February 2016 www.audiomediainternational.

com

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
How binaural is bringing
an intimate theatre
experience like no other to
the Barbican p20

FEATURE
The latest on loudness for TV,
radio and cinema p16
REVIEW
Alistair McGhee gets his hands
INTERVIEW
In conversation with
on A&Hs dLive system p32 composer John Lunn p42

01 AMI Feb 2016 FC_Final.indd 1 01/02/2016 17:41

 THE BEST SOUND, ALL AROUND

X12, MULTI-PURPOSE ENCLOSURE - L-ACOUSTICS X SERIES

In creating the X Series, we brought all of the experience gained in designing the K2 to bear on a new series of reference coaxials.
Optimized design, ergonomics, acoustical performance and weight make the X Series the most advanced coaxials on the market. Four
distinct enclosures with format, bandwidth, SPL and coverage angles perfectly adapted to short throw rental or install applications, the
X Series offers studio monitor sound quality, compact design, consistent tonal balance, no minimum listening distance and exceptional
feedback rejection. www.l-acoustics.com

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 www.audiomediainternational.com WELCOME

EDITOR
Adam Savage
asavage@nbmedia.com

MANAGING EDITOR
Experts in the issue FORWARD THINKING can be applied in such a multitude of
Jo Ruddock
jruddock@nbmedia.com applications, and one area ripe for the
STAFF WRITER Gareth Fry picking is theatre. Without giving too
Colby Ramsey
cramsey@nbmedia.com
is an Olivier Award- much away, we managed to track down
winning sound renowned sound designer Gareth Fry
ADVERTISING MANAGER designer who has
Ryan ODonnell to talk about one of his latest projects
rodonnell@nbmedia.com
collaborated with
some of the UKs involving the binaural recording
ACCOUNT MANAGER leading theatre technique, a Hollywood actor and a
Rian Zoll-Khan
rzoll-khan@nbmedia.com
directors, and sizeable sound team.
designed the sound effects for the Opening
ISE looks like it will have plenty to
HEAD OF DESIGN Ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games.
Jat Garcha offer in this field too. Weve previously
jgarcha@nbmedia.com

DESIGNER
Tom Carpenter
tcarpenter@nbmedia.com
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT
Warren Kelly
wkelly@nbmedia.com
CONTENT DIRECTOR
James McKeown
jmckeown@nbmedia.com
Press releases to:
ukpressreleases@nbmedia.com
NewBay Media 2016.
No part of this publication may be
reproduced in any form or by any
means without prior permission of
the copyright owners.
Audio Media International is published
by NewBay Media, 1st Floor, Suncourt
House, 18-26 Essex Road, London
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Editorial tel: +44 (0)20 7354 6002
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ISSN number:
ISSN 2057-5165 (Print)
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Tel: +44 (0)1580 883848
email:
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1 Color - 100 White
I
mentioned Merging and Genelec
John Lunn
know I probably shouldnt be teaming up to deliver an immersive
is a Scottish composer
surprised, as its been one of the audio experience, but what we
known for his
soundtrack work for TV major talking points in pro-audio havent already talked about is Auro
shows such as Downton for some time now, and if anything Technologies the Belgian firm behind
Abbey, Shetland and its only in the early stages of its the Auro-3D format and its upcoming
The Last Kingdom.
development, but 2016 is already foray into hardware, which is due to
gearing up to be another big year for debut at the event. Again, it appears
Dean McCarthy immersive sound. theyre waiting until the show gets
is an audio engineer At the beginning of January we had underway on 9 February to reveal the
and degree programme
Sennheiser introduce its new AMBEO real juicy stuff, but its all looking
leader in audio
production and music concept choosing CES in Las Vegas pretty promising.
business at the SAE to carry out the launch now that the And lastly, it was pleasing to
Institute in Oxford. consumer side seems just as keen to finally be able to report some more
discover more about exciting new sound in-depth details online about the new
Garry Taylor formats as we are and although we collaboration between Dolby and
is audio director may have to wait to see the full result of Ministry of Sound, with the new series
at Sony Computer the companys new strategic focus on of immersive events now underway at
Entertainment Europe,
this exciting area of the industry, it will the London club following the recent
co-founder of Sony
Worldwide Studios be very interesting to see where this Martin Audio upgrade. The only thing
Audio Standards leads, for sure. left to do in this case is to go along and
Working Group, and Furthermore, this isnt the only check it out for ourselves, and from
is speaking about Audio Mastering for
page in this issue where youll find the what I hear, the invites in the post, so
Interactive Entertainment at this years Game

Developers Conference (GDC) in March. German audio giant and an immersive there could be more to come from us
Printed by Pensord Press Ltd
topic but not one you hear about a lot on this still.
Front Cover: Gianmarco Bresadola
any more, it has to be said mentioned Adam Savage
in the same sentence. One of the great Editor
things about this technology is that it Audio Media International

February 2016 3

03 AMI Feb 2016 Welcome_Final.indd 1 01/02/2016 16:38

 CONTENTS www.audiomediainternational.com

426
PRODUCT NEWS
Array of new mics from Audio-Technica
16
24
7 Waves unveils virtual mix room plug-in

PEOPLE
12 OPINION
Sonys Garry Taylor on why the Playstation 4
Mastering Suite is good news for both gamers
and developers

14 Audio engineer Dean McCarthy discusses the

development of the music hacker landscape TECHNOLOGY
26 HOW TO
42 INTERVIEW
Warehouse Sounds Simon Meadows advises on
TV composer John Lunn talks Downton Abbey,
setting up and getting the best out of a line
the analogue versus digital debate and more
array system

FEATURES 28 PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT: LOUDSPEAKER TECHNOLOGY

Summarising the latest technologies in this
16 LOUDNESS: ever-evolving market sector

32
Kevin Hilton looks at the loudness environment
across radio and cinema, as well as television

20 LIVE PROFILE:
Adam Savage chats to Gareth Fry about a new
theatre show where sound takes centre stage

24 STUDIO PROFILE:
Celebrating three decades of Production
Consultants in Missouri

ALSO INSIDE REVIEWS

32 Allen & Heath dLive
SHOW PREVIEWS
34 KLANG:fabrik
8 ISE 2016
36 Vertigo Sound VSE-2
38 UVI Falcon
10 BVE 2016
40 Mackie Reach

4 February 2016

04 AMI Feb 2016 Contents_Final.indd 1 01/02/2016 17:53

 The LEO Family is the right choice for providing the best quality sound to our clients and their audiences.
The Meyer Sound brand is the perfect match for Wigwam Acoustics, in terms of its reputation for quality.

