Optasound Estec

• Optasound ESTEC (Electronic Sound Transfer and Editing Console) is a six-plate editing unit that can also make sync transfers  from cassette or single-system to fullcoat, simultaneous mixing of several tracks and high quality transfer from double-system to single-system .

• "At $2950.00, the ESTEC console is designed to be a complete postproduction unit. It can be used to transfer, to edit both sound and picture, to mix multiple sync tracks to picture, and to transfer the completed mixed track to edge stripe at high speed. The ESTEC also allows transfer of single-system sound, to fulicoat for conventional double-system editing.

  As a conventional editing machine, the Estec does not offer a great deal. Due to its vertical configuration, splicing and film handling is a little awkward. The picture is small and difficult to see. A Muray viewer on a $3000.00 machine with ESTEC's sophistication seems a little bizarre. All developmental efforts seem to have gone into the electronics and sound functions; with the optical aspects kind of thrown on. As a result, syncing rushes without slates is an impossibility.

  Where sound is concerned, the ESTEC is superb. The electronics are so good that several generations of mixdowns are possible without significant degradation of the tracks. The right fulicoat movement is capable of recording two separate sound tracks on one strand of fullcoat. These two tracks can then either be mixed to the edge stripe or to fullcoat. (Either to the left fullcoat movement or to an external recorder) More than two tracks would require mix-downs.

  Again considering the sophistication of this machine, it is strangethat four-track capability was not built in. Super-8 Fullcoat is capable of four-track recording and quad heads are readily available. If not as standard equipment, the four-track capability on the right fullcoat movement should bean option.

  Prior to the ESTEC, all transfers to Super-8 magnetic edge stripe of singles trand films had to be done on projectors in real time. The quality was good, but the transfer was slow and there was always the chance of scratching the film. With the ESTEC, sound can be transferred at twice normal speed (48fps) without projection. There is virtually no chance of scratches.

  The feature most discussed about the ESTEC has been the electronic editing. It is basically a system of transfer editing via electronic-cue-activated re-recording from an original to a master. Film is marked and cut in the usual manner, but each sound segment is cued up with an electronic start and stop mark. At the appropriate time this cue noiselessly puts the master track into record, and on the stop cue takes it out of record. It does it exactly on the desired frame. There is no noise between the butted segments. The cue marks are recorded while the transports are stationary.

  If the ESTEC ever gets into full production, it will be a powerful tool for Super-8 filmmakers. Just to be able to mix multiple sync tracks to picture and to transfer at double speed without projection, make it worth the price" (American Cinematographer, November 1975, p. 1301).