My page is undergoing some changes.  I will be getting higher res photos up better and the blog needs to be linked in but I’m getting there!  Email or post in the comment section below any suggested topics or questions you may have so we can discuss them.

This is the fun question!  I love effects units.  Anytime I can use one I do. Once you get used to them there’s no going back!  Especially if you can get the hang of the delay units!    This skill set will take time and trial and error to get it right.

Effects Units

Most effects units come with presets that sound good right out of the box.  My personal favorite is the Lexicon PCM91 that has a setting called the Hanger Wave that mimics a airplane hanger.  Really amazing reverb.  Especially on wind or stringed instruments.  Just turn it on and go!

Delay Units

A delay effect can be achieved with a little bit of rhythm to match it up with the tempo of the song.  This is done by a button called “Tap”  basically it works how it says it does.  You tap the button to the beat of the song and it sets the delay.  If you can get the right song for a delay on a snare then the effect can be awesome!  Just play with it during practices then try it out on the audience.

Have fun and make mistakes.  You never know what you will find that sounds really cool!

What are your favorite units and settings?  Post them below in the comments.

This is an interesting question. Mainly because everyone has a different point of view as to what is a good sound.  Some like it bass-thumping, while some like more highs in their mix.  So if nothing I advise you to do makes your system sound like you want it to then simply change the settings.  A sound system is only as good as it sounds.

The goal of a sound system

The ultimate goal of the system is to be as transparent as possible so that it reproduces the sound of the instrument of vocal it is picking up.  In order to achieve this, the system needs to have minimal distortion in all the components plus have minimal installed equipment and connections that could change the sound of the source.  A tube compressor can sound nice but couple it with an EQ, another compressor, a separate gate, and anything else you can add and the end result could be a complicated and potential buzz creating trap.

Setting the EQ

First:

When setting an EQ for the mains I start out flat then go from there.  I avoid the smile, frown face or any other emotion.  These are always too generic of an approach for pro audio because the complexities of a room and system can vary greatly.

Next step:

Find trouble frequencies.  You can do this several ways.  You can listen for the exact frequency and get so good that you know what frequency you want to change.  You can buy expensive analyzers that will help you find the problem frequencies or you can simply turn up a mic until it starts to ring and find the problem frequencies.  Any way you choose is fine,if the end result is a system that sounds good and does not ring every time you turn a mic on.

Finally:

It can be tough to get the EQ set just right, so turn up your favorite band and enjoy your hard work!

These techniques can be used on mains and monitors.  Monitors take a little more time because they generally have a speaker aimed directly at the mics and ringing can be a quick problem, so make sure you take great care when setting them up.

Call me or email me today if you have any specific questions on install or selection advice for EQ’s  910-658-7893  ryan@brackmanconsulting.com

You can also use my contact form

A compressor is a piece of equipment that helps with a many situations.  It is used to control the volume of a source without having to constantly adjust the fader.  This unit can only reduce the volume so setting it can take some trial and error.  Correctly setting up and using one can help almost any type of instrument or voice.  Take a look below for some terms you will want to know and some helpful tips.

Terms you will want to know

Threshold

This is the amount of input it takes for the compressor to kick in.

Ratio

This is the amount of input compared to output shown using a colon.  For example a 2:1 ratio will allow 1 dB of audio to pass through for every 2 dB of audio sent to the unit.

Good starting ratios

– Vocal 2:1

– Kick drum or bass guitar  4:1 – 10:1

– Other instruments 2:1 and work up from there as needed

Hard knee

This is a way to describe the compressor kicking in at the set ratio when the threshold is met.  Some compressors have a button for this setting and others you may need to adjust the attack.  It is called this because when it is graphed it looks like a knee.

Attack

How fast the compressor kicks in

Limiter

This is always an extremely high ratio.  Sometimes expressed as high as 30:1 up to infinity:1.  This essentially makes a point that no matter how much sound is put in then it will not get much beyond your set threshold.

Gate

This may be on some compressors.  This acts as a mute. It has it’s own threshold setting and will keep the channel muted until the gate threshold is met.

Tips on Getting Started

Bass player

When mixing with a bass guitar they may already have a compressor.  Many bass players use them to help them when they change from playing steady bass notes to louder slap bass licks.

Vocal

Make sure you don’t set you compressor to where it compresses too much.  When the person stops signing and the compressor allows more sound to go through it again it could cause feedback quickly!

Limiters

Use limiters to help protect speakers from getting damage.

Gates

Good for reducing the extra tones coming from a tom that just resonates for too long.

Compressors are great pieces of equipment and are used by the novice and professional alike.  I have seen some techs use a compressor on just about every channel to help keep volumes at a set range (generally the 80-90 dB range) however this takes skill to achieve a polished result using this technique.  too much compression and the music can sound squashed or unnatural and not enough it just gets out of control.  This technique also costs money to buy the right equipment to do the job.

So get started trying out on your equipment!  Trial and error is the best way to find out how to get them set just right. 

If you don’t have your own equipment call me now and I will help you pick the right compressor for your needs.  910-658-7893.  You can also email me the details and I will send you my recommendation.  ryan@brackmanconsulting.com

This is the first in a series of 5 questions I had when just learning about AV systems. They specifically deal with sound because that was the first systems I learned how to work on. I will throw in some lighting and video on the next series.

1. What is a parametric equalizer? What is it’s purpose?

A Parametric Equalizer (PE for short today) is a equalizer that has banks of frequencies that it can it can change. Each bank has a range of frequencies. Each bank can choose a frequency and alter it by either boosting or cutting. Depending on how advanced the unit is, it may be more precise and only affect the selected frequencies and a few around it or may affect a broad set of frequencies. So let’s go over some terms you may run into on these units

Low Shelf: Affects the chosen frequencies and all the frequencies before it.