Chris Hill, Co-founder and Spencer Beard, Managing Director, Wigwam Acoustics

Read the full interview at meyersound.com/wigwam

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10:00:11 AMPM
 PRODUCT NEWS
AUDIO-TECHNICAS ARRAY OF NEW MICS
Audio-Technica introduced an
assortment of new microphones and
headphones at NAMM 2016, including
the new Artist Elite AE2300, ATM230
and ATW-T1007 models.
The Artist Elite AE2300 (220 RRP)
dynamic cardioid instrument microphone
features Audio-Technicas double-dome
diaphragm construction, giving it high-
frequency and transient response. It
has a low-profile design, as well as the
ability to handle high SPLs and capture
sound from a range of instruments with
clarity and precision.
The ATM230 (110 RRP)
hypercardioid dynamic instrument
microphone is said to be ideal for
capturing drums and percussion and
offers a proprietary capsule that is
also designed to excel in high SPL
applications, much like the AE2300.
Audio-Technica also released new
desk stand and boundary microphone
models compatible with its System
10 PRO rack-mount and System 10
stack-mount digital wireless systems.
Designed to work with phantom-
powered, condenser gooseneck
QSC DEBUTS E SERIES SPEAKERS
QSC launched a new range of
passive loudspeakers at this years
NAMM Show.
Consisting of four models
incorporating DMT (Directivity
Matched Transition), which promises
uniform frequency response across
the entire coverage area, the E Series
is designed for sound reinforcement in
entertainment applications such as live
performance, DJ and dance music, and
stage monitoring and production.
When used as part of the complete
E Series Entertainment System
with QSCs PLD and GXD amplifiers
and TouchMix digital mixers the E
Series takes advantage of advanced
DSP settings for a very high level of
performance, according to the company.
The E10 has a 10in, die cast frame
woofer with a 2.5in voice-coil housed in
an enclosure thats ideal as a
stage monitor
or in main PA
deployment.
The E12 is a
trapezoidal,
two-way
6 February 2016
06-07 AMI Feb 2016 News_Final.indd 1
microphones with a three-pin
XLRM-type output, the ATW-T1007
(299) System 10 microphone desk
stand transmitter pairs with the
System 10 PRO or System 10 digital
wireless receiver to provide 2.4GHz
wireless performance.
Then there is the ATW-T1006 (335)
System 10 boundary microphone/
transmitter, which also partners with
any System 10 PRO or System 10
digital wireless receiver to provide
clear, natural sound quality with 2.4GHz
wireless performance. It is intended
for conference rooms and other
meeting spaces.
Finally, the M50xMG (159) is a
limited edition matt grey version of
Audio-Technicas ATH-M50x professional
monitor headphones part of its
M-Series line.
www.audio-technica.com
loudspeaker using a 12in die cast
aluminium woofer with a 3in voice-
coil, and the 15mm, 11-ply enclosure
provides enough volume to deliver
low-frequency extension down to 60Hz,
making it suitable for applications
which preclude the use of a sub.
The E15 is a trapezoidal, two-way
loudspeaker utilising a 15in, 500W die
cast aluminium frame woofer with a 3in
voice coil, intended for when high power
and authoritative low-end are needed
from a full-range loudspeaker. Lastly
there is the E18SW, a subwoofer with
a single, high-powered, 18in aluminium
frame woofer, designed to produce
crushing low-end for live performance
with kick-drum and bass in the PA for
high-level, high-energy dance music.
www.qsc.com
DANTE-ENABLED DI BOX FROM RADIAL
Radial Engineering introduced a wide
variety of new kit in Anaheim.
As well as giving visitors another
chance to check out the McBoost
Microphone Signal Booster first
announced back in November, the
company introduced a number of
products for the first time this year.
Described as the worlds first Dante-
enabled direct box, the DiNET DAN-RX
includes a 24-bit/96kHz digital to
analogue endpoint that allows the user
to output audio from a Dante network
to stereo systems. It also enables
instruments or line level sources to be
connected directly to networked audio
systems using the Dante protocol.
A modern recreation of a classic
made to fit the 500 series format
the Jensen Twin-Servo ($999.99)
is designed to completely eliminate
capacitors and combines two 990
op-amps with a pair of Jensen
transformers to produce the widest
bandwidth and fattest bass ever.
Also new was the Shotgun 2 x
4 Guitar Signal Distro ($169.99), a
combination signal driver and isolator
PRESONUS SHOWCASES STUDIO 192 MOBILE
PreSonus used the 2016 NAMM Show
to announce its Studio 192 Mobile USB
3.0 22 x 26 audio interface, as well as
the StudioLive AVB Mix Systems and
ULT-series active loudspeakers.
The Studio 192 Mobile features
the same high-end audio, low latency
monitoring, tight software integration
and studio command centre
functionality introduced in the Studio
192 audio interface but in a smaller
form factor suitable for both mobile
and studio use.
It records at up to 192kHz and
comes equipped with two digitally
controlled XMAX Class A, solid-state
mic preamps and premium Burr-Brown
converters with 118dB of dynamic
range. There are also 18 channels of
digital I/O, making it easy to add up
to 16 additional remote-controlled
microphone preamps when
expanded with two DigiMax DP88
A-D-A converters.
The new StudioLive AVB Mix
Systems allow users to combine
one or two StudioLive RM-series
rack mixers, a StudioLive CS18AI
www.audiomediainternational.com
that lets the user feed four guitar amps
in either mono or stereo. It features
two inputs with switching jack on input
B to auto configure for stereo use, as
well as transformer isolated outputs to
eliminate ground loops.
Lastly, the JDX Direct Drive
($199.99) is a compact combination
guitar amp emulator and direct box
that allows the user to perform live or
record without an amplifier simply
connect a guitar to the pedals and play.
It offers three cabinet styles with in
out for monitors and XLR out for the
PA system.
www.radialeng.com
Ethernet/AVB control surface and
integrated control, recording and
production software.
Four systems are available: the
StudioLive AVB 16AI Mix System
with one RM16AI mixer; StudioLive
AVB 32AI with one RM32AI;
StudioLive AVB 48AI with one of
each RM model, cascaded to form
a 48-input, 64-channel system;
and StudioLive AVB 64AI, with two
cascaded StudioLive RM32AIs for a
64-input system.
The ULT-series active loudspeakers
promise the widest horizontal
dispersion of any loudspeaker in their
class, along with a focused vertical
dispersion for an ultra-long throw. The
result is even coverage throughout
the space, PreSonus says, enabling
the audience to hear clearly wherever
they are.
www.presonus.com
01/02/2016 12:30
 PRODUCT NEWS
NUGENS NEW SPLINE EQUALISER
Nugen Audio presented its
latest mixing and mastering
tools, including several
new updates and feature
enhancements, in California.
New to its product
offering is the SEQ-ST, a
linear phase spline EQ with
powerful sonic sculpting
and EQ matching, stereo
midside operation and
automated spectrum
analysis. Also on display was a new
filter-morphing feature that allows fluid
morphing between two sets of filter
curves under full user control.
The company also showcased
MasterCheck, the first music industry-
specific audio plug-in designed to
facilitate mixing and mastering for
loudness-normalised playout by using
internationally recognised loudness,
dynamics and true-peak standards,
which are now standard on iTunes,
Spotify, DAB and many other
online platforms.
Also on display at NAMM was ISL 2st,
a stereo-only version of Nugens award-
winning ISL 2 solution, designed to
WAVES UNVEILS VIRTUAL MIX ROOM PLUG-IN
Waves Audio has revealed Nx, a new
plug-in that enables the user to hear,
on headphones, the same depth,
reflections and panoramic stereo
image heard through speakers in an
actual, physical room.
It is designed to unmask
headphone sound, allowing the
listener to hear everything with
real-world dimension. This way, all
the elements of a mix can be heard
accurately laid out in space, like in
the sweet spot of a beautiful-
sounding room.
Waves says that the new plug-in
finally bridges the gap between
monitoring on speakers and
monitoring on headphones, putting
an end to constant cross-
referencing between headphone and
stereo sound.
06-07 AMI Feb 2016 News_Final.indd 2
5 8. 4. 2016
prolight-sound.com
DU: 10.12.2015 GB
Lets master it.
provide music producers with true-peak
compliance and prevent the distortion
that often results from the codec
conversions required to deliver audio to
online platforms. ISL 2st DSP is also now
available for Avid Pro Tools HDX users.
An upgrade to Visualizer, the
61837-001_PLS_allg_Audio_Media_International_95x270_GB CD-Rom ISO 39 CMYK yi:07.12.15
companys audio-analysis plug-in and
stand-alone metering system, debuted
as well. The latest version includes a
new comparison mode, a significant
upgrade to the Lissajous view and
numerous fine-tuning improvements,
further enhancing intuitive operation
and allowing rapid adjustment
to achieve a perfectly optimised
visualisation for the task at hand.
www.nugenaudio.com
By delivering the natural listening
experience of a physical room, Waves
Nx promises to make the headphone
experience comfortable and ear-
friendly over long periods of time.
Those wanting to mix for
5.1 surround on regular stereo
headphones can also do just that
a true revolution in the world of
surround mixing, according to Waves
Discover the technology trends of tomorrow at
and Nx claims to do this without
coloring the sound in any way. What Prolight + Sound 2016!
the user hears is a mix exactly how
they want it to sound only now Find out at first hand how technology can transform
with a more accurate way to monitor entertainment into a unique experience and take
it on headphones. part in the worlds largest gathering for the event
The plug-in can be used with industry!
real-time head tracking taking
advantage of a computers camera or
the Waves Head Tracker unit.
info@uk.messefrankfurt.com
www.waves.com Tel. +44 (0) 14 83 48 39 83
February 2016 7
01/02/2016 12:30
 SHOW NEWS: ISE 2016
ALL ABOUT AUDIO
The annual AV extravaganza returns to Amsterdam with a renewed focus on sound equipment.
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
T
heres no denying that ISE
2016 is going to be the
biggest show in the events
13-year history. The addition
of a fourth day and an 11%
increase in sold floor space compared
with 2015 mean there will be plenty for
visitors to see. And the good news for
AMI readers is that audio is set to play
an even more central role too.
The day before the show opens,
the AudioForum will return to the RAI.
This full-day event will look at modern
loudspeaker technologies, key issues
surrounding filtering technologies, the
composition and detail of datasheets
and audio networking transportation.
When it comes to ISE itself, Audio
Solutions now has its own Show
Floor Theatre where attendees can
enjoy presentations by installers,
manufacturers, distributors, end
customers and live events professionals.
An extensive programme is running over
all four days of the show, covering topics
such as Communications Solutions for
Major Events at 13:00 on 9 February,
New Audio Technology at midday on 10
February, Immersive Audio Enhancing
the Travel Experience at 14:30 on
11 February and Solving Acoustic
Challenges with Audio Networking
Systems and Digital Signal Processing
at 11:30 on the final day.
If you prefer to experience the latest
kit rather than just hear about it, head to
the Audio Demo Rooms (E103, E104, E107
and E108). Here youll be able to enjoy
8 February 2016
08 AMI Feb 2016 ISE Show News_Final.indd 1
an Auro 11.1 immersive sound system
as part of a Barco Theatre Room, while
d&b audiotechnik will be introducing its
latest products and offering a beginners
guide to its ArrayProcessing array
optimisation tool.
In Room E104 Martin Audios product
support engineer Robin Dibble will be
presenting a series of demos, featuring
the CDD Series, MLA Mini and O-Line,
and in E108 Steinway Lyngdorfs Model
P200 surround sound processor will be
available for demo.
on the Showfloor
Powersoft will once again partner up
with its Dutch distributor TM Audio, part
of the Ampco Flashlight Group.
The amp maker is set to adopt a
white, building block Tetris-style booth
theme designed to subliminally focus
integrator attention on the importance
of interoperability and functionality
between systems.
This eye catching stand has been
set up to differentiate us from the
competition and demonstrate how
Powersoft amps suit any application,
said the firms brand and communication
director Francesco Fanicchi.
ISE 2016 will also be the place to
see the latest loudspeaker technology.
Community Professional is
introducing five new Compact speakers,
which are designed to match the
performance, appearance and voicing
of the larger I Series point source and
subwoofer models.
www.audiomediainternational.com
The 6.5in IC6-1062 features a high
LF extension for its cabinet size and a
very wide dispersion fabric dome HF
on a shallow waveguide. The single 8in
IC6-1082 and symmetrical dual 8in
IC6-2082 are each available with two
rotatable horn patterns paired with a low
distortion, high output 1.7in diaphragm
HF compression driver.
New from DPA is the d:screet SC4098
podium microphone, which is aimed at
addressing problems in the conference
and AV install markets and features a
directional supercardioid polar pattern.
The miniature capsule is mounted on a
delicate gooseneck and comes in several
lengths for hanging, table or podium
mounting or on floor stands. It comes
with an XLR for a wired solution, but also
as a MicroDot version that can be used in
a wireless configuration by employing the
companys adapter range, which is already
used for other miniature microphones.
Also in the field of conference audio,
Sennheiser is launching TeamConnect
Wireless, a conferencing solution that
allows users to connect their own
smart device or computer wirelessly
via Bluetooth, and also permits wired
connections via USB or jack cable. It
supports multiple simultaneous audio
channels, allowing users to bring up to
24 additional callers into an ongoing
conference by simply connecting
another device.
A Meyer Sound team of acousticians
will demonstrate the capabilities of
the companys Constellation acoustic
Information
What? ISE 2016
Where? Amsterdam RAI
When? 9-12 February
system at this years show. Integrators
and design consultants will have
opportunities to demo the product every
30 minutes while asking questions of the
manufacturers expert staff.
The patented Libra acoustic image
system will also feature at ISE. A
passive acoustical solution for spaces
that works together with Constellation
to create the ideal sonic environment,
Libra combines sound absorptive
properties with works of art created
or selected by California photographer
Deborah OGrady.
Other Meyer Sound products at the
event include the CAL column array
loudspeaker and Leopard line array.
Lawo will showcase the mc36
all-in-one audio console and the 19in
1RU Compact Engine network-based
processing and mixing engine. The
mc36 features Lawo-grade mic
preamps, a DSP micro-core with
internal 512 x 512 port audio matrix, and
integrated I/O, which Lawo says make it
suited to permanent installations with
limited space.
The Compact Engine is a 19in 1RU IP-
based networked audio I/O, processing
and mixing engine featuring power
supply redundancy and expansion slots
for addition of I/O cards. It offers both
touchscreen control and control via
classic physical faders from Lawo crystal
mixing consoles.
Live sound consoles will be the focus
on the Avid stand with the Venue S6L
and the compact Venue S3L-X being
showcased in Hall 7. Avid is delivering
hands-on demos of both systems,
showcasing their integration with Pro
Tools for streamlined recording and
playback functionality.
www.iseurope.org
01/02/2016 15:02
 INSTALL- DEDICATED AMPLIFIERS
DESIGNED TO ALWAYS FIT IT

