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Unite Your Audience

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The standards stay, but innovation never ends.

Going strong, V3 software for the popular

CL and QL Series features a variety of

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This next step up includes an 8-band Parametric

EQ Option with Notch Filters, Real Time Analyzer

Function, 4 User Defined Key Banks, Surround Sound

Panning and Monitoring and so much more.

Perhaps most notable is the addition of the

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Live Sound International (ISSN 1079-0888) (USPS 011-619), Vol. 24 No.9, is published monthly by EH Publishing, 111 Speen Street, Suite 200, Framingham, MA 01701 USA. US/Canada/Mexico subscriptions are $60 per year. For all othercountries subscriptions are $140 per year, airmail. All subscriptions are payable by Visa, Master Card, American Express, or Discover Card only. Send all subscription inquiries to: Live Sound International, 111 Speen Street, Suite 200, Framingham, MA01701 USA. Canada Subscriptions: Canada Post Agreement Number 40612608. Send changes of address information and blocks of undeliverable copies to Pitney Bowes International, PO Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2. POSTMASTER: send

address changes to Live Sound International, PO Box 989, Framingham, MA 01701. Periodical Postage paid at Framingham, MA and additional mailing offices. Reproduction of this magazine in whole or part without written permission of the publisheris prohibited. Live Sound International® is a registered trademark of EH Publishing Inc. All rights reserved. 2015 EH Publishing. Check us out on the web at http://www.prosoundweb.com.

IN THIS ISSUE

FEATURES

20 | Ready For More

The audio scene on the Zac Brown Band’s Jekyll+ Hyde Tour. by Greg DeTogne

34 | Test DriveBreaking in a new rig on the Mercedes-Benz

Evolution event series. by Sam McLean

38 | Creative Strategies Techniques for when the console has too few –

or extra – channels. by Craig Leerman

46 | Playing In Peoria A significant system upgrade for a major Midwest

venue. by Live Sound Staff20

SEPTEMBER 2015

8 | Loading Dock EQUIPMENT New loudspeakers, con-

soles, software, and more.

10 | Backstage Class Thinking about the mix in a graphical way.

by Andy Coules

16 | SpotlightCarry-on mixing – going on tour with QSC

TouchMix. by Mark Frink

26 | ShowcaseKeeping up to speed on microphone ac-

cessories and cable. by Craig Leerman

30 | Front LinesSeven keys to making vocals sound like

you want them to sound. by Chris Huff

42 | Leading EdgeEliminating the cable in feeding delays with

the AiRocks Pro system. by Keith Clark

48 | World StageSonic excellence for a range of live produc-

tions. by Live Sound Staff

52 | Road TestChecking out the Shure QLX-D digital wire-

less microphone system. by Craig Leerman

54 | Real World GearEQUIPMENT Subwoofer principles and a

look at recent models. by Gary Parks

6 | From the Editor’s Desk

62 | NewsBytes

64 | Back Page

DEPARTMENTS

30 48

34

CREDIT: SOUTHERN REEL

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From the Editor’s Desk… I N T E R N A T I O N A L

VOLUME 24 | NUMBER 9

. c o m

Publisher | Kevin McPherson | [email protected]

Editor-In-Chief | Keith Clark | [email protected]

Senior Editor | M. Erik Matlock | [email protected]

Senior Contributing Editor | Craig Leerman | [email protected]

Church Sound Editor | Mike Sessler | [email protected]

Technical Consultant | Pat Brown | [email protected]

Art Director | Katie Stockham | [email protected]

ProSoundWeb.com

Editor-In-Chief | Keith Clark | [email protected]

Senior Editor | M. Erik Matlock | [email protected]

Product Specialist | Craig Leerman | [email protected]

Webmaster | Guy Caiola | [email protected]

Andy Coules | Chris Huff | Sam McLean

Mark Frink | Greg DeTogne | Gary Parks

Live Sound International

111 Speen Street, Suite 200

Framingham, MA 01701

Phone: 800.375.8015

www.livesoundint.com

Jeffrey Turner | Associate Publisher

415.455.8301 Fax: 801.640.1731

[email protected]

Mark Shemet | Associate Publisher Online, ProSoundWeb.com

603.532.4608 | Fax: 603.532.5855

[email protected]

Manuela Rosengard | Ad Production Director

508.663.1500 x226 | [email protected]

Jason Litchfield | Ad Production Manager

508.663.1500 x252 | [email protected]

Rachel Felson | Jr. Production Designer

[email protected]

Circulation and Customer Service inquiries should be made to:

Live Sound Customer Service

EH Publishing

Phone: 800-375-8015, ext 294

(Outside the U.S.: 508.663.1500 x294)

Fax: 508.663.1599

[email protected]

111 Speen Street, Suite 200

Framingham, MA 01701

EDITORIAL AND READER SERVICE RELATED EMAIL ADDRESSES

Circulation & Subscriptions | [email protected]

Loading Dock Submissions | [email protected]

World Wide Web Inquiries | [email protected]

Advertising Rate Information | [email protected]

REPRINTS: Wrights Reprints

877.652.5295 | [email protected]

We’ve been very fortunate to add Andy Coules as a regular contribu-

tor to these pages. As a long-time mix engineer, as well as an audio

educator, he delivers consistently insightful and

highly topical discussions. This issue is no exception, with Andy focus-

ing on the advantages of visualizing audio as a

way to better understand what’s happening, par-

ticularly with mixing. As he notes, a graphical

depiction can often be quite instructive in con-

veying an idea, and after reading his article, I

believe you’ll agree.

Craig Leerman consistently does yeo-

man’s work in looking at vital yet overlooked

aspects of audio work that, if not addressed, can quickly take down

a show. This time out, he puts his attention on the things necessaryto get optimum performance – or any performance at all – from

microphones.

What stands out is Craig’s experience in dealing with the ups and

downs of mic accessories, combined with his usual attention to detail

that informs us as to why he’s been successful in working on the front

lines of sound reinforcement for more than 30 years. Clips and cables

aren’t sexy, but if one or the other isn’t working properly, good luck –

regardless if it’s a bargain-bin mic or the latest studio-grade condenser.

Elsewhere, Craig also shares some creative ideas for getting the

most out of consoles, large and small. Mark Frink checks in with an

interesting report of deploying a very compact digital mixing platform with great success, while Chris Huff offers useful approaches to getting

the most out of vocals in the mix.

And as always, there’s much more. Enjoy the issue...

Keith Clark

Editor In Chief, Live Sound International/ProSoundWeb

[email protected]

ON THE COVER: The sound team for the

Zac Brown Band with an L-Acousticsarray at Nationals Park in Washington,

D.C. on the current Jekyll + Hyde Tour.

(Photo by Kyle Rippey/Southern Reel)

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@ Roland Professional A/V M-5000C A compact mixing console incorporating the O.H.R.C.A.

(Open High Resolution Configurable Architecture) platform

that offers a mix engine with 128 freely definable audio

paths, architecture supporting Dante, MADI, Waves

SoundGrid, and REAC protocols, and delivery over videousing SDI, DVI and SFP cabling. Built-in REAC ports sup-

port integration for multi-track recording/playback, Roland

M-48 personal mixers, and several I/O box choices, all

at 24-bit/96 kHz. The console itself has 16 inputs and 8

outputs, as well as a 72-bit summing bus. Control includes

a 12-inch color touch screen, 20 channel faders in three

groups, anchor points, DCA spills, multi-function knobs

and buttons, and a user assignable section. Remote

control software extends the user interface. The M-5000C

measures under 30 inches in width and weighs 70 pounds.

In addition, new software version 1.101 is available for theflagship M-5000 console and can be downloaded from the

company website. proav.roland.com

Powersoft ArmoníaPro Audio Suite 2.6.0 ¤ The latest update to the digital signal monitoring and pro-

cessing software that is compatible with the full range of

Powersoft amplifiers. It includes a firmware updater and

SnapRecall functionality for both the X Series and the

new Ottocanali DSP+D line of amplifiers. Also included

are new loudspeaker presets in the library, improve-

ments in system list representation, and upgraded DSP

metering. The new version is available for download at

the Powersoft Armonía Support Forum on the company

website. www.

powersoft-

audio.com

Yamaha DXS18 ¤The newest addition to the DXS Series of powered subwoofers incor-

porates an 18-inch woofer (with 4-inch voice coil) in a band-pass type

plywood enclosure equipped with M20 and 35 mm pole sockets andprotected by a durable LINE-X finish. The onboard class D amplifier

provides more than 1,000 watts of audio power, while proprietary DSP

technology with original D-XSUB processing supplies additional con-

trol of the LF range via two selectable

modes (BOOST and XTENDED LF).

A selectable crossover with three dif-

ferent options (80/100/120 Hz) and a

cardioid mode setting is also provided.

Maximum SPL is stated as 136 dB,

with extended LF response down to

32 Hz. An optional wheel kit is alsoavailable. www.yamahaproaudio.com

QSC TouchMixControl Android2

An free app for Android-

based tablets and smart-

phones, and like its iOS

predecessor, it offers com-

prehensive control of Touch-

Mix digital mixers, effectivelyreplicating the on-mixer touch screen interface. The full complement of

features is available to tablet device users on both platforms. On Android

smartphones or Apple iPhone and iPod Touch devices, the TouchMix

Control App operates as a compact, personal stage monitor Aux mix-

ing solution. Up to 12 external devices comprising any combination of

Android or iOS smartphones or tablets may be connected to a Touch-

Mix mixer. The Android app can be downloaded from Google Play while

the iOS app is available at the iTunes Store. www.qsc.com

K-array KR802 ¤ A packaged system that includes a pair of KMT218 (2 x 18-inch)

subwoofers joined by two KY102 mid-high loudspeakers loaded

with 4-inch neodymium elements. All have two channels of class D

amplification (2,500 watts per channel), housed in the subwoofers.

The rear panel provides input for a balanced

line signal, a balanced microphone signal with

phantom power, and digital signals in AES/EBU

protocol, also on an XLR for ease of cabling.

DSP functions, including EQ, can be controlled

with remote management software via USB

or RS485, again on a standard XLR. The

DSP also provides the ability to establish

presets. www.k-array.com

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


www.ProSoundWeb.com September 2015 Live Sound International 9

Products Fresh Off the Truck

RCF VMAX Series ¤ A family of loudspeakers with focused horn directivity that are designed

for both portable and permanent applications. Woofer choices in full-range

models include 6-inch, 10-inch, 15-inch, and dual 15-inch, with subsavailable in dual 18-inch and dual 21-inch configurations. Dispersion is 90

x 60 degrees for the 6-inch and 10-inch models, and 90 x 40 degrees for

both 15-inch designs. All incorporate proprietary Precision Hyper-Vented

woofers and Constant Matching Design of transduc-

ers that help maximize efficiency and output. Cabinets

are made of reinforced construction birch

protected with weather-resistant polyurea

paint, while grilles are epoxy-coated steel. The

2-way models have a stage monitoring angle

and also include a pole mount cup and M10

flypoints for permanentinstallation.

www.rcf-usa.com

@ Yamaha v3.1 For CL/QL,StageMix v5.1Firmware update version 3.1 adds new features to CL/

QL Series digital consoles, including control of the

RSio64-D that serves as a bridge between a Dante net-

work and the MY-card format. It's also now possibleto update both the console firmware and the Dante

firmware from a USB drive in one operation. StageMix

v5.1 for CL, M7CL and LS9 consoles offers 121-band

real-time analyzer (RTA) support. New features in v5.1

for CL/QL consoles include an improved USB recorder.

The free updates can be downloaded from the com-

pany website. www.yamahaca.com

Lab.gruppen LUCIA Application

Browser2 A new ver-

sion of the

configura-

tion soft-

ware for all six LUCIA power

amplifiers – including the two new 70-volt models

– that can access the full set of matrixing and DSP

features. It also now includes custom EQ on inputs,

custom EQ or preset recall for each discrete output,

reconfigurable GPI ports, and more. The free software

can be downloaded from the company website.

www.labgruppen.com

Shure ULX-D 900 MHz2Shure ULX-D digital wireless systems are now available in the 900 MHz ISM frequency

band; specifically, components and accessories are optimized for use within regional

variations of the 902-928 MHz spectrum, generally known as the Industrial, Scientific, andMedical (ISM) band. In addition, the latest version of its Wireless Workbench 6 software

(version WWB 6.11.2) will offer a new Site Survey tool that assesses the availability of 900

MHz ISM spectrum in a particular venue. The Site Survey Tool uses the receiver to capture a long-term scan and processes the data to

provide a usability report, indicating an approximate number of usable channels in the ISM band. In the U.S., ULX-D 900 MHz systems

can support up to 12 compatible channels per frequency band, or up to 73 channels in high-density mode. www.shure.com

Aviom Mix320-A, Mix320-Y & Mix320-D ¤Three packages built around the company’s A320 personal mixer and

designed to accommodate six users. The Mix320-A includes an analog AN-

16/i v.2 input module with 16 TRS balanced inputs as the front end of the

system. The AN-16/i v.2 connects to a D400 A-Net distributor that supplies

digital data and DC power to its eight A-Net ports. Six A320s, six MT-1a

mic stand mounts, and seven 25-foot Cat-5 cable round out the package.

The Mix320-Y is for users of Yamaha digital consoles, and it includes a Y1

A-Net card to get digital audio from the console into the system. The Y1

card’s A-Net output connects to a D400 A-Net distributor, and from there

Cat-5 cables connect the six A320s. Mounts and Cat-5 cables are included

as well. The Mix320-D is designed for use with Dante-enabled consoles

and networks, and it includes a D400-Dante A-Net distributor that allows

up to 32 channels to be patched from the network to the system inputs. It

too includes six A320s, six

mounts, and all needed

Cat-5e cables. The pack-

ages are sold in the U.S.

only. www.aviom.com

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��

AUDIO VISUALIZATION

drum that has been miked in a standard

way, with a single microphone poking

through the hole in the front skin. Here

we can see there is slightly more energy

in the bottom and top of the sound (i.e.,

the thud and the click) than there is in

the middle – quite common when closemiking a kick drum. The right side of the

image represents the same signal after a

little EQ has been applied, in this instance

the bottom end has been enhanced while

the lower and upper mid range frequen-

cies have been reduced slightly to give that

classic kick drum sound.

EQ isn’t the only way we affect the

frequency content of sounds so let’s take

a look at some other methods (Figure 2).

On the left is a representation of a

snare drum that has been miked up in

standard manner – a single mic above

the top skin. In the middle is the same

snare with a high-pass filter applied, as

indicated by the fade (which denotes the

gradual reduction in the lower frequency

content). On the right is the same snare

after compression has been applied. In this

instance the compressor is limiting not

just the dynamic range of the snare (whichis difficult to depict in a static image) but

IT IS SAID THAT “a picture is worth a

thousand words” and nowhere is this more

applicable than when trying to teach com-

plex concepts. A graphical depiction can

often convey an idea better, and quicker,

than a whole bunch of words. This is

because our brains are mainly image pro-cessors, not word processors; the part of

our brain that processes words is actually

very small in comparison to the part that

processes visual information. Therefore

visual cues help us to better store and

retrieve complex information.

Bearing this in mind I’ve been

exploring various ways of representing

key audio concepts and terminology

visually. This invariably involves a cer-

tain degree of simplification but I thinkthe results are a useful weapon in the

battle against incomprehension.

Let’s start by looking at a simple

way to represent the frequency content

of a single sound, such as a kick drum,

shown here against a vertical axis denot-

ing frequency (Figure 1).

On the left is a representation of a kick

also it’s frequency content, resulting in a

tighter and punchier sound at the possible

expense of some of the finer detail.

Now that we’ve established a simple way to visually represent the different

sounds, and the ways in which we can

affect them, let’s take a look at a full

drum kit. The kit as a whole has the

widest frequency range of just about any

instrument (with the possible exception

of the pipe organ), from the low thud of

the kick drum to the fizzy sparkle of the

cymbals. It comprises multiple elements

that all need to be miked up in a way that

enables us to treat each individual soundin relative isolation such that when they

are combined, they complement each and

work together as a whole. If we take a

standard four-piece drum kit, miked up

in a standard way (i.e., a single mic on

each drum with a pair of overheard mics),

and just bring up all the faders, it might

“look” something like Figure 3.

I’ve now added panning information tothe horizontal axis to denote the position-

ing of the sounds within the stereo field

(at the moment everything is panned cen-

trally). The one thing that this depiction

makes obvious is the clutter that occurs

where the sounds overlap each other, par-

ticularly in the mid range where the kick,

snare and toms all produce sound energy.

