Here are some behind the scenes questions, I always wondered about, and
finally was able to get the answers to!
The Microphone - People wonder what kind of microphone Bob Barker uses.
I was standing in contestant's row before the show and there was the microphone right there... I took a quick look at it: a SONY Electric Condenser Microphone. The microphone Bob uses was created by CBS technical staff. Bob's original Sony microphone (the silver one) died, they no longer could find parts to repair it, so CBS came up with this one. It's very lightweight! The wireless microphone that Doug Davidson used on the "NEW" Nighttime Price is Right in 1994 and sometimes used by Rod during his "Rappin' Rod" Showcase is a Sennheiser SKM-5000. From what research I have done, Sennheiser is a German microphone / audio company with a history of excellence in microphone technology (Only the best for Studio 33!). Thanks to Linda Doty-Reigert (Price Production staff) for stopping the page from charging towards me, and for snapping the photo of Bob's Microphone.
The SoundFX's are digitized on an Akai Sampling device (it looked like a tape deck without a slot for putting tapes in). The operator selects the desired effect on the box, then to play the sound, presses a key on the connected musical keyboard. The operator also had a small sound console to control the volume. The Sound FX lady, also has a Digicart II Plus unit to get new sounds onto her Akai device.
The Cameras - During Season 25 we heard Bob mention on the air that they had new cameras. The new cameras are made by Hitachi SK-750's.
The console rooms - as most people know the control room is behind those colored curtains in the rear of the studio. There are two entrances, if you are looking from the stage: it would be to the left rear of the studio (opposite of the audience entrance), and right around the corner from that thermostat on the wall. Inside the room, there are three "compartments" immediately after entering, you are facing towards Fairfax, and to the right is equipment. directly in front another glass door, where the director sits, there are several monitors. You step up through that door, the directors area faces toward the stage. Another door leads you up several stairs into the sound room. This section sits directly above the audience entrance. During the Tom Kennedy Price is Right, one could see the window right above the entrance. In the sound room was a huge mixing console. I managed to ask the person sitting at the console, "Where is the music" he pointed me to a little station right next to the 2nd entrance. Studio 33 uses the Digicart II Plus Hard Disk based audio system. The second entrance to the Console rooms is through the sound room, after coming up the stairs from the directors booth, if you keep walking you would go through a door, down a yellow spiral staircase. This would place you on the other side of the stage behind the CBS curtains. This is where the SoundFX, and game controls are located, as well as some props for the games!
The 3 Main Game Doors - After 24 years, the original doors, finally started to stick. When the production crew was looking for a solution, they decided to use the recently retired (and briefly used) doors from the NEW PRICE IS RIGHT (a.k.a. TPIR '94). To me, it was rather ironic, that after trying so hard to make the "NEW" Night Time Price is Right look "modern" and "young" that the fancy looking doors would end up being used to show the famous TPIR Color Scheme. The doors made their first appearance on the PRICE IS RIGHT 25th Anniversary Special. They got the daytime TPIR color scheme and an updated TPIR logo.