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Robert Scovill on tour with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 2017

Q&A with Robert Scovill

Robert Scovill mostly got off the road a few years back to lend his skills and experience to Avid in developing their emerging line of VENUE digital consoles, most recently the SL6. But the road still calls, and when it’s Tom Petty on the other end, he tends to say “Yes.” He came through my town, St. Louis, and he and the band put on a sonically superb show. Apparently, it was not a fluke. As the 40th Anniversary Tour sees the light at the end of the tunnel, I made this extremely busy engineer (and recipient of multiple Parnelli awards for FOH Engineer of the Year) sit down with me.

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Illustration by Andy Au

Fire, Fury…and Audio

The fiery rhetoric heating up tensions between the U.S. and North Korea is giving new life to old anxieties from the Cold War era, with worst-case scenarios that are more fearsome even than the germs and microbes lying in wait on a shared mic.

‡‡Now that atomic warfare and nuclear explosives have once again become prevalent in both my everyday conversation and my nighttime dreamscape I have felt compelled to go back and reeducate myself in regard to the history and devastation of nuclear testing and warfare.

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Radiohead has provided fans with a video of its glitch-free performance on Coachella’s second weekend. To view it, go to plsn.me/FOH-Radiohead.

Well Done: Live Sound has Become Remarkably, Incredibly Good

Earlier this year, the chattering classes of the media were talking about Coachella’s cultural significance and its position as a political bellwether, with the festival’s owner, Philip Anschutz, taken to task for supporting groups that appeared to be hostile to LGBT rights. Those accusations prompted vigorous denials from Anschutz, who called the reports “fake news” and issued statements in support of “the rights of all people, without regard to sexual orientation.”

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QSC's TouchMix series

QSC TouchMix v3 Firmware Update

QSC’s TouchMix series of small format digital mixers build upon the company’s strengths in the budget friendly, easy to operate live sound market. Having used the TouchMix-16 periodically over the last few years, the mixer’s firmware has come a long way. My friends at Meyer Marketing were gracious enough to loan me both a TouchMix-16 and a TouchMix-30 so I could test out the new features for this review.

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Sound Designer Elisheba Ittoop

Backstage Profile: Sound Designer Elisheba Ittoop

Sound designer and composer Elisheba Ittoop is always working to maintain a good balance between various aspects in her life. She balances her theater design career with other sound design work. She balances her work life and her family life. She balances maintaining professional footholds in multiple American cities. Every designer must find their own balance, and Ittoop works every day to constantly adjust hers, taking advantage of her background and skillsets to craft a life that has the right balance for her and responding to changes in her life to adjust her professional activity.

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FOH Sept. 2017 Buyers Guide - Power Distros

AC Power Distro Systems

In decades past, the typical sound company power distro setup seen on a gig was a DIY affair. They served their purpose, but with today’s sophisticated audio, backline, video and lighting systems, it pays to make and investment in clean, dependable power. Along with today’s amble selection of quality, reliable products, most of the manufacturers whose products are listed here will be happy to meet your specific needs with a solution that fits your needs. Check out the websites to see the latest offerings.

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At Valley Bible Fellowship in Las Vegas, three powered VUE Audiotechnik hs-28 subs below the stage complement flown hangs of VUE al-4 and al-4SB elements.

New Sound Systems: Powered or Unpowered?

Powered speaker systems have evolved considerably over the past 20 years. The popularity of powered speakers has exploded, the price has come down substantially and the performance has improved. I’ve met a lot of audio engineers and techs that prefer powered speakers by default just because of the convenience, and don’t really stop to think about the long-term implications of powered vs. unpowered systems. The realities of the powered vs. unpowered debate are complex, and one type of system is not necessarily better than the other. As with most things related to audio, your individual situation will dictate which type of system you choose.

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Moscow-based design and systems integration company, Muztorg.PRO, deployed a Martin Audio W8LM Mini Line Array system for LOFT in Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Recent Nightclub Projects

This month, FRONT of HOUSE takes a look at some recent installations nightclub sector — in particular, the new sound systems deployed for Hudson Ultra Bar in Hoboken NJ, Hard Rock Live in Las Vegas, the Oxford Social Club in San Diego, the Blue Whale in Los Angeles, Switch in Southampton, U.K. and LOFT in Dushanbe, Tajikistan (pictured here).

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