find that TV show which had a 2WS announcer on it getting frazzled at the fact someone did something to the carts he had to play - not really a prob if they just played commercials off them but 2WS as well as 2UW and others all used carts for their music AND their ads. Happy 31st birthday 2WS!
9 ID 1982: C'mon along with Channel 9 Dur: 20 sec, 3.5 MBAudio ClipsCompatible with any MP3-capable playback system! (Duh)MP3 128kbps 44.1 kHz Stereo (mono as indicated)Top Spots master tapes: Heckendorf #8 part 2Most if not all cuts engineered by the brilliant Brian Newington1/4" master reels restored by FranksterMazda TV Submission Tracks - 6x 30" demo tape (4:29, 4.2 MB)Midford Uniforms - 2x 30" premix tape (1:23, 2.1 MB)Cut 1: Mono mix, Cut 2: Two track mixPizza Hut: Taco Amigo "Taco Sunday" - 2x 30" release dub (1:25, 1.3 MB)Yes I know about the speed change on the tape ident..the deck was on 15 IPS and this cut was 7 1/2...Your guess is as good as mine! (2:37, 2.4 MB)This cut is a wild take featuring people having a conversation. It was meant to be used as background chatter for a doctor's surgery style radio commercial and being isolated, if you listen carefully it's pretty funny to imagine if some of these bits really did make it. The people chatting would be mixed quite low and under a bed and more vocals so it wouldn't have been noticeable but I really wonder what was left out and what was actually used in the final mix.Women's Weekly big spring carpet guide: Miscellanous track (1:02, 2.4 MB)Another one with a speed change at the start..oops...
Ian Ross, goodbye and good luck
It's only been a few minutes now but Ian Ross has just completed his final news bulletin. A brilliant retrospective on his career before the conclusion was put to air, and as the bulletin drew to a close, he fought back tears but it was lovely to see Chris Bath and others surrounding him, wishing him well. I pretty much grew up with Roscoe, I remember him on 9 news in the 80's!
I'm sure I had some 80's Ian Ross stuff but the database I've made doesn't seem to turn up anything. It's possible I archived 'em but never catalogued 'em. Watch this space!
The headphones saga continues....
...but in a good way. Bought a new set yesterday but didn't go for Sony this time. Went for a nice pair of sennies! (Sennheiser) - the HD 205's. Sound pretty cool, initially I thought a bit bassy but that was just in the source. Hooray! Now how long will these last? If it's shorter than the Sony's I'll scream...
Earlier this week I wrote about myself obtaining a Sony 1" VTR - found the power connector is loose off its base. Even though it powers up I won't risk doing a transfer on it yet in case a fault manages to go all the way to the mains box.
Have a great weekend folks :-)
AV Update - November 24th 2009
**This post also had incorrect links. Thanks once again to Mechsta for advising of the bad ones. Now fixed. Thanks again mate :-)G'day bloggers,
Time for another AV update!
