Subscribe on iTunes, SoundCloud, Google Play or Stitcher. Support Sound Design Live on Patreon. In this episode of Sound Design Live I talk with the Sound Designer for Broken Chord and Project Design Manager for Sound Associates, Phillip Peglow. We discuss the night broadway was shutdown by COVID-19, whether or not you should go to graduate school, how EQ is ruining your show and what to do about it, why you'll never beat the room, and why you should give the producer … [Read more...]
3 EQ Snapshots That Will Make Your Corporate Event Mics More Transparent Using Smaart®: SM58, 185, MX412
The most common microphones I use on corporate events are Shure wireless SM58, WL185 Lavalier, and wired MX418. I created three EQ snapshots using a mic compare measurement in Smaart for a more transparent starting point. What is a mic compare measurement? In the same way that we use the transfer function measurement in Smaart to observe changes to our mix as it passes through speakers and the air, we can also observe changes to the source as it passes through microphones. To do this, … [Read more...]
What is the best sounding target EQ curve to use in Smaart® on every show?
Subscribe on iTunes, SoundCloud, Google Play or Stitcher. Support Sound Design Live on Patreon. 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. … [Read more...]
Smaart®: Tracking peak frequency without the mouse cursor
You've probably run into this problem in Smaart: you are using the RTA graph to find peaks in the response, but as soon as you move your mouse out of the window, the cursor readout disappears! This makes sense, though, right? You want the cursor to show information about whatever graph is in focus. But what if you need the graph to keep tracking peaks while you work in a different window? Maybe you are updating the EQ in X32-edit or adjusting the signal generator output. As far as I … [Read more...]
Analysis: How to Tune a PA System for Live Sound
One of the most popular articles on sound system EQ is How to Tune a PA System for Live Sound by Brad Pack. In this article I will compare and contrast it against my own methods. Things I do the same Start by testing the system with a few high-quality tracks that you know really well. Yes! Listen first. The first step on my sound system tuning checklist is always Console Check (aka output verification). Walk around and see what it sounds like up front, way in the back and over at the … [Read more...]