Stagecraft: Wiring A Stage Efficiently, Neatly & Safely

Found this great article on the ProSoundWeb site that I wanted to share with all sound technicians. It is called: Stagecraft: Wiring A Stage Efficiently, Neatly & Safely

If you find your stagecraft skills lacking this primer on wiring will bring your up to speed.

Click on the link below to view the article:
http://www.prosoundweb.com/article/stagecraft_wiring_a_stage_efficiently_neatly_safely/

The article was written by:


Alex Fernie is the founder and managing director of
Alex Fernie Audio Ltd., a leading Irish sound reinforcement rental company based in Galway on the west coast of Ireland. Follow @alexfernieaudio on Twitter.

Here is another article from ProSoundWeb.com and this one is for all sound technicians in the field.
Have you ever worked a gig where too many things went wrong which resulted in less than stellar sound mix? We have all worked on a gig or two like that and have learned about "What Not To Do On a Sound Gig"!
The following piece is a top 10 list entitled: 
Top 10 Reasons For Bad Sound (And What You Can Do About It…)

"Great mix engineers remain open-minded and stay in the present moment so that they can actively listen to what’s happening in front of them. And then they take action."


Here is the weblink for the article:
http://www.prosoundweb.com/article/top_10_reasons_for_bad_sound_and_what_you_can_do_about_it/P1/

This article is 5 pages in length on the website so, don't forget to select the next page link to view the entire piece.

Cheers!
Ron

Found another great article on the ProSoundWeb.com website. This one is about using small mixing consoles to their fullest potential. The article is called:

Advanced Small Console Techniques: Maximizing The Available Feature Set

"What about those times when, for whatever reason, a big console is not available? That's the time for ingenuity and some special techniques"


I really learned a great deal from this article about how to make the most of a small mixing console when a big console is not available or practical for the situation. Some really great ideas here for any sound technician professional. In fact, I am going to consider purchasing a micro mixer that will fit inside my tech tool kit. Just like you would carry a DI box, or cable tester, why not a micro mixer? Read the article to see all the ways a small mixer will get you through any sound disaster or situation. There are so really great micro mixers available from companies like: Mackie, Behringer, Soundcraft, and Yamaha.

Keep on rockin'!
Cheers!
Ron

Here is the weblink for the article:

http://www.prosoundweb.com/article/advanced_small_console_techniques_maximizing_tthe_available_feature_set/live/P1/

Backstage Class: Alternative & Effective Approaches To Sound Check

Today, I would like to share an article from the ProSoundWeb.com website written by Dave Rat of RAT Sound. The article is entitled:
Backstage Class: Alternative & Effective Approaches To Sound Check

Dave explains alternate approaches to performing typical sound checks for bands. For all of you fellow sound technicians out there, take time to read this one. Dave has some great ideas for making sound check easy and painless. Just because, it has always been done that way does not mean you can't do things a different way to achieve the same results. Click on the link below to view the article.

Keep on Rockin'!
Cheers!
Ron

http://www.prosoundweb.com/article/backstage_class_alternative_effective_approaches_to_sound_check/live/P1/

Analog Mixing Consoles - Still Relevent?

In the pro audio world, digital mixing consoles are becoming commonplace while many sound companies are ditching the older, classic analog boards. Do you believe that analog mixing consoles are still relevent amoungst all the new digital boards?


Personally, I still like to use analog mixing consoles for my gigs. I messed around with a digital console and I didn't really get into it that well. That doesn't mean I will never use a digital console. I think what I need to do is to try out some different boards from different manufacturers to see which one fits!

With the pro sound companies using digital consoles on major tours, many of the older, analog consoles are up for sale on the net. For example, I just saw an ad for an older Soundcraft Vienna II 40 x 8 mixing console. Asking price is $4500.00. Original purchase price was $55,000.00!!! That is a real steal of a deal for a console that will probably outlast many of the newer digital boards.

A fellow sound tech friend of mine bought a digital mixer and he likes it because, it has everything built right in. No need to bring the FOH rack out anymore. Also makes for a quicker load-in/setup/teardown during the show.

Okay, fellow sound technicians. I invite you all to voice your opinions on this subject. I am curious to get the low down.

Cheers!

Here is a video of Matt Blackett - Associate Editor of Guitar Player Magazine with special guest Patrick Quilter doing a demo of the new Quilter MicroPro200 guitar amplifier. Check out the video for all the features of this excellent unit. Enjoy!

Quilter MicroPro 200 Guitar Amplifier

You are looking at the new Quilter MicroPro 200 Guitar Amplifier new on the market this year 2012.

Last night, I was mixing sound for a band called "Borderline" and both of the guitarists in the band purchased on of these little powerhouse guitar amps! This little amp only has an 8" speaker inside but, has an amazing 200 watts of power output available! The amp is of a solid state design but, has all those great sounds of a tube style guitar amp. Right now this amp is only available for sale online on the Quilter Labs website at http://www.quilterlabs.com/

I was able to achieve a great sounding mix of both guitarists in the band using the Quilter amps to compliment their specific styles. By using the XLR direct outputs on the back of each amp, there were no microphones required to get the guitar sound to the mixing console. It made job as sound tech much easier for the gig. This amp is a big sounding unit in a small package. The amp has a weight of 19 lbs. which makes it easy to transport it from gig to gig without any effort.

Go to the company website and find the page with the sound clips on it to listen to this excellent guitar amp!