8-Channel High-Performance Amplifiers with Optional DSP and DanteTM

Designed and manufactured in Italy powersoft-audio.com

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 SHOW NEWS: BVE
BLURRING BOUNDARIES
BVE is broadening its horizons this year with a new focus on the live and pro-AV sectors,
making it perhaps the most diverse show to date.
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
L
ondons ExCeL Centre will once
again host the BVE show later
this month, attracting more
than 15,000 visitors from over
60 countries and featuring
the usual plethora of manufacturers,
distributors and resellers of pro-
production and broadcast equipment.
There is something that returning
attendees may not immediately
recognise, however. This year, BVE
is expanding its scope through a
partnership with London Entertainment
Week, providing an opportunity for
partners to present events for the entire
creative sector from the tradeshows
well-established platform.
As a result, visitors can get their teeth
into over 75 hours of seminar content,
case studies, panel discussions and
learning workshops from 150 expert
speakers across the content creation
industries, including production, post-
production, workflow and for the first
time, AV and live entertainment.
In addition, an 850sqm Pro AV and live
entertainment technology zone has been
added to the show floor, providing space
to cover all aspects of event production;
kit for theatre and performing arts,
concerts and touring, festivals, outdoor
events, corporate events, conferences,
houses of worship, educational
establishments, leisure facilities and
corporate installations.
Daniel Sacchelli, event manager for
BVE and London Entertainment Week
10 February 2016
10 AMI Feb 2016 BVE Show News_Final.indd 1
2016, said. Our wider focus recognises
the increasing convergence of the
broadcast and AV sectors and I am
thoroughly looking forward to the broad
range of exhibitors, speakers and visitors
we can expect both on the BVE show
floor and during London Entertainment
Week this year.
London Entertainment Week will
start on Monday 22 February and carry
through the week.
On the Showfloor
HHB Communications will debut the
compact Avid Pro Tools Dock, a EUCON
control surface that works with iPad and
Avids free iOS app, Pro Tools Control.
At the show, HHB will pair the Dock with
the 16-fader Pro Tools S3 control surface
to demonstrate mixing workflows.
Based on the Master Touch Module of
the Pro Tools S6 control surface, Pro
Tools Dock adds to the touchscreen
capabilities of the iPad with a single
fader, assignable knobs, switches,
jog shuttle wheel, a full transport
section, automation mode switches,
programmable soft keys and more.
Also on the HHB stand, NTP
Technology will introduce major
enhancements to its DAD AX32 ultra-
high-quality audio converter, router and
monitor controller. At the show, NTP will
demonstrate the AX32 on its own as well
as how it integrates with the Avid S6
control surface to provide an extremely
flexible platform for audio post-
www.audiomediainternational.com
production. Two new I/O option cards
are being added to the AX32: a dual
MADI I/O module and an eight-line AES3
(AES/EBU) I/O module with optional
sample rate conversion. The updated
AX32 also has a 64-channel interface
for Avid Pro Tools and can be optionally
fitted with a Dante AoIP interface.
Audio-Technica will be showing
its BP40 large-diaphragm dynamic
broadcast microphone. Featuring a large
diaphragm with patented floating edge
construction for optimal performance,
along with a humbucking voice coil,
multistage windscreen and other pro
essentials, the all-metal BP40 promises
to maintain a commanding vocal
presence free from electromagnetic
interference (EMI) and popping. The
company will also show a new dual
mount for its System 10 camera-mount
wireless microphone system for the first
time at the show.
Calrec Audio will showcase V4.0, the
latest software enhancement for the
companys Apollo and Artemis consoles.
New features include send levels on
faders that allow the user to change the
path level indicators on the fader to aux
send level, admin-level protection of
bus widths that are stored in the show
memory for quick and easy changes,
and meter highlighting when a fader is
touched. Then there is an integrated
Waves SoundGrid solution for Calrecs
Hydra2 platform of consoles, which is
unique among broadcast desks in that it
Information
What? BVE 2016
Where? ExCeL London
When? 23-25 February
uses a brand-new SoundGrid interface
module on Calrecs Hydra2 network,
introducing fewer parts into the chain
for lower latency and greater reliability.
Pro-audio distributor Emerging
will be showing enhanced features
on the Trinnov Audio D-Mon digital
integrated monitoring processor and
room correction system along with two
new products from PSI Audio the A14
studio monitor and the Active Velocity
Acoustic Absorber (AVAA). Also being
shown on the Emerging stand are the
new Pyramix 10 and Ovation 6 releases
from Merging Technologies, which
take full advantage of the companys
transition to 64-bit processing for all
software programs, and now offer 3D
panning for manipulating the audio to
any number of speakers, in any position,
in a room of any size.
Finally, Riedel is set to display
MicroN, an 80G media distribution
network device for the MediorNet line
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array of audio, video, and data inputs
and outputs, including two MADI optical
digital audio ports.
The firm will also have the Tango
TNG-200 on show, which represents
Riedels first network-based platform
supporting the Ravenna/AES67 and
AVB standards.
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01/02/2016 16:11
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 OPINION
WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING ON?
Garry Taylor, audio director at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, explains why he believes the new Playstation 4
Mastering Suite is good news for both gamers and developers.
GARRY TAYLOR
I
suppose some people might
consider me an audiophile. Im not
naive enough to buy expensive
blocks of wood to keep my speaker
cables off the floor, but I do have the
luxury of a decent 5.1 system at home,
as well as a number of 7.1 studios at
work where our sound and music teams
create and mix soundtracks for some
very successful video games.
However, Im not everyone, and I
understand that not everyone listens to
games in the same way that I do.
The problem of not knowing what sort
of system the consumer is listening to
our content on has been a challenge for
audio teams in the games industry for
years. Sound designers and engineers at
most big game studios these days have
good facilities, but producers and other
team members tend to listen in less
than ideal environments on less than
ideal speaker systems, just like most
of our audience.
Dynamic soundtracks sound great
on a big system and may suit the title
youre working on, but a significant
percentage of your audience will miss
out if theyre listening to a dynamic
mix on two tiny speakers on the back
of a thin, flatpanel TV. How do we give
people the ability to ship big dynamic
mixes, as well as ensure people who
may be listening on a small TV or tablet
dont miss anything?
Last year, a small group of us at
various divisions across Sony Computer
Entertainment (SCE) got together to try
to solve this problem. The result is the
PlayStation 4 Audio Mastering Suite
12 February 2016
12 AMI Feb 2016 Opinion 1_Final.indd 1
The objective
We needed to give game audio
developers the ability to modify
dynamic range, equalisation, limiting
and gain of their finished mix, and to
hit SCEs average loudness standard
for PlayStation 4 of -24LKFS, easily.
We also needed this functionality to
be available to all game developers,
regardless of whether theyre big triple
A studios or small indie developers,
and we needed the mastering suite to
have no impact on the performance
of the title.
The Mastering Suite weve
introduced to the PlayStation 4
consists of a four-band parametric
equaliser, a three-band dynamics
processor, a gain stage and a limiter,
as well as loudness metering and
spectral analysis. It runs independently
of the games audio engine, meaning
it works on all titles, and it runs on the
system core of the CPU, separate from
the cores running the game, meaning
that it doesnt affect the performance
of the title.
We also created a tool called Sulpha,
part of the PlayStation 4 Software
Development Kit (SDK) which, as well as
giving developers audio system analysis
tools, allows them to create presets for
the Mastering Suite. It connects to the
www.audiomediainternational.com
game and allows engineers to adjust
parameters in real time to suit different
types of playback devices.
This is all well and good, but it means
nothing if the user cannot tell the
PlayStation what type of system theyre
listening to a specific game on, or if the
player has to dig through lots of menus
to find the audio settings, which, even
then, they may not fully understand the
ramifications of any choice they make. It
boils down to a user experience (UX) and
user interface (UI) issue.
Game changer
A game called SOMA, a sci-fi horror
title developed by Frictional Games,
was the first game to be released on
PS4 that utilised the Mastering Suite.
It solved this problem in a simple and
quite obvious way. The first time its
run, it asks the player to adjust the
gamma settings to suit the players
screen, as many games do. It also asked
the player on what type of system
they were listening to the game, and
gave options such as home cinema,
small TV, headphones etc. Presets
for these options were then loaded by
the Mastering Suite to suit the speaker
system. The choice takes the player a
couple of seconds and is not intrusive.
A final audio mastering process
is something that most game audio
teams have not had to deal with
before and some developers may
need educating as to the benefits it
affords them. This also means theres
currently a lack of experienced audio
mastering engineers working in the
games industry. Our tool design means
that its obvious to any audio engineer
how it works, even if theyve never
been involved in the complexities of
game audio development. So, now,
a mastering engineer can take the
game installed as a package on a PS4
development kit and a laptop running
Sulpha to any studio in the world
and master the game to suit as many
scenarios as they wish.
As far as getting information about a
particular players speaker system, all
thats left is for the developer to ask,
like Frictional Games did, is What are
you listening on?
Garry Taylor
is audio director at Sony Computer
Entertainment Europe and co-
founder of Sony Worldwide Studios
Audio Standards Working Group. He
is speaking about Audio Mastering
for Interactive Entertainment
at this years Game Developers
Conference (GDC) in March.
Twitter: @tetley_uk
01/02/2016 12:35
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01/02/2016 17:07
17:31:19
 OPINION
BESPOKE BEATS AND THE RISE OF
THE MUSICAL HACKER
Audio engineer Dean McCarthy talks about his work with Music Tech Fest, which aims to encourage the inception,
development and adoption of more creative production methods.
DEAN MCCARTHY
T
he music hacker landscape
used to be underground,
populated by shed-dwellers
recycling and repurposing
technology, often
experimenting rather than looking to solve
any particular problem. Today, there is
a growing crowd of creators looking for
more bespoke production methods; this
market is starting to turn away from big
brand tools to find their signature sound.
For over a year, I have been involved
with one of the forces behind this
exploration: Music Tech Fest. Led by
founder Michela Magas and director
Andrew Dubber, the organisation prides
itself on being the festival of music
ideas a playground where musical
creativity and technological innovation
take centre stage.
During the event, the main stage hosts
dozens of examples of new technology,
home-brew experiments, performance
collaborations and startup businesses.
The event has seen the weird and the
wonderful from musical Tesla coils,
brainwave synthesisers and giant
inflatable MIDI cubes to performances by
beatbox world champion Reeps One and
electronic music legend Graham Massey
(808 State).
One of the key events is the 24-hour
hack camp. Led by hacker and musician
Adam John Williams, the focus is on music-
14 February 2016
14 AMI Feb 2016 Opinion 2_Final.indd 1
Graham Massey (808 State) performing at MTFCentral in Ljubljana, Slovenia
related hacks, especially those with a
slant on performance and interactions
with tangible objects. It encourages
collaborations between those with the
code and those with the chords, allowing
artists to work with tech enthusiasts.
The environment provides the freedom
to consider what interactions are
possible and where these new ideas and
inventions can be positively disruptive
to both industry and music creation.
Through experimentation without a strict
objective, these events often lead to
unexpected and unintended outcomes.
Carving a niche
Examples of these experiments and
bespoke instruments are increasingly
finding their way onto the main stage, with
a growing demand for artists to include
interesting performance elements.
Projects like Imogen Heap and her Mi.Mu
gloves, Beardymans Beardytron 5000
and Tim Exiles Flow Machine all allow live
interaction, keeping audience members
fascinated by not just the sounds but also
the way they are being produced.
These events contribute to a
growing scene complemented by the
emergence of more local hackspaces and
a progressive startup culture pushing
innovation and disruption. There is an
increased emphasis on diversity and
outreach, especially towards women and
young people. For example, Music Tech
Fest Paris hosted a Girls Hack run by a
women in tech hacker group, intended to
give new female hackers a chance to
hone their skills. At Music Tech Fest
events in London, Ljubljana and Ume,
groups of 8-12-year-olds were given
their first experiences of both code and
hardware construction.
The next Music Tech Fest will be
returning to Berlin and setting up in the
amazing Funkhaus venue from 27 -29
May. The Funkhaus was East Germanys
premier recording and broadcast facility
and has recently come under new
ownership with an aim to restore it to its
former glory. The venue is part of Berlins
plan to become the music tech capital
of the world, and will be a spectacular
festival venue.
Ways to get into music hacking
Find a hackspace
The hack community is growing fast and
there are hackspaces springing up across
the world. Some are open to all kinds of
hacks and some are more focused on
music, such as the Music Hackspace
in London. UK folks should check out
the UK Hackspace Foundation for
more information.
Make a Pure Data patch
Pure Data is a free, community-driven
www.audiomediainternational.com
Picture: Filip Koludrovic
graphical programming environment
that allows you to make a range of
different music patches including
controllers, synthesisers, visualisers
and pretty much anything else youre
used to seeing in your DAW.
Build your own synthesiser
Synthesisers are as cool as ever, so more
companies have been releasing fun units
to get you started with DIY building. Some
are simpler pre-made boards you click
together, like the Korg/littleBits Synth
Kit and the Patchblocks Programmable
Mini Synths system. If youd rather go
from scratch, try some of the tutorials
on www.instructables.com or look at the
awesome kits over at groovesizer.com
and whats being discussed on the Arduino
community boards.
Find a jam session
Dont just keep your projects to yourself.
The community is often filled with
musicians who get together to play music
and put their creations to good use. Keep
an eye on the hackspaces, community
boards and places like meetup.com.
Dean McCarthy
is an audio engineer and degree
programme leader in audio
production and music business at
the SAE Institute in Oxford.
01/02/2016 15:07
Full Page Template.indd 1 4/21/2015 9:58:08 AM
 FEATURE: LOUDNESS
THINKING
OUT LOUD
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Loudness monitoring and control is becoming established in television but there are still challenges in radio and
cinema. Kevin Hilton rounds up the latest developments and opinions.
M
ost people are deeply
protective of their
respective areas and
tend not to see any
crossover or similarity
between them. Sometimes this is true
but there can be more parallels than
people care to acknowledge. Loudness
is a case in point, as attention shifts from
television on to radio and cinema.
Perceived variations in volume
between different types of material is
not a new issue in TV. It was recognised in
the earliest days of the medium and has
taxed the minds of engineers ever since.
Radio has long had its own troubles with
music of both wide and narrow dynamics
against loud or softly spoken presenters,
compounded by heavy compression
on transmission. But todays media
16 February 2016
16-18 AMI Feb 2016 Feature_Final.indd 1
landscape of TV and radio channels
sharing both the same platforms and
some of the same material means it is
not confined to one area.
Media today is not produced to be
used only in radio or TV, comments
Michael Kahsnitz, head of product
management at RTW. Its transmitted
through very different channels,
including broadband radio, broadband
TV, data reduced TV, internet, for mobile
platforms and more. So it seems to
make a lot of sense to produce on the
general purpose layer around -23 LUFS
[Loudness units relative to Full Scale; -23
is the average target set by the EBU R128
standard]. This allows compatibility for
all platforms.
Despite this commonality there are
still enough specifics for TV, radio and
cinema that need to be considered
individually, with work progressing
in all three.
Television
There has been some form of loudness
control available to broadcasters
for at least 30 years. The 1990s saw
more awareness of the problem but
standardisation and widespread
implementation of loudness monitoring,
metering and control did not come in
until the 2000s.
The ITU issued its BS 1770 in 2006,
with the lead followed by regional and
national bodies, including the EBU
PLOUD group with R128 in 2010 and the
ATSC in the US, whose A/85 is backed
by law in the form of the 2010 CALM
(Commercial Advertisement Loudness
RT
L
lou
to a
chan
Mitigation) Act, which became fully
enforceable in 2012.
All three have been updated or revised
recently to accommodate particular
areas of production. A supplement to
R128 was released at the end of 2014
to cover short-form material, including
commercials and promos. The original
guideline was +3 LU (loudness units) but
Florian Camerer, ORF sound engineer
and chair of PLOUD, explained at the
time that this was found to be too
restrictive, so it was opened up to +5 LU.
The publication of R128 S1 and
changes in production priorities has
brought about revisions to three of the
standards four supporting Technical
Documents. TD 3341 Loudness Metering:
EBU Mode now includes an expanded
range of test signals, including for True
01/02/2016 12:39
 www.audiomediainternational.com FEATURE: LOUDNESS

RTWs Continuous but things will get there eventually,

Loudness Control Peter Prs, Junger Audio
Camerer says.
plug-in allows
Among the manufacturers involved
loudness correction
to a definable target with EBU PLOUD and its deliberations
with or without is TC Electronic. Esben Skovenborg,
changing the original the companys principal research
Loudness Range
engineer, says it has been working in the
Metering Subgroup to produce revised
versions of documents pertaining to
Loudness Metering and LRA. Rather
than introducing any new measures,
the update tightens the spec and test
requirements for both true peak and
loudness measurements, he explains.
Thereby equipment from different
manufacturers will behave more
similarly. It is still up to the individual
manufacturer, however, to make sure its
products are compliant.
Peter Prs, chief executive of Jnger
Audio, says TV is in a good position,
with a lot of people paying attention to
the issue. On the other hand it doesnt
improve everything immediately, he
says. Before this material could suffer
from peak control limiting. Now it can be
affected by loudness controlled audio.
And there are still a number of situations the UK, published Technical Standards A lot has happened with TV loudness
that cant be managed by -23 or -24 [the for delivery of HD Commercials, in a relatively short time but it is clear
target set by A/85]. Sponsorship material, Promos and there is still some way to go, both in
Tim Carroll, president of Linear Presentation Events during January. fully implementing the standards
Acoustic, comments that not only is TV This incorporates the R128 guidelines and getting them to work in all
loudness now more consistent but the for short-term material and introduces broadcast applications.

////////////////////////////
Peak; 3342: Loudness Range (LRA)
features a tighter means of calculating
LRA to bring more consistency over
different meters; while 3343: Guidelines
for Production has been substantially
rewritten to reflect practical experience
of using R128 and includes a new
Reference Listening Level. Tech Doc
3344: Guidelines for Distribution and
Reproduction is set for an update in the
foreseeable future.
Camerer comments that the
consistency of loudness control is
generally very good but that each
broadcaster has the responsibility
to keep a weary eye on the situation
and not let it get sloppy. He adds that
loudness levelling is becoming more
the norm and almost taken for granted,
as was peak levelling because it was
something that just happened. There
are still countries, and of course areas
like radio, where it is not as developed
audio has greater dynamic range. The
trick is going to be making sure it does
not become uncomfortably dynamic, or
else it could backfire and result in random
processing, he says. On the subject of
short-term material and momentary
loudness, Carroll comments that most
meters accommodated this already
and hopes that now it is documented
producers will manage dynamic range,
which he calls the evil cousin of
loudness, manually and creatively.
While the general consensus is to do
the majority of loudness measurement
and normalisation on meters in the
dubbing or on-air studio, file-based
software programs are also used widely
as part of the QC (quality control)
process through the production chain
to transmission. While the aim is to
automate loudness checking further
down the line, manual intervention will
not disappear completely overnight.
The Digital Production Partnership
(DPP), the organisation that sets
programme delivery specifications in
an Exceptions Process for content
that is intentionally quiet. Something
approaching silence is occasionally used
by advertising agencies and producers
for creative purposes; the potential
problem in an automated environment
is that it would be normalised to -23,
thereby ruining the effect.
Under DPP recommendations the
agencies and producers will have to fill
in three metadata fields to highlight that
the material is intentionally quiet. It is
then marked as ex-R128, or out of spec,
and the system manually compensated
to accommodate it. MC Patel, chief
executive of Emotion Systems, which
produces the eFF (Emotion File Finish)
software program, feels there is still
a need for clarity on this issue: In the
file-based world we havent defined how
to find out which material is intentionally
quiet. It could go through post and
be taken to -23. Were keen to open a
dialogue about how to resolve these
issues because it is something that
needs special treatment.
Radio
While the audio-only medium is not
completely unaware of the implications
of loudness and its various standards,
it is still in the early stages of coming
to terms with it all. The first country to
embrace R128 for radio was Norway.
In February 2012 the three DAB digital
radio operators, public broadcaster
NRK and commercial counterparts P4
group and SBS agreed to monitor and
report their own and each others output
for loudness compliance.
Because those involved concluded
that radio content is very different from
that of TV they set an average target
of -15 LUFS instead of -23. Camerer
commented at the time that he hoped
the Norwegian radio broadcasters
would settle on -23 when the country
switched off its FM transmitters and
moved fully to DAB+ in 2017. While
Swedish broadcasters have carried out
loudness tests for radio Germany is now
moving the issue on.