This is a common cause of “muddiness”

in the drum mix – something which can

quite easily be addressed with a little EQand panning (Figure 4).

Thinking about the mix in a graphical way.

by Andy Coules

BACKSTAGECLASS

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

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:: Backstage Class ::

Here we can see that a bit of EQ has

been used to bring the bottom end of the

kick drum out, the kick has also been

compressed and a low pass filter has beenapplied. The snare has also been com-

pressed and a high pass filter has been

used to tame the lower mid energy. The

toms have been EQ’d and panned to cre-

ate some space for the snare and mimic

their physical placement in the kit. The

cymbals (or overheads) have been high

passed and panned wide to give the top

of the kit a nice sense of width.

Overall you can quite clearly see that

the processing, while quite subtle, hascreated space for each individual element

of the kit so they can be clearly heard but

also so they work together and comple-

ment each other. This avoids the mud-

diness that can so easily bog down the

drum sound and gives the kit the clarity

and definition that will help it to sound

good, even in the busiest of mixes.

Speaking of which, let’s take a look

at other common mix elements in the

form of a simple three guitar set-up, i.e.,

bass, rhythm and lead guitars (Figure 5).

This depiction shows the potential

for a messy sound in the lower mid

range where all three instruments pro-

duce energy. We can also clearly see themasking that commonly occurs when

the fundamental frequencies of the gui-

tar overlap and obscure the harmonics

of the bass. Guitars also tend to have a

pronounced low end as a result of the

use of directional microphones in close

proximity to speaker cabinets which

exacerbates the proximity effect.

Thankfully this can all easily be fixed

with high pass filters and a little pan-

ning (Figure 6).

First, the bass has been compressed,

which helps tighten it up and enables it

to rumble away at the bottom of the mix

without jumping out or dipping down.

The guitars have been high passed and

panned, which not only creates more

room for the bass but also helps them to

come across much more clearly. This may

result in the guitars sounding slightlythin when listened to in isolation, but

when combined with the bass, both

instruments will come across much better

while complimenting each other nicely.

Now that we have the tools to depict

key elements and processing lets take a

look at the mix as a whole.

Any musical performance that fea-

tures more than one melodic or rhythmic

element, be it live or recorded, requires

these elements to be mixed. Traditionallymusic was performed live and the mix

was achieved by intelligently positioning

the individual mix elements and aug-

menting where necessary. (You want the

violins to be louder? Get more violins!)

In the early days of recording, wherethe performance was captured com-

pletely live with one or two micro-

phones, a mix could be achieved by

moving the musicians relative to the

microphone(s), often during the perfor-

mance to create dynamic variation. In

live performance we’ve evolved methods

whereby each key element is miked or

taken direct individually, so that we can

treat them individually before combin-

ing them together in the mix.So what happens if we combine our

drum kit with the guitars and throw a

vocal on top? (Figure 7)

It’s starting to look a little messy now

but a mix is a complex interaction of

multiple elements, so that’s quite normal.

The vocals have been compressed to nar-

row their dynamic range and help them

sit on top of the mix, but there’s still arisk of them being swamped by the other

instruments that have energy in the same

frequency range (such as guitars). Being

as the vast majority of music we mix at

gigs is song based, ensuring the vocals

can be heard is a key challenge.

So what can we do to make them

stand out a bit more? (Figure 8)

The answer, of course, is reverb,

depicted here using an outer glow.

They key is to use a reverb that ’s smallenough to ensure the vocals don’t sound

Fig. 4

Fig. 5

Fig. 6

Fig. 7

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:: Backstage Class ::

too distant while exploiting the spectral

smearing and stereo widening that can

help to make the vocal sound bigger. A

plate with a reverb time between 1.0 and1.6 seconds and a pre delay below 10 ms

usually does the job. I sometimes find

that rolling off the top end (or adjust-

ing the high ratio) of the reverb helps

to make it sound more subtle – less like

a digital reverb and more like a natural

acoustic space around the vocal.

But that’s not the only way to make a

vocal stand out in a busy mix (Figure 9).

Another trick I like to use is to apply

a slap-back delay to the vocal, here

depicted by the black drop shadow. Aslap-back delay can be anything between

50 and 300 ms, but I find a setting of

between 100 and 180 ms works particu-

larly well on vocals in mid-tempo songs.

The feedback gain should be set so

there is only one audible repeat – typi-

cally achieved by setting it to 10 percent.

This creates a single echo very close to

the vocal which has the effect of dou-

bling it and helping it stand out against

the background noise. Again rolling offthe top end of the effect can help make

it less obvious and more subtle.

As mix engineers we’re always striving

to build better mixes, so hopefully these

pictures have been worth a few thousand

words and have provided a unique insight

into the process. We might think we mix

with our ears, but our brains are doing all

of the hard work, so anything that can

help us visualize such abstract concepts

will enable us to better understand thenature of the mix and produce consis-

tently high-quality results. n

ANDY COULES (andycoules.co.uk)

is a sound engineer and audio educator

who has toured the world with a diverse

array of acts in a wide range of genres.

Fig. 8 Fig. 9

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The QSC Touch-

Mix-16 on tour with

the author in Prague.

YES, I KNOW. When I first saw it

at NAMM two years ago, I thought it

was a toy, but while I was at Summer

NAMM’s new TEC Tracks, across the

aisle QSC was presenting “the world’s

most powerful and portable easy-to-usecompact digital mixer” with hourly live

performances.

TouchMix is well into its second year

and second software revision, so I knew

it was stable. Greg Mackie and Peter

Watts consulted with QSC to design

this unique little mixer, so I knew it was

well thought-out. What surprised me

was TouchMix’s sound quality.

I’d already begun my summer tour

with New Orleans’ most legendary doc-tor using a different monitor desk and

a different set of wedges every day, with

wildly varying travel – literally planes,

trains and automobiles – so TouchMix

seemed like a solution that could pro-

vide day-to-day consistency, in a pack-

age small enough to be hand carried.

There are two models: TouchMix-16

is bigger, with twice the inputs of the

TouchMix-8. The TM16 also has six

mono auxiliary sends on XLRs insteadof the TM8’s four, and two stereo aux

sends for hard-wired in-ear monitors

on TRS instead of one. The TM16 has

both a stereo cue and a stereo monitor

on TRS, as well as an independent XLR

talkback input, while the TM8 simply

has a cue output.

FULL PACKAGE

TouchMix puts pro desk features in

a laptop form factor: four-band fullyparametric EQ, variable high- and

95 dB, dynamic range of 105 dB and

latency of 1.6 milliseconds, compar-

ing favorably not only to budget digitalconsoles, but to many midrange profes-

sional touring products as well.

Each input XLR has its own analog

gain “trim” pre-amp control – two rows

of eight trim knobs below two rows of

eight XLRs. There’s up to 45 dB of gain

in the full clockwise position. I disliked

them at first, as they can be bumped and

are obviously non-recallable. However,

unlike most other consoles, TouchMix

has no faders or encoders except for itssingle Master Encoder, making dedi-

low-pass filters, compressors and gates

on every channel, plus class-A mic

preamps, pro-grade converters, outputEQ, limiting and delay, as well as eight

DCA and eight mute groups. In addi-

tion to all those aux sends, there are

four dedicated FX sends with multi-

parameter digital effects optimized for

live sound, emulating popular L-word

(“Lush”) and Y-word (“Dense”) plate,

room and hall presets, plus delay and

micro-pitch shift.

Both models employ 32-bit floating

point processing, with 44.1 or 48 kHzsampling. Specs include a S/N ratio of

Going on tour with QSC

TouchMix. by Mark Frink

CARRY-ON

MIXING

SPOTLIGHT

��

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



cated gain controls necessary. The seven

Shure BETA 57 and 58 vocal mics sit

nicely at “12 o’clock” while SM58s

might be at “2 o’clock.” The tour’s file-based front of house

engineer Andy Loy uses a 32-chan-

nel input list that fits a wide variety of

digital consoles, so it seemed like the

TouchMix-16 might not be big enough.

However, only 16 channels are needed

in the wedges.

Obviously all seven vocal mics are

needed. In addition to the trombone’s

wireless BETA 98 and the effects ped-

als fed from its UHF-R receiver, we mictwo guitar amps, use the XLR output

from Roland Guerin’s Aguilar DB 751

bass head, a Nord keyboard’s JDI, and

a Barcus-Berry CS-4000 piano pickup

that’s used with a Countryman Type 10

DI. That makes 14.

Herlin Riley’s Mapex drum kit uses

a total of 13 mics, an input list that

would satisfy most festivals. However,

the majority of bands I’ve worked with

need no more than kick and hi-hat in

their floor monitors. While some musi-

cians ask for snare drum in their wedge,

most get more than enough snare from

the hi-hat mic, which is always needed

(Figure 1).

The Shure KSM 13 7, lik e th e

KM184, is particularly smooth and

accurate, and when placed a half-footabove the hi-hat cymbals, is shadowed

from the snare drum enough to balance

against it, but also gets enough toms to

sound natural when combined with a

dynamic kick drum mic, for a total oftwo more monitor inputs.

By varying the hi-hat mic’s height,

high-pass filter and EQ, a variety of

drum sounds can be supplied, from

lots of hi-hat to an even blend of hat,

snare and toms. Without the pounding

of snare drum mics in monitor mixes,

everyone can monitor at lower levels,

helping conserve hearing, though it’s

not for everyone. Check it out.

ON THE ROAD

We began our run on smaller stages,

starting with a Philadelphia parking

lot gig. Moving into New England we

played the Bull Run in Shirley MA, the

Flying Monkey in Plymouth NH, The

Space in Westbury NY, the Westhamp-

ton Beach PAC, Infinity Hall in Hart-

ford CT, the Blue Ocean Music Hall in

Salisbury MA and Dartmouth College’s

Spaulding Auditorium.Each venue offered a new monitor

console and a different make and model

of floor monitor. The time needed to

build a new file is not always available,

unless you’re able to carry a wide vari-

ety of off-line editors. Even so, moving

from one monitor console to the next

means switching from one show file to

another, so the previous file on a similar

console may be from a show that’s weeks

or even months old, requiring substan-tial tweaking during sound check.

Console choices over four weeks

in no particular order ranged from

Yamaha M7CL, Soundcraft Vi6, Allen

& Heath GL2200, Avid D-Show, Avid

SC48 (twice), Midas PRO2, Sound-

craft MH3, Yamaha PM5D (twice),

Yamaha CL5, and Allen & Heath

GLD. Even using Yamaha’s file con-

version software, we stil l would have

been on other consoles more than halfthe time. And while it’s possible to

Fig. 1

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Flexible, durable multicore cable

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User-friendly cable solutions

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Custom-made cables & stage boxes

Large inventory and fast delivery

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::Spotlight ::

completely chart a desk, that also takes

time. The consistency of staying on

the same desk or file, night after night,

allows it to mature with daily input

channel and mix refinements, allowingmusicians to feel instantly comfortable

- like they’re stepping onto the same

stage over and over.

When working with “wedges du

jour,” a consistent set of mics and con-

sole are required for dependable results.

Using TouchMix’s graphic EQ with

Rational Acoustics Smaart DI to sys-

tematically flatten and contour thefrequency response of each day’s new

wedges is the beginning of a preset that

can be copied to every mix. Mix EQ

touch-ups are easily made with the iPad

at each mix, compensating for double

wedges or wedges hitting vocal mics

from the side (Figure 2).

TouchMix provides a 28-band third-

octave graphic equalizer on its six mono

mixes and on the main stereo mix, with

eight XLRs for easy interfacing with

power amps or self-powered loudspeak-

ers. While fully parametric EQ is consid-

ered best for tuning speakers, many agree

that for wedges, a graphic EQ is better

for balancing frequency response while

also managing gain before feedback. Third-octave ISO frequencies don’t

often fall where they’re needed, however

today’s manufactured floor monitors

exhibit fairly flat frequency response so

that their response can be managed with

a GEQ. There are sometimes a few sharp

peaks that fall between ISO frequencies,

but can be tamed using TouchMix’s four

notch filters (Figure 3).

WIFI & APP

TouchMix comes with a simple USB

WiFi dongle that works in uncluttered2.4 GHz environments and performed

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



well in 500-seat venues during our first

week. At the first larger venue, a greater

number of smartphones in the audience

overwhelmed the dongle, forcing opera-

tion from the TouchMix itself. The following day a dual-band 2.4/5

GHz “a-n” router was installed, con-

necting to TouchMix on the low band,

with it ’s SSID hidden, and connect-

ing to the iPad using its less congested

high band, where it worked flawlessly

in Manhattan, at the Newport Jazz Fest

and in Europe. A USB-to-Ethernet

adapter is an even more secure way to

get into a WiFi router.

iPad apps are great for monitor mix-ing, allowing operators to stand eye-to-eye

and ear-to-ear with performers on stage.

The TouchMix app is my new favorite. it

closely mimics TouchMix’s touch screen

and controls. The main difference is that

its Master Encoder jog-wheel is replaced

by up and down 1 dB fader “nudge” con-

trols that I enjoyed, good for both mixing

IEMs where smaller moves are better and

double or triple-tapping for wedges. The

iPad mini is slightly larger than Touch-Mix’s 7-inch screen and the app’s on-

screen faders are longer than the mixer’s,

though I prefer iPad’s even larger surface

for my big hands.

The app and the mixer’s GUI oper-

ate independently, so the iPad can act

as an extra user interface that shows and

controls different functions from those

controlled via the screen. This can beextended to multiple iPads, so that one

(or more) could mix monitors, while

another might be used for the FOH

mix even though TouchMix might be

located at the side of the stage. It would

even be possible to tile several tablets

together to display the entire TouchMix

console!

Substitute drummer Derrick Phil-

lips, who plays for Hank Williams, Jr.,

brought his custom IEMs and it waseasy to give him a hardwired in-ear mix

that he could control from his iPhone

from one of the TouchMix-16’s two

stereo auxiliaries by just using a head-

phone extension cable. The operator can

allow or restrict access to functions on

a per-device basis, keeping users from

adjusting anything but their own mix,

allowing the iPhone app to operate as a

personal monitor mixer.

For non-Apple users, QSC justreleased the Android version of the

app for tablets and smartphones that

requires Android OS 4.4.4 or newer and

TouchMix firmware V2.1.4922.

SIZE MATTERS

At 12 by 15 inches and 6 pounds,

TouchMix-16 is no bigger and slightly

lighter than my last Windows laptop.

Its cardboard retail box holds Touch-

Mix in a slim 13-inch by 22-inch fab-ric and hard foam zippered case with a

side compartment for its international

voltage power supply. Our trip to

Europe simply required using

an IEC cable with a Schuko

plug instead of an Edison.

SKB makes the injec-

tion molded 3i1813-7-

TMIX waterproof case for

TouchMix, with a custom

foam insert that accommodateseither model by removing a perforated

foam insert, plus a cutout for its power

supply, holding a standard or mini iPad

underneath. Not only does either case

meet carry-on restrictions, they even

fit overhead in smaller, three-acrossregional planes.

The latest firmware upgrade, version

2.1, includes options for Mandarin,

French, German, Russian and Span-

ish in addition to English, as well as

the ability to assign aux buses to the

left and right main outputs to act as

sub-groups.

TouchMix-16 is also capable of

direct recording all 20 (16 mic plus 2

stereo line) individual channels plus

one of its three stereo buses to a 7200

RPM external USB hard drive in 32-bit

broadcast wave format, and then play

those tracks back for virtual sound check

or virtual rehearsal.

If you’re looking for a mixer that cantake your band from rehearsal to promo-

tional appearance to support slot to fes-

tival stage and perhaps even headlining,

TouchMix is the smallest professional

solution you can carry with you in the

van and on the plane. ■

MARK FRINK is a long-time monitor

engineer and professional audio editor

and writer. He’s hosting the Live Sound

Expo at the 139th AES Convention in New York this October.

The author

mixing via

the Touch-Mix app.

TouchMix in its

SKB compactwaterproof case.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



F

:: Jekyll + Hyde Tour ::

rom the moment the Zac Brown Band first took the stage at

Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, this year’s Jekyll + Hyde Tour left a

large footprint wherever it went. Bigger, bolder, and just plain brashly

beyond anything the group has ever staged before, the tour rolls with

stadium-ready production that easily adapts to sheds and arenas.Consider that the stage is three stories high, and, given the right place to stand,

illuminated with enough LED screens to be clearly seen from outer space. With

a set list known to feature no less than 14 of 15 cuts from the new Jekyll + Hyde

album, the show has additionally been graced with guest appearances by the likes

of Kid Rock, Jewel, and Bela Fleck. Choirs commonly sit in, and as a demonstra-

tion of its genre-bending prowess, the band has been covering The Beatles’ “Let it

Be” and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” sauntered casually into EDM, and even

co-opted a quasi-show tune.

