SOUND RECORDING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20898, 13 June 1931, Page 11 (Supplement)

SOUND RECORDING.

NEW IMPROVEMENT MADE. ELIMINATION OF NOISE. Of outstanding importance in the presentation of Gloria Swanson's new United Artists picture, " Indiscreet," is the improvement in sound reproduction. Ever si.ice the advent of the talking picture, engineers have constantly worked on the problem of perfect sound reproduction. ihi;y have strived to obtain such clear and concise reproduction of sound as was meuhamcally possible. Large sums of money have been spent in developing ths perfect recording apparatus, which they believo they have obtained. One of the chief problems engineers had to solve was that of extra noises creeping through the all-hearing mechanical ear of the microphone. In other words, these background noises made it impossible to use large:: casts, thereby making the production suffer from lack of proper atmosphere for whatever the occasion demanded. 'ihis not only hurt the production, but also created a grave economic problem ::or extra players. Now, however, a new type of microphone lias been perfected which will catch only the sound the director wants recorded. Background noises may be totally eliminated if he so desires. It marks a forward step in mechanical achievement. Indiscreet " was recorded by the newsystem. Not only are the voices of Swanson and her supporting cast recorded in a clear and audible manner, but a large cast of extra players was used to furnish the proper atmosphere for various scenes.