February 2016 17

16-18 AMI Feb 2016 Feature_Final.indd 2 01/02/2016 12:39

 FEATURE: LOUDNESS
Tim Carroll, Linear Acoustic
Camerer gives the example of Bavarian
Radio (BR), which switched all its stations
to loudness control in production during
2015. Everything is produced to -23 LUFS
before being aired, he says. To keep their
current levels in FM, they boost the signal
by 5dB at Master Control. But the -23
production paradigm makes interchange
with TV really easy, an asset gaining
importance in this tri-media world. Well
see how fast the example of BR spreads
around Europe.
Compressors and other signal
processors have been used routinely on
the output of radio stations for many
years, most commonly to make a channel
stand out when listeners tuned across
the FM or AM dial. Camerer comments
that processing can kind of level things
out but that some broadcasters have
run tests that show normalising archive
material allows the processor to be
backed off and so less aggressive. It
achieves a better sound while not losing
perceived loudness, he explains. This
is promising news also for pop/rock
stations. For cultural channels with more
dynamics the situation is similar to TV,
meaning the benefits are high.
Prs points out that radio services over
DAB/DAB+, satellite and streaming can all
18 February 2016
16-18 AMI Feb 2016 Feature_Final.indd 3
have different loudness values. There is
an ongoing discussion over which loudness
is suitable for streaming, he says. There
is also the situation of DAB and DAB+ not
fully covering areas, so there has to be
simulcasting with FM. This means DAB
gets the same processing as FM. But
when analogue is switched off we will have
almost transparent audio over DAB.
Carroll picks up on this, saying a
common meter is the name of the game.
He explains: From there, everything else
becomes easier and will definitely result
in better sounding audio. The processors
will work less hard. It is worth noting
that certain radio processors, such as
the Omnia Audio 7 and 9 have had ITU
meters in them for several years and
that metering can be viewed remotely
by operators.
While radio is starting to come to
terms with loudness an equally
venerable medium that has had its own
battles with high volumes is coming
under closer scrutiny.
Cinema
Back in the 1990s and into the 2000s
there were concerns about the high
playback levels of films. That situation
appears to have changed but the wide
The LM6n LoudnessRadar from TC Electronic
dynamic range used by re-recording
mixers in big dubbing theatres still poses
a problem in achieving reasonable levels
that satisfy all cinemagoers and the
artistic aspirations of filmmakers.
Skovenborg observes sadly that
cinema has invented its own version of
the loudness war: As feature films are
mixed louder, the projectionist will turn
the playback level down. This reduces
the available dynamic range, so an even
louder mix and more compression
is applied to the next film and so on.
Several working groups are currently
studying how the tools, developed
in connection with the ITU and EBU
loudness recommendations, can be
employed to solve the issue in cinema.
Camerer confirms that there is quite
some activity in SMPTE and the AES
to agree suitable guidelines for cinema
loudness. Under the auspices of the
latter organisation he is working with
Eelco Grimm, a member of the Sound for
Digital Cinema and Television technical
committee and co-owner of Grimm
Audio, on a metric for cinema loudness,
based on ITU 1770. The issue is that
most cinemas in Europe actually turn the
level down because audience complaints
are frequent. That fuels the loudness
war in the cinema, pushing levels up and
squeezing dynamics down. The situation
is not as severe in the US but in Europe it
is quite dramatic. If you mix dynamically
with a low level of dialogue, you risk
being too low in the cinema.
Kahsnitz is more optimistic about
the state of cinema loudness, saying
the sector was ahead of TV and radio
in terms of audio because of standards
such as TASA and SAWA for the
production of film commercials. Todays
loudness standards will improve the
given situation ever more, he says. So it
should be a goal to have these standards
applied to all cinema film and additional
material [commercials and trailers].
As cinemas move towards even more
loudspeakers with Dolby Atmos and
Auro 11.1, the ITU has updated its original
standard again as BS 1770-4 to include
immersive sound systems. And with
continuing evolution in cinema, radio and
TV, dealing with loudness is clearly not
going to be a fixed discipline either.
www.emotion-systems.com
www.jungeraudio.com
www.rtw.com
www.tcelectronic.com
www.telosalliance.com/linear
01/02/2016 12:39
new tvbe template remade.indd 1 01/02/2016 11:40:32
 LIVE PROFILE

TURNING

Picture: Sarah Ainslie

HEADS
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Adam Savage speaks to sound designer Gareth Fry about his use of binaural technology to create an intimate stage
show of the kind even hardened theatregoers will never have experienced before.

H
ow often do you hear of a
stage production featuring
more sound operators
than actors? When we
heard this was the case
with The Encounter, theatre company
Complicites latest project, which
arrives at The Barbican in London this
month, lets just say our interest was
piqued somewhat. And when we further
discovered that it involved award-
winning sound designer Gareth Fry, plus
the clever use of binaural sound both
recorded on location and improvised
live, the opportunity to find out more
seemed too good to miss.
Directed/written by and starring
Simon McBurney also known for
major parts in recent films such as
Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation
and The Theory of Everything The
Encounter is a show like no other. You
wont find any fancy backdrops, dazzling
visual effects or large ensemble casts
here McBurney performs solo for the
duration but there are reasons for
this, the main one being that the focus is
almost entirely on what the audience is
hearing instead of seeing.
The story is based on a book called
Amazon Beaming, which McBurney
took possession of 20 years ago, and
spent the last 15 trying to figure out
how to tell it in an innovative way. Its
centred around a real-life account of an
American photographer who went deep
into the Amazon to capture some shots
of an indigenous tribe, but loses his way
back to base camp and is left with no
choice but to assimilate with the locals
until he can find a way out.
So how do you bring this to the stage
and make it truly captivating?
According to Fry, it was always
McBurneys intention to do something
completely unexpected: The company
[Complicite] has always been quite
cutting edge with its use of technology
to tell stories, he explains. We looked
at conventional ways of doing it but
everything felt wrong; you cant have a
painted backdrop of some trees. I think
there is an expectation that theatre
shows will use technology in more
sophisticated ways, not for the sake of
it but to find new and interesting ways
to tell the story.
And the result is certainly
unconventional. The only prop you see
is a binaural head, which McBurney
cleverly uses to communicate intimately
with the audience member, who dons
headphones throughout. So a whisper
into the right ear of the head would be
received by the listener as though the
head on stage was theirs. The actor
also plays around with several voices
his own, that of the photographer in
the story and various others that
require the use of five microphones
that are pitched differently to suit
each personality.
Going Old School
Binaural is not a new thing, of course,
but what is new is this way of applying

20 February 2016

20-22 AMI February 2016 Live Profile_Final.indd 1 01/02/2016 17:32

Full Page Template.indd 1 12/16/2015 9:45:00 AM
 LIVE PROFILE
it. And even though there are many
more up-to-date ways of immersing the
audience in sound, Fry is glad they went
with this method.
Its a way of replicating the human
hearing system, so if you were to record
something binaurally and listen to it
back over headphones its exactly like
you being there and its better than any
other technology, including surround
sound, at recording a space, he says. Its
a great technology for telling stories
and taking you to unusual places like
the Amazon rainforest and it places
you, as the audience, on stage with the
performer. It creates this wonderful
sense of intimacy.
Its also the first time that Fry has
properly utilised binaural sound for a
theatre show, and although there have
been others that have experimented
with it in this field, he isnt aware of
anyone going about it quite in this way.
Theres another theatre director
called David Rosenberg whos been
doing it for a few shows over the past
ten years or so and hes explored the
use of recorded binaural sound a lot, he
notes. Weve got a mix of recorded and
live binaural sound and I think the live
part is quite unusual Ive not heard of
anyone whos done that before.
Location, location, location
To achieve the difficult task of making
the audience feel like theyre being
taken on an Amazon adventure with
so little to guide them visually, it was
crucial that the somewhat chaotic
rainforest soundscape be brought to
life as accurately as possible for this
production. And what better way to do
that than to travel to the place itself?
We were in the Amazon rainforest
for a week, meeting the tribe who lived
out there and hearing their stories, Fry
recalls. They took us on little expeditions
out in the rainforest to record different
things and get the sounds of the forest at
various times of day.
If you want to create a sense of the
Amazon rainforest its very difficult if
you havent actually been there to know
what youre trying to get a sense of
the heat, claustrophobia, mosquitoes,
things like that.
But even visiting the location youre
trying to recreate doesnt guarantee
youll be coming back with all of the
22 February 2016
20-22 AMI February 2016 Live Profile_Final.indd 2
sounds you went out there for, which
Picture: Gianmarco Bresadola
is why it was necessary for Fry and his
team to make some additional trips to a
couple of slightly less exotic spots.
I went to the London Hospital and
School of Tropical Medicine, where they
have some mosquito colonies there
of different breeds. Theres a section
of the show where hes swarmed by
mosquitoes and thats a very difficult
thing to get on location and a different
thing to isolate the mosquitoes as
the rainforest is a very noisy place, he
says. So I went there, got a tent full of
mosquitoes, put our binaural head inside
it and let them buzz around.
One of the challenges of binaural
sound is its very difficult to layer normal
sound effects on top of it; you can
really hear when something is recorded
binaurally and normal sound effects
layered over the top sound quite flat.
There arent that many binaurally-
recorded sound effects so a lot of
the sounds we had to go and get from
scratch. We also got 30-40 extras to go
to Epping Forest and had people running
around and getting footsteps there.
Gareths Gear
As for the choice of equipment, there Theres myself, our operators Helen do it on the night. So weve spent quite
are Sennheiser G3 Series wireless Skiera and Ella Wahlstrom and my a lot of time making everything quite
systems, Countryman headset mics, associate Pete Malkin, whos been doing fluid so that we can change the order of
the all-important Neumann KU100 a lot of the design work with me and things quite rapidly, Fry explains. With
binaural microphone, a range of Macs creating a lot of the material that we a typical theatre show youd try and
running QLab and Ableton Live for the play, Fry reports. Typically on a theatre program everything as much as possible
playback and looping, two Yamaha QL1 show you have one sound operator and so that it can happen repeatedly, but
mixing desks one for each operator a they run the sound for the show mixing weve had to make it more like the sound
Yamaha DME24 processor and last the mics, the music, the sound effects operators are musicians and theyre
but not least Sennheiser HP 02-100 and all that sort of stuff but this one having to jam along with Simon.
headphones for the audience. is so complex that weve had to expand Having fulfilled sound design duties
Weve custom designed this that to two people and part of that is for such a wide variety of acclaimed
headphone infrastructure because also because were not working from stage productions not just in London
everybodys wearing wired headphones the existing script. but in the United States, Germany,
and its quite a big thing to install the And that brings us onto another Ireland and even South Korea (Let The
cabling infrastructure for 600 pairs of interesting element of The Encounter Right One In at Seoul Arts Centre),
headphones, so that involved quite a no two shows are ever the same. where he had just returned from when
lot of work to make a system that can Weve written everything from our interview took place, Fry is about
do weekly touring and still [allow us to] scratch and so the script is an evolving as experienced as they come, but he
install several kilometres of cable each thing and we keep honing it with every also knows there will always be more
week underneath auditorium seating performance, trying to make it better exciting challenges out there for him,
that was never designed for this, and try out different aspects of the and The Encounter was undoubtedly
Fry explained. story make some things bigger, some one of those.
things smaller and so the show is never This is a dream-come-true project
Meet the Team the same show twice. because its so reliant on the sound to
Earlier we mentioned the unusually large Helen and Ella have to improvise be part of how we tell the story and
sound crew, but who are they, and as this with Simon quite a lot sometimes its demanding on a technical and artistic
clearly isnt a normal arrangement, what prearranged and hell say Im going to level, Fry concludes. So its been a joy
are their responsibilities? try this differently tonight or hell just to work on.
01/02/2016 17:32
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CM