The tour, which is slated to wrap in December, will have completed nine stadium

dates before it ends, including the first show ever at Coors Field in Denver, two

shows at New York’s Citi Field, a three-night stand at Fenway Park in Boston, anda stop at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

CREDIT: ASSOCIATED PRESS

��

��

The audio scene on the Zac Brown Band’s

Jekyll + Hyde Tour. by Gregory A. DeTogne

Ready For

Perfect Marker

“If you’re trying to get your head around

what’s going on out here,” says systems

and FOH tech Preston Soper, “the

Fenway run makes a perfect marker. When we did that we had just come

out of Coors Field, went home for a

couple days, came back out and did a

arena in Boise, ID, went on to The

Gorge Amphitheatre, an iconic, very

large venue in Washington that some

consider one of the most scenic concert

locations in the world, and then right

into an amphitheater. To be successful in

these diverse kinds of environments, you

have to have the right tools to maintainboth sonic excellence and consistency.”

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



Soper, along with fellow audio tech

Chris Demonbreun and crew chief

Vic Wagner, meet the challenges of

these diverse venues with the aid of

an L-Acoustics K1/K2 rig supplied bySound Image. In a typical shed hang,

there are a dozen K1s per side on the

mains buttressed by six K1-SB cabinets

per side.

Kara cabinets spread out at a rate of

three per side for the main/underhangs,

while a sum total of 20 K2 enclosures

join in for aux coverage. In addition, a

dozen SB28 subs hug the ground and

six more Kara boxes stand-in at front fill.

“You can probably count on onehand how many sound checks we get

in a year,” Soper notes. “That’s why the

system’s consistency in performance is

so important to us. We get a line check

in the afternoon with the backline techs

and along with virtual playback, we’reable to hit our target curve for each

show with relative ease every night. A

nice, neutral curve is what we’re going

for, not too saturated in the low-end,

with a linear slope of about 3 dB per

octave from low to high.”

Powerful Tools

L-Acoustics Soundvision allows the

crew to render each environment in 3D,

place the loudspeakers in that virtualenvironment, and then view what the

EQ is and SPL will be over the entire

coverage area. The system is tuned

using an approach employing Ratio-

nal Acoustics Smaart IO and Focusrite

RedNet 4 mic preamps, a half-dozenISEMcon EMX-7150 measurement

mics, a Venue receiver from Lectro-

sonics, and a Ruckus Zone Flex T300

wireless access point.

“We’re using some powerful tools

before we even put anything up,” Soper

states. “A big part of being successful

every day is being able to do things effi-

ciently. We put out all six of our mea-

surement mics while tuning. We look at

everything on-axis and off-axis, and seehow it all comes together in real-time

The Zac Brown Band in

concert on the current

Jekyll + Hyde Tour.

CREDIT: KYLE RIPPEY/SOUTHERN REEL

The sound team hanging out withone of the Sound Image-supplied

L-Acoustics arrays. On the array are

Frank Sadler (left) and Vic Wagner,

and on the ground left to right are

Chris Demonbreun, Jake Bartol, Eric

Roderick, Andy Hill, and Preston Soper.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509




A look at the full system during sound check at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.

with Smaart at the console area. There

is no way we could do these shows as

fast as we need to without this level of

involvement.

“The L-Acoustics curve is really

spot-on and very musical right out of

the gate, but if you do your homework at

each stop quickly and accurately, you’re

going to have even better performance

over the entire coverage area,” he adds.For his part, front of house engineer

Eric Roderick was one of the primary

forces responsible for making the move

to L-Acoustics this year. “These are

bigger loudspeakers than we were using

before, and I definitely like them in the

stadiums,” he explains. “Our previous

rig did well, but every time I mixed on

an L-Acoustics system, I thought to

myself, ‘man, I gotta get back in front

of one of these’.” This system providesme with more of the body I want, and

I couldn’t be happier with everything

we’ve done so far this year.”

Moving Freely

Roderick – just like his counterpart,

monitor engineer Andy Hill – orches-

trates his mixes from behind a DiGiCo

SD7 digital console. With 112 inputs

coming in at his desk and a need for the

talent to move freely between the threedifferent levels of the stage, the show

is wireless-intense, with RF wrangler

and monitor tech Jake Bartol given

the task of keeping all the frequencies

aligned and functioning utilizing tools

that include IAS software, Sennheiser

WSM software, and Shure Wireless

Workbench 6. Frank Sadler is the

crew’s stage patch and Pro Tools guru.

While Zac Brown is indeed a pick-

shredding guitar player, Roderick saysthat his voice is “super-easy to work

with, he has great dynamic range and

belts it out. The only real trouble spots

– if you can call them that – are in the

800 Hz to 2K range. This is where I

have to squash things a little bit occa-

sionally. When he gets up high he loses

a little bit of low-end body, so I just

round it up with an upward lift in the

mid-low frequency range.”

Drawing from an acoustical paletteresiding entirely within his console, Rod-

erick relies heavily on Waves plug-ins,

with his favorite go-to tool for Brown’s

vocals being the C6 multiband compres-

sor. He also uses the C6 from the master

bus on the left/right mains to “kind of

squeeze down whatever may be sticking

out” as the occasion warrants. Further

benefits are realized with Waves CLA-

76 compression and some de-essing.

“I use the CLA-76 on Zac’s acous-tic, as well as on the violin,” Roderick

says. “And then I’ve really gotten into

one Preston turned me onto this year

called Center. It’s a stereo enhancer

plug-in a lot of people use for final

mixes and mastering. I use it on back-ground vocals and it spreads them out

really nice with fabulous imaging.”

When it comes to the totality of his

mix, Roderick builds his sound with an

emphasis on accurately translating that

which the band does so well onstage to

the crowd. “It’s about the band’s intrinsic

energy,” he imparts. “First and foremost

are the vocals. This is a very vocal and

harmony-oriented group of musicians, so

that’s always going to be square one forme, and everything else follows under it.”

Doing Many Things

Monitor engineer Andy Hill subscribes

to the notion that less is more in most

situations, even as he stands looking at

his SD7 that’s just about maxed-out in

terms of processing with the 160 inputs

he’s dealing with onstage.

“I couldn’t imagine doing this on

another platform,” he says with convic-tion. “I don’t think I could handle all the

ins-and-outs and complexities of what

we’re doing. My ability to essentially

do anything I want with any channel

or any button has been invaluable. We

have multi-instrumentalists onstage

that require different mixes for the dif-

ferent instruments they play. There are

a lot of people, guests included, doing

so many different things, and certain

songs are more complex than others.“The actual mixing is the most com-

plicated part,” he continues. “Different

people sing lead, play lead, there are a

multitude of different fills. Just keeping

track of that so everyone hears things

at the appropriate level and time keeps

me on my toes. I don’t go more than a

half second without moving a fader of

some kind.”

One way Hill keeps things as simple

as possible in his complex world is toset up his required input channels in a

C R

E D I T : K Y L E R I P P E Y / S O U T H E R N

R E E L

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


ANDREW DUBOWSKI / SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY

Read the full interview at

meyersound.com/sfsymphony

LEOPARD AND 900-LFCTHE NEWEST MEMBERS OF THE LEO FAMILY

“The more natural the sound, the more perfect the

amplification. LEOPARD’s sound is so natural, it fools

me into thinking the sound is not really amplified, even

though I know it is. That feels like magic.”

Andrew Dubowski,Director of Operations

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



separate fashion so that he can simply

un-mute them when they’re needed.

For example, for the band members who

play both guitar and keys on different

songs, he sets up separate channels that

accommodate both instruments. Then

he simply un-mutes them when required

and mutes them when they’re not.“This way, I don’t have to make an

actual level change,” he explains. “It’s

harder to get a level change exactly right

on the fly than it is to just mute and un-

mute a channel. I do the latter entirely

with the automation on the console, I

have a snapshot for each song. When I

change a snapshot, I know everything is

either correctly muted or un-muted for

everyone, and then I just concentrate

on balancing the mix.”

Fairly Quiet

When Brown plays electric guitar, it

runs through a pair of 4 x 12 cabinets

residing directly behind him onstage.

This fact notwithstanding, Hill still

describes his workspace as a “fairly quiet

stage,” with everyone tuned-in to the

proceedings courtesy of 20 channels of

Sennheiser SR2050 IEM receivers and

transmitters working with Jerry Harvey JH16 in-ear monitors, which give Hill

the low-distortion detail and accuracy

he’s after with increased headroom.

Brown’s lead vocals are captured via

a Sennheiser 5000 Series wireless unit

coupled with an MD 5235 capsule, a

pattern that repeats itself for the other

musicians when they need wireless else-

where on the elaborate set, and for back-

ing vocals. All instruments, including

horns, are spread across 22 channels of

instrument wireless. Wired microphones

for band members are Sennheiser e 935s.

Drums and percussion utilize a var-

ied collection of mics, with kick sound-ing forth via a Shure BETA 52, Shure

SM57s on snare, Sennheiser e 604s

on toms, a Shure SM7 for high-hat,

Sennheiser e 604s applied to rack and

floor toms, large-diaphragm AT-4050s

from Audio-Technica positioned as over-heads, and a percussion section served by

a phalanx of more SM57s, Sennheiser

MK4s for overheads, and other offerings.

Daring Moments

To be sure, there are daring moments to

be witnessed on the Jekyll + Hyde Tour,

both in a technical sense and among

the excursions made by the band into

uncharted territories, whether they be

with guest artists like Kid Rock leadingthe crowd in a sing-along of Stephen

Stills’ “Love the One Your With” or

taking on songs like “Beautiful Drug”

with its house-resonating bass loops

and club-sounding synths.

“Anything can happen out here,”

Hill says on a parting note. “You just

have to be ready, otherwise you’ll find

yourself quickly chasing your own tail.

That’s what has always made this one of

modern country’s most compelling acts.

Whatever happens going forward no

one can truly say with any certainty. Just

be ready for more, that’s my advice.” ■

GREGORY A. DETOGNE is a

writer and editor who has served the pro audio industry for the past 32 years.

Eric Roderick at the

front of house controls

at Nationals Park. C R E D I T : K Y L E R I P P E Y / S O U T H E R N

R E E L

C R E D I T : K Y L E R I P P E Y / S O U T H E R N

R E E L

Andy Hill mixing

monitors, with RF/

monitor tech Jake

Bartol next door

at his workstation.


8/20/2019 LSI 1509


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Microphone stands, clips, and cables

are some of the most underappreciated

items we use at every gig. Yet without

stands, clips and clamps to keep mics in

place, they won’t be able to pick up the

vocal or instrument. And cables are a

true lifeline of every system. It’s amazing

how many times I’ve seen a fantastic micconnected to a great PA via a lousy cable

that ruins the whole thing.

Bad cables are the biggest source

of problems at shows, and folks in our

business spend countless hours tracking

down problems that they (and related

issues) cause when troubleshooting

at gigs. Many of these problems can

be prevented by choosing the proper

cables combined with appropriate PM

(preventive maintenance) before the gig.So what constitutes a good mic cable?

There are some problems with using

high-Z mics. High impedance cables

perform like a low-pass filter, cutting the

high frequencies – with the severity of theloss determined mostly by the length of

the cable. Another problem is that high-

Z cables are much more susceptible to

electromagnetic interference (EMI), also

called radio frequency interference (RFI)

when the noise originates from the radio

frequency band. These issues make cable

runs longer than 20 feet problematic.

Using a low-impedance (usually

under 200 ohms) mic solves the cable

length issue. Standard analog low-impedance cable runs from 45 to 70

ohms. Digital cables need to be between

88 to 132 ohms to meet the AES/EBU

standard, with 100 to 120-ohm cables

being common. It’s O.K. to use a digital

cable for an analog signal, but not the

reverse because the lower impedance

from an analog cable can cause bit errors.

While low-impedance cables do suffer

from high-frequency loss over distance,

it’s with a much reduced effect. Oper-ating distances of hundreds of feet are

common with low-Z cable runs, with no

appreciable loss of signal quality.

To help combat noise, mic cables oper-

ate on the balanced principle and contain

two insulated conductors that are twisted

together inside a shield under the outer

jacket. The conductor that is in phase with

respect to the signal source is call the “hot”

wire or plus (+) signal, and the conductor

that is out of phase with the signal sourceis called the “cold” or minus (-) signal.

The audio signal is applied to the

pair of conductors differentially; that is

to say, one wire has the polarity of the

signal reversed but the levels are the

same. Any noise or outside interference

that gets into the signal lines will mostly

be defeated because one conductor trans-

mits the noise with a positive polarity

and the other is at a negative polarity.

When signals with opposite polarity(in this case, the noise) are combined,

It’s rugged yet flexible, shielded to help

reject interference, uses two or more

twisted current carrying conductors of

the right impedance, and is terminated

with quality connectors. Whew! That’s a

lot of stuff for a humble cable. Let’s break

things down, starting with impedance.

CABLE ANATOMY 101

Impedance is the resistance in an alter-

nating current (AC) circuit, expressed in

ohms and often abbreviated as the letter Z.

Early mics were typically high-impedance

models (approximately 10,000 ohms) that

were capable of producing higher output

voltages than their lower impedance coun-

terparts. It was cheaper to design mixer or

recorder input sections for high-Z mics

because their higher outputs required lessamplification than low-Z mics.

Keeping up to speed on microphone accessoriesand cable. by Craig Leerman

UNDERVALUED ASSETS

SHOWCASE

��

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::Showcase ::

they will cancel each other out. The rea-son the inner conductors are twisted is

that it allows external noise to be intro-

duced to both signal conductors equally

(or as equally as possible) and improves

the common-mode rejection ratio.

Some cables use four inner conductors

(two pairs of two) that offer better rejec-

tion from outside EMI like transformers.

The downside is that these “quad” cables

are more expensive and may be less flexible.

The outer shield is just as impor-tant as the inner conductors as it helps

block unwanted noise from EMI, RFI,

and even electrostatic noise from things

like fluorescent lighting. Shields are

made from small copper wires that are

braided (woven) or wrapped around thecentral insulated conductors, or they can

be made from a conductive foil.

Braided shields are usually found in

quality cables because they can provide

more than 95 percent surface cover-

age. However, they’re less flexible than

wrapped shielded cables.

Spiral wrapped shields are very com-

mon and offer great flexibility at the

cost of a little less shield coverage. Foil

shields offer 100 percent coverage butdon’t provide much flexibility and can

break under repeated flexing. Their use

is limited to cables that don’t get flexed

like in an install, or for use in snake cables

that don’t bend into tight radiuses.

Three-pin XLR connectors are used

with low-impedance mic cables and are

normally wired pin 1 connected to the

shield, pin 2 hot (+), and pin 3 con-

nected to the cold (-). A standard mic

cable has an XLR female connector atthe microphone end, and a male XLR

connector at the console end.

The female end has a locking mecha-

nism that will lock to a microphone or

a standard male XLR connector. Some

panel-mount female connectors found on

stage boxes or consoles can also feature

a locking mechanism, but many do not.

Quality connectors from companies like

Switchcraft or Neutrik should be used to

ensure long life and proper connectivity.

USAGE & MAINTENANCE

Cables should be cleaned regularly and

quickly inspected after every use while

being coiled. If a flat spot or cut is discov-

ered, the cable should be pulled from ser-

vice until a thorough examination can be

made. Speaking of coiling, cables should be

secured with Velcro straps or theatrical tie-

line (a.k.a., trick line) after they’re wrapped

up. Some folks like to secure a cable to itself with a half hitch knot, but that weakens the

cable and can leave gaps in the shield.

In use, try to run microphone cables

out of harm’s way where they won’t getdamaged by people walking on them or

trunks and carts rolling over them. If

a cable must be run where it might be

stepped on, tape it down securely and

cover it with a rug or rubber mat. Also

tape all around the perimeter of the rug

or mat so it won’t slip. Cables running

in higher traffic areas, or areas where

wheels might roll across them, should be

covered by ramps so they’re protected.

