Sound Design Live

Build Your Career As A Sound Engineer

What’s the difference between Broadway and Rock ‘n’ Roll to a system tech?

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In this episode of Sound Design Live I talk with touring system technician and Master Sound Engineer at the Guthrie Theatre, Alex Ritter.

I ask:

  • How did you get the system tech job on the Lady Antebellum tour?
  • How did you get the job at the Guthrie?
  • What is a system tech?
  • Walk me through a day in your life while you were working on the Lady Antebellum tour.
  • One of your responsibilities at the Guthrie is to prepare the sound system for new shows and sound designers. System optimization is all about managing interactions and you are managing many interactions in these rooms. How do you keep it all straight?
  • What’s in your work bag?
sound-design-live-alex-ritter

You get the work you get because of the people you know and what they think of you.

Alex Ritter

Notes

  1. All music in this podcast by Sulagna Handique.
  2. Alex on LinkedIn and FB.
  3. The Guthrie Theater
  4. Master sound engineer = production sound engineer = top of the union ladder
  5. If you want to work in theatre, build relationships with sound designers and general managers. If you want to work in concert sound, build relationships with production managers, FOH engineers, monitor engineers, and artists.
  6. Shows: Wicked, Noises Off, West Side Story
  7. Software: AutoCAD, OmniGraffle, VectorWorks
  8. Hardware: Stagetec Nexus, Outline Newton
  9. Workbag: Q-box, M30 RTA mic, Leica disto/range finder, Nikon forestry pro, Sound Devices USB Pre 2, Motu 18i2, iSemCon 7150, Lectrosonics R400 wireless transmitters
  10. Books: Sound Systems: Design and Optimization, Yamaha Sound Reinforcement Handbook
  11. Resources including an empty delay tracking spreadsheet, an example delay tracking spreadsheet, and CAD blocks.
  12. Quotes
    1. You get the work you get because of the people you know and what they think of you. I made the decision to be nice to people and create contacts and cultivate those as best I can.
    2. We’re in a service industry. The day you realize that is the day that you get more jobs.
    3. I want to make sure that what I do will reflect a show condition. It makes no since to just tune a front-fill by itself and say “Hey, it looks flat.”
    4. Part of my job is to make sure that what the engineer hears at FOH is replicated for the other 16,000 people that are there.
    5. I feel like if I did six EQ cuts in a system, I did something wrong.
    6. If you’re going to change the system on an engineer. They should should know about it before you do it and don’t do it in the middle of a song.

How to maximize gain before feedback of a podium microphone using Smaart®

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To prevent feedback from your podium microphone and create the most natural sound, measure the sound system in Smaart, but use the podium mic as the measurement input.

Podium microphones can be a struggle. It’s nice that they are generally reliable and everyone knows how to use one, but they are also static. They don’t track anyone’s height or movements. This means wildly different levels for the sound engineer. While Darryn might stand at an ideal distance from the microphone, giving you sufficient gain before feedback, Pedro might stand or perform in a way that drives the sound system into feedback.

Luckily, the transfer function in Smaart can measure any two inputs against each other. Most commonly we use a reference input from the mix console and a measurement input from a measurement mic. But, if you switch the measurement input to the podium microphone then you can measure sound system bleed and room reflections entering the mic, then treat it with EQ.

I first heard the idea during my interview with Chris Leonard who saw it used on the presidential inauguration. Here’s how I have adapted it:

  1. Measure a transfer function using the vocal group as the measurement input and the console output as the reference input.
  2. Insert filters to equalize response.
  3. Adjust filters during soundcheck.

I like to take my reference input from the output of the mix console and before the system processor. If I’m doing the system processing in the console, I’ll tap the reference just before the system processing. Then, I’ll connect the monitor output from the console into an input on my audio interface and use that as the measurement input.

Now I can solo the podium microphone or the vocal subgroup to satisfy the transfer function.

Sometimes it can be really hard to get a lock with the delay locator. I usually need to search more than once before I can find a delay setting that will show actionable data. Coherence will be low because you are measuring a combination of energy from the back of the speakers plus lots of reflections.

Here’s a measurement from the podium of the last show I worked on.

Here’s the EQ I inserted to compensate.

Here is the post EQ measurement.

During soundcheck I adjusted the low shelf until it sounded natural. Here’s the result.

This gives me better gain before feedback on my podium mic and creates a great starting point for all of my vocal mic inputs.

I see a lot of possibilities for this measurement. Have you tried it yet? What were your results?

This secret weapon will make a Profile sound like no other Profile you’ve heard before

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In this episode of Sound Design Live I talk with touring FOH mixer and system tech Sean Quackenbush about how he got the job on the Brandi Carlile tour, his input and output setup, system tuning process, and secret weapon to make the Avid Venue Profile sound like no other profile you’ve heard before.

phot by Phil Garfinkel

75% of touring is not so much the skill you have, it’s can you get along with these people that you’re going to be in a bubble with.

