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Nightmare on Murphy Street Denver Edition.

Nightmare on Murphy Street Denver Edition.

“Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” — Murphy’s Law

Back in the day (1982), I was the electronics tech for a sound company out on a major tour. More than 210 dates were booked, including a Euro tour leg, and I was a happy camper. Living on the bus was tight as there were 13 of us crammed into the Eagle 10, and seating accommodations rivaled that of the “Hot Bunk” approach used by the Navy — you get up from your seat, and the three-second rule applies: Three seconds later, someone else has your seat.

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EAW

Who:  Jeffrey Cox, vice president, EAW Brand Group.

What: Design and manufacture high-performance professional audio equipment.

Where: Facilities in Whitinsville, Mass., and Woodinville, Wash.

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Theory OR Practice

Yes, it is time to get back up on the soapbox and address the critics — in this case, the critics of FOH magazine and, especially, yours truly. From time-to-time we receive comments that FOH is not technical enough and doesn’t expose the readers to rigorous acoustical theories. Now I am all for rigorous acoustical theory, but I am in the upper five percentile of readers who actually understand what is being said and the incremental benefits of the theory being proffered. So I think I will leave those kinds of physics papers for the Audio Engineering Society (AES) transcripts and those other magazines that need to publish high-brow treatises to show editorial gravitas. BTW, our last reader survey found that just 10% of readers found FOH “not technical enough,” and nearly half that number said it was “too technical,” The majority (86%) placed us in the “just right” range.

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Sammy F. — Where Are You?

We’ve said a lot in these pages about how digital technology has shaped our audio lives, including the ability to create scenes or snapshots for a digital mixer ahead of time, and then store or load them into a desk for show time. Mixing systems such as the Digidesign Venue, DiGiCo D5, Soundcraft Vi6 and Yamaha PM5D have the ability for true total recall of every setting, which means we can preprogram a show at a rehearsal, store the settings into some sort of memory and then load that data into another desk of the same type on location. This summer, I observed that — instead of carrying their consoles on tour — many bands requested in their rider that a particular console be provided by the promoter. Once the band arrived on-site, the engineer loaded their show into the desk, and off they went.

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Powered or Not???

Over the last 10 years, we all have seen the market for self-powered speakers grow to the point where they are now at least as popular as nonpowered speakers. For someone like me, who has a small regional company and a relatively limited crew, using powered speakers makes my setup faster, easier and requires less thinking than a traditional passive speaker, amps and crossover system (the less-thinking part is very important for me and my crew). So, the next obvious question is: Why not use this self-powered speaker technology in a permanent house of worship installation?

The simple answer is that you can permanently mount self-powered speakers in any location where you would install nonpowered speakers (given that you have available Edison plugs). But why would you?

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Future Sonics EarMonitors

Anyone who has been paying attention already knows that I am a big fan of personal monitors. I have tried probably a dozen different models from at least four different companies, and using them as a performer has really helped me understand how to handle personal mixes as a sound guy.

 

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Peavey Distro

Where was this product 10 years ago? The answer is never satisfactory, but a lot of time is needed before clubs and other public venues can upgrade to current legal standards for power distribution. Peavey is the first broadline pro audio manufacturer to address this missing link in setting up sizable sound reinforcement systems.

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Lexicon MX300 Effects Processor

When it comes to Lexicon, I have been hanging back in the weeds, waiting for a reverb/effects offering that would appeal nicely with live sound applications. There wasn’t a lot of hoopla about the Lexicon MX300 Effects Processor when I spotted it at the winter NAMM show, but it looked perfect for what a mid-priced effects unit for live sound applications should be.

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Cruisin with Jonny B

From Bass Player to Soundco Owner — Growing Up Without Growing Old

Hundreds of bar bands around the States are looking for a few things — a singer that can captivate an audience, a guitar player who can play quieter than 110 dB and a rhythm section that can hold the whole thing together. Jon McDowell, known to his friends around Rockford, Ill., as Jonny B, could help with the rhythm section bit, since he’s been playing bass in local bands for over a decade. The fact that he also owned a set of mains and a lighting rig when he joined his first band was a bonus.

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Bikes, Bands and Buffalo Chip

Sure Sound and Light powers Sturgis Rally’s “best party anywhere”

Take one of the longest running fan club gatherings in history, an estimated 500,000 folk riding gleaming hogs around thousands of square miles of the Black Hills in South Dakota, the city of Sturgis — usual population 6,000 — and a huge natural amphitheatre, hosting some of the biggest rock’n’roll bands on the planet, and you have a true North American phenomenon. Here, ladies and gentlemen, is the legendary Buffalo Chip, for 27 years the rockin’ heart of Sturgis Rally, and the campground where aficionados of the Black Hills Motor Classic come to party. For two weeks every year, it becomes the state’s third largest city.

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2007 Parnelli Ballot

Below are the nominees for the 7th Annual Parnelli Awards. Cast your vote to honor those individuals and companies who have
done outstanding work in the past year. Voting for the Parnelli Awards is limited to subscribers
of Projection, Lights & Staging News and Front of House. To cast your vote, go to www.parnelliawards.com/vote

To ensure only one vote per person, you much input the subscription code from your address label. (See Web site for details.)

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AES Preview

Or is it PLASA in review? With the big Euro show and the most significant U.S. audio show just weeks apart, it is hard to really tell. Some of this stuff was introduced in September in London, and you are sure to see all of it in New York in October. Now, if there were only an actual show that actually focused on live event production — especially the audio side — all would be right with the world. Meanwhile, here are some new goodies…

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