Always use gaffer tape – not duct/duck or masking tape. It holds better

and won’t leave a sticky residue on the

floor or on the cables. For general clean-

ing of outer cable jackets, I use a cleaner/

degreaser called Simple Green. For

removing sticky tape residue (and this

applies to other gear as well), the choice

is Goo Gone, a Citrus-based cleaner.

When that won’t cut it, I switch to a

stronger solvent called Goof Off, which

contains acetone, so caution is stronglyadvised. It will eat through many materials,

so just use enough to get rid of the gunk in

the affected area, and then thoroughly wash

the area clean of any remaining solvent.

COMMON PROBLEMS

Stands, clips, claws and clamps tend to

fly under the radar until they don’t work.

As a result, schedule a yearly inspection

and preventative maintenance session

for all of these items to keep them per-forming as intended.

(Top) Eurocable mic cable from

Link, consisting of two insulated

twisted conductors and drain wire,

all shielded with spiral copper for

efficient shielding. (Bottom) Link euro-

cable Starquad mic cable, offering

four conductors.

Neutrik XX-HE Series male and female

3-pin XLR connectors, and wiring

diagrams for both.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



One common issue with stands and

clamps is missing bolts that have loos-

ened and fallen out after a gig or dur-

ing transport. Replacement parts should

be available from the manufacturer, butif not, your local big box hardware store

should have something with the correct

standard or metric thread size that should

work. If not, try J.W. Winco (www.

jwwinco.com), which stocks a

wide variety of wing,

knurled, and handled nuts and bolts.

Another common problem is missing

rubber feet from tripod legs. Hardware

stores sell rubber chair tips in a variety of

sizes that could fit. Further, threads onstands tend to get damaged over time.

Fortunately they can be easily repaired

with just a few tools. Thread sizes for

North American stands are 5/8-27TPI for

the tube that connects to the mic clip, and

7/8-27TPI for the larger tube that goes to

an Atlas-style cast iron base.

If the threads are just slightly damaged,

use a die to “chase” the existing threads

and clean them up. If the threads are too

far gone, simply use a pipe/tube cutter andcut off the damaged threads, then use the

die to cut new threads. If you have trouble

finding the right die size, try JTS Machine

(http://jtsmach.com) and/or McMaster-

Carr (www.mcmaster.com) .

Repair parts are usually available

from the manufacturer for bad clutches

on stands. I just repaired some Atlas

stands in my inventory with Atlas

MSCE-K clutch repair kits and saved a

bundle over buying new stands.Don’t forget to check your clips! Mine

have a habit of loosening their own tilt

screws when nobody is looking. A few years

ago I got tired of the plastic clips break-

ing so invested in rubber clips to replace

them. They’re more rugged and often stay

attached to the stands all the time, but

they’re not as sturdy in holding up heavy

mics, so now we bring both styles to shows.

A little attention to all of these items is very

much worth the effort, both in terms ofday-to-day reliability and fewer problems

at gigs where time really counts. ■

Senior contributing editor CRAIG

LEERMAN is the owner of Tech Works,

a production company based in Las Vegas.

Keep an eye on mic clips, which are

often subject to a lot of stress from

show to show.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



�� IN 1878, A ROOM FULL of people

watched Thomas Edison’s new pho-

nograph spin and heard a voice read

“Mary Had A Little Lamb.” Despite

the excitement of hearing the first audio

recording, I’ll bet someone thought,

“That sounds like crap.” Having heard

the recording, I agree.Mixing the spoken word is a task

in itself, but to mix singers and blend

them with a band is an even more

daunting task. Singers produce a range

of sounds, good and bad, and no two

voices are alike. This means each vocal

must be uniquely mixed. What works

for one person’s voice isn’t right for

another. The good news is that I’ve

identified seven areas of vocal mixing

to focus on that take a lot of the hassleout of the process.

set at 180 Hz. My process is to roll it

higher and higher until hearing a nega-

tive impact on the voice, and then pull

it back a few hertz.Male vocals can have excessive low

end, so console functionality permitting,

also take a 3 to 6 dB cut in the 250 to

350 Hz range. This eliminates the mud-

diness in most male vocals.

REMOVE HARSHNESS

There’s no such thing as a perfect sing-

ing voice. Even the best singers have

slight imperfections in the sounds they

produce. ( Just don’t tell them I saidthat.) These imperfections are usually

in the 2.5 to 4 kHz range.

Find the sweet spot to remove the

harshest frequencies. With an ana-

log console, use its sweeping-mid or a

graphical EQ frequency selector. Start

at the 4 kHz point and apply a 6 dB cut.

Then slowly sweep that frequency down

until the vocals clear up. Next, decrease

or increase the cut as required.

Analog consoles have a fixed bandwidth and therefore the cut will affect

frequencies centered on the primary

selected frequency, though in lesser

amounts, like an upside-down moun-

tain. However, this bandwidth (Q)

can be altered on digital consoles. The

tighter the bandwidth for cutting the

better, because harsh frequencies are

best removed with surgical precision –

though without the worry of a malprac-

tice lawsuit.

TURN ON THE LIGHTS

Add brightness to the vocal with boosts

to select high-end frequencies. The

boost creates a bright and sometimes

airy sound. The amount to add depends

on the style of music, the song arrange-

ment, the vocal, and what sounds good

in the room.

Apply a gentle boost of 3 to 4 dB

above the 6 kHz point. Sweep thispoint up until it produces the desired

ROLL IT OFF

There’s no reason for low-end frequen-

cies to be in a vocal channel. Unless it’s

an acapella group, musical instruments

such as the drum kit, bass, and to a lesser

extent electric guitar should be the only

things that populate the sub-200 Hz

frequencies. A vocal microphone can pick up

these sounds, either directly or through

stage monitors, as well as any extraneous

low end from the singer. Remove these

by using a high-pass filter.

The filter can be fixed-point, such as

rolling off frequencies below a set point,

usually in the 80 to 120 Hz range, or

it can be a variable filter. My personal

preference is to roll off at as high a point

as possible. For example, I regularly work with a singer that needs the filter

Seven keys to making it sound like youwant it to sound. by Chris Huff

VOCAL MIXING BASICS

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:: Front Lines ::

results. This is easy with consoles that

have more than one sweeping-mid.

In the case of consoles without, use

the peaking high-end EQ control to

increase that boost for all the high-endfrequencies.

MAKE IT SMOOTH

Despite the previous steps, a vocal mix

can still be wanting. The bad stuff ’s

gone, and it’s got some sparkle, but it’s

not quite there. Enter Mr. Smooth.

There’s a danger zone in the mid-

range. One wrong move and the vocals

can sound flat and dull or harsh and

annoying. Welcome to the 1 to 2 kHzrange. Sweep a tight cut in this range.

This can be more of a problem area

than the 2.5 to 4 kHz range, so when

limited to the number of frequency

manipulations, opt for which has the

greatest impact.

BRING OUT THE BASS

Some lower-mids might be needed to

add substance to the voice. Boost in

the 200 to 600 Hz range. As noted

earlier, vocal characteristics vary widely, so whi le some singers might

have plenty of energy in this range,

others might be in desperate need of

it. Don’t make them sound like some-

one they ’re not; rather, the goal is to

make them sound like a better version

of themselves.

Earlier, I mentioned cutting in the

300 Hz range for male vocals. But

doesn’t this contrast with the aforemen-

tioned tip on boosting? Yes. No. Maybe.Mixing is a process of additive and

subtractive measures. The difficulty is

in deciding what to do first. I’ve found

the most success in removing as much

of the bad as possible, and then lis-

tening to what remains and boosting

where appropriate.

A vocal that’s devoid of much in

the 300 Hz range is a vocal that’s not

going to have the natural muddiness and

therefore might be a prime candidate forsuch a boost. This doesn’t mean mud-

diness is added. It just depends on the

specific voice characteristics as well as

the style of music.

OTHER CHANNELS

Time to work on the other channels.

Much of the natural voice is in the

mid-range frequencies, and so are the

fundamental frequencies of most other

instruments. Part of mixing a good vocalis making room for it in the mix. The

vocal needs to own the primary area

where it shines through. This doesn’t

come by boosting only the good – it

also comes by carving out space from

other channels.

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Look to vocal and instrument

channels that clash with the vocal.

Determine which “owns” that primary

frequency area, and then adjust the

others by applying a slight cut in thatarea. I’ve gone back and found I had

two channels where both had the same

frequency boost applied – of course

they clashed.

THE ONE QUESTION

Audio production is part science and

part art where too often the scientific

mind is allowed to dominate. This hap-

pens a lot with EQ work. During any

of the above processes, you might askthe question, “Does this sound good?”

The question (and its answers) come

from trial and error. Boost here, evalu-

ate. Boost there, evaluate.

There’s another way. During the

vocal mixing process, imagine how the

vocalist should sound. Ask these ques-

tions: What frequency areas dominate?

What areas are minimal? How does it

fit into the overall mix?

Then go to those key mix areas, suchas using the high-pass filter or adding

brightness, and apply those measures

so they meet the sound in your head.

A great vocal mix can be imagined and

then worked towards. It’s much harder

and less likely to be obtained through

trial and error.

This process isn’t easy for those

new to the EQ process and frequency

band characteristics. But learning is

just a matter of time and practice. Thekey is asking the one question that

matters: “Does it sound like I want it

to sound?”

Use the above mixing areas to

improve vocal mixes. Once the vocal

channel is sounding great, reach for the

reverb. Or don’t. It depends on a few

things, now doesn’t it? ■

CHRIS HUFF is a long-time practitio-

ner of church sound and writes at Behind

The Mixer (www.behindthemixer.com),

covering topics ranging from audio fun-

damentals to dealing with musicians –

and everything in between.

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THE MERCEDES-BENZEvolution

tour is designed to attract millennials

by combining sophisticated automo-

biles with cutting-edge live music, per-

sonal style activities and interactive art

exhibits. The ongoing U.S. tour rolled

out in New York City followed by dates

in Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta and

Austin, expected to draw up to 3,000music enthusiasts that have expressed

interest in the automaker’s brand.

Miami-based SRX Events has

teamed up with Mix3 Sound, also based

in Miami, to provide full production for

the tour. Mix3 is tasked with deploying

sound, video and lighting systems for each

event, with owner John Ferlito choos-

ing to roll out his new Eastern Acoustic

Works (EAW) Anya line arrays. “I looked

at many different line array systems andtalked to a lot of audio professionals in

“most sought-after DJ of the world,”

DJ Ruckus, followed by British rock

band Bastille or Passion Pit,

an “indietronica” band fromMassachusetts.

“The tour was always going

to be a challenge because each

of the venues was completely

different,” says Ferlito. “New

York and Los Angeles were simpler,

because those venues were equipped

with house PA systems, while in Chi-

cago, Atlanta and Austin, we’re han-

dling everything.”

Part of Navy Pier’s original 1916 con-struction, the 18,000-square-foot Aon

Grand Ballroom has a sweeping 80-foot

domed ceiling, a large platform stage at

the front of the room, and panoramic

views of the Chicago lakefront via win-

dows in the other three walls. For Evolu-

tion, the main floor offered a dance floor

surrounded by several bars, numerous

Mercedes-Benz vehicles, and interactive

attractions. The balcony, which wraps

around the room, provided a VIP area andalso served as the front of house location.

“It’s a large, reverberant space, so we

directed most of the sound on the main

floor and kept it off the walls and ceil-

ings as much as possible,” Ferlito notes.

“Because the only place for FOH was

Miami before making my decision – it

was an investment for now and the

future,” Ferlito explains during a stop at

the Aon Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier in

Chicago. “When I heard Anya I knew it

was exactly what we were looking for. It

still amazes me how easy it is to use whilesounding so great.”

VARYING VENUES

Each date offers a performance by

Grammy Award-winning musi-

cian/DJ ?uestlove or GQ magazine’s

Breaking in a new rig

on the Mercedes-Benz

Evolution tour.

by Sam McLean

TEST DRIVE

ONTOUR

��

A perspective of the EAW

Anya arrays and the cover-age area for the Evolution

tour stop at the Aon Grand

Ballroom on Chicago’s Navy

Pier. (Inset) Indie band Bastille

guitarist Will Farquarson per-

forming on the tour.

Mix engineer Paul Cooper and

his Avid VENUE console at the

unusual front of house position

at the Aon Grand Ballroom.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


8/20/2019 LSI 1509



:: On Tour ::

the balcony, we had to aim some sound

up there as well.”

The PA consisted of left-right arrays

each made up of eight self-powered

Anya modules, with six EAW SB1002

dual 18-inch subwoofers ground stackedtwo-high/three-wide beneath. Compact

EAW JF56NT loudspeakers placed

on top of the subs delivered front fill,

while another JF56NT was positioned

center stage to provide monitoring for

Bastille. The subs and fill loudspeakers

were both driven by Crown Audio MA

5000i amplifiers joined in their stage-

left racks by EAW UX8800 DSP.

DIRECTIONAL NATUREPaul Cooper, Bastille’s long-time engi-

neer, mixed on an Avid VENUE SC48

digital console from his balcony perch.

“The footprint and features are every-

thing we need when doing shows of this

size,” Cooper says, pointing specifically

to plug-in and Pro Tools support as two

of the console’s bigger plusses.

This was his first time out with

Anya, Cooper notes, and he found it ’s

directional nature appealing, while still

offering enough coverage flexibility to

render out fills unnecessary. All of the

22 transducers in each Anya modulereceive independent power and pro-

cessing, working hand-in-hand with

the Resolution 2 simulation program

that predicts the performance of arrays

within a venue. Once the parameters are

input into the software, the arrays pro-

duce a customized three-dimensional

wavefront that delivers phase-coherent,

full-range response across the coverage

area as defined by the user in real-time.

“Resolution makes the set-up of thesystem straightforward,” Ferlito says.

“Once you’re familiar with the program,

it’s simple to enter the required infor-

mation and let the software determine

how many boxes are required to ensure

even, consistent coverage throughout

the venue.”

“Navy Pier isn’t the easiest place to

work, especially with the mix position

(on this occasion) up on the balcony,”Cooper adds. “The lack of real treatment

and the ceiling bowl create somewhat of

a chamber, which is better suited to lower

volumes.” In addition, as a corporate show,

the usual audience absorption wasn’t what

it normally would be, with most of the

floor space occupied by the stalls and car

displays, adding to the acoustic challenge.

“Despite that, the clarity of the system

shone through, and things were legible

and clear,” he continues. “I’d like to hearthe system in a more controlled environ-

ment, but I think I would happily recom-

mend it as an option to people based on

its top-end clarity and spread alone.”

With the Chicago date occurring

early in the tour, Ferlito points out that

there’s still plenty of work to be done

to prepare for the remaining stops. “I’ve

not been able to scout the other venues

yet, but that’s another reason I feel com-

fortable with our decision to use Anya.It’s an extremely flexible system that is

simple to set up and tear down.

“And if there’s a change in plans?

If they add balcony seating or expand

the show floor at the last minute? We’re

OK,” he concludes. “We don’t have to

take it down and modify the arrays, we

just make a few adjustments in the soft-

ware and it’s all set.”

SAM MCLEAN is a long-time writer working in pro audio, based in the U.S.

Looking up at the distinct profile of one

of the Anya arrays flown in Chicago.

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THE FIR ST “BIG” mixing consoles

I owned were a 12-channel Kelsey and

a 16-channel Yamaha PM1000. The

Kelsey saw the most use because the

PM1000 weighed in at 110 pounds,

and that was without the wooden case

I built for it.

With a limited number of channels,

buses and features available, I learned

to be quite frugal when deciding what

to mike onstage. For larger shows, theKelsey sometimes served as a sub mixer

for the drums and bass, feeding the

Yamaha.

One day a buddy asked me to mix on

his rig at a large outdoor jazz festival.

It sported a 32-channel PM1000, and I

was in heaven for two reasons. First, he

didn’t ask me to help lift or move it, and

second, I didn’t have to pick and choose

what to put in the PA. With 32 inputs

I could mike up everything onstage andstill have empty channels.

Regardless of the size of the console,

sometimes we have to be a little “cre-

ative” to get the desired results. Here are

some things I do.

DOUBLING UP

When running both front of house

and monitors from the same console,

it means that the monitors either share

the same channel EQ dialed in for the

mains (post EQ sends) or they do not

get any EQ at all (pre EQ sends). This

might not cut it for a picky performer or

an acoustic instrument.

What I do is use a simple splitter boxto send the microphone or DI to two

channels instead of one. The first chan-

nel is for the house mix and the second

(usually adjacent to the first) can be

“dialed in” with an acceptable EQ for

the monitors.