High Shelf: Affects the chosen frequencies and all the frequencies after it.

Frequency knob: Has a range of frequencies you can choose from for each boost/cut knob.

Boost/Cut knob: The know that affect how much you turn up or turn down frequency selections. This is normally labeled from -15 to + 15.

Nominal/Flat: This is the point of the PE that does not affect the signal at all. This is generally the boost/cut knob set at 12:00. The frequency selector knob now can be in any position and not affect the sound.

How is it used?
Sometimes techs prefer to use outboard gear that gives them the sound they want but most of the time the PE on your console will work fine to help bring out of the mix or accent instruments and voices.

What is it’s purpose?
To make it sound good. That this the only purpose in the equipment.

Tip on learning: Play with the equipment. Make changes see how it does and then change something else. You can do this during an event but don’t be too drastic where it draws attention to it.

Comments and Questions: Send me your questions; or even throw in your thoughts about equipment.  Use the comment box below or click the call out icon to the right of the title.  Looking forward to hearing from you!

ryan@brackmanconsulting.com

Something interesting I found on Groupon today.  www.groupon.com

Deafening Silence:  A recently developed low-frequency sonic-pulse weapon has made it possible to temporarily deafen enemy troops from a distance so that they can’t hear you loudly discussing your secret military strategies and firing your guns at clouds for practice.

So next time it’s silent….it might not be…lol

When you are working with someone’s headset mic and it must be used for someone else it is a good idea to take a picture of it next to a known reference. Even if you don’t have a ruler then then a book, card or in this case a tithes envelope. It can be just about anything you just want that is a flat object with something on it that you can use as reference points to help you get it bent back to the same position. You may want to take a side and top view picture of the mic so you can can be more accurate in the bends.

Sometimes you get some people that will bend the mics like paperclips. You want to do everything you can to get them back to the correct shape so you can get back to tweaking the effects or downloading a new song to test the PA. No one wants to spend 30 minutes bending a headset mic back and forth several times to get it right. Worse yet…some of these mics break like paperclips. Believe me. I have done it before.

So grab your camera phones and snap away. Send me pictures of any weird bend configurations.

What are your tips and tricks that you use to help your life in the AV world easier?

Measure once… Cut twice, right??

I love doing carpentry products.  The smell of sawdust plus the sound of power tools and nail guns blazing.  When you are finally done there is nothing better than a nice finished project that is solid and looks good.  But out of all the lessons I have learned when doing carpentry projects, the one that has helped me the most (aside from keeping your hands clear of the blades) is “measure twice, cut once.”

When you are looking at the design of a system you want to make sure you look at all your measurements carefully.  Below are a few of those areas.

Equipment Placement

When putting equipment in your design you must take note of things like line of sight, rigging hardware, rigging points, structural supports, optimal location, and much much more.  If you don’t plan on these things you have the possibility of equipment blocking the screens, being installed too low, positioned wrong, and potentially cause the system to not work correctly at all.  You may even have to add equipment later to make it work right causing an increase in costs.

Wire length

The advice I have here is you cut wire shorter but you can’t make it longer without creating another connection (which is bad practice).  Always leave yourself about 3’ – 6’ of extra wire beyond where the connection will be.  You can cut them shorter and use the short cable sections for jumpers later if they are long enough.

Extra tip: If your installing hardwired components in ceiling grids.  Leave enough room for you to work on the equipment on the ground or scaffold so it is easier to connect correctly.  You can always coil the extra up above the grid.  This makes for faster work and better installs.

Conduit length

Never, never, never ever, cut wire to length for any conduit that you are not 100% certain of the length.   If you need to run a tape measure through first so you can make sure.  Conduit paths are not always straight lines.  Especially poured concrete floors. Listed below are the NEC and ANSI codes associated with your installs.

Codes:

NEC 346-11: “There shall be no more than the equivalent of four quarter bends (360 degrees total) between pull points, e.g., conduit bodies and boxes.”

TIA/EIA-569, 4.4.2.1: “No section of conduit shall be longer than 30m (100ft) or contain more than two 90 degree bends between pull points or pull boxes.

Following these guidelines will help you keep from wrestling a horrible conduit run or put too much stress on the cables and have them break.

Tip:  Put pull boxes in long runs to help you meet these guidelines and save your back.  Avoid putting the pull box under the stage.  No one wants to pull wire on their back.

So measure twice, cut once, save thousands.

Front

Rear

http://www.dbxpro.com/260/index.php

The DriveRack 260 is a staple of the audio industry. This is a well designed product that sounds great and complements any sound system.

Installations Needs Met by a Driverack 260
– Main outputs PA processing
- Speaker protection
- Lockout settings from unauthorized users (Or soundmen with a lead foot on the volume)
- Easy setup

This unit also has the added benefit of being able to be controlled through wall panels, provide RTA setup and much more.

Features
- Feedback Elimination
- 2.7 Seconds of Alignment and Zone Delay
- RS-232 PC GUI control
- Classic dbx Compression and Limiting
- Graphic and Parametric EQ
- Auto-EQ Function
- Full Bandpass, Crossover, and Routing Configurations
- Auto Gain Control
- Pink Noise Generator and fulltime RTA
- Setup Wizard with JBL speaker and Crown Power Amplifier Tunings
- Security Lockout
- Wall Panel Control Inputs

If you need quality, reliability, and equipment that sounds good, buy this unit.  I have never had a situation where I was unhappy with the DriveRack 260.

Cost: $999.99  -  Email me for to sign up for email updates and receive Free standard shipping inside the US.

Interested in more DBX gear?   Contact me today for a quote.