MY

CY

CMY

Boom festival photo: esweb

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 STUDIO PROFILE
MIDWEST
MAGIC
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
A small, albeit armed-to-the-teeth recording studio in St. Louis, Missouri celebrates its
30th birthday this year, and its owner has quite a story to tell, as Colby Ramsey found out.
W
hen youve been
in and around the
recording business
for over 50 years
and witnessed a vast
evolution of the industrys products and
best practices, it undoubtedly becomes
a way of life.
For Bill Schulenburg, this has
certainly been the case and as such,
the 30th anniversary of his company
and studio, Production Consultants, did
not go unnoticed by the self-proclaimed
audiophile. Schulenburg has been very
much involved in the audio scene since
the days of Technisonic the huge
media production powerhouse based
in the Midwest during the pre-digital
era learning the craft simply by
watching and talking to the veterans of
the industry.
Schulenburg went on to work at
Technisonic for many years during
the 1970s, and at the height of his
career would read voiceovers in the
morning,then record jingles in the
afternoon and rocknroll and disco at
night. After getting burnt out on music
and subsequently bagging an Emmy
Award for video tape editing in the
early 80s, he made the decision to go
freelance using a plethora of equipment
24 February 2016
24 AMI Feb 2016 Studio Profile_Final.indd 1
he had in his home at the time. It
wasnt until the late 80s, however, that
Schulenburg began building the hidden
treasure of a studio that exists in his
home in St. Louis, Missouri today.
Theres not many people left to talk
to in St. Louis about recording in the
60s and 70s, he humourously begins.
He set aside a space with 10ft
ceilings on the lower level to
accommodate a booth and control
room, which at the time was just a load
of junk on a table.
Radio commercials and local training
films have been some of Schulenburgs
most common work since then, voiced
and recorded by himself right there in
the comfort of his home.
The room is very quiet and I paid
attention to ventilation and acoustic
isolation etc. Its a true studio facility
that I have here in my home, he says.
Fair Play
It was after Schulenburg invested in
a Fairlight Prodigy system that his
work really started to gain momentum
however. He explains: Thats pretty
much when my room here turned into a
real first-class professional
production facility.
I was essentially just a freelancer
Bill Schulenburg has
amassed a wide array
of kit during his time in
the business
for hire; I had developed what I hoped
was a good reputation and cultivated
a lot of friends in the industry. I called
my company Production Consultants
because I still wanted to be available
to work with people that I liked who
were actual producers I didnt want to
position myself as a studio competitor.
Schulenburgs investment in the
Fairlight attracted him a job from his
colleagues in Hollywood, World Wide
Wadio, with whom he experienced
much success in the 90s and
2000s, producing hundreds of radio
commercials as the syndication voice
for 20th Televisions King of the Hill.
Schulenburgs long-term love for the
business is equalled by his love for the
equipment, his biggest passion being
the Fairlight, which he upgraded in 2010
to a Xynergi system. It works in a way
that really appeals to me as a long-time
sound guy, and has really justified my
faith in it over the years, he explains.
It feels like sound equipment rather
than a computer even though it has all
the power of such. Its just fantastic for
sweetening video projects and I have
several clients who use me for that.
For his main monitoring system,
Genelec 1029s, 1032s and an 8020
Espresso system equipped with 7050B
sub provide surround. An API channel
strip, one of his newest purchases,
makes up for the lack of preamps
on the Fairlight, and built-in EQ and
compression means that he does not
rely on plug-ins.
With regards to microphones,
Schulenburg has accumulated the kind
of collection that serves his needs. A
Neumann U87, an EV RE35 and Shure
SM57 along with a Sennheiser MD421
and 416 shotgun make up just a fraction
of Schulenburgs assemblage of mics.
Yet despite all this, he holds a special
place in his heart for tape recording.
Here in my control room I have an
Ampex 440C and a Revox A700 along
with a pair of Dolby 361s with SR cards.
It really means something to me that I
can access my tapes from the 60s and
70s you need to preserve your lifes
work even if you dont make money
on it, he notes. Restoring tapes is
definitely a labour of love.
Keeping Busy
These days, aside from his more recent
voiceover projects and radio campaigns
for a number of CBS sitcoms,
Schulenburg teaches Audio Aesthetics
at Webster University, and also sits
on the Midwest regional board of the
Screen Actors Guild and is chairman of
the St. Louis section of the AES.
The jobs now tend to be more last
minute, he explains. I love listening to
the old stuff, I love preserving it and I
love inspiring students with it.
For an industry veteran with such
a well-armed studio, maintaining a
competitive edge has not necessarily
always been paramount for
Schulenburg, and he admits that right
now it is just about staying satisfied in
his audio life.
As an owner of the business I dont
have to conform to anyone elses ideas
of success, he concludes. To this day,
Ive never really had a plan you never
know what the clients are going to bring
you yet I could never just retire, it
would be very difficult for me to hand
this great space over to someone else.
The company isnt structured so
that someone can take over its pretty
much just me until I decide to stop.
www.productionconsultants.com
01/02/2016 16:03
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Full Page Template.indd 1 8/21/2015 10:06:01 AM

 TECHNOLOGY: HOW TO
LINE ARRAY FOR THE
MIX ENGINEER
The Warehouse Sounds Simon Meadows offers his advice on setting up
and getting the best out of a flown loudspeaker system.
F
or a lot of us who are not
system techs or system
engineers, who dont build and
optimise line arrays every day,
they can be difficult to fully
understand so many speakers in one
place; what angles should they be set
at; how should they be equalised; where
should they be pointing, etc.
Line array systems should really
be thought of in a different way. Most
people perceive a line array as lots of
speakers all hanging together because
that is what they see. But really a line
array is more like one big speaker made
up of multiple elements and should be
treated as such. Its a bit like Lego. You
use Lego bricks to build something like
a truck and then you play with the truck.
The bricks are no more than the building
blocks of the truck, they cant be used
individually in any way like a truck until
they are built into the correct shape
of a truck.
In the same way line array elements
(the individual speaker boxes that make
up a line array) dont really work well as
speakers in their own right; they only
26 February 2016
26 AMI Feb 2016 How To_Final.indd 1
become useful when they are put into a
line array and built correctly.
With that in mind the approach to
setting up and using a line array should
really be in two distinct steps. Firstly
we need a system engineer to design
and build the line arrays to suit the
venue in which they are being used, and
to best amplify the content required.
The content for a performance is
equally as important as the venue when
designing a large line array system.
For example, in a venue that seats
10,000 people there will be an obvious
starting point for where to put the line
arrays, but we would need a completely
different system to amplify the speech
intelligibility of the Dalai Lama talking
than we would need to provide the
extreme sub bass of The Prodigy.
Once the line arrays are optimised
to provide the best coverage of the
audience area for the required content,
we need to stop controlling the
individual line array elements and use
the line arrays as if they were very large
point source speakers to achieve the
desired result for the performance.
www.audiomediainternational.com
There needs to be a distinct
separation between setting up the line
arrays and using them. Once the line
array setup is complete, small changes
to individual line array elements have
the potential to ruin the system as a
whole. For example, saying we could
do with a bit more HF at the back then
adding a bit of EQ to tweak the high
frequencies on the top two elements
of the line array (you know weve all
done it). Without proper calculation,
that change in frequency response
could drastically affect the rest of the
line array and result in a worse sound
somewhere else in the venue.
A system engineer should design
the system for the venue and plan
appropriately. They will do an accurate
room measurement then calculate
the best placement of the line arrays
to cover the audience area most
effectively. This is when discussion
on the content of the performance is
required; information on what needs to
be achieved by the system should be
decided so that the system engineer
can adjust their design to provide the
required result. Then they will build and
rig the system to the agreed design.
Once the line array system is rigged they
need time to correctly tune the arrays
according to their calculations.
To the point
Once the engineer has finished their
setup we can start to use the line arrays
as if they were point sources mixing
and equalising across the system as a
whole and treating it as if it were just
a set of speakers on stands, resulting
in a more consistent sound and better
listening experience for the audience as
a whole. While the sound checks and the
performance are in process, the system
engineer should continue to monitor the
line arrays to provide us with feedback
on how it is performing.
Simon Meadows
The job the system engineer does in
trying to achieve the most even coverage
of an audience is a very skilled one. A
good system engineer will have a wealth
of experience and the calculation tools to
do the job well. Many system engineers
will also have had training from various
speaker system manufacturers in
exactly how to properly set up their line
array systems. We need to understand
that we are all trying to achieve the best
result and allow them time to give us the
best system setup they can.
On smaller performances, sometimes
we have to be the mix engineer and the
system engineer. The process should
still stay the same. First, set up the line
arrays and optimise them. Then start to
use them as a system. Dont try to make
changes to the line array elements once
the sound checks have started.
If we can try not to be intimidated
by the complexities of how a line array
should be set up, and just treat them as
bigger versions of normal point source
speakers we can usually end up with
a better sounding system. And, more
importantly, by not worrying about
changing and tweaking the line array
elements we can have an easier and more
relaxed time mixing the performance.
Simon Meadows
is technical manager for The
Warehouse Sound, Scotlands
largest pro-audio company, offering
solutions for national broadcasters,
touring firms, theatres and more.
01/02/2016 17:39
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AM
 PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
LOUDSPEAKER TECHNOLOGY
BOXING CLEVER
As competition remains intense within the sound market and as production companies become more and more
demanding, loudspeaker manufacturers are increasingly expected to provide a renewed focus not just on the
quality of the products, but on the extended features, customer service and support that come part and parcel.
A
s a new year begins we asked
a number of manufacturers
if theyd noticed any recent
shifts in the market for
loudspeaker products and
what they thought the key priorities and
focuses would be for 2016.
At Meyer Sound, director of product
management Luke Jenks envisages many
of the driving forces in play last year to
carry over into 2016: Manufacturers
will seek to maximise the performance
available for every pound you have to
fly in the air or pack in a truck. So we do
expect to see more power from lighter
boxes, he explains. Digital and networking
Funktion-One
Evolution Series
Since the Evolution Series was launched,
Funktion-One has reported huge demand
from around the world. The range boasts
two dispersion options the Evo 6E with
50 and the Evo 7E (pictured) with 40
horizontal dispersion.
Both products are fully horn-loaded
with 15in mid-bass, 10in Funktion-
One signature midrange and a 1.4in
compression driver solely for high
frequencies above 4kHz. The range boasts
skeletal options, as well as grouped
configurations such as two-wide and
three-wide.
The applications they have been
specified for are wide-ranging, covering
live, touring, nightclubs, theatres and
sports stadiums.
Then there are the festivals and
events: Burning Man, Notting Hill Carnival,
Space Ibiza Opening and Closing Fiestas,
The Hydra, Secret Garden Party and Boom
Festival have all been successful outings
for the Evolution Series.
www.funktion-one.com
28 February 2016
28-30 AMI Feb 2016 Spotlight_Final.indd 1
advances are also expected to continue
apace while a greater focus on software
developments will make the use of these
technologies easier and more intuitive for
the end user.
The team at Pioneer Pro Audio agrees
that the software side of the audio
industry will continue to evolve. I would
imagine that products are going to be
catered around the DSP functionality that
is available, and get more compact, says
the manufacturers professional audio
specialist David Ferreira.
Over at Tannoy the focus for 2016 is
expected to be on intelligibility in installed
systems, and therefore greater demand
Audio Feeds Will Wright,
speaking after supplying a
number of stages at Secret
Garden Party, comments: This
was our first outing for the
Evo 6Es and I was particularly
excited about hearing some live
vocals through those new 10in
Axheads. I was not disappointed.
Frequency response was spot
on, but the real excitement came
from the overall energy that the
system seemed to deliver. The
transients in the mid-range were
constructing one of the most
stable stereo images I have ever
heard in a live situation.
for high-quality loudspeakers that
have consistent coverage through their
frequency response is predicted.
Audiologic also believes that demand
for better quality loudspeakers is growing.
Although the technology used to make
loudspeaker drivers has not changed
greatly, the digital methods of controlling
them have, meaning we can achieve
greater music performance and enhanced
speech intelligibility, says MD Simon Stoll.
Point source is an area to watch
according to Funktion-One founder Tony
Andrews: There seems to be quite a lot
of people coming back to point source.
There are a number of new point source
Meyer Sound
IntelligentDC
Technology
Meyer Sound installation loudspeakers with
IntelligentDC technology are the only self-
powered loudspeakers available with remote DC
powering. Twelve loudspeakers are available with
this proprietary technology: two subs and 10 full-
range loudspeakers. Systems with IntelligentDC
retain the advantages of self-powering by
eliminating long loudspeaker cables and enable
bi-amplification with active crossovers in two-
way loudspeakers.
Internal amplifier modules are powered via a
remote, rack-mount power supply and distribution
unit, meaning installation can be achieved using
a single five-conducter cable with no need for conduit in nearly all code jurisdictions. The result is
faster installation at costs comparable to conventional distributed systems.
IntelligentDC systems have proven successful as the primary system for small music venues,
expositions and theatrical shows, and the technology is
also a key component of Meyer Sounds
cinema systems and Constellation
acoustic system.
www.meyersound.
com
products out there particularly in
smaller loudspeakers.
For L-Acoustics the onus is on products
that are easier to use, faster to rig or
install, lighter in weight, have increased
bandwidth, and are more economical to
run. Its this constant demand for better,
faster, easier that drives our R&D, notes
Stphane Ecalle, L-Acoustics director
of marketing.
Overall, there appears to be a lot going
on in this area of the industry, with so
many innovative tools at the fingertips
of loudspeaker manufacturers and
distributors. Here we put some of the
current kit under the spotlight
Luke Jenks, director of product
management for Meyer
Sound, says that IntelligentDC
technology offers
no-compromise audio
performance in situations where
installation time and costs are a
significant factor.
This can be any scenario
where running AC power
to all loudspeaker locations
presents difficulties, such as
in older buildings as well as
for temporary installations in
museums or theatrical surround
and delay systems. Each
loudspeaker can be addressed
with its own input signal,
comments Jenks.
01/02/2016 17:28
 www.audiomediainternational.com PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
LOUDSPEAKER TECHNOLOGY

L-Acoustics
The beauty of ARCS II and

ARCS II ARCS WiFo is what-you-see-is-

what-you-get, notes Stphane
The ARCS II constant curvature line source is optimised for medium-throw Ecalle, L-Acoustics director of
applications. With K1-grade drivers in a two-way active enclosure, ARCS II marketing. The directivity of
delivers high SPL, native low-frequency performance and constant tonal the boxes perfectly matches the
balance over distance. box shape so its basically point
ARCS II permits ease of use, with its constant curvature design and shoot.
particularly recommended for indoor L/C/R applications, medium-sized We are fortunate to have a
outdoor festivals or as a fill complement to large K systems. very optimised product line-up
In the enclosure coupling plane, the razor-sharp SPL off-axis rejection with one line of speakers to
is used to avoid reflecting surfaces. In the perpendicular plane, the smooth address short-, medium- and
SPL roll off and asymmetric directivity of ARCS II can be used to maximise long-throw applications. Our
stereo imaging and adjust accordingly to the audience geometry. sales are spread out over each of
ARCS Wide and Focus (WiFo) brings the sonic qualities of L-Acoustics these segments, reflecting our
Wavefront Sculpture Technology line sources into a compact, constant ability to address the needs of
curvature enclosure, optimal for medium-throw applications. ARCS WiFo the end-users.
is the workhorse of sound providers, going from single enclosure fill all the
way up to 360 in-the-round coverage.
ARCS WiFo combines high SPL, native low frequency performance and
constant tonal balance over distance.
www.l-acoustics.com