Shoutout to 2GB's Jason Morrison who is tying the knot on Sunday! (November 29th). All the very best to you and wifey, mate. Now repeat after me..."yes, dear"..."no, dear"..."of course, dear"..."no your bum does not look big in that, dear" ;-)
Video ClipsAll clips compatible with Quicktime and the iPod VideoMP4, 320x240, 192kbps vision, 128kbps audio
7 ID (1986?) Dur: 20 sec, 3.2 MB
7 ID "Watch Us Now" 1986 and Wednesday Night Movie opener Dur: 32 sec, 3.5 MB
TVC: Carte D'or Riesling Dur: 31 sec, 2.2 MB
TVC: 2GB News Talk 87 Dur: 30 sec, 1.2 MB
10 Eyewitness News Update - Dal Myles Dur: 1 min 21 sec, 10.1 MB
10 Olympics '84 ID (alternate) Dur: 16 sec, 1.0 MB
TVC: Coles New World mighty markdown sale Dur: 60 sec, 9.2 MB
TVC: NRMA - Somebody Says Thankyou/It pays to belong (30 seconder) Dur: 31 sec, 4.4 MB
10 Eyewitness News Nightcast - Dal Myles Dur: 5 min 53 sec, 39.3 MB
10 Eyewitness News Update - Ian Hyslop (partial) Dur: 59 sec, 6.2 MBAudio ClipsCompatible with any MP3-capable playback system! (Duh)MP3 128kbps 44.1 kHz Stereo (mono as indicated)Top Spots master tapes: Heckendorf #8 part 1Most if not all cuts engineered by the brilliant Brian Newington1/4" master reels restored by FranksterAteco Suzuki: Muzuki Suzuki - 16x 30" release dub (10:53, 10.4 MB)Announced incorrectly as 15x 30" second tracksCarpet Merchants - 1x 60" release dub (1:29, 2.1 MB)Women's Weekly September 1984 versionDelvas Hair Treatments - release dub (4:58, 4.7 MB)Cut 1: Bed only, Cuts 2 to 4 inclusive: Full mixes, Cut 5: Presenter by Trevor SinclairHCF Hospital Cover - vocal track (0:38, 612 KB)Mazda NSW Silver Anniversary: Test Drive (0:51, 826 KB)Tim Webster on the voiceover?
Sony BVH-1100 1" VTR
G'day bloggers,
Well, it's here - just got a delivery of a Sony 1" VTR. The BVH-1100. Weighty bastard too, 100kg's plus. Still, it powers up and all, it just doesn't have a takeup spool.
I'm due another video/audio update soon right? Yessss... OK, hang in there folks!
I'm not dead...
G'day bloggers,
Relax, I'm not dead, I know it's been a few days between posts, but I've been preparing some awesome audio stuff for ya's for next year.
I'm absolutely amazed. Never would I have imagined DAT tapes that are nearly 17 years old still play fine without errors. Which is terrific because I have a lot of my 2RDJ-produced material on them and just got around to transferring them in the last couple of days - and I'll be presenting them next year on the blog. Some of the stuff is awesome but some of it is "huh? What was I thinking?". Anyway, the tapes survived (thankfully as some dillweed had only rolled ONE deck, ensuring there was never a safety master of any of these tapes - the transferred stuff were the absolute final mix tapes..*the* masters..). Tell you what, either they were stored fine or the Tascam DA-20 series of decks handle the tape really gently.
Can anyone say hot? Oh boy. We are sweltering in Sydney right now. Hang onto your hats as the temp climbs to 40 to 41 degrees tomorrow.
Oh and a gripe with Sony - you have cans (headphones) that break easily. I have TWO pairs, each a different model. State of play is this:
Exhibit A: V100 series - no sound in the right channel. Sussed it out, no disconnected wires on that side. Cable break. Undo cable to patch it up. Find cable has white insulation around it stopping flow of signals. Try and strip this away without a soldering iron and you totally screw up the good wiring. Grrrr...
Exhibit B: V250V series - plastic headband that breaks easily. Wanting to source another V250V headband as the cans work fine without cable problems anywhere. Be a bugger to chuck 'em as they work fine. Break is just above the left earpiece where it's on a swivel base - portion where it suspends has broken off leaving left side in collapsed state and feeling very uncomfortable when worn.
Exhibit C: Borrowed sister's cordless cans - not bad, but stupid thing can't handle a decent signal level. It ducks, and it ducks often. Sometimes it's so bad it sounds like an audio compression box has had it's gating circuit up too high. Triple grrr...try doing mastering with this piece of crap. OK for listening but nothing else.
Still, it's not all bad tonight I guess - I had the most wonderous packet of Salt 'n' Vinegar chips in the last hour and about to get onto a very cold glass of Milo. Yum!
Radio standby tapes
G'day bloggers,
Well, after hearing numerous stories about radio station's standby tapes going live during the one minute silence last wednesday (remembrance day), I couldn't help but write a piece about it.