Sean Quackenbush

Notes

  1. All music in this podcast by Rudolf Smetana.
  2. Roadie Free Radio
  3. Brandi Carlile
  4. Software: Smaart
  5. Hardware: Galileo 408, Venue Profile, Telefunken M60, SIM3, Audix TM1, Telefunken M80, Sennheiser 914, Audio Technica 8300, Radial PZDI, Neve 511, Neuman 105, Sennheiser 935, Shure 901 and 902, Sonic Farm Creamliner 3
  6. Sean’s system tuning checklist
    1. Measure left main solo. EQ to match target curve.
    2. Measure left sub solo. Observe phase relationship.
    3. Measure right main solo. EQ.
    4. Measure front-fill solo. Time align to Main.
    5. Listen at front rows to set front-fill level.
    6. Measure combined systems.
  7. Quotes
    1. 75% of touring is not so much the skill you have, it’s can you get along with these people that you’re going to be in a bubble with.
    2. I came from a company where they handed you a 58 and a DN360 and you just talked into it and just carved it up. That’s how you EQed a PA.
    3. Once everything is phase aligned you’re like, Oh wow, all of that EQ I used to put into the 58 at a graduation is gone. You put on a high pass filter, turn the mic up, and it sounds better than if you had spent 3 hours trying to make it sound like that.

Phase Alignment Science Academy Handbook: Introduction

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The phase relationship is the wild variable: The one we must tame to make the summation junction function.

6o6

Year: C019

History of Mainland and Subterra

Throughout recorded history, the peoples of Mainland and Subterra have lived in harmony with one another. Though located on opposite poles of the planet Boh, each nation boasts ample quantities of Magnitude, the most valuable element found on Boh.

Though distant from each other, the two nations are connected by a thin but continuous land bridge that crosses the Sea of Spektral Xovr between them. This bridge has held solid for centuries. Forged from a perfect match of Magnitude and Phase, the bridge is a lifeline between the nations, allowing for commerce, diplomacy, and free passage between the two. The bridge is the key to Boh’s long-term success, and stability is particularly vital in the crossover region.

Vital Element: Magnitude

Infinite varieties of Magnitude exist. Mainland produces those varieties with high-frequency (HF) vibrations and Subterra produces those with low-frequency (LF) vibrations. Both develop into stable forms of Magnitude with specific qualities of coherence and phase. Scientists on Mainland and Subterra use delay and polarity (among other tools) to further refine the stable form of Magnitude into the structures of their productive societies. Without both HF and LF, life as we know it would not exist on Boh.

Conflict

In B992, a team of Dissonance from the planet Ekoeko arrived secretly on Boh. Faced with the environmental destruction of their own planet and seeking to colonize a new planet rich in Magnitude, the government of Ekoeko determined that the best way to overpower Boh would be to destroy the bridge connecting Mainland and Subterra. With advanced weapons of Displacement and Asymmetry their fighters began an unprovoked attack on the bridge that is still ongoing.

Your role

Boh has but one hope for all the peoples of Mainland and Subterra–to repair the bridge and restore harmony. To accomplish this, your primary objective is to rehabilitate coupling through the acoustic crossover region. If coupling cannot be maintained Magnitude relationships must reach isolation as quickly as possible before causing instability. Combing and Transition, having the greatest potential for cancellation are to be minimized throughout the region.*

Both nations send their best and brightest here, to the Phase Alignment Science Academy (PASA), to learn to manipulate and control our most powerful elements so that we may build a bridge that is strong enough to withstand any assault. During your time at the Academy, your job will be to master the properties of our precious elements and fight back against the Dissonance.

Rankings

During your training, you will advance through the ranks of PASA before earning the rank of Master of Alignment. You will prove yourself at each level by earning experience points for every successful alignment you perform that leads to the restoration of a section of our bridge. The Academy’s Simulator will provide you with test missions in which to increase and demonstrate your skills before you are deployed into the field. Should you advance far enough, you may also choose to train as a Scout, using your skills to identify and anticipate potential threats and destroy them before they can do us harm.

Intern: we welcome you to the Academy. Together we will defeat the Dissonance of Ekoeko and enjoy harmony in Boh once more.

*Consult your handbook’s Definition of Terms.

Definition of terms

  1. Acoustic crossover region: The location where two separate sound sources combine together at equal level.
  2. Asymmetry: Lack of equal response characteristics.
  3. Coherence: Signal to noise ratio.
  4. Combing: Magnitude relationship of 0-4dB with maximum risk of cancellation.
  5. Coupling: Phase offset <120º preventing cancellation.
  6. Displacement: Distance between two sound sources.
  7. Frequency: Cycles per second in Hertz (Hz).
  8. Isolation: Magnitude relationship >10dB with low risk of cancellation.
  9. Magnitude: Level component of the audio waveform expressed in dB. Also a vital element in the nations of Mainland and Subterra.
  10. Mainland: A nation on Boh located across the Sea of Spektral Xovr from Subterra producing high-frequency varieties of Magnitude.
  11. Phase: The relationship in time between cycles of a wave. The radial component of the audio waveform expressed in degrees.
  12. Subterra: A nation on Boh located across the Sea of Spektral Xovr from Mainland producing low-frequency varieties of Magnitude.
  13. Transition: Magnitude relationship of 4-10dB with medium risk of cancellation.