Electro-Voice Tannoy Many steerable columns are

primarily voiced for speech
applications, but Qflex works
EKX Series QFlex equally well for intelligible
speech reproduction as well as
The Tannoy QFlex is a range of digitally pleasant and accurate musical
The EKX series is the steerable, multichannel array speaker reproduction. Also, by steering
newest member of the systems for the professional install market. and shaping a single beam,
Electro-Voice portable It is designed for applications with difficultrather than multiple beams,
loudspeaker family, acoustics such as houses of worship, QFlex provides seamless
combining legendary transportation hubs and shopping malls. coverage throughout a venue
sound quality and QFlex can be used as a standalone without noticeable changes
reliability with the latest technology all in a The loudspeakers self-powered column array device for both of response from one area
lightweight, compact package suitable for a wide QuickSmartDSP digital signal speech and limited BGM applications in of seating to another, says
range of sound reinforcement scenarios, processing control allows user- smaller spaces, where high intelligibility Ivan Schwartz, Western sales
including musicians, DJs and live/club/installed friendly single-knob control and and minimal visual impact are concerns. manager install for TC
sound applications. application presets for easy Tannoy says the QFlex is quite Group Americas.
The EKX series, positioned above the ZLX and set-up. As a result, users can revolutionary in that it is able to steer the
ELX series and below the ETX series, features fit the sound solution to their beam away from surfaces that cause reflections to frequencies
eight models (four powered and four passive), respective needs in no time, beyond 12kHz, making it the first digitally steerable array to
including 12in and 15in two-way models and 15in states Markus Schmittinger, maintain music quality over the desired area of coverage, all in a
and 18in subwoofers. product marketing manager- very architecturally pleasing package.
Markus Schmittinger, product marketing portable speakers at Bosch New features introduced on QFlex deliver more resolute
manager-portable speakers at Bosch Communication Systems. safety and monitoring facilities, making it fully compliant in
Communication Systems, says that EV-exclusive any life safety or mass notification environment. In addition
features ensure the EKX provides best-in-class performance and versatility, including EV-engineered QFlex has been weatherised for outdoor or harsh environments
speaker and amplifier components for superior sound quality and reliability as well as on-board signal without compromising on the products sleek aesthetic.
processing with user-friendly single-knob control and application presets for easy set-up. www.tannoypro.com
www.electrovoice.com