If you're not sure what they are or what they do, basically their purpose is to ensure that programming continues from the transmitter end if something goes wrong at the studio end which results in the broadcast falling silent. Then the good ol "no signal detector" kicks in at the transmitter and the broadcast continues until the studio end comes back up again. The standby program is typically music and station ID's only. 2GB has an ID, an announcement that they're having 'technical difficulties' and then music, interspersed with different versions of the announcement. I have heard theirs being broadcast sometimes, none more so in 2004 when some serious problems gripped the on-air system and they were repeatedly going off air. The first track on their standby is George Benson's "Breezin'". I must've heard it about 5 times that night - but I love the song so all was well.
Unfortunately, things can't happen in reverse - but why would you bother? If you're transmitting program, folks listening to you on a radio and not through a webstream or other relay, you won't be heard, such was the case last thursday during a storm moving through Sydney. A few splats, and bang, the 2GB transmitter was hit. End of on air program - but only for a few seconds. One reset to the tower, and there they were, back on air. Quite amazing stuff!
..and so to rememberance day. Stations take note - I thought it was common sense to turn OFF your standby programming at 11:00am. Doesn't look like it. River949 fell victim to it, their standby unleashing "2 times" by Ann Lee, a fairly upbeat dance track in the middle of the one minute silence. According to Radioinfo, "
Apparently this equipment, for reasons unexplained, recognised the silence as… well, silence and triggered the emergency tape to ensure that programming continued.". Well...DUH! That's what the emergency "tape" is there for (well it's called a tape as it sort of goes back to the days where a 10 inch reel to reel tape would be cued on the transmitter equipment rack but it's more so off either CD or a computer now) - but they're not the only ones. 2GB also fell victim to it a couple of years ago, but the standby tape although activated during the silence didn't go to air...well..it sort of did..I could hear it bleeding through the silence. Same sort of bleed you sometimes get when something is playing on a cueing channel and the desk isn't too good at isolating various channels.
Be that as it may, this year those guys did an absolutely stunning job, albeit a minute too early - but the compile they played in the leadup to 11:00am was a brilliant job and an absolute credit to them.
Am I a 2GB fanboy? Yeah! And I'm not bloody ashamed to admit it. I'd rather listen to them, 2UE or ABC Newsradio than triplets on FM breakfast shows saying things like "Oh I scratched a pimple on my bum and it bled! Haw haw haw!". Give me a break.
Video Update - 12th November 2009
Before I commence this update, I wanna say a quick g'day to Jason Morrison of Radio 2GB Sydney who's a regular viewer of this here site and had some kind words to say about it. Another guy I truly respect in the radio world, he's a brilliant broadcaster. G'day Jason! Awesome to hear you're enjoying the site!
All tracks are available for download from 11.00pm AEDST Thursday 12th November 2009. You may need to refresh/reload this page to see the video stills.
Video ClipsAll clips compatible with Quicktime and the iPod VideoMP4, 320x240, 192kbps vision, 128kbps audio
TVC: State Building Society - Put it in the state, mate! Dur: 30 sec, 3.9 MB**I remember a sendup of this TVC on the Doug Mulray and Ken Sterling album "2 Rude" which was "Stick it in your face, mate, we're going really great, mate"
TVC: Imperial Leather Soaps Dur: 31 sec, 3.0 MB
TVC: Classic Hits 2UW - Bazz 'n' Pilko Dur: 30 sec, 3.4 MB**Check out the carts! They were fun to use...not. Especially when you had no fast forward on the decks and the people before you didn't have the patience to wait until the carts had re-cued, which resulted in the next person to play it getting dead-air as they were in-between the end of the audio and the cue pulse!
