We couldn't begin to fit Dave Fletcher's epic "Welcome to my Nightmare" submission in one issue. This is the second part of Fletcher's four-part saga of an escalating series of pranks and counter-pranks. The prankster's "two eyes for an eye" code of justice led to some mass destruction of hotel property, but, thankfully, the war games never degenerated into full-scale missile assaults or nuclear winter. -ed.
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The readers have spoken, and the results speak for themselves. What a mix of heroes. Some have never been in the winner's circle, some are returning; some are fairly young companies, some working through their 30-something years. Some are still building up business within the zip code they live, and at least one is outgrowing the "hometown hero" category.
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Like many, Paradise Show & Design founder Larry Epstein started as a freelancer and built a company. Unlike other entrepreneurial hopefuls starting out a quarter century ago, Epstein and his company is still around. One reason for the company's longevity is its ability to adapt to the changing needs of its customers. Epstein can count the clients Paradise Sound has lost on one hand. And for that, he credits his staff.
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Three years ago at London's PLASA show, Midas introduced the PRO6. Last year, they brought the PRO3 and PRO9, with full compatibility and an upgrade path. At that time, Midas also released the fixed-format DL251 stage-box, the heart of the PRO3, offering the functionality of a Heritage 3000 at a cost-effective price point. This year, Midas introduces the PRO2 and its more-compact cousin, the PRO2C, bringing near-PRO3 functionality down-market, using the same 100-meter 48 x 16 AES50 digital snake.
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Lake's new LM 44 Digital Audio Loudspeaker Processor is being introduced at London's PLASA show this month. Identical in many respects to the Lake LM 26, the LM 44 is distinguished primarily by a different input/output configuration.
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Lab.gruppen made its mark on the world of amplifiers with clean and highly efficient Class TD designs combining Class D efficiency with Class B sonic purity and driven by an optimized Regulated Switch Mode Power Supply (R.SMPS). Five years ago, Lab.gruppen introduced the C Series of 4- and 8-channel lo-Z and hi-Z installation amplifiers ranging from 125W to 2200W per channel.
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In the execution of live mixing art, one of the roles an engineer is required to fulfill is that of problem solver. In that capacity, it is necessary to experiment with very specific tools to implement the best possible solutions for each unique task. One recurring challenge has been dealing with instruments that sound great most of the time but demonstrate undesirable characteristics when played louder or higher in frequency. In other words, they get shrill and lose their more pleasing aspects. In my recent experience, two examples immediately come to mind – the high strings of a violin amplified through a piezo pickup, and the thinness of higher-pitched flute and piccolo sounds.
Read More »I want to share some of my ideas about bidding (and getting the contract) on a worship sound system. I realize that many of you don't do installs or bid on installations. However, at some point, every house of worship will need new gear and, possibly, an entire makeover. So it is very likely that you may be asked for your recommendations on what piece of gear or entire system will serve your house's needs best.
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In last month's T&P, we examined reverb and some of the ways that you can manipulate it for maximum effect (pun intended). This month, we'll dive into the bouncing world of delays and how you can use them to enhance your mix. As we did with reverb, let's briefly revisit the parameters available in a typical delay, whether it's hardware or software.
Read More »We've seen plenty of merger and acquisition activity in the live sound sector in the last several decades, but the vast majority has been of the vertical variety: larger live sound companies consuming smaller ones, or equals finding common ground, mainly with the intentions of growing market share and minimizing competition, the classic motivators for M&A activity. The acquisition of Showco by Clair Brothers in 2000 was a classic example, creating the largest sound reinforcement company in the world.
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I spend my days taking requests for a variety of equipment. From audio and lights to backline, tents, video and anything else pertaining to production; the requests keep coming in. All too often, these requests come from people who are not necessarily in our field and, therefore, certain requests employ malapropisms, misnomers, misspellings and just plain typos.
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