BERLIN – Stage Tec equipment has outfitted the Hessian State Theatre Wiesbaden for a number of years. Most recently they replaced their Cantus consoles with the Aurus Platinum, the latest generation of mixing consoles. The theatre has also added Nexus Star Routers and Base Devices. The venue is home to five performing arts and a theatre, boasting one of the highest attendance figures in Germany.
Read More »
I have to admit, I have always had a fondness for compact, 8- and 10-inch two-way speakers, because they are so useful in so many applications. Certainly, there’s no denying that self-contained, two-way 12- and 15-inch are far more common, but in a lot of rental and production applications, those provide way more audio than the job entails and are visually more noticeable, which always seems to be an issue with some event planners. So earlier this year, when RCF unveiled the second generation (Mk II version) of its ART series 708-A active speakers, I was curious as to how these multi-purpose newcomers would perform.
SAN CLEMENTE, CA – St. Andrews by-the-Sea elected to upgrade its sound reinforcement capabilities with new loudspeakers from WorxAudio Technologies. Because of the room’s design, the church needed loudspeakers with wide dispersion and an extremely controlled vertical pattern. PS Audio Video recently installed install two WorxAudio TrueLine X3i-P powered all-in-one compact line arrays and a TrueLine X118i-P/D subwoofer.
Read More »
Three months after my shoulder surgery, it was time to go back to work. Physical therapy has been going very well, and the range of motion in my left arm has almost returned to normal. Believing I was strong enough to get back behind a console, I accepted a job mixing FOH for the National Christmas Tree Lighting in Washington, D.C. Having spent nearly all my career as a touring specialist, I have never been extremely comfortable doing this type of one-off special event, and I often decline when these positions are offered. There are many engineers who have far more experience in this specialty and may be better qualified to pull off these potentially chaotic productions. Then again, I had worked a couple of events for the production company that contracted me, and both experiences were very positive.
Read More »
I’ve previously written about the importance of credits in the fields of technology arts. Earlier this year (FRONT of HOUSE, July 2016, page 40) we discussed the significant benefits of having work credits available in some form or another. Aside from the satisfaction of recognition that comes with a job well done, there are the more tangible rewards when those credits act as calling cards and résumés. Allowing potential employers to identify and track down someone who got “that” sound on a record is what leads to the next gig and the next one. It’s how careers are built.
Last month (FRONT of HOUSE, Nov. 2016, page 41), we discussed the concept of word clock. Here’s the highlight reel:
• Almost every digital audio device has an internal word clock
• All devices sharing digital audio must be synchronized to the same clock or we’ll hear noise, distortion or glitches
Read More »
In-ear monitoring systems are a very mature product in 2016. All types of musical performers, including those in houses of worship, have embraced in-ear monitoring as their go-to stage monitoring solution. The benefits of IEMs are well known, although there are many singers/vocalists who prefer wedge monitors. Without regurgitating what has already been written countless times about in-ear monitoring, here’s a quick overview of some of the pros and cons of IEMs in general, and we’ll examine some questions and issues that often arise when introducing IEMs into the H.O.W. environment.
Read More »
One day, in the not too distant past, I found myself wondering if I had stepped into an alternate universe. I was providing a monitor rig to the morning TV show, Live with Kelly, consisting of a microphone package — including a few wireless mics, a console, a split snake, in-ear monitors, monitor wedges and a tech to set it up and run it. Over the last 15 years, as the show morphed from being Regis and Kelly to Kelly and Michael to just Kelly, I — as an agent of S.I.R. NY — have been one of the show’s main providers of backline and audio for incoming bands that were in need of a monitor package of more than two or three mixes.
Read More »
BEAVERTON, OR – Biamp Systems’ has promoted Matt Czyzewski to president and CEO as Steve Metzger leaves the company after seven years of leadership. Czyzewski, with more than 20 years at Biamp, inherits a new factory with expanded capacity and a strong management team positioned to carry the business forward just as it begins shipping their new video platform, TesiraLux, in late January 2017.
Read More »
SOLON, OH––CAD Audio has appointed Greg Shade as western regional sales manager. In this new position, Shade will be responsible for all CAD, Astatic and AIMM dealers in the Western US in terms of MI, pro audio and installed sound. He will oversee the company’s independent rep firms and will be the direct point of contact between CAD dealers in the region.
Read More »
OXFORD, UK – Gavin Tempany, monitor engineer for the legendary Pink Floyd frontman David Gilmour, pop singer-songwriter Will Young and many others, is using Audient USB audio interfaces, iD22 and iD4, in his worlds of live sound and studio recording. The iD4 – the smaller, more portable of the two – has already become a fixture in his mobile gig bag. Tempany discusses his use of Audient products in the studio and on the road.
Read More »