TVC: Hycraft Carpets with Jacki Weaver Dur: 29 sec, 2.9 MB
7 Promo: The New Price Is Right Dur: 20 sec, 3.2 MB
7 ID: Let's all be there! (1987) Dur: 18 sec, 1.7 MB
10 X Ident 1988 Dur: 14 sec, 1.5 MB
10 Friday Night Football 1989 (partial) - Rex Mossop Dur: 1 min 48 sec, 14.4 MB
TVC: Tony Packard - Up the windsor road! Dur: 30 sec, 4.0 MB
TVC: Meadow Lea Margarine - The Mojo Boys Dur: 30 sec, 3.1 MB**Ah, what a team they were the boys from Mojo. Here's one of their many jingles on this ad. "...and I must say it's gonza...absolutely bonza...you oughta be congratulated!"Katies Winter Sale: Bed only - 2 track mixDur: 0'34'', MP3 128kbps 44kHz, 532 KB, Stereo**A taste of things to come next year. The old 2UW and Top Spots masters have finally been catalogued and I can now put the tracks up here for you all to listen to! Here's just a sneak preview of what was found on these tapes. For the techies like me, this is off a 1/4" 15 IPS Ampex 406 reel from 1985, which had DBX noise reduction on it and unfortunately dubbed without a DBX decoder inline. Despite the tape noise present, it's here for historical reasons.Pools: Get ya pools in! - Various jingles775 KB**Includes take 1 which is the bed only, a top 'n' tail version and a full version.Milo: Give 'em Milo! - June '84 jingle, bed only756 KB**More jingle beds, this time one from the "Give 'em Milo!" series of TVC's from June 1984.City Ford: City Ford says Yes more often!796 KB**Featuring the great voice of Ron E Sparks, here's the TV audio track of City Ford.
Video Update - November 9th 2009
Video ClipsAll clips compatible with Quicktime and the iPod VideoMP4, 320x240, 192kbps vision, 128kbps audio
TVC: Praise Mayonnaise Dur: 30 sec, 3.0 MB
9 Newsbreak with Ken Sutcliffe Dur: 31 sec, 2.2 MB
TVC: Classic Hits 2UW Dur: 31 sec, 6.9 MB**No matter what I did with this tape I just could not get a stable transfer from it. Here's the cut anyway.
TVC: David Jones with Maureen Duval Dur: 31 sec, 5.3 MB**Source for this was the same tape as the cut above came from
TVC: 2CH Easy 1170 with John Poole Dur: 31 sec, 1.5 MB
TVC: Cliff Richard "Private Collection" Album Dur: 16 sec, 892 KB
9 Promo: Sale Of The Century (Tony Barber/Alyce Platt) Dur: 22 sec, 1.8 MB
9 ID (Brown map of Australia zooming to metallic blue 9 logo) Dur: 21 sec, 2.5 MB
TVC: Barina Cars - Beep Beep Barina! Dur: 31 sec, 4.0 MB
TVC: Lipton Teabags (Italy version) Dur: 30 sec, 3.1 MB
TVC: Delicious Dollop - Frankstermix 2009 Dur: 31 sec, 1.7 MB**Inspired by James of the Australian Television Archive who has this clip up on his Youtube page, it was crying out for a remix. So I made one which involved editing in stupid sound effects at the right moments - and this is the result! Enjoy!
***Server reset complete***
***Server reset now underway***
Vic Davies dies
With heartfelt thanks to Spoonyman on Twitter, I'm sad to report that Vic Davies, one half of the memorable, talented and hilarious duo Club Veg, has passed away as of this afternoon. He was diagnosed with inoperable cancer a couple of months back and succumbed to it today.
A very huge and very sad loss indeed, I grew up with those guys, used to listen to them when I was 14 when they were on 2SM.
RIP Vic.
Frankster's Archive is expanding!
G'day bloggers,
Well, good news. From January 2010, this site will be expanding in terms of available bandwidth and server space. I'm either gonna be doubling or tripling both! This means server resets will happen less frequently than they do now.
Speaking of which, grab anything you can by
12:01am Monday November 9th 2009 - this will be our next reset, with a new update in place shortly afterwards.
Go for it folks!
Many many thanks also to Big Dan for the plug on his latest podcast! Grab it now here!