February 2016 29

28-30 AMI Feb 2016 Spotlight_Final.indd 2 01/02/2016 17:28

 PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
LOUDSPEAKER TECHNOLOGY
Ecler (Audiologic)
ARQIS
Audiologic brand Ecler has released a new
range of high-performance installation
speakers called ARQIS, featuring what
the company describes as architecturally
attractive cabinets in a variety of
different configurations.
The range starts with single 5in bass
drivers and hi-fi-sounding, high-frequency
tweeters and goes up to units equipped with
The focus on this range has
been based firstly on providing
superb quality of sound, says
Simon Stoll, managing director
of Audiologic. Too many
systems these days are
fatiguing to listen to so a more
laid-back sound has been
achieved to ensure listeners at
a venue enjoy every part of the
audio experience.
Dynacord
Vertical Array Series
The Dynacord TS 400 and Vertical Array series is a
compact and versatile loudspeaker system for mobile
applications and fixed installations, and can be used
either full-range or in active two-way systems for
applications requiring subwoofers.
The TS 400 with its vertical pattern control was
designed to provide smooth coverage over a very
wide bandwidth by using spaced and filtered woofers
as array elements.
The TS 400s 2.5-way design places elements at
both ends of the speaker column to maximise the
distance between them, ensuring that greater control
over the low frequency range is retained. The MF and
HF elements are placed in the middle of the column
for a smooth transition between the different
frequency areas and to achieve further control over
the radiation pattern.
www.dynacord.com
30 February 2016
28-30 AMI Feb 2016 Spotlight_Final.indd 3
XPRS15 and XPRS12 two-way full range
subwoofer. All three feature 15mm birch
that works across all musical genres.
12in bass- and horn-loaded tops, providing
suitable options for discrete but quality sound,
as well as solutions satisfying more full-range
and long-throw applications.
www.audiologic.uk
Pioneer Professional Audio
XPRS Series
Pioneer Pro Audio recently launched the
compact, portable, wooden-enclosure
XPRS Series combining Pioneer Pro
Audios sound engineering heritage
with the energy-efficient power of
Powersoft amps to give users what the
company describes as a versatile plug-
and-play system that fills the room with
a natural sound.
The XPRS Series comprises the
speakers and the XPRS215S dual 15in
plywood enclosures for a dynamic sound
Although the cabinets are built in China,
the XPRS range has been designed in
Japan and voiced in the UK by Pioneer
Pro Audio.
www.pioneerproaudio.com
as well as four subwoofers.
The XPRS15/12 have a 15/12in
ferrite LF driver, a 1.75in titanium
diaphragm compression driver
and Pioneer Pro Audios AFAST
technology to deliver a clear,
clean sound with a deep bass
range, says David Ferreira,
professional audio specialist at
Pioneer Pro Audio. Sound can
also be enhanced for various
applications using the four EQ
modes with built-in DSP.
The loudspeaker cabinets
of the Vertical Array series
satisfy the highest standards in
terms of acoustic performance
and wide coverage patterns,
operational safety and
reliability, says Boschs Markus
Schmittinger. Meeting the
requirements of a large number
of mobile applications and fixed
installations, the speaker family
consists of three full-range
vertical array speaker systems
Suitable for audiences of up
to 500 people, the key to the
high sound quality is the
optimal control over the
dispersion pattern that the
TS 400 provides.
01/02/2016 17:28
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 TECHNOLOGY REVIEW
ALLEN & HEATH DLIVE
DIGITAL MIXING SYSTEM
Promising power and processing tools to satisfy even the fussiest of engineers,
A&H dLive is designed to pick up where the much-loved iLive left off, which is no
easy feat. Alistair McGhee takes it for a spin.
A
llen & Heath has been
making waves in the digital
mixer world for quite a
while, mostly of late at the
more affordable end of
the market where the GLD and Qu series
have been attracting a lot of attention and
well-deserved acclaim. Above these two
newer product lines the iLive series has
long established itself as a solid option in
the live world with great interconnectivity
and a reputation for excellent sound
quality and solid reliability. Now A&H has
revealed the iLives successor: the dLive,
building on the hard-won success of the
iLive series while raising the bar in just
about every area.
There are three new dLive surfaces:
the S3000 with 20 faders and a single
touchscreen (all the dLive surfaces can
32 February 2016
32-33 AMI Feb 2016 Lead Review_Final.indd 1
drive an external screen); the S5000
with 28 faders and two touchscreens
up to the S7000 with 36 faders and
dual touchscreens. These surfaces
can be partnered with any of the new
DM MixRacks, which come in 32-in,
16-out; 48-in, 24-out; and 64-in, 32-out
(analogue) channel versions. In a dLive
system the MixRack houses not just
most of the I/O but also the grunt. All
three options have the same processing
power differing only in the amount of
analogue input and output on offer. Each
rack can mix 128 inputs to 64 outputs and
all at 96kHz. If 64 analogue inputs isnt
enough you add to this via the new DX
32 this is a 32-channel expander, two of
which can be attached to a DM MixRack
and one DX32 can also be connected to
the dLive surface.
Each DX32 has four eight-channel
expansion slots and expansion cards
are available in analogue in with remote
mic amps or analogue out or digital in or
out in AES3 format. Further expansion
is available through the new I/O ports
three on the MixRack, two on the
surface each of which offers 128 x 128
out at 96kHz. Thats a lot of I/O. And
although you can mix 128 inputs, you can
route any of the 800 inputs to any of the
800 outputs using the tieline feature,
without consuming DSP resources.
Game changer. And all this with latency
of around .6ms with all processing
time aligned.
Each component of the dLive system
features dual redundant, hot swappable
power supplies and the MixRacks and
expander offer dual redundant Cat5e
Key Features
n XCVI Core Generates enough power for
160 x 64 channels of processing at 96kHz
n DEEP Processing Embeds class-leading
compressors and processing emulations
directly within the input and mix channels
n Harmony user interface with single or
twin 12in capacitive touchscreens
n Fully customisable layout
n RackExtra FX
RRP: From $22,500
www.allen-heath.com
connectivity using the new A&H GigaAce
protocol. This is a system that takes
redundancy seriously. One of the glorious
aspects of the digital age we live in is
getting 64 channels down a Cat5 of
course one of the worst things about
the digital age is putting all your eggs
in one Cat5 basket. So when the show
really, really has to go on then two Cat5s
really are much, much better than one.
I pulled one GigaAce out and the dLive
didnt miss a beat, Im pleased to report
the show goes on. I got a bit cocky,
so I pulled both out, and then quickly
plugged one back in and in under two
seconds there was audio running and
the surface responding as normal. Neat,
eh? And in a clever bit of thinking all the
surfaces, MixRacks and expanders share
a common PSU design.
01/02/2016 12:42
 www.audiomediainternational.com
Touch and Go
The touchscreens on the dLive are
seriously nice bits of kit dimmable
for you theatre guys, and daylight
bright. They respond beautifully to
the touch and with pinch zoom and
swiping options they are intuitive in
operation. Surrounding the screens are
encoders with embedded multicolour
LEDs that change colour to reflect the
controls available at any given moment.
The lefthand screen is dedicated to
processing. Here, the channel strip is
presented in blocks adjacent to the
controls at the screen edges left, right
and bottom, with the centre section
available for the detailed information of
what you are working on. The righthand
screen is your system screen here you
can handle I/O, set up the surface and
MixRack and work on routing and
meter presentation.
On the processing screen the centre
detail section is tabbed and defaults to
the bank view of showing the overview
of the bank of faders (12 or 8) in which
your selected channel lives. Next, you
have a global overview of the channel
and then individual sections, preamp
(including routing and the ability to
remove the preamp gain from the
surface when youre sharing the
preamp with monitors), filters, dynamics
etc. However, while the centre section
changes the two cheeks and the chin allowing you to configure layers using
remain fixed, so your preamp settings
are always visible on the left cheek and
on the right you get to pick three options
from a set that includes your dynamics,
your sends and your effects. Just hit
the Setup button and any configurable
sections of the screen displays Setup
mode and you have access to your
options with drag and drop where
applicable. The bottom section of the
screen has configurable views of EQ and
an option to view metering. Your curves
can be controlled by the respective
controllers or by the touchscreen. Its
options and flexibility galore.
Do it your way
The really clever bit is allowing you all
that configurability and then allowing
you to nail it down for repeatability. Ben
Hammond, who was giving us the once
over on the desk, always had the main
vocal compressor settings visible on
the righthand cheek of the Setup screen
32-33 AMI Feb 2016 Lead Review_Final.indd 2
(which is also divided into a central detail
area and three panels: left, right and
bottom) and similarly always has gate,
compressor and FX sends on the three
pages for the righthand cheek of the
processor screen. Everywhere drag and
drop offers fast and flexible setup.
We had some guys from local PA
outfit AB Acoustics over and we
discussed building layers on the fly
while mixing something they do at the
moment with pop group functionality,
and the dLive has the same trick by
at home I lost about two seconds of
drag and drop on the system screen
while leaving the layer you are mixing
on and the processing screen to carry
on as normal.
The huge flexibility of the desk is
visible in areas like setting up sends to
mixes. Hit the Mix key on an aux and the
channels flip to the Sends on Faders we
all know and love. Tired of that, use the
Sends option in your processing screen
one button or swipe away on your
selected channel or hit Sends on Rotary
and use the option to switch off Sends
on Faders.
Here you see the mighty leaps Allen
& Heath has taken in desk usability
when I looked at speccing an iLive for
a job six or seven years ago, the rotary
did anything you liked as long as it was
pan. Now it does gain (preamp or trim),
pan, sends to selected mix or one of
four customisable buttons with access
to a myriad options. And, for a slightly
different cat, set the custom rotaries as
TECHNOLOGY REVIEW
Focusing on feedback from our
customer base and key engineers,
we have developed a new Allen & Heath
technology base for live mixing.
The XCVI Core is designed from the
ground up to execute our DEEP Processing
algorithms from within the FPGA channel
processor core. This unique architecture
allows users to select various embedded
processing models on every input and
mix channel on the fly, without burning
valuable FX slots or adding latency.
Rob Clark, A&H
seconds; unlimited stereo input ganging
and 16 multi-input gangs on the surface;
four custom meter pages (please can I
have the custom meters that auto widen
sends to your first four aux busses and to the screen its a 50-year-old eye
you have an alternate workflow option. thing); use your iLive interface cards
Another area of improvement is the with adapters; iPad control and system
MixRack speed. The first choice you editors coming soon; build quality is
have to make is configuring the MixRack very fine and all the fixtures and fittings
for the number of groups/auxes and cry out quality.
matrices you need. These can all be One of the most successful aspects
mono or stereo. So if you want a 52 mono of the desk is the control count large
aux setup, you can have it, and when enough to give you lots of instant access
you have chosen the right layout for the to tonnes of features but avoiding the
gig, reboot the MixRack to present the forest of knobs that induces indecision
new configuration. I tested it with audio as you reach for the control you need
running through the desk dont try this right now. I think the numbers will sell
dLive the sheer amount of I/O and
audio and the whole system will be back processing will surely attract the theatre
up in less than 15. market but I also think the workflow
Shows and scenes are will sell dLive; it is usable in a way that
comprehensively catered for and makes engineers lives easy, and lets
crossfades have been implemented them have it their way.
between scenes. You have up to 20 Allen & Heaths dLive is an ergonomic
seconds available for cross fades triumph, in fact the whole system is a
and dedicated buttons for operation, Triumph a big beautiful Bonneville sort
including a nice big GO button. And your of Triumph. Iconic British engineering
scene list (or set list!) is always available at its best.
in the lefthand cheek of your system
screen. Save out your show files to a
front panel USC socket; a second USB on
The Reviewer
the front panel allows stereo playback
and stereo recording.
Alistair McGhee
began audio life in Hi-Fi before
Conclusion joining the BBC as an audio engineer.
Summing up is difficult when so much After 10 years in radio and TV,
has been left unsaid: 24 DCAs; copy and he moved to production. When
BBC Choice started, he pioneered
paste channels; freezing inputs down personal digital production in
layers; pinch zoom on the I/O assign television. Most recently, Alistair
matrix a function for 50-year-old eyes; was assistant editor, BBC Radio
assign all your inputs by dragging your Wales and has been helping the UN
with broadcast operations in Juba.
finger at 45 across the I/O screen in two
February 2016 33
01/02/2016 12:42
 TECHNOLOGY REVIEW
KLANG:FABRIK
IN-EAR MONITORS
T
he use of in-ear monitors
(IEMs) has become
much more common
in recent years; the
sheer convenience and
consistency of sound from show to
show coupled with a reduction in
monitor spill from the stage have made
them a firm favourite with musicians
and engineers alike. The standard model
is simple and universal you get a stereo
mix delivered directly to your ears
however KLANG has come up with a new
system that quite literally adds another
dimension to the experience.
The KLANG:fabrik system offers
3D in-ear monitoring and is designed
to be inserted into the existing signal
chain between the monitor console and
the IEMs (be they wired or wireless)
and while the processing required is
prodigious the process itself is really
quite simple. It fabricates the kind of
inter-aural delays and filtering that
occur in the natural world, which our
brains decode to give us accurate
information on the placement of
sound sources in a three dimensional
sound field.
The unit itself is a 2U 19in rack module;
the front panel is quite sparse with just
a USB port and a 5in touchscreen. The
rear panel sports 16 XLR outputs, three
RJ45 sockets (for Dante and control),
BNC word clock in and out, four ADAT
optical ins and outs, dual IEC power
sockets and a power switch.
The touch-enabled display screen is
for status feedback only (due to its slow
response) so you will need some kind of
hardware controller in order to operate
the system. This may seem annoying
to some, that the system doesnt come
with all you need, but the assumption
is that most people already have a
suitable device which they would prefer
to use, whether it be a tablet, laptop
or phone all are catered for by the
KLANG:app software (Windows, Mac
OS, Android and iOS). Also bear in mind
34 February 2016
34 AMI Feb 2016 Review 1_Final.indd 1
When KLANG:technologies first announced its intention to introduce 3D IEM systems
to the market, it certainly turned a few heads. So, does it really work? Andy Coules
gets immersed in this intriguing new technology to find out
that if you plan to control the system
wirelessly you will require a wireless
router (which again a lot of people
already have to control their digital
desks, etc).
To get your audio from the monitor
desk into the KLANG unit you can
currently use either Dante or ADAT; a
MADI version is planned but not yet
available. The number of inputs it can
handle depends on how many outputs
are in use if all eight stereo outputs
are in use you can only have 24 inputs
whereas if youre only using three stereo
outputs you can have up to 56 inputs.
Once your input channels are all
present and correct and the control
connection is in place you can start
to use your hardware controller to
configure the mixes via the KLANG:app.
The app has four main screens:
Config, Meter, Faders and Stage,
which give you access to everything
you need in an interface optimised for
touchscreen devices. All that remains
to do, in order to get the system up and
running, is to connect the analogue
outputs into your IEM system and youre
good to go.
In Use
When I first donned my in-ears and
fired up the system it was configured
to send a standard stereo mix nothing
new there but the real moment of
revelation came when I clicked on the
3D button. Suddenly the mix went from
being between my ears and in my head
to being all around me. I expected some
kind of 3D effect but I didnt expect it
to be so real; it was a bit like the audio
www.audiomediainternational.com
equivalent of that moment in The
Wizard of Oz when it goes from black
and white to colour.
Operation is very straightforward
and the app is simple to use while still
being powerful; creating your 3D mix
is as simple as setting fader levels
and moving a few icons around the
circularstage. You quickly get carried
away creating realistic mixes where
you are centre stage and the band is
arranged around you (which just
proves that we all secretly want to be
the lead singer).
What struck me was the degree
of separation you get it really lets
you hear each individual instrument
in its own space and makes the mix
sound much more natural. After using
it for a while switching back to stereo
operation was a bit of a shock as the
mix collapsed into my head and sat
boringly between my ears I had to
remind myself that this is what every
IEM mix normally sounds like.
While a monitor console is still
required it is relegated to a slightly
subservient role where it just provides
the inputs and channel processing. The
separation you get in 3D mode means
you dont have to work quite so hard
to ensure instruments dont overlap
and mask each others frequencies,
which should help ensure less muddy
mixes but could make it possible
for non-engineers (or even the band
themselves) to mix the monitors.
Interestingly, KLANG has also
developed an addition to the fabrik
system called KLANG:vektor, which
embeds a small motion tracker
into your IEMs and enables the mix
to respond to your head and body
movements on stage and thus
mimic the physical position of the
instruments, keeping them anchored in
space as you move around. Theres a lot
of buzz right now about virtual reality
but this promises virtual aurality.
What amazes me is how this
technology has arrived fully formed
this is not a beta version of a concept
which will improve over time but a fully
realised end solution to a problem none
of us knew existed. Its one of those
exciting new technologies that shift
the paradigm. I fully expect that once
people have tried it out they wont want
to go back to boring old 2D ears.
Key Features
n Each unit can handle up to eight musicians
n Compatible with Dante and ADAT, with MADI
on the way
n 16 balanced analogue line level outputs
n Two locking IEC power connectors
n BNC Word Clock
RRP: 3,190
www.klang.com
The Reviewer
Andy Coules
is a sound engineer and audio
educator who has toured the world
with a diverse array of acts in a wide
range of genres.
andycoules.co.uk
01/02/2016 15:39
Full Page Template.indd 1 1/6/2016 4:02:38 PM
 TECHNOLOGY REVIEW
VERTIGO SOUND VSE-2
EQUALISER
G
ermany is a country with
at least its fair share of
great audio design people,
and one such is Andreas
Andy Eschenwecker of
Vertigo Sound whom I first heard of in
2008 when reviewing the outstanding
VSC-2 Quad Discrete Compressor now
something of a modern classic. A look at
the companys meticulous and striking
component layouts tells you that here
is someone who cares about detail, an
impression thats more than confirmed
on listening. One of Eschenweckers
strengths is the combination of classic
ideas with modern implementation, and
this may be seen in the Vertigos latest
offering, the VSE-2 Discrete Gyrator EQ.
Overview
Originally proposed in 1948, a gyrator
is a type of electronic network that
can be used at the heart of equaliser
designs as an alternative to its even
older wire coil predecessor, the
inductor. Although inductors are still
popular with some designers looking
for a vintage sound, they are expensive
and have inherent issues; on the
other hand, gyrators (aka simulated
inductors) can work better than the
real thing and give the designer more
freedom, a factor put to work in the
VSE-2 to create, among other things, a
tube-like distortion spectrum.
The VSE-2 equaliser has a
conventional, if quite deep, 19in 2U
36 February 2016
36 AMI Feb 2016 Review 2_Final.indd 1
Following a satisfying first experience with the brand a few years ago, Nigel Palmer
jumped at the chance to try out the newest addition to Vertigo Sounds audio
arsenal, the Discrete Gyrator EQ.
rackmount form factor. The units
front panel is an attractive dark red
colour with control markings in white,
and two identical channels of EQ with
three gyrator filters each marked LF,
MF and HF that occupy most of the
panel. The boost and cut controls use
discrete components and are switched,
with amplitudes of 1dB, 2dB, 3.5dB,
5.5dB and 8dB. The band frequency
selectors have corresponding legends
laid out on the front panel in a pleasing
wave shape, and the 18 points are: LF
40, 60, 80, 120, 160, 240; MF 315, 480,
640, 1k, 1.3k, 2k and HF 2.5k, 3.8k, 5k, 8k,
10k plus A.I.R. This last stands for All
Impedance Resonance, and is a useful
air band enhancer. Youll notice the
frequency points dont overlap while
this is often considered a virtue in an
analogue EQ as it can, for example, allow
for slightly different frequencies at
crossover points to get in the cracks
of critical areas like the midrange, with
the mostly broad shaping nature of the
VSE-2 borne in mind I didnt miss this.
The unit doesnt have bandwidth
or Q controls, as its a proportional
Q design (Vertigo call it variable Q)
where the more cut or boost applied the
steeper the bell curve becomes. This
helps keep controls to a minimum and is
an effective way of working, as I know
from a variation on this in my own main
mastering EQ at Lowland Masters. Each
channel has a bypassable rotary high-
pass filter offering a 24dB per octave
slope between 10 and 400Hz a useful
facility for cleaning up the low end and
concluding the roundup of front panel
features with the power switch to the
right. When powered down the VSE-2
continues to allow audio through in a
true hardwire bypass.
In Use
Once set up, I tried the EQ on a range
of material. My immediate impression
was of beautiful, malleable sound and
a refreshingly simple way of accessing
it; the VSE-2 has a delicious hint of a
valve quality about it without a glass
tube in sight, and this gets progressively
warmer the more you push the level, to
around 1% total harmonic distortion
while maintaining bags of headroom
and low noise.
The low band is a revelation: warm
and articulate without ever sounding
boomy or harsh, its possible to add
considerable weight and loudness
to a signal if you wish, and where
appropriate I found myself boosting
further into the upper bass/lower mid
area than Im used to without sonic
penalty. Interestingly, I didnt feel a lack
of shelf curves although shelves can
be a useful way to lift or cut a chunk
of low or high frequencies without
changing inner balances too much,
theres something about the VSE-2s
approach that can promote a similar feel
but in a more positive way. Midrange
boosts (great on guitars and vocals)
www.audiomediainternational.com
Key Features
n Discrete gyrator-based concept
n Each band provides 8dB of gain
n 18 selectable frequencies on each channel
n All Impedance Resonance (A.I.R)
air band enhancer
n 10Hz-400Hz hi pass filter with bypass
RRP: 4,490 excluding VAT
www.vertigosound.com
and cuts (equally good for containing
general forwardness or harsh areas)
were exemplary and the high end had
a silky quality Ive rarely heard, again
without harshness. In fact HF boosts
are quite addictive and can be easy to
overcook at first, although familiarity
with the unit soon overcomes this
tendency. Finally, the A.I.R. HF setting
works well at providing a different kind
of smooth high-end lift, and is a very
usable additional facility.
Conclusion
In my opinion, Vertigo has done it again.
While the VSE-2 wouldnt be my first
choice as a main mastering equaliser, it
does fit the bill very well as a secondary
broad shaper on any kind of music.
Where I think it excels would be for
tracking as a dual-mono EQ with the
added bonus of the powerful high-pass
filter, or particularly on the mix bus
where its ability to gently nudge chosen
areas in a characterful way would be a
real gift to many mixer/producers.
The Reviewer
Nigel Palmer
has been a freelance sound engineer
and producer for over 20 years. He
runs his CD mastering business
Lowland Masters from rural Essex.
www.lowlandmasters.com
01/02/2016 17:43
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12/11/2015 17:22
 TECHNOLOGY REVIEW
UVI FALCON
SOFTWARE
Ryan McCambridge
discovers why this
new Creative Hybrid
Instrument is more than
just another softsynth.
T
here has been a lot of
excitement in the synth
communities that I
frequent around UVIs
Falcon. Its promised a
breadth that doesnt come along very
often, which is sort of the point of
Falcon. UVI is calling Falcon a Creative
Hybrid Instrument in an attempt to
encapsulate everything that it does.
On the surface, one could view Falcon
as simply a softsynth, but looking under
the hood reveals a powerhouse that runs
the gamut from simple analogue shapes,
through to FM, wavetable, all the way
through to granular synthesis. There
are even modules dedicated to drum
and plucking sounds. Digging deeper
uncovers a platform that welcomes
third-party libraries and sounds,
sampling capabilities and macros to
help facilitate live performance. For
those mad scientist types, the rabbit
hole goes down even further, offering
the capability to script custom event
generators and instruments. The
possibilities are seemingly infinite; that
is the essence of Falcon.
It only takes a few notes to realise
that UVI has created something quite
special here. UVIs thoroughness with
Falcon has resulted in an instrument
that sounds stunning, and with the 15
different oscillators the palette covers
almost anything. Where Falcon truly
excels though is in its ability to take
those raw sounds and manipulate
them. For starters, there are 80
effects to mangle or polish your sonic
creations, but ultimately the modulation
capabilities are what will entice
passionate synth programmers. There
is a nearly limitless matrix of modulation
38 February 2016
38 AMI Feb 2016 Review 3_Final.indd 1
possibilities, all of which can be
assigned with a simple right-click on the
parameter. This streamlined approach
to modulation assignment is probably
one of Falcons best assets because it
makes programming straightforward
and limits the time spent in menus.
UVI has provided tools and presets
to help users quickly perform simple
tasks within the many modulators and
sub-modulators. The Drunk modulator
is worth mentioning as it randomly
modulates a source, offering an easy
way to simulate analogue artifacts like
pitch drift. There is also a step envelope,
with full control up to 128 steps, included
in the possible modulators, which has a
plethora of pre-programmed rhythms,
if needed. Falcons modulation section
also offers a modulation mapper editor
that runs between the modulation
source and the parameter itself, which
remaps the modulation control signal
based on the shape of the stepped
mapper editor. Given the number of
controls that are potentially needed
for a complex patch, Falcon offers tabs
to easily navigate between important
aspects of the instruments and also has
flexible resizing of the main window,
and pop-up windows for a closer look at
modulation parameters.
A Sound Design Ecosystem
Falcon is natively surround capable,
outputting up to 10.2 channels, which
www.audiomediainternational.com
at this point is the most users will
really need. With its sample playback
capabilities, you can see that Falcon
may want to encroach on Native
Instruments Kontakt, which has in
many respects cornered the market on
instruments for composing. Falcon will
load both UVI and third-party libraries,
but only time will tell if it sticks as a
platform for that purpose.
I could also see Falcon being an asset
to those who have a basic grasp on
programming but are looking to push
their abilities forward. Conceivably,
one could use only Falcon to create a
song from start to finish. That said, as
with any complex instrument, there is
definitely a learning curve to Falcon, but
the payoff is having an instrument that
offers the kind of depth and flexibility
that will appease even the most
demanding of programmers.
Conclusion
Falcon is an incredible accomplishment
and presents a great value for everything
that it packs in. Ultimately though,
Falcons best asset is also its biggest
impediment: its incredibly expansive.
This is an instrument for synth
programmers and sound designers and
though it has some great presets, it
might scare off the faint of heart who are
just looking to cycle through pre-made
sounds. If you thrive on flexibility and
manipulation in your synths, Falcon
Key Features
n 15 oscillators covering a wide range of
modern synthesis methods
n 80 high-quality effects categorised for
easy navigation
n 8 modulation generators
n Native support for channel configurations
from Mono to 10.2
RRP: $349
www.uvi.net
could be an incredible addition to
your synth arsenal. In fact, it could be
your arsenal. But if you like specific
instruments for specific tasks, Falcon
may be a bit overwhelming. Falcon
rewards those who are willing to put
some time into it, and I imagine that
even the most demanding of user will
appreciate the instrument.
The Reviewer
Ryan McCambridge
is a freelance audio engineer, writer,
producer and programmer from.
He has taught audio production in
workshops and universities, is the
creator of the production blog Bit
Crushing and is the frontman of A
Calmer Collision. www.bitcrushing.
com www.acalmercollision.com
01/02/2016 17:45
 REACH YOUR

