Skip to content

Blue Microphones Hummingbird

Blue Microphones Hummingbird features a swiveling capsule mount

Blue Microphones Hummingbird

Mid-priced, small-diaphragm condenser microphones are an essential part of the sound reinforcement industry. And with good reason, too. Housed in compact bodies, these offer wide-bandwidth, fast transient response that’s ideally suited for percussion, stringed instruments, piano and more. While these mics are available for a very wide range of budgets — from $50 to well over $1,000 — mid-priced entries, such as the Shure KSM137 and Audio-Technica’s AT4041 offer an excellent balance of price and performance — two more reasons why condensers with $300 retail tags are well-established in the live audio market.

Read More »
The Immersive Media Initiative shot a VR version of Courtney Barnett’s set at the Nelsonville Music Festival, offering a 360° perspective of the performance that can be remotely controlled by the viewer.

The Future is (Virtually) Here

The virtual reality section at last month’s AES Show in L.A. was in an appropriate location, on a second-level connecting walkway between halls in the Los Angeles Convention Center. Not just because nearby Hollywood is its own alternative universe, but because VR itself occupies its own media mezzanine tier at the moment, in between reality and fantasy, and between how we see the world now and how we might see it — and us — in the future. It was also separate from the growing live sound contingent at the show, where the AES has now come, somewhat reluctantly but inevitably, to embrace the fact that recordings are no longer the center of music’s universe.

Read More »
Fig. 1: Word Clock in and output jacks in BNC format on the rear panel of a Yamaha CL5 digital console.

Word Clock Basics

Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is?

Last month, we touched upon the idea of routing digital audio from an outboard channel into a digital mixing console. Any time that digital audio is transferred between devices, there are two distinct components to the signal: the audio, and something called word clock. Often (but not always) these signals are combined on a single cable, so we don’t realize that word clock is being sent along with the audio. Understanding word clock is critical when interfacing digital gear, and that requires a brief review of digital audio. So here we go.

Read More »
Consoles such as this DiGiCo S21 offer powerful onboard processing and a host of I/O options.

Purchasing the Right Console

Purchasing a new audio console is one of the most important decisions a church technical team can make. Sure, there are a handful churches that don’t flinch at the thought of purchasing a $100,000 board, but most of us struggle to convince church leadership to spend even a fraction of that amount. Even if you work at a church with big production and big budgets, every dollar counts, and you want to make sure that the console you purchase will meet your needs now and in the future.

Read More »
Illustration by Andy Au

Clocking

There are very few rights and wrongs regarding the sound of a live audio mix, and while there are multiple ways of arriving at a final result, the ultimate criteria for assessing said mix should be that it sounds and feels good in the space one is trying to fill. Of course, this is a challenge thate seems to be right out of the Idiot’s Guide to the Sound Universe — a real “Duh” moment — but we all know this task is easier said than done.

Read More »
MSI Production Services provided and installed a new JBL VTX system.

JBL by Harman Brings Clarity to San Diego Symphony’s Summer Pops

SAN DIEGO – MSI Production Services deployed JBL VTX V20 line arrays and Crown amplifiers to power performances for the Bayside Summer Nights: Summer Pops 2016 series featuring the San Diego Symphony, Diana Ross, Amy Grant, Chris Botti and more. Award-winning Sound engineer Shawn Murphy designed the sound system to replace their muddy audio quality and inconsistent results of their past performances.

Read More »
Andreas ‘Igl’ Schönwitz and Christian Fuchs have joined Stage Tec's sales division.

Stage Tec Strengthens National Sales Team

BERLIN – Andreas ‘Igl’ Schönwitz and Christian Fuchs have joined Stage Tec’s sales division as freelancers. Schönwitz is a musican/producer, studio owner, industry freelance author and workshop organizer. He has been selling the Stage Tec products since 2011. Fuchs has specialized in sound for classical open-air concerts for 10 years and has a broad range of tech experience in the live event, radio and TV industry. Both will be on hand at Tonmeistertagung, Nov. 17-20 in Cologne, Germany.

Read More »

TC Furlong Hosts Sixth Digital Console Expo

LAKE FOREST, IL —TC Furlong, Inc. will host its 6th Digital Console Expo on Tuesday, November 29 between 3:00 pm – 8:30 pm. Manufacturers include Allen & Heath, Ashley Audio, Avid, Beringer, DigiCo, Mackie, Midas, PreSonus, QSC, Roland, SSL Live, Soundcraft, Waves, and Yamaha Professional Audio. The companies will exhibit their latest digital consoles, and manufacturer staff will be on hand to answer questions.

Read More »
The installation at Deerfield High School in Deerfield, IL was an upgrade to the school’s existing 900-seat auditorium system.

Gand Installs Nexo at Owner’s HS Alma Mater

DEERFIELD, IL— Gary Gand of Gand Sound Installations recently installed a Nexo Geo M620 system at his high school alma mater, Deerfield High School. Gand is familiar with what their auditorium needed in the way of audio, although it was the 1960s when he attended. He says, “I appeared in a stage production as the ‘old desert rat’ when I had hair down past my shoulders!”

Read More »
Falsettos. Photo: Joan Marcus

Masque Sound Continues Broadway Run with ‘Falsettos’

NEW YORK – Thirty years after the musical Falsettos was created, sound designer Dan Moses Schreier was once again involved with the audio of the revived Broadway show. “Falsettos is done completely through song; there is no spoken dialogue for the show,” he says. “It’s wall to wall music, so it’s unique and challenging on that level. Fortunately, Masque Sound was once again able to deliver a great audio system that allowed me to achieve my goals.”

Read More »