I have never considered anything that has gone wrong, or changed, to be a nightmare. It has always been a learning experience, and then I keep it in the back of my head for the future. However, I just got back from a nightmare.
Read More »When forced with the option to use portable generators for live production, there are aspects that most sound engineers do not understand. While install power connections are reasonably lightly loaded for the audio watts provided, the nature of the current demands will vary with the music intensity of the performance and needs to be considered with portable power.
Read More »I have spent the last few months going over the basics of HOW sound systems. All of you have varied levels of proficiency with regard to your sound technician skills; however, going over basic principles is a good thing. Do you ever ask why your priest, pastor, rabbi, etc., has gone over some of the basic tenants of your particular religion more than once? Their purpose is to build a strong foundation for your faith. Well, it’s the same in worship sound. Obviously, not as lofty, but we can agree that a solid foundation to our work (volunteer or not) is a good thing.
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Andy Meyer on juggling five bands, huge stage volume and a guitar rig that goes down to 30 Hz.
With bands like Mötley Crüe — whose members appear morally opposed to personal monitors and seem determined to prove their continuing viability by being louder than ever — paired with loud upstarts including Buck Cherry and Nikki Sixx’s solo side project on the same bill, one might assume that the biggest challenge of the recent Crüefest tour would have been dealing with sheer volume. Au contraire says Crüe FOH mixer Andy Meyer. While dealing with huge SPL can be an issue with five bands onstage every night, the biggest challenge is often just having enough time to get everything up and going.
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The Horseshoe Casino is more than just a riverboat with a $70-million theater install, bringing top echelon acts to The Venue.
The Horseshoe Casino has been rocking for years, since it’s been one of the most popular resort and casino destinations in the Chicago area. Yet, it’s only since The Venue opened earlier this year that the Horseshoe has been rocking, rolling, shaking and shimmying.
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ST. LOUIS — Building on two years of exceptionally successful shows, Alive Magazine hosted its 2008 Fall show at the Lumiere Theatre, a new 450-seat venue located inside the Lumiere Place Hotel & Casinos in downtown St. Louis.
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ATLANTA — Up-and-coming pop/punk powerhouse All Time Low have played to packed houses night after night on their nationwide headlining tour. Nowhere did things start out more sketchy, but end more rocking, than a recent performance at Atlanta’s Masquerade. With the help of Danley Sound Labs engineer, Ivan Beaver, the band’s FOH engineer Evan Kirkendall, owner of Harford Sound, located in Abington, Maryland, replaced the Masquerade’s sound system with a stack of Danley loudspeakers and subwoofers, led by eight of Danley’s new full-range SH-46s.
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MANOA, Hawaii — The first annual Manoa Jazz Festival kicked off at the Andrews Outdoor Theatre at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM). Local artists including Noel Okimoto Ohana, the Honolulu Jazz Quartet and headliner Devin Phillips and New Orleans Straight Ahead performed for 1,000 excited onlookers, with sound reinforcement from a Meyer Sound M’elodie line array loudspeaker system provided by Honolulu-based Baus Engineering.
SINGAPORE — Valerio Maioli SPA was contracted to provide the lighting, CCTV, trusses and public address for the inaugural FORMULA 1 SingTel Singapore Grand Prix, using JBL VerTec loudspeakers for the sound system.
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Parnelli Awards Pay Tribute to the Stars of Live Audio
The 8th Annual Parnelli Awards brought together the legends and up-and-coming talent of the live event industry to honor the companies and people nominated for their outstanding work this year. Held at the Rio Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, the show featured state-of-the-art audio, lighting and video, master of ceremonies Alice Cooper, and in keeping with the Vegas theme, showgirls decked out in flashy costumes to greet the attendees. The attendees paid tribute to audio innovators Roy and Gene Clair, founders of the Clair Bros. (now known as CLAIR) of Lititz, Pa., one of the largest and most successful sound companies in the world; and Dennis Sheehan, longtime tour manager for U2.
Read More »“It’s the economy stupid,” and despite it all we still carry on with our business albeit on shaky ground. Fortunately, the bulk of the summer touring season ended just before the disastrous reports from Wall Street became headline news — thus leading us to wild speculation regarding what the future might hold in store for the upcoming winter and spring season.
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Recent conversations that play into the current economic climate affecting our industry
First, a conversation with a soundco owner in the Midwest who said he was busy but broke. “Not a box or an amp in the shop — everything is rented. But cash flow is down significantly.” As we talked we figured out that clients are not paying as quickly as he would like and that “some checks are better than others.”
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