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Pro-shot at 日本武道館 (Nippon Budokan).
Nostalgic trip down memory lane… one of the more interesting side things I got to experience ~25 years ago was being part of the rollout for the then new Yamaha PM1D professional modular digital mixing console for Shiina Hekiru’s 2001 Precious Garden Summer tour. For this 2004 New Years Day show, the 2003 show served as a reference where lessons were taken from it with the presets and production audio mix being dialed in more tightly.
Regardless, I’ve long wanted to “visually re-master” the original pro-shot footage (480p) to at least 1080p but that tech didn’t really exist until recent years. Hours of experimenting with different settings plus GPU processing has resulted in this video which now more closely matches the audio. Getting this to 4K (with excellent quality) is years away BUT I almost got a usable 1440p60 version (maybe a few software iterations away). Anyway, this is the fully “remastered” version in 1080p60.
Pro-shot at 日本武道館 (Nippon Budokan).
Nostalgic trip down memory lane… one of the more interesting side things I got to experience ~25 years ago was being part of the rollout for the then new Yamaha PM1D professional modular digital mixing console for Shiina Hekiru’s 2001 Precious Garden Summer tour. Most shows from these tours in 2001 through 2002 (～Around the sadistic～ tour) were at concert halls and smaller live houses except the 2002 ~NEW STEP~ News Years Day show at the much larger Nippon Budokan (which has challenging hall acoustics) which was not pro shot recorded. For this 2003 New Years Day show (which was pro shot), the presets and production audio mix ended up leaning towards a more bass heavy sound that IMHO, lacked the crystal clear separation of the 2001 mix. Hekiru also was slightly congested/not feeling 100% (which may have affected the soundcheck/preset calibrations).
Regardless, I’ve long wanted to “visually re-master” the original pro-shot footage (480p) to at least 1080p but that tech didn’t really exist until recent years. Hours of experimenting with different settings plus GPU processing has resulted in this video which now more closely matches the audio. Getting this to 4K (with excellent quality) is years away BUT I almost got a usable 1440p60 version (maybe a few software iterations away). Anyway, this is the fully “remastered” version in 1080p60.
Pro-shot at 東京厚生年金会館 (Tokyo Koseinenkin Hall) • closed as of 2010年3月31日.
Nostalgic trip down memory lane… one of the more interesting side things I got to experience ~25 years ago was being part of the rollout for the then new Yamaha PM1D professional modular digital mixing console for Shiina Hekiru’s 2001 Precious Garden Summer tour. It was introduced in December 2000; a modular system of the control surface and modules like the DSP engine, controller, I/O units, and power supply along with Windows software which allowed additional functionality (by connecting a PC/laptop to the system). Due to my side interest in music, I ended up being part of the prototype field test group (in Silicon Valley).
This was during that time period of the transition from analog to digital (my tech background with digital audio/video, networking, and systems is partially why I ended up being involved as event staff). I was still working in Silicon Valley but spent time in between Santa Clara, California and Tokyo as the enterprise liaison (at Apple) working with the Japanese office. Things sort of fell into place with Yamaha Japan/this side gig; when I moved to Japan a few years later (due to another opportunity), it resulted in one of the best life experiences I’ve had.
I still remember how this setup shaped the dimension of her live sound going forward (why I noted the “sonic superiority” in that draft (words from her long time sound engineer). Being at many of her concerts for the next 5 years, that live sound is still very vivid. This system was finally EOL in 2015 (PM5D replaced it in 2004). Since 2015, Yamaha now has a RIVAGE PM series that builds on this legacy but in a much more portable form factor (the old consoles required a team to move and set it up).
I’ve long wanted to “visually re-master” the original pro-shot footage (480p) to at least 1080p but that tech didn’t really exist until recent years. Hours of experimenting with different settings plus GPU processing has resulted in this video which now more closely matches the audio. Getting this to 4K (with excellent quality) is years away BUT I almost got a usable 1440p60 version (maybe a few software iterations away). Anyway, this is the fully "remastered" version in 1080p60.
LUNATIC FEST 2025 Writeup (in progress)
LUNA SEA's drummer Shinya (Yamada) made a "surprise" appearance at LUNATIC FEST 2025 after deciding to sit out from performing due to the discovery of a brain tumor several months ago. He decided to turn over the drumming duties to a long trusted friend; his former student and drum technician, Jun-ji (Sakuma) who was the drummer for SIAM SHADE (and has been support drummer for many different acts).
Doctors originally informed him that he might require the use of crutches for 3 months while undergoing chemotherapy (which began in September 2025), but he has been able to stand and walk unassisted after just the first month (back in early September, he still attended a festival in his hometown albeit in a wheelchair, and required assistance to stand for a short time to perform the opening ceremony/make a short speech). Part of me believes this rapid recovery is due to the inherent stamina required to even play the drums the way he does.
