Re: [ARSCLIST] Quarter-inch splicing tabs

[David Lennick <dlennick@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

And Tom gets A+. Joel Tall did the editing on "I Can Hear it Now", but his credit may have appeared
only on the 78 version. I know I saw it somewhere.

I still flinch every time I hear a bad edit on a disc from an early tape master, and there were lots of
them. Tony Bennett's "Sing You Sinners" (first recording, 1950) has a real stinker about 15 seconds in.
Pee Wee Hunt's "Wabash Blues" has one that I swear drops a beat (although that's a blessing..anything
that shortens any of their Capitols is a step in the right direction). Then there's Leroy Anderson's
"Fiddle Faddle" on the Decca 78 and 45, with a splice so bad it catches in the gate and wows the music
at that point. Then there are all those Columbia edits where the music drops a half tone....aaaargh!

dl

Tom Fine wrote:

> It was Joel Tall. If I remember the story correctly, he was a CBS producer or editor in the early
> days of tape. He invented a better way to splice tapes than a wooden block with markings on it. See
> patent # 2599667.
>
> The best razor-man I ever saw was a radio commercial guy who's now retired. He would keep notes on
> the details of ever word of every take, and his ear was trained so that he could hear during a take
> THAT'S IT for one word out of 20 or 100 or more. He could splice together syllables into words. One
> 30-second spot I saw him put together (with a not so great v/o guy) had over a hundred splices. It
> sounded perfect, like the guy just nailed the take and walked away. My friend knew better and has
> the gray hair to prove it. Like many older guys, he's not that comfortable on a computer, so I
> helped him out with something he was doing for another friend, using a professional voice-over guy,
> a couple of years ago. It took us a full day to record and edit the bit. His comment was, it might
> have gone slightly faster with a blade -- which I chalk up as a credit to his efficiency since we
> were not wasting time and Soundforge was very cooperative that day. He admitted it's more intuitive
> to see a waveform on the screen and be able to drop markers and cut and paste stuff (also easier to
> keep track of edit windows than 6-inch bits of tape).
>
> -- Tom Fine
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "David Lennick" <dlennick@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 7:54 PM
> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Quarter-inch splicing tabs
>
> > Jeffrey Kane wrote:
> >
> >> I found a bunch of them in Australia about a year ago and bought 15 or so.
> >> The place may still have them. I'll try to find their URL. They are labeled
> >> BASF and are in a small grey plastic dispenser. The other manufacturer was
> >> Editall. The tabs were branded XEDIT. Last ones I found were at Tape
> >> Warehouse in Atlanta but I think I bought all they had. They still have the
> >> 1/2", 3/4" and 1" tabs in stock if you don't mind cutting them down to size.
> >> The URL is HTTP://www.tapewarehouse.com. I think they're superior to the
> >> BASF tabs.
> >
> > Today's trivia question: Name the person whose surname is part of "Editall".
> > What did he do? Discuss.
> >
> > dl
> >
> >>
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
> >> [mailto:ARSCLIST@xxxxxxx] On Behalf Of David Lennick
> >> Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 5:36 PM
> >> To: ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> >> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Quarter-inch splicing tabs
> >>
> >> I used to be able to get those BASF dispensers from an AV distributor in
> >> Edmonton, but that was a LONG
> >> time ago (at least 20 years). Now it's whatever I can get from Tele-Tech,
> >> just north of Toronto, and the
> >> usual half-inch dispenser and a razor blade.
> >> dl
> >>
> >> Tom Fine wrote:
> >>
> >> > Hi Marie:
> >> >
> >> > You are correct! It was BASF before Emtec was a glint in a beancounter's
> >> eye. I have one with a BASF
> >> > sticker and one with a Gotham sticker over the BASF sticker. Both are
> >> running low.
> >> >
> >> > -- Tom Fine
> >> >
> >> > ----- Original Message -----
> >> > From: "Marie O'Connell" <Marie.OConnell@xxxxxxx>
> >> > To: <ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> >> > Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 5:39 PM
> >> > Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Quarter-inch splicing tabs
> >> >
> >> > >I am holding one of those very 1/4 inch splicing dispensers in my hands
> >> > > now.....BUT, the label has fallen off, so I can't tell you who made
> >> them.  I
> >> > > have a feeling it was EMTEC....but.....my memory fails me.  Otherwise, I
> >> use
> >> > > the blue Quantegy tape and have it on a tape dispenser and just cut off
> >> what
> >> > > I need with a razor blade.  I think the blue is archivally more
> >> acceptable
> >> > > and least sticky than the really handy dispenser one!
> >> > >
> >> > > Cheers
> >> > >
> >> > > Marie
> >> > >
> >> > > Marie O'Connell
> >> > > Sound Archivist/Audio Engineer/Sound Consultant
> >> > > The Center For Oral History & Cultural Heritage
> >> > > The University Of Southern Mississippi
> >> > > 118 College Drive #5175
> >> > > Hattiesburg, MS, 39401-406
> >> > > Ph: 601-266-6514
> >> > > Fax: 601-266-6217
> >> > >
> >> > >
> >> > > -----Original Message-----
> >> > > From: Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List
> >> > > [mailto:ARSCLIST@xxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Tom Fine
> >> > > Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 3:45 PM
> >> > > To: ARSCLIST@xxxxxxxxxxxx
> >> > > Subject: [ARSCLIST] Quarter-inch splicing tabs
> >> > >
> >> > > Does anyone make/sell quarter-inch splicing tabs anymore? I'm talking
> >> about
> >> > > the white tabs you put
> >> > > over a splice-cut on quarter-inch tape. Back in the tape heyday, places
> >> like
> >> > > Gotham Audio used to
> >> > > give away tab dispensers at trade shows. I thought I had stockpiled
> >> enough,
> >> > > but no. I much prefer
> >> > > the tabs to regular blue splicing tape, tabs take much less time to peel
> >> and
> >> > > stick. I think someone
> >> > > still makes sheets of cassette-splicing tabs, so do the same folks make
> >> 1/4"
> >> > > versions?
> >> > >
> >> > > -- Tom Fine