On smaller acoustic shows, I might

place every input into two channels,

effectively providing separate house and

monitor consoles. If there aren’t enough

splitter boxes handy, I can use a chan-nel’s direct output to feed the second

channel. On a digital console that offers

channel patching, simply patch an input

to more than one channel in the menu.

I’ve also used a second channel for

singers who want a significant amount

of effects in their monitors but don’t

want to hear the effects when they ’re

talking in between songs. Sure, I could

mute the FX masters, but on most of

my consoles they’re on a different layerby default. Using the second channel

for effects to the monitors, I can sim-

ply press the convenient mute button to

stop the effects as needed.

It’s also easier to dial in a good mix of

“dry” verses “wet” vocals in the monitors

because I can simply send dry effects to

the monitors from one channel, and

then wet it up as needed with the sec-

ond channel.

Another use for second channels ismaking a killer board recording. Many

Lacking, however, were moni-

tor buses, but it was a problem easily

solved back then by routing inputs to

one of the four mix matrix buses and

using those to feed stage wedges. Not

as ideal as having individual aux sends

on every channel, but musicians were

aware of technology limitations and

were happy to get more than one mix

in those days.

Fast forward to today. One of mysmall digital consoles offers 66 process-

ing channels and up to 14 mono buses

in a rack-mount form factor. With

onboard GEQs, FX units, comps and

gates, there’s no need to carry outboard

gear, and it can be picked up effortlessly.

But as full-featured as these smaller

boards are, bigger is often still better

because clients always seem to need

another feed or send somewhere, and

there’s almost always extra inputs thatshow up at the last minute.

Techniques for when the console has too few – or

extra – channels. by Craig Leerman

CREATIVE STRATEGIES

INFOCUS

��

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



of us make recordings of live shows,

and there are a lot of ways to do it.

“Down and dirty” board tapes can be

had by taking a copy of the main L+Routputs and sending them to a stereo

recording device. Newer digital consoles

may offer the option of recording a ste-

reo feed to a USB drive, but the mix

and some instruments may not sound

“right” because they were equalized and

balanced to be heard through the PA

rather than a recording.

Multi-track recordings can be attained

by sending the channel direct outputs to a

recorder or splitting off the inputs with asplitter snake or grabbing the inputs off a

digital network – but this involves using a

stand-alone multi-track recorder and pos-

sibly a lot more extra gear.

Sometimes all that’s needed is a good

stereo board tape. Sure, you can set up

a mix using an aux send, but this raises

the problem of sharing the EQ with

the house PA. Using second channels

on instruments or vocals that have been

“overly adjusted” to sound good in thehouse can result in a better recording

because you can have control over dif-

ficult stage sounds as well as EQ directly

for the recording.

MATRIX MIXING

For years I carried around a line-level

distribution amplifier in my rack because

I was always running out of outputs on

the corporate-type shows that make up

the majority of my work. I might onlyneed a few inputs but dozens of out-

puts for the main loudspeakers, delay

and fill loudspeakers, as well as feeds to

the venue for underbalcony fills, lobby

systems, overflow rooms, onstage andbackstage monitors, video and safety

recordings, intercoms and dressing

rooms, etc.

This is why I gravitate to consoles

that have extensive matrix sections. In

its most simple form, a matrix takes a

selection of inputs (usually derived from

the group and main output buses) and

allows routing of those signals, complete

with level control, to a series of outputs.

Complex matrix systems offer the abil-ity to choose from a variety of inputs,

including specific channels or external

sources, and may supply processing that

includes EQ, compression, limiting and

even signal delay.

A matrix adds a ton of flexibility to

a console and gives the user a lot of easy

solutions to routing problems, like add-

ing a support act console. While there are

many ways to tie two or more consoles

into a single PA, more than a few timesI’ve simply patched the support act con-

sole into the external matrix input on the

main console and fed the PA from both

consoles through the matrix out.

Another good use for a matrix is cre-

ating mix-minus feeds. This refers to a

program feed that has been remixed to

exclude one or more input components.

Sometimes the video people might

want the program audio minus the

playback audio they’re sending tofront of house, or

teleprompter

operators want

to hear the pro-

gram feed but

with less music.

I can whip up

a quick mix-

minus by routing

the various parts of the

program through subgroupsand into the matrix. Levels of

each feed can then simply be adjusted

as needed.

A trend I’ve been seeing of late is pro-

viding audio feeds for remote meetings. Ineed the audio from the remote site in the

PA, but don’t need to send it back to them.

so I’ll create a mix minus of the remote

audio by using the matrix, and then add

processing like leveling and compression

before sending to the remote site.

More than a few times I’ve been mix-

ing monitors from a smaller front of house

board and have run out of aux sends.

Using a matrix, I’ve set up side fill mixes

as well as individual performer mixes.

ADDITIONAL PURSUITS

One great feature about larger consoles

is, of course, more channels to use. I can

employ back-up mics or run back-up

lines without having to re-patch. Ever

wonder why there are two mics on the

podium at high-level events? One is

normally not on, serving as a spare that’s

already in place in case there is a prob-

lem with the main podium mic. Simplyun-muting this mic keeps the show roll-

ing. It’s the same reason we place two

lavalier mics on important presenters

at corporate shows or on lead actors in

theatrical performances.

Note: sometimes two different pat-

tern podium mics are used, like a car-

dioid and supercardioid, with the mix

engineer choosing between the two,

depending on the person speaking.

Larger channel counts allowme to do some things nor-

mally not pursued when I’m

running out of inputs.

For example, instead

of choos ing

between

An 8-channel version of the author’s

12-channel Kelsey console, circa the

mid-1970s.

Even smaller-format consoles

like this Yamaha QL1 afford

capabilities not imagined arelatively short time ago.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



:: In Focus ::

two overheads, or a single overhead

and a ride cymbal mic, I’ll probably

use two overheads and a ride cymbal

mic on the kit. Same with snare drum.

With enough channels, I often opt for

a bottom snare mic to pick up the snap,

capturing a better overall drum sound.

Extra channels can also be turned

into an ad hoc intercom system. I place

a mic at front of house, plug it into a

spare channel and send it to a poweredloudspeaker placed backstage via an

aux send. A mic placed backstage is

routed to a second spare channel, and

by pressing that channel’s PFL button,

I can hear the person backstage on my

headphones. Not perfect, but when the

intercom power supply loses its magic

smoke 15 minutes before a cue-heavy

show, you do what you have to do.

One more use for extra channels is

“phantom mixing.” Ever get to the point where you’re satisfied with the mix and

then a person walks up to FOH and tells

you that they can’t hear their girlfriend,

boyfriend, wife, child, niece, etc.? A

quick twist of an unused channel knob

and a sincere “Is that better?” usually

gets them out of your hair. ■




Even when you don’t have this many

channels and options, a matrix section

can considerably expand flexibil ity.

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I’VE SPOKEN WITH DOZENS of

live sound techs and engineers over the

years who have expressed (often longingly)

their wish for a way to reliably distribute

full-bandwidth audio signal wirelessly to

loudspeakers in remote locations, such as

delay towers that extend coverage at largerevents. The decades-long practice of run-

ning cable for this application has been,

and remains, somewhat expensive as well

as a hassle, i.e., preventing cable damage

or accidental unplugging with thousands

of people tromping around.

Attempts to utilize conventional enter-

tainment wireless systems have proven to

work marginally well, particularly when

the equipment is of premium quality,

but they’re not designed for this purpose,limited in both overall capability and by

a point-to-point distribution approach.

And then there’s the ongoing RF situa-

tion, with entertainment wireless losing

the 700 MHz spectrum a few years ago

and further changes still unclear.

All of this is why I was intrigued to

come across AiRocks Pro, offered by

as well as serving in various management

positions. For example, as CEO of RF

Solutions, an Atlanta-based startup, thecompany developed highly efficient 2.4

GHz and 5 GHz semiconductor power

amplifiers for the early WiFi market. He’s

now bringing that hard-earned expertise

to the pro audio market via AirNetix.

Hooper saw a traditional wireless audio

equipment landscape primarily made up

of systems with a single transmitter and

a receiver sending audio from point A to

point B. And while some newer wireless

audio systems have the ability to sendsignal from a single transmitter to mul-

tiple receivers. (“point-to-multipoint”),

because the FCC restricts the amount of

power that each transmitter can radiate,

the effective range is limited. Finally, there

weren’t any devices with the ability to be

configured as a transmitter and a receiver

simultaneously, again limiting range.

REPEAT THAT PLEASE

Hooper’s response with AiRocks Pro is anetwork system approach consisting of a

Atlanta-based AirNetix, while attending

the InfoComm 2015 show in Orlando.

AiRocks Pro is a multi-hop repeater sys-

tem designed to transmit wireless audio

to remote powered loudspeakers and

amplifier racks, operating in the license-

free 900 MHz band that penetrates walls,trees, people and other obstructions that

can limit higher frequency devices that

work at 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz.

As a result, it’s well-suited for delay

stack applications at concerts, festivals,

golf tournaments, parades, air shows,

auto races, and other events requiring

full-bandwidth, pro-quality audio signal

distribution over a large area. An AiRocks

Pro system also provides 158 mW of

effective transmitting power for range ofmore than 1,000 feet, as well as built-in

variable delay (up to 500 ms), XLR line-

level audio input and output, and network

control. The system provides 2-channel

stereo operation as well as single-channel

mono mode, and the hardware is housed

in weather-resistant aluminum enclosures

designed for outdoor use.

IDENTIFYING A NEED

Founded by Mike Hooper, AirNetixis focused on designing and develop-

ing digital wireless products for the pro

audio market. A self-described “long-

time serial entrepreneur,” Hooper has

more than 40 years of experience with

satellite and optical communications,

data networking, wireless semicon-

ductor development, WiMAX, WiFi,

power amplifiers and front-end modules

(FEMs) for mobile devices.

Over that time, he’s worn a lot of hats,developing both hardware and software

AiRocks Pro deployed by West Moon

Studios for the Arts Alive Festival in

Mission Viejo.

Eliminating the cable in feeding delays with the

AiRocks Pro system. by Keith Clark

WIRELESS DISTRIBUTION

LEADINGEDGE

��

AirNetix founder Mike Hooper with an AiRocks Pro ARX-900 unit.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


w w w . r i e d e l . n e t

I N T E L L I G E N T

N E T W O R K

S F O R E V

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A N Y F O R M A T

M E D I O R N

E T

R e a l - T i m e M e d i a N e t w o r k

A R T I S T

D i g i t a l M

a t r i x I n t e r c o m

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s e c u r i t y s o l u t i o n

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8/20/2019 LSI 1509



:: Leading Edge ::

single master unit and one or more relay

units, each able to be configured to oper-

ate either as the master or a relay. Two

types of units are available: the ARX-900

for mobile applications and the ARX-910 for installed applications. The only

differences between the two are that the

ARX-910 doesn’t include front panel

controls (saving cost) and is fully weather

proofed for long-term outdoor use.

Within an AiRocks Pro network,

each unit receives an audio transmis-

sion from a single “upstream” unit and

then re-transmits that same signal to

one or more “downstream” units. Each

unit creates its own point-to-multipointsub-network. The input to each sub-

network is the signal received by the

single uplink AiRocks Pro unit.

As a result, a network is a group of

one or more sub networks, all of which

emanate from a single network master.

Networks can be as simple as one master

unit and one relay unit in a point-to-point

configuration or as complex as 100 units

with multiple branches and sub-networks.

If there’s a failure of one of theupstream units, the downstream units

automatically scan for other AiRocks Pro

transmission within range. If an accept-

able signal is found, it then becomes the

input signal for that sub-network or any

newly created sub-networks. This auto-

matic switchover is accomplished with-

out the need for manual intervention.

TOOLBOX OF FUNCTIONS

It’s all set up and controlled viathe Network Management Sys-

tem (NMS), built into every

unit and providing a toolbox of

real-time monitor and control

functions. A remote spectrum

analyzer function scans the

local RF environment of any

remote unit and plots the

results of the scan on a spec-

trum analyzer graph in the

NMS relay monitor window,allowing the operator to keep

track of any potential interference at any

remote relay location.

Other critical functions that can be

monitored and controlled include receive

signal strength indicator (RSSI or receivesignal level), packet error rate (PER),

remote spectrum analysis (RSA), audio

level, and delay. Another feature called

Automatic Link Optimization (ALO)

continuously monitors the quality of the

link between units and automatically

selects a new transmission channel if the

interference level is too high.

Even if interference appears after the

initial installation has taken place, the

links continue to self-optimize to avoidany new or transient local interference.

The ALO scan and optimization takes

2 seconds, during which the audio out-

put from the unit is muted.

As noted, AiRocks Pro transmits at

158 mW of output power, which can

cover distances of more than 1,000 feet

with standard antennas. Utilizing an

optional directional 6 dBi Yagi antenna

boosts effective output power to 398

mW, and for extreme cases, the AiRocksPro has been authorized to use a 14 dBi

Yagi directional antenna, which means an

effective transmit power of 2500 mW.

IN THE REAL WORLD

Finally, AiRocks Pro operates in the unli-

censed, uncrowded 900 MHz radio band,

offering the flexibility to utilize the system

virtually anywhere in the U.S.

and Canada without dealing

with licensing while also less-ening the need for frequency

coordination and eliminating

intermodulation issues. It was

subject to a lengthy beta-

test process that concluded

this past April, with sev-

eral noted sound compa-

nies in the U.S. providing

Hooper with a range of

useful input that was incor-

porated into the system.One of those beta-

testers, Alex Moran, owner of Spider

Ranch Productions (South San Fran-cisco), notes, “We’ve used an AiRocks

Pro system in several of our more chal-

lenging venues and it performed flaw-

lessly. The transmit range is well beyond

any other product that we have tested,

and the rugged aluminum enclosure

makes it perfect for the hard knocks on

the road. And since any radio can be

configured as a transmitter or receiver,

we are able to quickly reconfigure our

RF link to and from the stage during alive event.”

Another user, Danny Gray of West

Moon Studios (Capistrano Beach, CA),

deployed AiRocks Pro for the Arts

Alive Festival in Mission Viejo this past

May. “I put two of the units 15 feet into

the air and the third on a regular tripod

speaker stand,” he explains. “Everything

worked as planned. The master node

was placed at the front of house mixing

position, with the others at 240 feet and460 feet from the stage.

“The software seems pretty com-

plete, although I will need to spend a

little more time with it. I especially like

the 500 ms delay, which worked really

wel l,” he concludes. “My client was

happy, and even happier that they didn’t

have to bury 460 feet of cable.” ■

KEITH CLARK is editor in chief

of Live Sound International andProSoundWeb.

A simplified overview of the AiRocks

Pro repeater process.

Single Unit – A closerlook at an ARX-900.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


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8/20/2019 LSI 1509



“WILL IT PLAY IN PEORIA? ”

asks the old adage. It certainly will at

the theater within the Peoria Civic Cen-

ter, thanks to a significant audio system

upgrade at the central Illinois city’s

leading venue for concerts, theatrical

productions, and other live events. Theupgrade also allows the theater to work

more cohesively with sister venues that

are also part of the civic center complex,

including Carver Arena and a conven-

tion center.

The sound design and installation

was provided by Peoria-based Advanced

Audio and Lighting for the 2,244-seat

venue, including its 16 skyboxes, balco-

nies, and underbalconies as well as ancil-

lary areas like dressing rooms and lobbyareas. A primary goal of the project was

MEETING UNIQUE NEEDS

The Biamp Tesira digital processing

platform implemented on the project

plays a key role in delivering maximumflexibility, with audio signal and control

transport via an AVB (Audio Video

Bridging) network design. Along with

a newly designed company switch and

proper electrical distribution, the system

exhibits an extremely low noise floor.

The AVB network protocol provides

imperceptible latency, excellent

clocking, and freedom from

interconnected ground loops. A

21-inch touch panel and mul-tiple LAN connections offer

convenient operator access to system

parameters along with a full-featured

virtual mixer for events with less input

requirements.

Keeling notes that the sonic quality

of the Tesira platform is also quite good,

commensurate with other premium dig-

ital processing options for sound rein-

forcement. “A lot of designers have needs

that are unique to their show,” he notes.“It’s not a generic thing. For example,

they may want to matrix sound effects

to specific locations or incorporate aux

fed subwoofers. Again, we can do that.

“The design of the system also allows

shows to come in with their own gear as

their needs require, and they can either

route or tie-in to our system,” he contin-

ues. “Flexibility is critical. Matrix routing.