He made this appearance on day 1 of the festival (walking on stage, giving a short speech of thanks/gratitude, and announcing the bands Xmas concert where he hopes to be able to play the drums at least in a limited capacity), and did the same on day 2 (though it didn't have the same surprising/emotional effect). It was incredibly inspirational to have been able to experience this moment in person.
NOTE: excuse the raw audio vocal quality; it's basically minimally processed soundboard where you can hear how rough the vocals are (can still hear how Ryuichi's singing voice still hasn't recovered after past vocal chord surgeries). Will be interesting to hear the broadcast version in December and the future Bluray DVD release once the audio goes through its usual post-production processing.
Yokojpmom's flight (ANA 183) departing from HNL on October 20, 2025 for their trip back home to Fukuoka (Honolulu - Narita - Haneda - Fukuoka).
Yolobox Ultra all-in-one multicamera video switcher, encoder, recording/streaming device that I'll be using for this IRL/travel backpack. This box is like an OBS on the go mini/portable-production device (overlays, picture-in-picture, transitions, auto source switching, audio mixing, etc). What used to require expensive/specialized equipment (to do pro shot multicamera work), can now be done with this (or the Magewell Director Mini). It can also record and stream simultaneously. This test was to simply connect a Pocket 3 via USB to simulate using it as a streaming camera. It's easy (it goes into webcam mode and automatically shows up as a camera source which can be added to your scenes) without the usual workarounds (wireless RTMP). The downside is the cost factor (something like this will be outside the budget of most). For IRL use cases, a Belabox will be the cheaper option as an encoder and for being able to bond connections (Yolobox and Director Mini require subscriptions to utilize connection bonding).
Detailed writeup: https://techdump.murasama.net/2025/09/22/travel-irl-gadget-backpack/
AAEmu ArcheAge 5.0.7.0 (Relics of Hiram) emulation - short in-game footage. Additional writeup of this build.
Note: this in-development AAEmu fork is supported via the projects Discord (server boost). As a result, it isn't publicly available for download like the main 1.2 development (which is much further along in terms of the game systems and main story/race quests)
ArcheAge server emulator boot - 5.0.7.0 (Relics of Hiram) September 2, 2025 build - VMWare Workstation Pro 17 virtual machine. Additional writeup of this build.
Note: this in-development AAEmu fork is supported via the projects Discord (server boost). As a result, it isn't publicly available like the main 1.2 development (which is much further along in terms of the game systems and main story/race quests)
Hosting (approved by Timo) this unmuted VOD (muted music audio on Twitch) with Twitch chat (out of sync delayed for 1-1.5 minutes for at least the first hour) of BOB2025 (formerly known as BOSF or the Beppu Onsen Shower Fes) for TimoInBeppu which she live streamed on August 23, 2025 JST (her guest is her friend, Vanessa). The festival started in the morning and was held at Matogahama Park/Beppu Spa Beach. This VOD has the performances for 宮迫博之, DJ O.G（三崎優太）and Marc Panther (ex-globe).
The hotel is located on the Hilo bay front where a section of that inlet also narrows (further funneling effect) and allows such tidal fluctuations from tsunami to easily flood onto the property. Their security camera captures the rapid inundation of the drop off area (which also entered the lobby area and flooded around 10 rooms on the lower floor).
From the M8.8 Kamchatka Peninsula earthquake - tsunami inundation at a seafood plant in Severoclisk, Kuril Islands. Wave amplitude was projected to be 3-4 meters in this area.
ArcheAge 1.2 game client. Version 1.2 (October 14, 2014) is currently the main development target for this emulator. Many of the basic things have been implemented where large majority of the game can be played. I'm using the pre-compiled server build from May 2025 (the Github has more recent changes/bug fixes). There are some quests that are missing, mobs that are stacked on top of each other, achievements don't seem to work, etc, but these are minor issues.
1.2 pre-dates a lot game systems (no heroes, no hero halls, no dwarf and warborn races, no community centers, rudimentary trade, many zones still closed off, etc). Auroria is mainly the faction base area of Diamond Shores along with the Ayanad Library (the mobs inside do not aggro properly though). Mounts, pets, vehicles, ships, gliders work properly. Still cool to have an older build with the original game world where you can experience good portions of the early world of ArcheAge.
ArcheAge 1.2 server side emulator (AAEmu) startup
VideoProc Converter encoding test 2560x1440 -> 1920x1080. Thermaltake View i467T R4 128GB RAM, Intel Core i7-12700F 12-core (8 performance/4 efficiency), Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER