We cover a wide-ranging list of topics in this column. But sometimes it’s appropriate to return to look some of the industry’s “basic” principles. This month we’ll dust off the volume on gain structure. Once a frequent topic of conversation for the industry, gain structure has become less important as electronics have improved — although it should certainly not be ignored.
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Breakthroughs in microphone technology don’t come along very often, so when something truly new comes along, it definitely piques my curiosity. And some months ago, when I found out some preliminary details about the AM-1 Realtime Steering Array Microphone System from TOA Electronics, I wanted to check it out firsthand.
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Larry Villella is a musician, audio enthusiast and former Steinway piano dealer who turned his love of vintage mic collecting into a full-time business as ADK Microphones in 1998. Most of the ADK line centered around mics that emulated the sound of classic studio models. A couple years ago, he branched out with his new 3 Zigma line, which were more compact than the large body and tube models that ADK offered and employed the CHI (Capsule/Head-Amp Integrator) Series.
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This past week, console manufacturer DiGiCo and its USA representative, Matt Larson, graciously enabled me to engage in a completely unique and exceptionally rewarding experience when a SD5 console was delivered to my home and set up in my living room. This marks the first time in my career that I have brought my work home with me in such a literal and physical sense. Matt and I first connected the console to the Waves SoundGrid server that allowed me to access Waves 9 plug-ins. Next, we enabled 48 tracks of Reaper playback from my MacBook Pro through the DiGiCo UD MADI interface. Finally, we employed the board’s local analog XLR I/O connections to play back stereo tracks from my iPhone and to connect the console’s analog outputs to my JBL XPL200 speakers.
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Some like to do it sitting down. Some like to do it standing up. You now what I’m talking about. Wait, no, not that. I’m talking about how FOH mixers approach their work: standing behind the console or sitting behind it, or some combination thereof. It’s an important topic for a number of very good reasons, some of which may not have occurred to you.
Read More »One of the side benefits of the widespread use of in-ear monitoring is that stage volume for many acts has dropped significantly. A sort of domino effect resulting from this phenomenon has been that — as there are few or no wedges on stage — the need for high-volume guitar and bass rigs has decreased. Of course, there will always be musicians who want two Marshall double-stacks barking at maximum volume, but the presence of loud guitar and bass rigs is in fact counterproductive to using IEMs, because the ability of earpieces to reject stage sound can only go so far.
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My first introduction to personal monitors was about 20 years ago. I was playing an acoustic guitar and singing worship music in front of a Galaxy Hot Spot monitor mounted on a mic-stand. The thing was turned up so loud I almost lost a filling, but in a few minutes after adjusting the EQ and volume, I had my own personal monitor mix. That experience really has very little to do with the in-ear personal monitor systems that I use today, but we all have to start somewhere. By the way, Galaxy is still alive and still making very potent small Hot Spot monitors.
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Literally translated, “tithe” means ten per cent. Tithing, or the giving of 10 percent of one’s income, is a religious practice that goes back thousands of years and is a Judeo-Christian concept that has its roots in the Old Testament.
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BERLIN – Delivering high-quality sound for many of today’s top performers, Sennheiser provided microphones for the the 23rd ECHO Awards Ceremony held in Berlin. Both traditional and wireless technology was used, and the number of wireless channels was particularly impressive: a total of around 200 frequencies were in use for the awards. For her performance, Kylie Minogue used a Sennheiser SKM 5200 handheld transmitter, while Shakira’s management had requested two SKM 5200s with Neumann KK 105 capsules. Wired Sennheiser microphones were used both by artists – such as the five e 935s used by Peter Maffay and his band – but also on the host’s podium, where two ME 36s on goosenecks ensured that speech was heard with perfect clarity.
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WILKESBORO, NC — For 27 years, SE Systems of Greensboro, N.C. has provided audio production for MerleFest. SE Systems, a longtime Yamaha Commercial Audio customer, recently added four CL5 digital audio consoles to their inventory. MerleFest 2014, held the last weekend in April, included more 125 artists with area roots such as Alan Jackson and Merle Haggard.
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AUSTIN, TX – Christian hard-rock band Skillet is now performing on a tour visiting amphitheatres across North America with rappers TobyMac and Lecrae. Skillet FOH engineer Robert Taylor credited the Meyer Sound LEO linear large-scale sound reinforcement system provided by Blackhawk Audio as “perfect for what we do.” The standard configuration is 16 LEO-M line array loudspeakers per side, with two MICA line array loudspeakers per side used for down fill.
Designed for the commercial sound paging horn market, the new JBL CSS-H paging horns are ideal for public address systems. Constructed of sturdy ABS with corrosion‐resistant all-stainless-steel mounting bracket and hardware, both models include a built‐in UL registered multi‐tap transformer (15‐Watt for the H15, 30‐Watt for the H30) for use with 70V and 100V distributed speaker lines, with a screwdriver adjustable tap switch, and a bypass position for direct 8-ohm operation.
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