For the last two decades, I’ve been mixing at churches and installing house of worship sound systems (among other audio adventures). During this time, I’ve seen — and heard — a continuous evolution in the microphones that ministers prefer and use. For years, I would typically be asked to set up a stationary wired mic at a podium or — if the pastor/preacher went wireless — they might use a lavalier model.
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A stellar history filled with steady growth, a recent move into a 225,000-foot facility, and several awards — including a 2008 Parnelli for Best Regional Sound Company in North America — keep the people at Tour Tech East busy. Owner Peter Hendrickson knows he’s not gotten where he is by accident, and this affable Canadian keeps his sense of humor on at all times and his ego in check.
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Ahhhhhh, spring, when a boy’s thoughts turn to… events!
In the last four weeks, I’ve seen successes and debacles across a variety of events and venues, and this rant may be a way to get it out of my head, while giving you some food for thought.
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Today is Friday the 13th, so I guess it’s only fitting I’m writing Part 13 of these Waves plug-in reviews. I’m also guilty of distracted writing, because the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs have begun and I am hopelessly addicted to both playing and watching hockey. My Los Angeles Kings are definitely a long shot, but they won their first game on the road against the mighty Vancouver Canucks and are playing up there again tonight.
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Branson, Missouri has been a musician’s punch line long enough. Long considered music’s equivalent of an elephant’s graveyard (and the actual home of The Beverly Hillbillies’ Clampett clan), this Ozark town is actually an entertainment destination that many in the live concert and event business would envy. The town is hardly huge — it’s barely 21 square miles with a population of 10,500, yet it welcomes more than 8 million visitors a year — some 80 percent of whom come for the shows at Branson’s 50 theaters with 64,000-plus seats — more than you’d find on Broadway. The city was formally incorporated in 1912, so it’s fitting that for Branson’s 100th anniversary, we take a look at what makes this town such a draw for live sound.
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It’s almost become a rule that you’ll find a “system EQ” patched between the main L/R outputs of a mixing console and the subsequent stage of a PA system. Even in cases where digital mixers already incorporate onboard “patchable” software EQ, many system designers provide an outboard hardware EQ to facilitate quick and easy adjustments, especially in festival situations where not all engineers may be familiar with a particular desk.
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Last month, I wrote about the uses of small format consoles in houses of worship. So it would only make sense for me to focus on large format consoles this month. Actually, I will be writing about large and mid-sized consoles. For the purposes of this article, I’ll assume that you are looking for — or at least dreaming about — a bigger board for your sanctuary, and preferably a console with more channels, more aux sends, more features and generally more bells and whistles.
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An engineer friend of mine (now retired from the business) started his audio career in the early 1970s and spent the most part of the ensuing 30 years traveling throughout the world, mixing front of house and monitors. As well as being an excellent engineer, he is endowed with a charismatic charm, wit and a talent for networking. He was in with the Rock ‘n’ Roll elite and always had work with top-name acts in the business. In the latter part of the last century, he navigated a glamorous course that took him on an odyssey via the world of towering platform boots, big hair and colossal snare drum sounds to the north country of plaid shirts and ripped jeans. After a final bit of touring — which took him across an ocean of lip-synching divas to the lucrative strip-mined fields of boy-bands — he finally hung up his shoes and decided to settle down.
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Soundco
Dark Star Lighting & Production
Venue
Patrick Gym
University of Vermont
Burlington, VT
