Frequency crossover networks have been around since the early days of movie theaters. Today we have active crossover networks besides the legacy passive networks for splitting out bands of audio signal to frequency-specific drivers (speakers). This installment of Theory and Practice will go backwards in history by first discussing crossovers, and working through the basics of passive crossover networks for a two-way speaker system.
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Everyone knows necessity is the mother of invention, so it's not a surprise that Marty Garcia saw an opportunity in 1982 to ease the vocal strain of Todd Rundgren with a change in monitoring techniques. What's not so clear is how he went from setting up monitor wedges one day to putting denture gel and ear buds into Rundgren's ears the next. "That's good," Garcia laughs. "The thing of it is that in my mind, I've always been trying to perfect what I thought was a good audio system."
Read More »The minds behind Masque Sound are transforming a bustling business into a booming empire. The veteran audio company, which has a recording studio in New York and a warehouse facility in Orlando, recently moved its headquarters into a 70,000-square-foot warehouse space in East Rutherford, N.J. Already catering to clients locally and nationally–from The Apprentice season finale in Manhattan to the Queen show in Vegas–the multi-faceted operation has brought all its various disciplines under one roof, from theatrical and broadcast to live sound and industrials.
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How do you do audio justice to a rock legend whose career spans more than 25 years? Well, one of the first and most crucial steps is to surround yourself with people, companies and gear that have proven themselves time and time again. When it came to planning the U.S. leg of R.E.M.'s recently launched 2004/2005 World Tour supporting their latest CD, Around the Sun, this meant handing the ball to FOH engineer Brett Eliason, who in turn joined forces with Seattle-based Carlson Audio Systems to design the
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Debuting in the completely rebuilt 1,951-seat theatre of Las Vegas' MGM Grand Hotel is KÀ, Cirque du Soleil's fifth Las Vegas extravaganza. Created and directed by acclaimed Québécois theatre and film director Robert Lepage, KÀ is one of the largest technical productions ever put together, combining acrobatics, martial arts, puppetry, multimedia, pyrotechnics, an original score and an elaborate sound design by Jonathan Deans. KÀ departs from previous Cirque productions by featuring a strongly defined story with clearly identified characters. Described by Cirque founder and CEO Guy Laliberte as "the most theatrical show we've ever done," KÀ is based on the ancient Egyptian belief in the ka, an invisible spiritual duplicate of the body that accompanies each person through this life and into the next. The tale is told as the saga of separated twins–a boy and a girl–who embark on a journey to fulfill their
Read More »Dear Anklebiters,
First, I would like to say that you guys are great. I have learned from and enjoyed your work over the last few months. Anyway, I do not own my own sound company, though I plan to one day soon. I am mainly a Front of House guy, but I can cover any position: stage manger, monitor world, doorman, bouncer, whatever. The only positions I have trouble with are ass kisser and babysitter. This brings me to my question: How do you make everyone happy, when the producer wants one thing, the club owner wants another and the band and their girlfriends want another?
Read More »Last year is now history. It is clear that the lessons we learn today give us the information we need tomorrow. One great lesson to learn may be that micro-management of your technical ministries is a vision-killing, energy-sucking, exhausting waste of energy.
That is exactly my thought as I look at the piles of technical literature, product reviews and magazines that are neatly stacked in alphabetized unread order in my office. How the heck can we absorb all this knowledge and put it to good use (or discard it)? I truly empathize with the worship leaders, executive pastors and AV technicians who are overwhelmed by the vastness of products and information being tossed their way.
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What do live sound and the rodeo have in common? Dirk Durham, Toby Keith's FOH engineer since 2000. "I've had two jobs–running sound and riding bareback horses," says Durham. "A good friend of mine is Ben Johnson, who's a pretty prolific singer/songwriter, and we traveled together–he wrote and I rode bareback horses. After the shows, he'd go in to the local VFWs and Moose Lodges, and they would rent to him and he'd play for the door. And I'd be there to drink beer and chase women, and he'd go, 'If you're going to hang out so much, then start rolling cords,' and I rolled cords, then moved to the monitor desk, and then to Front of House. And I thought, 'This is kind of like rodeoing: I'm traveling a bunch, and really not working more than an hour, and I think I might like doing this!'"
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A live audio mix is very much like the music that is being played, in as much as it is subjectively assessed by whomever is listening. Music that delightfully entices one listener may just be a snorer for others, and music that rocks one soul is an abomination to another. There is no accounting for taste and those who love Maroon 5 are no more passionate about their music than the lovers of Hilary Duff, Walter "Wolfman" Washington or GWAR.
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