Preset configurations for instant recall by

house staff. You name it. That’s all beenestablished within Tesira.” The platform

also handles signal delivery and manage-

ment to the subsidiary spaces noted ear-

lier (lobbies, dressing rooms, etc.).

PLENTY OF OPTIONS

The flexibility mantra also applies to

the main loudspeaker systems, joined by

quality full-range sound reinforcement.

Two loudspeaker sets can be utilized to

deliver coverage to the expansive mainfloor seating area as well as two balco-

bringing the theater, which opened in

1982, up to contemporary audio produc-

tion standards, and in fact that’s what

has been achieved – and then some.

Prior to the upgrade, rental systems

frequently had to be brought in, espe-

cially for concerts. Further, there was thedesire that the system offer a variety of

different configurations to better meet

the specific needs of each type of per-

formance visiting the venue.

“For example, when an off-Broad-

way engineer comes in and has specific

requirements and says, ‘shut certain zones

off,’ we can do it. Or he may want a spe-

cific EQ response from some compo-

nents, and we can do that,” explains Trent

Keeling, vice president of Advanced Audio and Lighting, who co-owns the

company with partner Graeme Brown.

Keeling also credits the contribu-

tions of the company’s team as being

crucial to what is ultimately a highly

successful outcome, including systems

engineers Nick Steinseifer and Don

Delong as well as installation foreman

Ryan Swearingian. “Other support staff

is too numerous for mention here – suf-

fice to say I couldn’t be more proud ofthis incredible team,” he says.

A significant system

upgrade for a major

Midwest venue.

by Live Sound Staff

PLAYING

IN PEORIA

��

PROJECTMEMO

A perspective of the the-

ater at the Peoria Civic

Center, including a view

of some of the venue’snew loudspeakers.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



nies on the rear wall and the rows of

skyboxes along each side. Left and right

line arrays flank the stage proscenium,

where they provide dynamic supportprimarily for concerts, while a distrib-

uted system anchored by a loudspeaker

cluster flown at center and joined by

numerous compact loudspeakers on

time delay can support other types of

performances or presentations.

The line arrays are each comprised of

nine RCF TTL55-A three-way active

modules, and beneath each are three

RCF TTL36-AS dual 18-inch active

subwoofers in cardioid configuration. According to Keeling, the RCF TTL

line arrays and subs were selected for

this project because their active designs

reduces amplification costs, they incor-

porate quality transducers that are

known in touring circles, and they offer

real value in performance versus cost.

“Competitively, when you look at

all of the loudspeakers available today,

RCF is right there with any of the big-

name players,” he says. “This was a year-long vetting and design process for our

team, working very closely with Eric

Yarbrough, the technical director of the

civic center. Eric is a seasoned profes-

sional and was able to provide us with

the huge variance of production scenar-

ios that were critical to the project’s suc-

cess. With the budget restraints that we

had, you don’t get any better than this.”

He adds, “The system can easily attain

115 dB continuous at the back wall. So it

can handle harder acts while also being

received very well by more acoustic-based

artists. We’ve had consistent compliments

from a wide range of touring engineers

since the arrays were implemented.”

Meanwhile, the center cluster is com-

prised of three Danley Sound Labs passive

loudspeakers – a single SH-50i for floor

seating joined by two SM-60s that provide down fill coverage. They’re housed in

a custom Polar Focus flying kit that allows

them to be easily removed when sightlines

for theatrical productions are impacted.

Further, the cluster itself can also

be used solely to provide coverage at

smaller events, with or without the four

RCF TT52-A two-way (dual 5-inch)

loudspeakers along the stage for front

fill. Direct coverage to the skyboxes is

attained with RCF C3108 compact pas-sive loudspeakers, while six more of these

loudspeakers bolster coverage to the

underbalony regions. Two RCF P5228

wide-coverage compact loudspeakers

reinforce the upper balcony seats.

ANOTHER LEVEL

All passive loudspeakers are driven

by Powersoft Ottocanali 8-channel

amplifiers that are specifically designed

for mid- and large-scale multi-zoneapplications. Higher power Ottocanali

12K4 amps drive the larger loudspeak-

ers while lower power Ottocanali 4K4

amps handle the smaller ones.

Two Avid VENUE Profile digital

consoles are on hand for use at front of

house and monitors, accompanied by

their respective stage boxes and digi-

tal snake system. The monitor console

feeds up to eight RCF TT25-SMAactive 12-inch monitors that can be

placed about the stage, as well as three

larger (dual-12-inch) TT45-SMA

active wedges and an RCF SUB8004-

AS 18-inch active sub for drummers.

All of this, combined with a versatile

loudspeaker control approach, has helped

take the venue to another level when it

comes to being seen as a top-tier facility

that appeals to a wider range of functions.

“Our design takes into account eventproduction costs and enhances the revenue

stream to the venue,” Keeling concludes.

“Management can be very competitive

when vying for events by noting the true

turnkey nature of the facilities. Potential

clients can walk into the venue and notice

right away how flexible it all is, as well as

how they won’t need to spend extra money

bringing in additional gear or labor. Plus

it sounds great. The venue has noticed a

huge uptick in outside promoters who want to use this premium venue.” ■

A view from the stage of much of thecoverage area presented by the theater.

Members of the Advanced Audio and Lighting team with theater technical directorEric Yarbrough. Left to right: Ryan Swearingian, Mike Buck, JJ Henkins, Trent Keeling,

Don Delong, Yarbrough, and Nick Steinseifer.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



ADVANCING

PERFORMANCE

�� MEETING THE CHALLENGE AT RED ROCKS

The Avett Brothers, currently touring the U.S. with Martin Audio

MLA supplied by Special Event Services (Winston-Salem, NC

and Nashville), recently played three sold-out dates at Red Rocks

Amphitheatre in Colorado. Known for the short distance from

FOH to the PA and a limited trim height to the top of the system,

Red Rocks also has an audience area that extends out roughly 300

feet from the front of the stage with a 105-foot vertical climb to

the top seats, about 60 feet above the roof of the venue.

SES deployed 16 MLA and two MLD (Downfill) enclo-

sures, with six ground-stacked MLX subs per side, to reproducethe band’s eclectic mix of bluegrass, country, punk, pop melodies,

folk, rock, honky-tonk and ragtime. “You’re so close to the PA at

Red Rocks that sometimes when you make changes to correct

the sound at FOH, where there is usually a lot of high end and

low mids coming off the system, it can have an adverse effect

at the top of the hill,” explains SES systems engineer Andrew

Steelman. “Also, you’re at much higher altitudes where there’s

less dense air for sound to travel through, and you’re very suscep-

tible to winds blowing through the audio at the top of the venue.

“With MLA, we were able to walk the show at the highest

seats and see that the people were enjoying the show and they were as engaged as those down in front, even in the quieter

moments, which really made me satisfied with the system’s

performance. MLA covered every seat in the venue and helped

us accomplish what we needed to in that environment, which

is to have an Avett Brothers show translate to every seat in thehouse. I’d have to say it was one of the best-sounding shows

I’ve heard at Red Rocks.”

KEEPING IT EFFICIENT

FOR FITZ AND THE TANTRUMS

Front of house engineer Aaron Glas is utilizing a Soundcraft Vi3000

digital console and Realtime Rack as centerpieces of his work on the

current tour by Fitz and The Tantrums. Led by vocalists Michael

Fitzpatrick and Noelle Scaggs, the rock/soul/R&B group is noted

for its unique sound and for high-energy live performances.

“The Vi3000 shares a Compact Stagebox with the Vi1 atmonitors, so it’s really efficient. We don’t have the need for an

analog split or analog snake, and it’s worked very well for us,” Glas

explains. “The band can change vibes quickly; they’ll move from

an old Motown sound to an electronic synth-y feel, and I need

to be able to switch instantaneously to keep the sound consistent

for the audience. The snapshots on the console help me with that.

I also make changes on the fly right along with the set list, and

even during different verses and choruses within the same song.”

Another challenge is the differences in vocal range and stylebetween the band’s two lead singers. “I have to keep up with

their dynamic ranges and movements of Fitz and Noelle on

stage,” Glas says. “That’s where a cool plug-in chain comes in

handy. Before using the Realtime Rack, I had an analog plug-

in chain with a series of compressors and EQs. Now I can

achieve the same result or better with the plug-ins.”

LARGE-SCALE COVERAGE

(AND THEN SOME) IN CENTRAL PARK

NY CityFest, a region-wide Christian initiative, recently teamed

up with Luis Palau and dozens of other partner evangelists tocelebrate its achievements with a free concert and gospel sermons

Sonic excellence for a

range of live productions.

by Live Sound Staff

WORLDSTAGE

A Martin Audio MLA array soaring at Red Rocks Amphitheatre

for the Avett Brothers.

Aaron Glas at the Soundcraft Vi3000 digital console for Fitz

and The Tantrums.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



K-array Firenze Series arrays on the main stage in Central Park.

Keech Rainwater of Lonestar with his new Mackie DL1608

digital mixer.

at Central Park in Manhattan. Attendance was limited to “only”60,000 people, plus another 20,000 encircling the perimeter.

Production company L&M Sound & Light (Staten Island)

provided a sound reinforcement system headed up by K-array

Firenze Series loudspeakers to deliver coverage to the 55-acre-

plus site. Specifically, the system incorporated a dozen KH8 line

array elements paired with eight KS8 subwoofers per side. Two

KH3 loudspeakers were combined with two KS5 subwoofers

for stage side fills to the left and the right of the performers.

At delay towers one and two, the longest array of KH7

loudspeakers ever assembled was flown, with five of the line

array elements connected end-to-end and hung vertically. They were joined by three KS5 subwoofers each that withstood a

couple hours of heavy rain followed by extended periods of

summer heat. The final set of towers consisted of four KH4

loudspeakers with eight KS4 subwoofers each.

“I was skeptical since I’d never seen a system setup like that

before and, on such a large platform with a global audience, we

had little room for error,” states Ryan Lampa, mix engineer for

Toby Mac. “But I was extremely pleased with the power, cov-

erage and accuracy right out of the box. I was inspired by the

clarity of the PA and found myself making the tiniest changes

to the mix and enjoying hearing those tiny changes.”

PRECISE OPTIMIZATION

OF PERSONAL MONITORS

After more than 20 years, nine Number 1 hits, nine more Top 10

hits, three platinum albums, and countless tours, country band

Lonestar is still thriving. On the band’s 2015 tour, co-founder

Keech Rainwater decided to employ a Mackie DL1608 digital

mixer with iPad control to tailor his own monitor mixes.

“With all of the DSP in the DL1608, I can EQ my kit

more precisely, so it’s snappier and brighter and cuts through

the acoustic sound of the drums without affecting anyone else’smix,” he notes. “I can add vintage EQs, I can pan each drum

the way I want, use gates, and have some compression so I can

hear the dynamics loud and clear. I can also add a bit of reverb,

which I could never do before.”

Rainwater still gets a monitor mix of vocals, guitars, and

so on, like the rest of the band. “I set the band mix in sound

check and rarely touch it during the show,” he says. He routes

his stereo band monitor mix to the DL1608’s channels 15 and

16, leaving the rest of the channel faders available to control his

personal drum mix and a click track. We use a DAW to sup-

ply a click track. I take a feed of the click track straight to my

DL1608, which lets me control it the way I want to,” he says. The mixer also fits in a suitcase or small Pelican case for

easy transport, while the iPad saves every change he makes in

a snapshot, so he saves multiple levels – gates, EQ settings,

reverb, compression, and so on.

DELIVERING DYNAMIC RANGE IN SOUTH KOREA

This year’s Ultra Music Festival (UMF) Korea at Jamsil Sup-

plementary Stadium in Seoul, South Korea drew more than

10,000 in featuring artists such as Snoop Dogg, Bright Lings,

Lil Jon and Galantis. Alpha Media Group (AMG) provided

Adamson Systems E-Series loudspeakers that were deployed

The scene at UMF Korea with coverage by Adamson SystemsE-Series.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



:: World Stage ::

at the main stage, with Sun Kim, technical support manager

for Sound Solutions (Adamson’s Korea distributor) assisting

with system design utilizing Adamson Blueprint AV software.

The system was headed by left-right arrays made up of twelve

E15 and two E12 enclosures. Seven E218 subwoofers werestacked on the stage under each line array, with four more E218

ground stacked in front of the stage for further bass support. Six

S10 enclosures were placed along the stage lip for front fill. “It

was a very stable system that handled the dynamic range of EDM

without missing a beat,” states front of house engineer Taejong

Park. “The sound was very clean, especially the low end.”

DJ monitoring was handled by six Adamson S10 enclosures

– three per side – stacked on a single subwoofer. The PA was

driven by Lab.gruppen PLM20kQ and PLM12k44 amplifiers

with two Lake LM44 units for processing.

“We were very pleased with the Adamson system at theshow,” adds Kim. “The field was transformed into a dance club

and the music was exceptional – Adamson is the top name in

the business and they lived up to their reputation.”

SONIC QUALITY & COMFORT FOR LIVE COUNTRY

The McCullough Girls, a country group delivering a blend of

bluegrass and folk, are utilizing Countryman ISOMAX Headset

microphones and Type 10 DIs on tour. The group’s bass player,

Dave Jeffrey, has worked with the Type 10 for several years and

recently added ISOMAX Headsets to the equipment list.

“We wanted to improve upon our wireless microphone set-up,so I began exploring available options. I was well aware of Coun-

tryman’s reputation for its microphones, and since my results with

the Type 10 DI were so positive, this was the first option.

“Based on a recommendation from Dolly Parton, I was the

first in the band to try the ISOMAX Headset, and, again, the

results were excellent,” he continues. “The ISOMAX is a great

sounding microphone. Mine is a tan-colored, hypercardioid

model. It delivers a really strong signal, is very musical, clean,

and full sounding. And it has a secure, comfortable fit, so it’s

not the least bit distracting during performances.”

Since then, vocalists Deborah and Callie McCullough have

also switched to ISOMAX. “We’re using both headsets with

Shure ULX-D wireless microphone systems, and together, theymake an excellent system.”

COVERAGE FOR A MILLION IN ROME

Earlier this summer, San Giovanni Square in Rome hosted a live

event for a reported crowd of one million people, with Cipiesse

(Centro di Programmazione Spettacoli) of Rezzato (Brescia)

delivering coverage with loudspeakers from Outline. The system

design, by Giancarlo Paladini and front of house engineer Raf-faella Gatti, was based on measurements carried out three years

before with Outline on the occasion of a huge May Day concert

organized by the country’s major trade unions.

The designers opted for two main stage-side clusters, each

with twelve Butterfly elements, plus two small arrays (each

with four Eidos 265 enclosures) on either side for front fill.

Two delay towers were also deployed, each with two hangs:

two with 12 Butterfly enclosures and the other two with 12

Mantas elements, approximately 70 yards from the main rig.

Apart from guitar groups accompanying choirs and singers,

along with video programming, the majority of the reinforce-ment was for presenters (journalists, legal experts, psycholo-

gists, and religious leaders). As a result, four Outline Subtech

218 subs at the stage and two at each delay tower were more

than sufficient for the low end.

“We used Outline’s Open Array software simulations,

which are always very realistic, so as usual on events of this

scale, we did a considerable amount of work with the soft-

ware, as we knew the rig would respond accordingly,” Gatti

explains, with Paladini adding, “We saw that the simulations

corresponded with reality and, as far as system calibration was

concerned, it was mainly a case of ‘plug and play’ thanks toOutline’s default presets.” n

Callie McCullough wearing her Countryman ISOMAX Headsetmicrophone.

Outline arrays flying at San Giovanni Square in Rome.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


www.eaw.com

Whether in hotel ballrooms, tents, outdoor stages, clubs, festivals or houses of worship – your clientswill notice how the pristine fidelity, coverage consistency and output capability of Redline™ enableseveryone in their audience to experience a connection.

They probably won’t notice the subtle hyperblack logos, the absence of fan noise, the hidden amplification on the cardioidsubs or the back panel LEDs that have been muted with the push of a button. But we’re confident you’ll agree that’s okay.

With Redline in your arsenal, the reviews of your company will be glowing. The drapes won’t be.

Redline. Engineered by professionals, for professionals.

Find out more and enquire about a demo at EAW.com.

Shown:RL12 in monitor orientation,

RL15 full-range over twoRL18S subwoofers in cardioid configuration

Some things your clients should notice.Others, they shouldn’t.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


THE SHURE QLX-D is a digital

wireless microphone system providing

24-bit digital audio, networked control,

compatibility with the company’s intel-

ligent rechargeable battery technology,

and AES-256 encryption.