The Ultimate
All-In-One
Professional PA
System
ARC COVERAGE: The ARC (Amplified Radial Curve) array

01 technology utilizes a unique angled waveguide structure

to provide 150 of horizontal coverage to reach each and
every audience member.

Everything you need and then some

for your performance or presentation.
02
EARSHOT PERSONAL MONITORING: Only Reach features
From ultra-wide coverage to personal built-in dedicated personal monitors so you can hear
yourself better on stage, driving better performance.
monitoring to wireless control over it all,
only Reach delivers the comprehensive
solution you need.
03 WIRELESS STREAMING AND MIXING: The Mackie Connect
app for iOS and Android gives you total control of your
mix including wireless music streaming.

mackie.com/reach

2015 LOUD Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. Mackie., the Running Man figure, EarShot, ARC and Mackie Connect are trademarks or registered trademarks of LOUD Technologies Inc.
The Bluetooth word mark and logos are registered trademarks of Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of such marks by LOUD Technologies is under license.

Full Page Template.indd 1 10/29/2015 5:10:58 PM

 TECHNOLOGY REVIEW
MACKIE REACH
PORTABLE PA
This new system packs
plenty of punch, according
to Strother Bullins.
H
aving recently evaluated
Mackies unique
FreePlay Personal PA,
the subsequent arrival
of a Reach portable PA
(PPA) system for review made a lot of
chronological sense. While the new
century boom box design of the 11lb,
battery-powerable FreePlay makes it
the easiest PPA Ive ever travelled with,
the significantly larger Reach is entirely
practical for use in sound reinforcement
applications where a very small
footprint yet comprehensive stage and
audience coverage is desired yet all
from one box. You heard that right one
Reach enclosure will deliver both main
and dual stage monitor duties quite well
in many small to medium-sized rooms.
Reachs size and form are probably its
most important attributes: 28.7in high by
9.5in wide by 8.6in deep; its a skinny, tall,
31.7lb, self-powered cabinet. It features a
built-in six-channel digital mixer feeding
720W of peak Class D power, which
pushes an impressive 150 of horizontal
coverage out front (thanks to Mackies
proprietary ARC array technology) at up
to 121dB maximum SPL. Meanwhile, its
adjustable EarShot personal monitoring
system consisting of dual side-to-
rear-firing two-way monitors with an
additional 50 of horizontal monitor mix
coverage per side allows performing
musicians a built-in monitor on either
side of the unit when positioned slightly
in front of them.
On Reachs rear panel are four XLR/
TRS combo inputs/preamps plus
an 1/8in aux input and TRS jacks for
phones output, footswitch control (to
mute/unmute internal effects), link in
and link out connectivity. Its interface is
intuitive, too. Simple press/hold button
controls allow level and effects send
adjustments, side monitor and oh-so-
40 February 2016
40 AMI Feb 2016 Review 4_Final.indd 1
valuable Feedback Destroyer features.
Its four effects Verb1, Verb2, Delay1
and Delay2 are well chosen, middle-
of-the-road acoustic treatments
that should suit most common live
applications. Pre-selected EQ voicings
are available, as are EarShot speaker
selection settings; for the latter, left,
right, both or neither mute options
further expand Reachs on-stage
usefulness.
Bluetooth features take Reach to an
entirely different level than its closest
competition. With the free Mackie
Connect mixing app allowing level,
EQ, effects, monitoring and other
adjustments Reach is truly a tether-
free system with the simplest, most
logical of touchscreen mixers Ive had
the benefit of using live. Usefully, it pairs
with OSX and iOS as well as Android
devices. More information about
Reachs Bluetooth-enabled functionality
is available on the Mackie website.
In Use
I utilised Reach in a wide range of
environments with a variety of input
sources: most notably for a house of
worship youth band performance; as
a portable DJ rig in a very large school
gymnasium at an elementary public
school fundraiser; as a main monitor
at two different small club gigs with a
four-piece cover band; and in a variety
of ensemble rehearsal situations.
In each case, the Reach performed
surprisingly well.
Depending only on its four-
channel internal digital mixer, Reach
impressively covers many portable
PA applications, though I paired the
unit with an external mixer for more
channels (most notably in the cover band
and HOW scenarios) with much success.
The system excelled in DJ applications;
low-channel count, club-based ensemble
sound reinforcement; and typical
rehearsal room scenarios where vocals,
acoustic instruments and other low SPL
sources must mix with other amplified
or naturally loud sounds (e.g. drums).
In the gymnasium setting, rife with
potential feedback, Reachs Feedback
Destroyer literally saved the evening.
www.audiomediainternational.com
Key Features
n
n
ARC array technology for clear high-fidelity sound
Built-in EarShot personal monitoring system
n Wireless Bluetooth streaming
n Integrated six-channel digital mixer
n Mackie Connect app for wireless adjustment
RRP: $999.99
www.mackie.com
As two school representatives roamed
with wireless microphones through
the crowd, speaking over prerecorded
music, sound effects and such, I
punched the appropriate button at
least a half-dozen times; Reach scanned
for the guilty frequencies, grabbing
them and ducking them out in literally
a second. In more acoustically friendly
environments, one Feedback Destroyer
scan is all it took, and those gigs went
off without a problem or a squeal,
to be specific.
Reachs EarShot monitoring system
is ingenious and quite amazing, actually.
In the club gig setting, we placed Reach
at the front of the stage, pole-mounted
at about head height to band members. features and attractive accessories
Standing on either side and slightly of a thousands-more fully featured L1,
behind Reach, monitoring the mix on which is closer to what Reach ultimately
stage was a pleasure, as the bassist offers its users.
manned the mix via his iPhone. Only Further, both these Fishman and
the drummer complained a bit for not Bose rig examples lack Reachs input
hearing the mix very well. Id simply count, effects and Bluetooth-enabled
suggest adding a small powered mixing features, and the incredibly
monitor for any backline players useful EarShot monitoring system. For
positioned too far away from the that reason, I highly recommend Reach
Reach cabinet. As such, Reach plus a for any DIY, jack-of-all-trades live audio
powered wedge equals nearly 360 of pro, performer or band in similar gig
combination main/monitor coverage, situations as illustrated above. Also, its
all without feedback problems. I tried it an ideal PPA for institutions schools,
later, and all I can say is Wow! HOWs, and other event centres as it
Ive used Fishman SoloAmp and Bose can cover many applications, is small
L1 systems extensively, and theyre and lightweight, and is very intuitive.
the closest comparative products
I can think of to Mackies Reach. At
$999 street, Reach is the same street
The Reviewer
price as the SoloAmp SA220, yet far
more powerful, useful and feature-
packed. In direct comparison, Reach is Strother Bullins is reviews editor
incredibly bass deep. An entry-level for NewBay Medias AV/Pro Audio
Group. sbullins@nbmedia.com
L1 is available at $899 street and is
www.prosoundnetwork.com
very nice indeed, yet it lacks the many
01/02/2016 16:06
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NewBay Connect FP.indd 1 12/01/2016 12:41

 INTERVIEW
ABBEY ENDINGS
Now one of the UKs top TV composers after decades spent honing his craft on shows such as Going Postal and Hotel
Babylon, two-time Emmy winner John Lunn is best known for his work on Downton Abbey, which had its grand finale
recently. Adam Savage asks him to look back on what made the show so successful and reveal his 2016 plans.
So Downton Abbey has finally come to
an end. It must feel strange that its all
over now?
It is a bit, but its still on in America so
theres quite a lot of publicity at the
moment. Ive also done a new Downton
Abbey album, theres talk of a live tour
and a movie and Japans only on series
two so even though it feels like the end,
its still ongoing.
Have you been surprised by the shows
popularity, as well as the amount of
interest in the soundtrack?
I think because it became so popular
and the theme tune got played more
and more people got to know it. Is it
because its a brilliant tune or is it just
that sense of familiarity? Its probably a
bit of both actually. I think it works really
well because it does kind of sum up what
youre about to see and give you a certain
level of expectation, but I didnt know the
whole series was going to be so popular,
particularly in America.
Has your approach changed much since
the first series?
Not really, the size of the orchestra
has stayed pretty familiar for example.
Before it was so popular, the budget
42 February 2016
42 AMI Feb 2016 Back Page_Final.indd 1
was a bit of a struggle in series one but
it was the kind of score that couldnt
be done with sample libraries; it had to
be real musicians. I ended up initially
cutting corners, so wed only book a
studio to record the orchestra in, then
wed take the Pro Tools session back to
my studio and Id record the piano on
top of it. There are no samples in it at all;
obviously I used samples to write it, but
they all got replaced by real musicians.
You once said you were unconvinced
by digital emulations. Are you still a
die-hard analogue fan?
Things have possibly changed a bit
now but about ten years ago I moved
my studio into a slightly smaller room
and did go down that route of trying
to do everything in the box. It was a bit
unfortunate because I was doing a job
that had a lot of electric guitars in it but I
just couldnt get it to sound good mixing
within Logic.
Things have certainly got better and
I have been surprised with some things
Ive heard that were mixed in the box
but I think I can tell the difference. I use
Pro Tools, which is a fantastic piece of
software, but most of the compression
and EQ we use is all analogue.
Im sure it has developed and I can see
the reasons for doing it [going digital].
Last summer I was working on three
jobs at once and moving between jobs
on an analogue desk was pretty complex
actually. Ive just gone out and bought
a new SSL AWS 948 desk to cover for
this so Ive got some sort of recall and
automation.
What other equipment have you been
using for your recent projects? Have
you been trying anything new?
For The Last Kingdom, which is about
Vikings, I used a lot of electronics. Ive
really got into modular synthesisers.
Theres this thing called Eurorack and
its just exploded that whole side of
things. Again, recall ability is a bit of
a problem but whats great about it is
that its almost impossible to sound
like anything else and I think thats what
Ive been constantly trying to avoid so electronic stuff so I wouldnt mind doing
many composers have gone down the
route of using the same sample libraries,
everybodys using Omnisphere, and we
all end up sounding the same!
Did you find yourself working across
several studios for Downtown, or was it
all done at Abbey Road?
www.audiomediainternational.com
It started off quite a lot at Abbey Road
with Downton Abbey and then for
series three I think we had difficulty
getting in because they were doing a
lot of recording for The Olympics so we
went to AIR Studios and Angel Studios,
where we probably ended up doing more
recording than anywhere else.
Abbey Road was where you did the live
streaming of the music for the last
episode of Downton too, of course. How
did that go?
Pretty well I think, although I didnt really
have a chance to see it because I was
so busy. I think some people are really
surprised by certain things to do with
music and film, like how we record to
picture. Its very picture-specific and
on Downton we never used the same
cue twice; it was re-recorded every
single time.
People do try to cut corners by
reusing cues but in Downton it just
didnt work because there was so
much dialogue in it and the music had
to fit underneath it. We used the
same tunes but they just had to be
arranged differently.
What have you got coming up now
then? Any more big projects in the
pipeline?
Im just finishing off a second series of
Grantchester and theres a second series
of The Last Kingdom, another project
called Jamestown about the pilgrim
fathers and set in America and that will
keep me busy for the year.
Now that Downtons finished I
wouldnt mind finding something else
orchestral but Im also into all the
a bit more experimenting as Downtons
taken me away from that side.
What was good about doing The Last
Kingdom was that it was so different
thats why I took it on but if Im known
for Downton Abbey for the rest of my
life then Ill be quite happy!
www.jlunn.com
01/02/2016 12:45
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