The Present Technical Status of 16-mm. Sound-Film

Improvements in the technic of recording and printing during the past few years have made possible the production of 16-mm. sound-films, either by optical reduction or by direct recording. having considerably better quality than is being obtained in general commercial practice. By the use of a moderate degree of equalization in recording, it it practicable to obtain from 16-mm. negatives prints giving a flat frequency response to 6000 cycles, with useful response to 7500 cycles, when reproduced through a flat amplifying system. Harmonic and envelope distortion and speed variations can be kept within acceptable limits for high-quality reproduction. The principal remaining defect is background noise. Some, general agreement upon commercial 16-mm. reproducing system characteristics is needed, however, before this improved quality can be made generally available.

Print ISSN

0097-5834

Published

1939-09

Content type

Original Research

DOI

10.5594/J11957