The all-metal receiver is a half-rack

size and weighs just 1.7 pounds without

antennas. It’s powered via an external12-volt wall-mount power supply. The

front of the receiver offers a large backlit

color LCD screen, menu selection but-

tons, and power switch.

On the rear is a pair of BNC antenna

jacks, XLR and 1/4-inch audio output

jacks, mic/line level switch, network

connector, and power supply jack. Auto-

matic channel scan function is designed

to quickly find clean frequencies, and the

networked channel scan feature configuresopen frequencies for connected receivers.

Handheld transmitters are available

with a variety of replaceable elements,

including SM58, BETA 58A, BETA

87A, BETA 87C, SM86, SM87, KSM9

and KSM9HS. Body pack transmit-

ters can be accompanied by WL93, or

WL183/WL184/WL185 MicroFlex

lavalier mics, as well as the SM35 headset

mic. A WA305 instrument cable is also

offered, and there’s the option to orderthe system with just this cable.

Both handheld and beltpack trans-

mitters have rugged metal construction

and backlit LCDs. Transmitters provide

more than 120 dB of dynamic range

that eliminates transmitter gain adjust-

ments, and they also offer adjustable

transmit power settings. Pairing of

transmitters and receivers can be

paired over IR scan and sync.

The tuning bandwidth is 64 MHz,

with 67 preset compatible channels.

There are also 17 compatible systems

per 6 MHz channel and 22 systems per

8 MHz channel available to be used.

The four available bands include G50

(470.12-533.92 MHz), J50 (572.17-

635.9 MHz), L50 (632.17-695.9MHz), and H50 (534.0-597.92 MHz).

QLX-D works with networking

tools, including Shure Wireless Work-

bench 6 control software, third-party

control systems (AMX/Crestron), and

iOS devices for control and monitoring

with the ShurePlus Channels mobile

app. The AES-256 encryption comes

standard and can be enabled for secure

wireless transmission.

Transmitters are powered with eitherstandard AA alkaline batteries or Shure

SB900 intelligent lithium-ion recharge-

able power options that can provide up to

10 hours of continuous use. Battery run-

time is displayed in hours and minutes,

with the user selecting the type of

battery being employed – AL for

alkaline, nH for nickel metal hydride

and Li for lithium – to insure the

highest reporting accuracy.

TRYING IT OUT

I received a QLX-D24/

SM58 system for this

eva lua t ion , which

includes a hand-

held transmitter with an SM58 element.

Out of the box the first thing I noticed

was how nice the handheld transmitter

feels. It’s made of machined aluminum

and is very rugged. On the side of the

body is the LCD display, as well as a clear

IR window for syncing and a paddle-type

on/off switch.

While the system arr ived alreadysynced, I wanted to try out the channel

scanning and syncing features for myself.

Scanning the airwaves for a clean channel

is simply a matter of pressing the menu

button and then entering the scan mode.

The scan icon will flash when scanning,

and when complete the selected group

and channel, along with the frequency,

appear on the display.

Syncing a transmitter is accomplished

by pressing the sync button on the receiver. With the transmitter powered on, the user

aligns the IR windows of both units about

six inches away from each other. The red

sync light on the receiver flashes when in

sync mode and a blue RF light and the

word “GOOD” appear on the screen

when the transmitter is programmed.

Transmitters can also be programmed

manually with menu buttons that are

located under the battery covers.

With the system up and running Itested it in the shop. It sounded great,

and transmission was very solid – I

could walk around the entire shop, even

standing behind rows of metal pallet

shelving, without any dropouts or other

glitches. Satisfied that all was work-

ing correctly, it was time to deploy the

QLX-D at a few shows.

VARIETY OF EVENTS

The first gig was a block party with aDJ set up in the middle of a street here

Checking out a digital wireless microphone system.by Craig Leerman

Shure QLX-D

Shure QLX-D digital wireless sys-

tems are available with handheld

and body pack transmitter options.


8/20/2019 LSI 1509



A closer look at

both transmitters,

including their large,

clear displays.

in my home base of Las Vegas. With

the receiver located at the stage and the

transmitter set to high power (10 mW),

I could easily walk the entire length of

the street to where the food trucks were

parked, about 200 feet from the stage,

with zero dropouts or noise issues.Pretty good range to say the least! Dur-

ing the event, the DJ walked around the

crowd several times with the mic, and

again, there were no issues.

Next up was a jazz band with a female

vocalist at a Vegas casino ballroom. Nor-

mally I scan the airwaves for clear fre-

quencies with my RF Explorer

spectrum analyzer, but with

the built-in scanning fea-

ture of the QLX-D, myanalyzer stayed in its case.

The unit quickly found a

clear frequency and sync-

ing the transmitter

was a breeze.

Th e fema le

vocalist liked to

sing with the

mic at about

chest level, with

the SM58 cardi-oid element not

the best choice

for this style. So

I swapped it with an SM87A supercar-

dioid head that I have on another wire-

less system, and it proved to be the exact

right tool for the job.

In the final application, we deployed

the system for a variety show at a ball-

room right near the Vegas strip. The

show included a comedian host, acous-tic and electric performers, comedians,

and singers with tracks. We used the

QLX-D as the main mic for the host,

comedians and singers. The host liked

to switch the mic off when he wasn’t

using it. Normally we tape transmit-

ter switches to stay in the “on” position

so the talent can’t mess with them, but

because the QLX-D switch is silent in

the PA, we let him turn the mic on and

off as he pleased. Again, scanning theairwaves and syncing the transmitter was

easy, and there were no RF issues. A pair

of AA alkaline batteries ran for more

then eight hours, and there was still one

bar showing on the meter at the end of

the show.

The QLX-D is an impressive system.

Both receiver and transmitter are rug-ged and should have no trouble surviv-

ing anything a typical gig or tour throws

at them. What impresses me most is the

great audio quality and glitch-free oper-

ation, even at long distances, combined

with the convenient, effective automatic

channel selection and system sync. If

you’re in the market for a new wireless

system, put it at the top of your list.

U.S. MAP: Starts at $973, varying by

system components.■




8/20/2019 LSI 1509



REALW RLDGEAR

��

Adamson Systems E218 �� www.adamsonsystems.com

Type/Format: Bandpass; ground-stack or fly with integrated hardware

Components: 2 x 18-inch Kevlar cones with neodymium magnets

Frequency Response: 30 – 110 Hz (+/-3 dB)

Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): N/A

Max SPL: 142 dB

Nominal Impedance: 8 ohms

Power: 800 watts AES per driver

Dimensions (h x w x d): 23.5 x

43.7 x 34.2 inches

Weight: 190 pounds

VISCERAL, DEEP, PERCUSSIVE, tight, punchy – just

some of many words used to describe bass response. A promi-

nent low end forms the foundation for many styles of music

and helps get the audience moving.

Subs are specialized loudspeaker cabinets, typically operating

somewhere inside the range between 20 Hz and 150 Hz, and they

usually cross over into the full-range mains around 100 Hz. Espe-

cially toward the bottom of the range, these LF sounds are felt in

the body as much as they’re heard as a distinct pitch, with the area

between 20 to 40 Hz often called sub-bass. Many popular instru-ments center around bass frequencies, with the low E on a bass gui-

tar or upright having a fundamental of 41 Hz, the lower notes of a

synth, piano, or five-string bass going down to 31 Hz or below, and

the thump of a kick drum focusing a lot of energy around 60 Hz.

To meet the requirements of reproducing LF at higher

sound pressure levels, most of the enclosures are physically

large and densely constructed, often housing a pair of 15-inch

or 18-inch (and sometimes bigger) cone drivers. Yet even for

their size and weight, they’re dwarfed by the lengths of the

sound waves they must reproduce. A 40 Hz tone, for example,

measures over 28 feet to complete a single cycle. Given theratio of wavelength to cabinet size, the resulting audio output

tends to propagate omnidirectionally, though technologies are

available to control (at least somewhat) directionality.

Subs are designed using several basic principles. The most

common design utilizes one or more direct-radiating cone

drivers in a tuned, ported “bass reflex” enclosure. Also widely

used, a folded horn design places a cone driver within the

interior of the enclosure, and it feeds a baffled “horn” pathway

that exits the front. The tapped horn is a variant that modifies

the location of the driver within the horn.

Bandpass designs resemble enclosures within an enclosure, where cone driver(s) in sealed or vented internal cabinets fire

into a second tuned chamber before the sound exits, reducing

upper harmonics while presenting a controlled LF bandwidth.

Designers will sometimes use more than one of these principles

to create hybrid subwoofers, such as a blended direct-radiating

and bandpass cabinet. Cardioid designs present more acoustic

energy toward the audience area while reducing output toward

the rear. They typically have one or more forward-facing drivers,

combined with a rear-firing driver whose output is modified in

time via physical positioning and delay, so that the combined

sound waves tend to attenuate or cancel at the sides and back.Multiple enclosures can also be combined in various ways

to create directivity, usually with some of the cabinets turned to

fire toward the rear. Alternately, individual cabinets may have

their polarity reversed (some models provide switches or other

internal settings for this purpose), or their output is electroni-

cally delayed to create the desired pattern of summation and

cancellation away from the stage and toward the listeners. The

multiple subs within these arrays also couple to effectively cre-

ate a much larger source relative to the longer LF soundwaves.

Other aspects to consider include the placement of subs

relative to the mains, output level, LF extension to meet therequirements of the music, the ability to accurately reproduce

the audio sources they’re reinforcing (transient and frequency

response), and minimizing harmonic interference between the

output of the subs and the low-mids of the mains.

Ultimately, the subs chosen and how they’re used is dictated

by the needs of the music and what the listeners expect. At

Electro-Voice, I was part of a group proposing tunes to highlight

the low end of a particular sub. I preferred an acoustic instru-

mental with an upright bass solo ending on a powerful, sustained

low E that could be felt as well as heard. A co-worker chose a

dance tune with a kick drum punch that to my ears soundedlike beating on a cardboard box. In the end we used both, since

one highlighted the musicality and the other imparted impact.

The following overview includes more than two dozen

models in a variety of formats. In addition, ProSoundWeb

offers several informative articles on subwoofers that lend fur-

ther understanding. ■

GARY PARKS is a pro audio writer who has worked in

the industry for more than 25 years, holding marketing and

management positions with several leading manufacturers.

Subwoofer principles and a look at recent models. by Gary Parks

How Low Can They Go?

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



VUE Audiotechnik hs-20

www.vueaudio.com

The hs-20 is an ultra-compact yet highly powerful, ver-

satile subwoofer. A unique hybrid design combines

both bandpass and vented alignments into a single,miniscule footprint. This is furthered with precision-

engineered transducers and sophisticated electronics

to deliver much higher output throughout its operating

bandwidth from a remarkably compact enclosure.

The onboard h-Class systems engine supplies 500 watts of pure sine wave power

(and 800 watts of peak power) to each 10-inch woofer with built-in DSP and net-

working with Dante. Both long-excursion woofers are equipped with dual layer,

inside/outside-wound 64 mm voice coils. Mac and Windows compatible software

provides access to networks and device-level parameters such as speaker protec-

tion, input/output levels, volume, mute, delay and input sources.

It’s all housed in a rugged enclosure that’s manufactured from premium-gradebirch plywood with extensive internal bracing for resonant-free operation. A highly-

durable, 6-step Dura Coat finish provides road-tested protection, while looking great.

OF NOTE: The hs-20 ships with networking capabilities with Dante already onboard, auto-

matically connecting to virtually any kind of IP configuration for access to network and device-

level parameters through SystemVUE software.

TECHNOLOGY FOCUS: Active Compli-

ance Management (ACM) is a patent-pending hybrid

design that combines the attributes of direct radiat-

ing and bandpass configurations to reduce distortion

and optimize amplitude and phase response.

KEY SPECIFICATIONS

Type: Hybrid (bandpass and vented alignments);

ground-stack

Components: 2 x 10-inch conesFrequency Response: 40 - 160 Hz (+/-3 dB)

Sensitivity (1 W/1m): 94 dB

Max SPL: 135 dB

Power: Self-powered; DSP and networking

Dimensions (h x w x d): 14.2 x 24.2 x 22 inches

Weight: 81 pounds

d&b audiotechnik B4-SUB www.dbaudio.com

Renkus-Heinz VA15Si www.renkus-heinz.com

EAW eaw.com

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex; cardioid pattern with rear-

firing element; ground-stack Components: 1 x 15-inch cone with neodymium magnet; 1 x rear-firing

12-inch cone in bandpass enclosure

Frequency Response: 40 – 150 Hz (-5 dB)


Max SPL: 131 dB


Power: 500 watts RMS with d&b D Series

amplification

Dimensions (h x w x d): 18.7 x 22.8 x 31.6 inches

Weight: 97 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex; ground-stack or fly with

integrated hardware

Components: 1 x 15-inch cone with dual suspension

Frequency Response: 40 – 120 Hz (+/- 3dB)

Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): 1.0 volt for RPO

Max SPL: 128 dB

Nominal Impedance: N/A

Power: Self-powered; non-powered version

also available (1,000 watts AES at 8 ohms)

Dimensions (h x w x d): 19 x 24.4 x 22.6 inches

Weight: 120 lbs

Type/Format: Proprietary Offset Aperture-loaded, vented; ground-stack

or fly with integrated hardwareComponents: 2 x 18-inch cones

Frequency Response: 22 – 160 Hz


Max SPL: 142 dB


Power: Self-powered (modified class D,

2 x 1,700 watts); DSP and proprietary Adaptive Performance


Weight: 210 pounds

:: RWG SPOTLIGHT LISTINGS ::

Martin Audio DSX www.martin-audio.com


integrated hardware

Components: 2 x 18 cones

Frequency Response: 35 – 150 Hz (+/-3 dB)


Max SPL: 146 dB


Power: Internal; 2,400 watts AES; high- and low-pass filters, delay


Weight: 269 pounds

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


:: Real W rld Gear ::


Clair Brothers iS218-M �� www.clairbrothers.com

L-Acoustics SB-18 �� www.l-acoustics.com

K-array KS5 �� www.k-array.com

Outline GTO-SUB �� www.outlinearray.com

Type/Format: Direct radiating in a tuned dual-chamber, dual-reflex

enclosure; ground-stack or flywith integrated hardware

Components: 2 x 18-inch cones

Frequency Response: 38 –

180 Hz (+/- 2 dB)

Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): 103 dB

Max SPL: 134 dB


Power: 2,400- to 4,000-watt

amplifier recommended

Dimensions (h x w x d): 25.2 x 42 x 27.1 inches

Weight: 214 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex;

ground-stack or fly with integrated

hardwareComponents: 1 x 18-inch cone with

vented magnet

Frequency Response: To 32 Hz (-10 dB)


Max SPL: 136 dB


Power: 700 watts RMS


Weight: 114.5 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex; ground-stack or fly (install

only) with integrated

hardware

Components: 2 x 21-inchcones with neodymium

magnets


125 Hz


Max SPL: 136 dB


Power: Self-powered (class D, 2 x 3,500 watts); integrated DSP,

onboard touch screen


Weight: 230 pounds


integrated hardware



107 Hz (+/-3 dB)


(half-space)

Max SPL: 147 dB

Nominal Impedance: 2 x 8 ohmsPower: 2,400 watts AES


Weight: 225 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex, cardioid

arrayable; ground-stack or fly

with integrated hardware

Components: 2 x 18-inch dual-

coil cones with neodymium

magnets


(+/-3 dB)

Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): 102 dBMax SPL: 144 dB

Nominal Impedance: 2 x 8 ohms

Power: 2 x 2,000 watts continuous


Weight: 183 pounds

JBL Professional VTX S28 �� vwww.jblpro.com

Meyer Sound 900-LFC �� www.meyersound.com

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass

reflex; ground-stack or fly with

integrated hardwareComponents: 1 x 18-inch cone


Sensitivity (1 W/ m): N/A

Max SPL: N/A


Power: Self-powered (class D)


Weight: 136 pounds

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


The Live Sound International Loudspeaker Demo is the

only place in the world to experience professional PA in a

round robin format. This event presents a unique controlled

environment offering side-by-side listening opportunities to

23 top loudspeaker systems. While you are there, get all

the technical details and pricing information you need from

qualified representatives from participating manufacturers.

Pro Audio Special Event: Tuesday, Nov. 17 at 6:00 p.m.,

there will be a demo session for audio professionals who

cannot attend the daytime sessions.

