Recording and playback control system

• US 7,333,863 B1
• Filed: 05/05/1997
• Issued: 02/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Warner Music Group Corporation (Access Industries, Inc. (New York))
• Original Assignee: Warner Music Group Corporation (Access Industries, Inc. (New York))
• Inventors: Thagard, Gregory, Outwater, Edwin III, McPherson, Alan J., Lydecker, George
• Primary Examiner(s): Mei; Xu
• Application Number:
  US08/850,996
• Time in Patent Office: 3,942 Days
• Field of Search: 700/94, 704/270, 704/272, 704/275, 704/278, 704/229, 704/230, 381/22, 381/80, 381/119, 381/103, 381/61, 381/107, 381/104, 381/11, 369/32.01, 369/69
• US Class Current: 700/94
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0091 Means for obtaining special acoustic effects combined with modulation G10H1/043
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/301 Soundscape or sound field simulation, reproduction or control for musical purposes, e.g. surround or 3D sound; Granular synthesis
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/10481 optimisation methods
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/10527 Audio or video recording; Data buffering arrangements G11B20/12 - G11B20/18 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10592 specifically adapted for recording or reproducing multichannel signals
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2562 DVDs [digital versatile discs]; Digital video discs; MMCDs; HDCDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/36 Monitoring, i.e. supervising the progress of recording or reproducing for digital recording G11B20/00 and s.gr.; for monitoring, testing or measuring of TV recorders of the type covered by H04N5/76 and subgroups, see H04N17/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/04 Studio equipment; Interconnection of studios

Abstract

The invention is a system for recording and reading both program data and acoustical control data and playing back the data to optimize performance of audio reproduction and recreate the effect of an original acoustic environment. The system has a recording apparatus, a playback apparatus and a recording media. The recording apparatus produces recording media having both acoustic control information and audio data. The playback apparatus gives the user some ability to override otherwise automatic parameter adjustments. Optionally, a metadata display system takes information about the physical arrangement of instruments and other characteristics of the recording session and the recording studio and makes that visually available to the listener. A player type register identifies the characteristics of the playback device to cause an adjustment of the characteristics of the playback system.

Claims

1. A playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data from a recording medium, said acoustic control data including information related to the characteristics of the original acoustic environment associated with the production of said recording media, comprising:

a demultiplexer for retrieving audio data and acoustic control data,

said acoustic control data providing a predetermined number N of inputs to gain and phase circuits,

delay and reverberation circuits,

equalizer circuits, and

gain/attenuation circuits,

said gain/attenuation circuits connected to output to a second predetermined number M of summation channels,

said audio data feeding serially through said gain and phase circuits,

delay and reverberation circuits, and

equalizer circuits;

wherein the operation of said gain and phase circuits, said delay and reverberation circuits and said equalizer circuits is adjusted in accordance with said acoustic control data to replay said audio data by recreating said original acoustic environment.

2. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 1 wherein said audio signals are replayed at a listener site, further comprising a listener input circuit connected to provide signals, said listener input signals providing information indicative of the local characteristics of the listener site.

3. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 1 further comprising a player type register providing a signal indicative of parameters of the recording medium to said gain and phase circuits, delay and reverberation circuits, and equalizer circuits to provide information indicative of the characteristics of a player for the media, a player type register providing a signal indicative of parameters of the recording medium to said gain and phase circuits, delay and reverberation circuits, and equalizer circuits to provide information indicative of the characteristics of a player for said recording medium.

4. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 2 further comprising a player type register providing a signal indicative of parameters of the recording medium to said gain and phase circuits, delay and reverberation circuits, and equalizer circuits to provide information indicative of the characteristics of a player for said recording medium.

5. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 3 wherein said player type register is adapted to provide information to active noise cancellation apparatus.

6. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 4 wherein said player type register is adapted to provide information to active noise cancellation apparatus.

7. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 1, further comprising,

a loop closing subsystem interfaced to said playback system comprising

a programmable delay,

a second generator for test signals,

precision microphones to receive returned information from said test signals,

connections to provide parameter corrections to parameters of said playback system.

8. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 2, further comprising,

a loop closing subsystem interfaced to said playback system comprising

a programmable delay,

a second generator for test signals,

precision microphones to receive returned information from said test signals,

connections to provide parameter corrections to parameters of said playback system.

9. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 3, further comprising,

a loop closing subsystem interfaced to said playback system comprising

a programmable delay,

a second generator for test signals,

precision microphones to receive returned information from said test signals,

connections to provide parameter corrections to parameters of said playback system.

10. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 4, further comprising,

a loop closing subsystem interfaced to said playback system comprising

a programmable delay,

a second generator for test signals,

precision microphones to receive returned information from said test signals,

connections to provide parameter corrections to parameters of said playback system.

11. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 5, further comprising,

a loop closing subsystem interfaced to said playback system comprising

a programmable delay,

a second generator for test signals,

precision microphones to receive returned information from said test signals,

connections to provide parameter corrections to parameters of said playback system.

12. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 6, further comprising,

a loop closing subsystem interfaced to said playback system comprising

a programmable delay,

a second generator for test signals,

precision microphones to receive returned information from said test signals,

connections to provide parameter corrections to parameters of said playback system.

13. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 1, wherein said playback system further comprises a metadata display system.

14. The playback system for reproducing audio data and reading acoustic control data of claim 7, wherein said playback system further comprises a metadata display system.