Model Railroading > Of sugar cubes and rolling thunder...

Are we there yet? Are we getting there yet? CAN YOU TURN DOWN THE... there, thank you!

How long before the entire "audio mix" reaches convincing levels on a layout? Are we approaching the sweet spot with any of these products? And by "convincing" I would say that's defined as proper presence. Presence includes the mix -- relative levels -- of the various component sounds (prime mover, wheels, bell, horn). It means highs and lows in realistic (and effectively scaled-down) balance, directional modulation including distance-to-viewer compensation, and in the end, something much more realistic to the sound of a train -- nearby or background -- than the all-too-common raucous cacophony of competing high-frequency locomotive-centric noise, something which is most often poorly balanced and demonstrably aggravating to many.

Or just sounds wimpy, basically.

The principle of the model railroad subwoofer was developed in the 1980s by Bob Longnecker of Pacific Fast Mail, and was implemented in the PFM "Sound System II." Highs are directional, lows are not, so a subwoofer buried in the middle of the layout will give the impression of lows, as long as the directional high frequencies are coming from a locomotive's speaker. BLI takes this a step further, according to their literature, and modulates the efffects according to distance from the viewer.

Audio is often the poor stepchild of film and TV production, the overlooked and unrecognized element. But convincing audio augmentation -- effects and sweetening -- is at the root of enjoying any action film or animated feature, and believing that it's true and real. When we build layouts, at the current state of the art, many prefer silence over the scratchy racket of a roomful of hissing model locomotives. We can do better, and all the work we do to build convincing models and scenery deserves better.

Is that state ready to advance itself right now? Do these two products -- proprietary though the BLI system may be -- get us ready to leap into Sound V2.0, after a long, long, long, and noisy wait?

~ BZ

http://www.sbs4dcc.com/sugarcubespeakers.html

http://www.broadway-limited.com/rollingthunder.aspx

 

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Notch, it will be interesting to see if this is the new direction for sound engines.  You bring up some good observations.  In our club we have a gentleman's agreement to keep the volume of sound-equipped engines at a sane level.  For some reason most manufacturers have the sound set way too high from the factory.  Get four or five engines in the same room and you are guaranteed a headache.  It will be interesting to see how the volume works with the BLI system.

Yeah, I'm really keen to see this get dialed in!

Someone in a small group I belong to posted a comparison video of the sugar cube speaker against a conventional one, with the same decoder and effects in the same body style of locomotive. The results were really amazing, even accounting for differences in playback -- he simply turned one on, turned it off, then moved his camera and turned the other unit on.

It's going to be another level of sophistication, and will take some tuning for sure. But the possibilities of matching a small speaker with high dynamic range and no crispy artifacts to a 'smart' subwoofer system will allow the magic to take place in the mix. We'll probably be setting sound the way a surround home system is set up: you run test tones and the system 'listens' -- then adjusts the relative levels of the discrete speakers to match the ambience and obstacles.

Lighting effects for everybody will come after. But for now, I'd love to hear this in person -- and somewhere that it isn't competing for ear share, which means likely not a train show!

I was really knocked out by the old PFM system. When I was working there and had access to the building, I used to go after hours and just run a train, being hypnotized by the deep chuffs and throaty whistles, all seeming to come from the locomotive. The downside was how many sounds the operator had to mix on the fly, as a look at the controls will attest. So you had to be a bit of a virtuoso to get it all to follow and flow. But digital controls are what it needed, and we weren't quite there yet. Almost, but not quite. But the sound quality hasn't been bested since.

Maybe now... and I really hope so! I need to 'feel' the 645 out of my SDP45, not just hear the top end vibrating inside its plastic shell! No knocks meant here, by the way... only hoping for the next big thing. And an all-DCC-systems-compatible subwoofer could mean that if you want to replace speakers with sugar cubes, you can... but you don't have to. And that would suit me fine!

~ BZ

 

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Interesting concept, how does it compare or not with the system SoundTrax had a year or so ago? I would love for this to become a reality on my layout some day.

Nathan

Posted from iPhone

Interesting conversation!
I have worked in the audio field for more than thirty years, from the Shure sm58 to video conferencing audio fencing and location audio technologies. 

Discreet location of audio sources in tight locations (like a layout) with micro transducers continues to be a tough nut. I think using no speaker in the locomotives, and strategically placing them throughout the layout, the using transponders to locate and synthesize them, then reproduce and broadcast them is a valid approach. The Soundtraxx system attempts that, but really you need a 100 or so channel sound processor and a full range speaker every two feet with several subs on a layout to make it work correctly. Even though everything below 120Hz is omni directional, the length of the waves is so long that you need multiple subs placed around the layout to get enough coverage. 

The physics of sound is such that more speakers allows more control. Really, I think a laptop running an algorithm and a digital audio router with multiple if not dozens of outputs is better suited to recreate authentically moving locomotives. Really expensive! I could easily spend $10K setting this up and months configuring and constantly tweaking it, but boy would it sound good! The ultimate in surround sounds!

 

Joel Brazy
Coatesville, PA

I agree. What you've detailed would be preferential in quality and control to loco-mounted sound. And we haven't discussed echoes, cuts and tunnels, or building shadow. All of which could be modeled digitally based on the layout's 3D profile data. 

I want that $10K budget! Let's do this! :/)

~ BZ 

All very sound reasoning.  :-)

Warren

I hear you, Warren. :-)

~ BZ

 

Personally, I think the whistle and horn sounds on model locomotives are still pretty weak compared to the real thing. For starters, most don' t incorporate the dappler effect.

Something that a programmable set of staged sequential speakers could do. And you could choose the exact (but movable) location for the crossover effect. I dunno. Would it really take that imaginary $10K these days? Maybe to prototype such a thing. But for production? Just wish we could snap our way there. 

Of course, the BLI and SoundTraxx ideas are here now. First things (and first generations) first?

~ BZ