More than a dozen leading loudspeaker manufacturers

are participating this year, with more to be announced soon.

PARTICIPATING LOUDSPEAKER MANUFACTURERS:

HAVE AN EAR FOR AUDIO?

THINK YOU KNOW PA?EVER HEARD 13 PROFESSIONAL RIGS PLAY

THE SAME TRACK ONE AFTER ANOTHER?

NOW YOU CAN!

Register to attend the

Loudspeaker Demo and

get complimentary access

to the exhibit hall at the

Worship Facilities Expowww.prosoundweb.com/

LSIdemo2015

At the Worship Facilities Expo

November 17-19, 2015 Register for

FREE at www.prosoundweb.com/LSIdemo2015

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

TECH SPONSORS:

8/20/2019 LSI 1509




QSC KSub �� qsc.com

D.A.S. Audio LX-218CA �� www.dasaudio.com

FBT SUBLine 18Sa �� fbtusa.com

Tannoy VSX 18DR �� tannoy.com

Coda Audio SCP �� www.codaaudio.com

Type/Format: 4th-order bandpass;

ground-stack




Max SPL: 130 dB


Power: Internal; 1,000 watts continuous;

polarity reverse; normal or “deep” LF mode

Dimensions (h x w x d): 26 x 14 x 28.1 inches

Weight: 74 pounds

Type/Format: Bandpass; ground-

stack or fly (install only) with

integrated hardwareComponents: 1 x 18-inch cone

Frequency Response: 32 – 120

Hz (-10 dB)


Max SPL: 136 dB


Power: Self-powered (class D,

1,020 watts); selectable modes (BOOST and XTENDED), selectable

crossover, cardioid mode


Weight: 110 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex; cardioid preset switch for

multiples; ground-stack or fly with integrated hardware

Components: 2 x 18 cones


Hz (-10 dB)

Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): N/A Max SPL: 142 dB


Power: Self-powered (2,400 watts continu-

ous); variable crossover frequency, polarity reversal switch

Dimensions (h x w x d): 22 x 51 x 24.9 inches

Weight: 177 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex; ground-stack

Components: 1 x 18-inch cone (custom B&C)



Max SPL: 133 dB


Power: Self-powered (class D, 1,200

watts RMS), DSP with presets, polarity

reverse switch; non-powered version

also available


Weight: 92.6 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating

bass reflex; ground-stack

Components: 1 x 18-inchcone

Frequency Response: 40 Hz –

3 kHz (-3 dB)


Max SPL: 135 dB


Power: 2,000 watts program


Weight: 99 pounds

Type/Format: Sensor controlled, vented; ground-stack or fly with

optional hardware


with neodymium magnets


Hz (-3 dB)

Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): 103 dBMax SPL: 144 dB


Power: LINUS10 DSP amplifier recommended (3,000 watts AES,

12,000 watts peak)



Yamaha DXS18 �� www.yamahaproaudio.com

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



Bose RoomMatch RMS215 www.pro.bose.com

Danley Sound Labs TH412 www.danleysoundlabs.com

WorxAudio TrueLine TL218SS www.worxaudio.com

PK Sound KLARITY 218 www.pksound.ca

db technologies DVA S30N www.dbtechnologies.com

Grund Audio GT-LPB-36CX www.grundaudio.com

Type/Format: Direct-radiating in

vented enclosure; ground-stack or fly with optional

mounting kit



Hz (-10 dB)


Max SPL: 139 dB

Nominal Impedance: 8 ohms (x2)

Power: PowerMatch amplification recommended; 1,000 watts long-

term, 4,000 watts peak


Weight: 132 pounds

Type/Format: Tapped horn (patent pending design); ground-stack


Frequency Response: 33 – 200Hz (-3 dB)


Max SPL: 146 dB

Nominal Impedance: 2 ohms or

paired 4 ohms

Power: External; 4,000 watts

continuous

Dimensions (h x w x d): 26.5 x 45 x 45 inches

Weight: 357 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating in tuned enclosure; ground-stack or fly




150 Hz (-10 dB)


Max SPL: 137 dB

Nominal Impedance: 4 ohmsPower: 3,400 watts continu-

ous, 13,600 watts peak


Weight: 285 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating in ventued enclosure; ground-stack or fly




Hz (+/-3 dB)


Max SPL: 135.5 dB


Power: Self-powered (class D, 1,800 watts), DSP with presets, includ-

ing cardioid mode



Type/Format: Hybrid direct-radiating bass reflex/horn design;

ground-stack

Components: 2 x 18-inch coneswith 4-inch voice coils


120 Hz (+/-3 dB)


Max SPL: 141 dB


Power: Self-powered (3,000 watts RMS); phase reversal, variable

crossover frequencies, delay


Weight: 183 pounds

Type/Format: Hybrid (pro-

prietary Linear Pressure

Chambers); ground-stack

Components: 2 x 18-inch

cones with ferrite magnets


200 Hz (-10 dB)Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): 101 dB

Max SPL: N/A


Power: 4,000 watts program, 8,000 watts peak


Weight: 168 pounds

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NEXO STM S118 �� www.nexo-sa.com

Type/Format: Bandpass; ground-stack or fly with integrated hardware

Components: 1 x 18-inch cone with neodymium magnet

Frequency Response: 23 – 100 Hz (-6 dB)Sensitivity (1 W/1 m): 109 dB

Max SPL: 143 dB


Power: External: NXAMP 4x4 recom-

mended

Dimensions (h x w x d): 27.6 x 22.6 x

28.2 inches

Weight: 187 pounds



Frequency Response: 34 –100 Hz (+/-3 dB)


Max SPL: 135 dB


Power: Self-powered (800

watts RMS)


Weight: 144 pounds

Mackie SRM2850 �� www.mackie.com

Electro-Voice X12-128 �� www.electrovoice.com

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex;

ground-stack

Components: 2 x EV DVF4180

18-inch cones


200 Hz (-3 dB)


Max SPL: 147 dB

Nominal Impedance: 4 ohms (parallel mode) and 8 ohms (dual mode)Power: 4,000 watts continuous


Weight: 195 pounds

RCF TTS56-A �� www.rcf-usa.com


Components: 2 x 21-inch cones with neodymium magnets



Max SPL: 145 dB


Power: Self-powered (2 x

3,400 watts)


Weight: 198 pounds

Turbosound TSW-218 �� www.turbosound.com

Alcons Audio BC543 �� www.alconsaudio.com

Type/Format: Hybrid horn-loaded; ground-stack

Components: 2 x 18-inch cones (carbon fiber and inside/outside wound

voice coils)Frequency Response: 35 – 150

Hz (+/-3 dB)


Max SPL: 141 dB


Power: 1,600 watts continuous


Weight: 222 pounds

Type/Format: Direct-radiating bass reflex; cardioid pattern, with rear-

firing element; ground-stack

Components: 3 x 18-inch high-excursion, carbon-fiber cones with

neodymium magnetsFrequency Response: 35 –

150 Hz (+/-3 dB)


Max SPL: 136 dB (in cardioid

mode)


front; 8 ohms rear

Power: Control and power via ALC amplified loudspeaker controller

Dimensions (h x w x d): 47.1 x 23.5 x 38 inches

Weight: 298 pounds

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Grow. Together.

Help Us Celebrate 10 Years!

• 3 Keynote Sessions

• 100 + educational Conference Sessions for churches of all sizes

• First time ever - Manufacturer Training Sessions

• Visual Worship Workshop

• Inspirational Worship from renowned National Artists

• 2015 Worship Facilities Awards (Solomon and New Product) Winners

• WFX 10th Anniversary Party

Worship FacilitiesConference and Expo

Celebrating years of serving churches

Loud Speaker DemosThe Ultimate Audio Experience: More Than

25 Loudspeaker Systems In 1 Location!

Brought to you by

National Conference and Expo for Church Leaders Seeking

Education, Services and Products

to Grow their Ministry

N a s h v i l l e , T N || M u s i c C i t y C e n t e r

Conference & Expo:

November 18-19Pre-Conference:

November 17

Visit wfxweb.com or call 800-598-6031

Subscribers save 10%! Use Promo Code: LSI15

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

8/20/2019 LSI 1509


NEWSBYTES:: The latest news from ProSoundWeb.com ::


s SynAudCon

is hosting a

three-day Sound

Reinforcementfor Technicians

in-person training

seminar in the Chicago area on October

5-7. Instructor Pat Brown will utilize a

multi-media presentation in focusing

on how to understand the audio signal

chain, establish proper gain structure,

maximize signal-to-noise ratio, equalize

the system, and more. The seminar is

approved for 24 InfoComm RUs and 21

BICSI CECs.The site is the Holiday Inn in Rolling

Meadows, IL, and registration is avail-

able online at www.prosoundtraining.

com. Upcoming seminars include Syn-

AudCon Digital in Washington D.C. on

November 16-18, and Making WirelessWork on December 3-4 in Las Vegas.

s Curt Taipale is presenting his

Church Sound Boot Camp in the San

Diego area on October

2-3. The class will cover

all of the primary com-

ponents of every sound

system, exactly how

they should be con-

nected, how to feel confident in operat-ing that equipment, and how to deliver

a pristine, smooth, clear musical mix

consistently at every worship service.

The site is Unity Way Church in Vista,

CA, with the class held from 5 pm to 10

pm on Friday, October 2 and continuingfrom 9 am to 5 pm on October 3. Attend-

ees are advised to register as soon as

possible, and early registration discounts

are offered. Go to www.churchsoundboot-

camp.com for more details and to register.

s Ed Czarnecki has

been named applica-

tions engineer at Ashly

Audio. Reporting to

executive VP Scott Les-lie, Czarnecki is working with consultants,

integrators, and distributors to provide

ELECTRO-VOICE RECENTLY HELD two launch events in the

U.S. to highlight its new X-Line Advance line array systems,

including a session attended by our own Craig Leerman at the

6,500-capacity Star of the Desert Arena inside of Buffalo Bill’s

Casino in Primm, NV, just south of Las Vegas. The second

event was held a week later in Nashville at the TennesseePerforming Arts Center.

Both X1 and X2 line arrays, as well as X12-128 subwoof-

ers, were showcased in lively programs that included formal

presentations on the systems and technologies, as well as

listening sessions with a live band and pre-recorded tracks.

EV deployed two systems at both events, each with

left-right X1 and X2 arrays joined by a dozen shared

X12-128 subs stacked in a row two high across the

front of the stage.

“The X-Line systems offer a bunch of newer technol-

ogies, but what really caught my eye is the Integrated

Rigging System (IRS) on both the X1 and X2 boxes,”

Leerman reports. “The individual elements are fastened

together into arrays by spring loaded captive twist lock

pins. To use, the pins are retracted and are twisted to lock

them into an open position. The link bars from the next box

(or grid) can be inserted and then the pins are twisted and the

spring loaded pins snap back into their locked position.

“Splay angle of an array is easily selected by inserting a

pin into the angle select section on the rear of a cabinet,” he

continues. “A second pin can be inserted to lock the splay

angle allowing a rigid array to be formed. If the second pin is

left out, the array can be lifted with the cabinets in a straight

line, and then a rear pull-up hoist can be used to compress

the array into the desired curve, with the rigging stopping at

angles selected by the first pins. It’s a slick system that allows

for many deployment options.”

There’s much more about the new X-Line Advance systems

on ProSoundWeb – simply enter “Electro-Voice” in the search

tool on the home page to go directly to the coverage. n

Electro-Voice X-Line Advance Launch Events

ABOVE: EV X-Line Arrays

flying at a launch event.

LEFT: EV crew members

at the Vegas event, left to

right: Jan Wittmann, BobRieder, Preston Stevenson,

Carla Engler, Guillermo

Wabi, and Stu Schatz.

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



WHAT: LSI Loudspeaker Demo

WHERE: Music City Center,Nashville

WHEN: November 17-19

WHY: Back-to-back evaluation of

20-plus line arrays & loudspeakers

WHO: You

MORE: www.prosoundweb.com

Mark Your Calendarsinformation and training about Ashly

products, both pre- and post-sale, as well

as offering solutions to design challenges.

Based at the company’s Webster, NYheadquarters, he’s also supplying train-

ing, consultation and assistance.

s Biamp Systems has

named Frank Pajak as

applications engineer

for the East Coast of

the U.S. Based in Chi-

cago, he’s providing support to custom-

ers using the company’s DSP equipment

in a variety of AV applications. Pajakcomes to Biamp with more than 15 years

of experience in sound engineering and

AV system development, including over-

seeing large design and install projects

at AVI-SPL.

s Access Audio of Cincinnati has

joined the VUE Audiotechnik U.S.

rental network, recently adding al-8 and

al-4 line arrays, al-8SB subwoofers and

V-Series System Engines to its inven-tory. “VUE’s products support Dante,

which was an important factor in the pur-

chase,” notes Chris Knueven, director

of operations at Access Audio. “We’re

using Yamaha CL5 consoles, so to be

able to put the amplifiers and ultimately

the entire VUE PA on the Dante network

is a major benefit for us.

“We also like the way the al-8 and the

al-4 models work together; the rig can

be set up as one big PA or two separatesystems, which offers us great flexibility

for our events.” n

ProSoundWeb provides all of the lat-est pro audio news, and follow PSWon Facebook and Twitter - just go to

www.prosoundweb.com and click on the icons atthe top of the page.

. c o m

8/20/2019 LSI 1509



BACK PAGE

�� IN THE MIDST of a fairly frantic load-in for a show in San

Antonio, we made a horrible discovery. The lighting rig, the

sound system, the entire show was dead. Because the trunk full

of feeder cable was missing.

We were (literally) about a thousand miles from the shop.

Not a good situation, especially when the clock was ticking

and there was less than six hours to showtime.For those who

don’t know, feeder cable is that stuff that defies several laws of

physics. It weighs more than any other known substance and

jumps up to trip us when we’re sneaking around the stage. Onthe good side, it carries all of that fancy electricity from the

panel to those doo-hickeys we make our living with. Well, at

least it does if it actually makes it to the venue.

I was just a hired gun, but because I was running this

circus, and these were my monkeys, I had to make some

decisions. It was not my rig, but it was my problem. After

several years with this crew, I already knew what I wanted

to communicate. But really, this discussion applies to any

crew, and it applies whether you’re in charge or not. The key

is for everyone to stay calm and work through the steps

that lead to survival.First. Bring the crew in and explain the situation.

All work ceases until we’ve opened every case and

are absolutely positive the feeder is missing.

Second. Send the crew back to work. Keep

them on schedule as much as possible and work

around the missing gear.

Third. Find the venue manager or someone

who knows the area to get help in finding a local

rental house. Then start making calls to track

down a replacement. Stay calm on the

phone – panic seems to causethe rates to go up. They can

smell your fear, so best to

keep it under control.

Fourth. Arrange

for the missing

gear to a r r i v e

ASAP. Pay them,

tip them, send

them Christmas

cards and a chunk

of grandma’s bestchocolate cake.

Anything to express your extreme gratitude.

Fifth. Now... call the boss. Not before the other steps are

covered.

In this case, the boss was a thousand miles away. It was

around 5 am. There was absolutely nothing he could have done

for us under those conditions. All he could do was panic and

spew colorful expletives. Honestly, what would you do if woken

from a dead sleep to find out how much money you were about

to lose?

When I told him that the feeder was missing, he lost it. Yep.Saw that coming.

Once he stopped to breathe, I finally got the opportu-

nity to tell him the rest of the story, that the situation was

already resolved. He eventually calmed down. And, after

driving down to the shop, he called back and told me it was

sitting right where the shop guys left it – on the loading

dock. I went back to work, knowing that they were about

to have a really bad day.

It would be great to say that I knew how to

handle these problems from the beginning of

my career, but I didn’t. The right solution was learned by doing it wrong a few times.

Every step in that process is critical.

Don’t freak out. Verify before reacting.

Take control and find an answer. Keep

moving forward. Avoid dropping bombs

on people who are essentially helpless.

Your situation may be different. There

may be a better strategy for fixing stupid

where you live. Regardless of how you do

it, just have one.

By the way, that show went per-fectly, but San Antonio was notorious

for crazy problems. In fact, the next

year the entire truck went missing.

But that’s another story. ■

M. ERIK MATLOCK is

senior editor for Live Sound

International and Pro-

SoundWeb , and has worked

in professional audio for more

than 20 years in live, install,and recording.

Have a strategy or have a crisis, your choice. by M. Erik Matlock

When The Show Hits The Fan

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8/20/2019 LSI 1509


LSI 1509

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