Nagra Digital Tape Recorder Helps Earn Oscar Nomination

For the second consecutive year, a film using the Nagra Digital Recorder (Nagra-D) as the location sound device has been nominated for an Oscar Award for Best Sound. The film this year is L.A. Confidential, which has received a total of 9 Oscar nominations. The winners will be named at the 70th Annual Academy Awards on March 23, 1998. Last year, The English Patient, which also used the Nagra-D, won the award for Best Sound

Recording engineer Kirk Francis used the Nagra-D to capture sound for L.A. Confidential, and has also been nominated for Best Location Sound Mixer by the Cinema Audio Society. Francis will be recognized as a nominee at the 34th Annual Cinema Audio Society Awards Banquet on March 7, 1998. Francis has recorded with the Nagra-D on several high-profile films, including The Postman, Mr. Holland's Opus, River Wild, Blue Chips, Cobb, Jade, and Tin Cup.

The digital recorder, which is manufactured by the Swiss audio company Nagra-Kudelski, should be familiar to readers of Stereophile. In 1996 it won Stereophile's prestigious Component of the Year award, and has been engaged for several recent Stereophile recordings. In the December 1996 issue of Stereophile, Editor and Recording Engineer John Atkinson wrote: "The Nagra seems destined to impress everyone who comes in contact with it. Well, why not? Very few devices do what they are designed to with as little fuss and bother as the Nagra---and nothing we've seen to date does it better. We can't think of another component that so totally dominates its sector of the industry. Under the circumstances, Overall Component of 1996 seems the least we could call it."

The Nagra is capable of recording 4 channels sampled at 32kHz-48kHz, or 2 channels at 88.2kHz-96kHz, using an open-reel 1/4" digital tape format. A PC-driven directory, coupled with battery powering options and rugged construction praised by many as the most robust in the world for a digital tape machine, have made the Nagra-D a popular choice for location recording.

According to a company statement, "This recorder truly epitomizes the sound quality and reliability standard that can only be achieved by a Nagra. After over 45 years in the professional audio business, the Nagra legacy continues to prevail for those who seek the absolute best sound quality."

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