What is the best sounding target EQ curve to use in Smaart® on every show?

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In this episode of Sound Design Live I talk with touring FOH mixer and system tech Chase Benedict about the challenges of touring, the benefits of starting out at a sound company, the dangers of relying on a single target EQ curve, and that time a lighting fixture fell on his head from 10ft in the air and he had to mix the show with electrical tape holding his face together.

I ask:

  • In the book Get On Tour in a section called What I hate about touring you write, “There are many things that we take for granted in life and touring can shed a unique light upon them. In that sense, the lessons learned can make one especially grateful for what they have. One might find themselves giving up the most basic of life’s necessities, like showers or decent toilet paper. There was one tour in particular where, over the course of three months I spent more days off on a bus in a Walmart parking lot than I spent at home. I can think of another time when the entire crew had to go four days without showering and then hop on a plane. Our only saving grace was the baby wipes we had on the bus.” What’s it like touring on a bus?
  • You have made it it clear in the book that an important step into touring is to work with a sound company that has touring accounts. But we’ve all heard stories about people getting hired straight out of concert venues or Laundromats. Is that still a thing? Why did you choose sound companies?
  • Let’s talk about the danger of relying 100% target curves. You write, “One major problem for me was thinking that an FFT could provide qualitative data. For the longest time I had several target curves I would try to achieve when calibrating the PA. While I’ve heard of this technique working well for tours that carry their own system, it doesn’t really hold up when dealing with different makes and models of boxes. Different PAs have different sonic characteristics. For example, let’s say the first leg of the tour was spent with a Meyer Leo system and the second half was spent with a combination of L’Acoustic and VTX. All three are great systems, and while the magnitude traces in Smaart might look the same, they most likely will sound very different. I dug myself into so many holes because of this. It especially becomes a problem with some of the lesser quality rigs out there. Over time I started to paying more attention to he differences in transfer function measurements and began storing individual traces for each make and model of PA. Vertec has a specific magnitude trace, as does Leo, K1, and even some of the smaller trap boxes. Then the next time I encountered one of these boxes, I would listen and EQ, observing how similar the EQ decisions I made resembled my target traces. It’s usually pretty close. This strategy has been working well for me.” First of all, what is a target curve?
    • So what’s wrong with using a target curve? If I take a measurement with one system in one room and then take another measurement with another system in another room and make them match, won’t they sound exactly the same?
    • If a single target curve solution doesn’t work, what can I do instead?
  • There is a lot of confusion about where to place the microphone for level setting and time aligning FFs. Could you talk about how you approach this? How do you find the right mic position?
  • What’s in your work bag?
  • What is one book that has been helpful to you?

FFTs only provide you with quantitative data not qualitative. You’re seeing an analytical representation of what’s happening

Chase Benedict

Notes

  1. All music in this podcast by Deborah Heltzer.
  2. Chase on Instagram
  3. Test tracks: Straighten Up and Fly Right, God Is My Friend, Doin’ It Right
  4. Books: Get On Tour, Sound Systems: Design and Optimization, The Brothers Karamazov, The Stranger
  5. Foothills Brewery in Winston-Salem, Spotted Cow Lager
  6. Chase’s workbag: hard hat, safety harness, high vis vest, Behringer Uphoria 404 interface, turn arounds, spare glasses, cold medicine, cable tester, multi meter, wireless CAT5 tester,
  7. Podcasts: Sound Design Live, Why Oh Why, Where’s my 40 acres?, Business Wars
  8. Spatial acoustic crossover point: The frequency and/or location where two separate sound sources combine together at equal level.
  9. Aligning front-fills to mains:
    1. Estimate spatial acoustic crossover point based on overlapping coverage patterns.
    2. Measure main solo.
    3. Measure front-fill solo.
    4. Use Smaart’s delay locate function to find the time offset (delta delay). Enter time offset into the delay DSP for front-fill.
  10. Download Chase’s target EQ curves
  11. Quotes
    1. Don’t shit on the bus. That’s rule number 1.
    2. I was sick and tired of working with dodgy gear. I wanted to go work for a place where I knew there was a quality standard.
    3. I mixed FOH that day for this artist with electrical tape wrapped around my head.
    4. FFTs only provide you with quantitative data not qualitative. You’re seeing an analytical representation of what’s happening, but it’s not telling you anything about the actual tone or timbre of the sound system you are listening to.
All of Chase’s target curves with the average on top.