This will most likely be a very long post and will probably split the post. I am wanting to talk about everything with in my opinion, the worst era of the ToT from May/June 2008 to March 2015 as it was just a massive audio mix-up test when the audio was converted to Solid State. I have been studying this over many months to understand it fully.
First things first, have you ever wondered during this period why on Delta the ding approaching the hallway scene played so early? It turns out that Delta originally in 2008 had a completely different narration line timing to it. Here is a rare video of Delta during this time:
That's right, in Delta's original 2008 solid state audio programming, the narration started right as the CM hit the dispatch button, and the 5th dimension transition narration started a few seconds BEFORE the window even shattered. With this original timing, the ding actually fit in as it was positioned to ding between the words "episode of" and "the Twilight Zone". When they changed the narration timing, the ding timing for the hallway scene wasn't changed with it.
-In Summer of 2008, they reverted the system back to the Laserdisc(Unsure if this is the audio system it had before) for some odd reason and stayed until October of 2008 where it would be changed back to the solid state system permanently.
-In very late 2008 or early 2009, Delta's audio programming was modified like stated earlier so the narration was properly timed and the narration for the 5th dimension transition didn't start until the BGM started.
-In October 2011 Alpha's audio programming was modified. The narration was changed to play Bravo's/Charlie's narration version, the ding was slightly repositioned for the hallway scene, and the 5th dimension transition audios started immediately after the hallway scene BGM finished.
-In April 2012 the door motors have all been changed(besides the Horton doors) to run on VFD's(Variable Frequency Drives), this is the "UFO" type sound you hear when the doors move. Since these moved slightly slower over the previous direct drive motors, the timings changed, and it made Delta more closer to perfect sync at the hallway scene(more closer later). They also changed the timing of the start of the 5th dimension transition for Delta to start after the glass breaks.
-In late 2013, the timings for stuff was changed by another second, I don't know if this was from a refurb on the motors or a change in programming, however it made Delta perfectly on sync for the hallway scene.
If it wasn't evident before, for both the SFX, BGM, and narration tracks, there is a variation of it for Alpha/Delta(A/D) and Bravo/Charlie(B/C). Here is a chart for what variations each ascent shaft played:
Alpha:
SFX: A/D
BGM: A/D
Narration before Oct 2011: A/D
Narration after Oct 2011: B/C
Bravo:
SFX: A/D
BGM: B/C
Narration: B/C
Charlie:
SFX: A/D
BGM: A/D
Narration: B/C
Delta:
SFX: A/D
BGM: B/C
Narration: B/C
Continued in Part 2...
First things first, have you ever wondered during this period why on Delta the ding approaching the hallway scene played so early? It turns out that Delta originally in 2008 had a completely different narration line timing to it. Here is a rare video of Delta during this time:
That's right, in Delta's original 2008 solid state audio programming, the narration started right as the CM hit the dispatch button, and the 5th dimension transition narration started a few seconds BEFORE the window even shattered. With this original timing, the ding actually fit in as it was positioned to ding between the words "episode of" and "the Twilight Zone". When they changed the narration timing, the ding timing for the hallway scene wasn't changed with it.
History
This era has a LOT of complex history to it. The earliest video I can find of this era is from June of 2008, however the change could of happened in late May as well. Looking at the videos of Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie from 2008, they seemed to have the same audio programming as later years(Besides Alpha partially but I will get to that later).-In Summer of 2008, they reverted the system back to the Laserdisc(Unsure if this is the audio system it had before) for some odd reason and stayed until October of 2008 where it would be changed back to the solid state system permanently.
-In very late 2008 or early 2009, Delta's audio programming was modified like stated earlier so the narration was properly timed and the narration for the 5th dimension transition didn't start until the BGM started.
-In October 2011 Alpha's audio programming was modified. The narration was changed to play Bravo's/Charlie's narration version, the ding was slightly repositioned for the hallway scene, and the 5th dimension transition audios started immediately after the hallway scene BGM finished.
-In April 2012 the door motors have all been changed(besides the Horton doors) to run on VFD's(Variable Frequency Drives), this is the "UFO" type sound you hear when the doors move. Since these moved slightly slower over the previous direct drive motors, the timings changed, and it made Delta more closer to perfect sync at the hallway scene(more closer later). They also changed the timing of the start of the 5th dimension transition for Delta to start after the glass breaks.
-In late 2013, the timings for stuff was changed by another second, I don't know if this was from a refurb on the motors or a change in programming, however it made Delta perfectly on sync for the hallway scene.
If it wasn't evident before, for both the SFX, BGM, and narration tracks, there is a variation of it for Alpha/Delta(A/D) and Bravo/Charlie(B/C). Here is a chart for what variations each ascent shaft played:
Alpha:
SFX: A/D
BGM: A/D
Narration before Oct 2011: A/D
Narration after Oct 2011: B/C
Bravo:
SFX: A/D
BGM: B/C
Narration: B/C
Charlie:
SFX: A/D
BGM: A/D
Narration: B/C
Delta:
SFX: A/D
BGM: B/C
Narration: B/C
Continued in Part 2...