Monitor Cam

Dave Skaff shared an interesting story on building the relationship with U2 as their monitor engineer. As you know, their stage designs are always very open and unique with the monitor desks placed under the stage, viewing the performers via video on their consoles.

I asked what were the challenges in trying to communicate and be in relationship with the band when you’re so disconnected by location. Video was so important to him in seeing the band, but he also relied heavily on an internal talkback system between him and the band techs so they could pass on notes to him from the guys. He also spent time up on the deck listening to what they were hearing for context.

What I found really interesting wasn’t so much what Dave needed but what Larry, the drummer, requested. Larry wanted a camera so that he could see Dave at all times down under the deck. His biggest concern was knowing when he needed something that he could see Dave responding. This little psychology lesson is HUGE towards the importance of good relationship and communication between the engineer and band.

Dave said as he was early in his relationship with them, they were used to it taking a long time or require multiple requests before changes would be made. Their requirement to him were that changes happen FAST – 10 seconds or less. With this in mind, in order to train them that he was always watching, he would sometimes make drastic changes when asked knowing full well he’d dial it in more finely but he wanted them to know he was paying attention.

On one of the largest stages in the world, for arguably the biggest band in the world, the same rules apply: responsiveness, attention to detail, and relationship are everything for success in the world of audio!

Willow

Had a great time at the Arts Conference this year. The main sessions were great but the best experience for me was time with mentors soaking up every bit of knowledge and experience I could. I’ve got lots of insights to post over the next week or two. Big thanks to Scott and Nathan for all of the hang time, Dave Skaff for a great lunch and even more fun later that night, and all of the Willow crew for one of the best productions I’ve ever experienced in that room.

Willow Creek Arts Conference

It’s that time again! Hard to believe a year has gone by since my first Arts conference but I’m looking forward to going again this year. All the fun begins next Wednesday morning. The highlight of this trip is going to be a 4-hour audio session on Thursday with Robert Scovill and Dave Skaff. Also looking forward to spending some time in the Digidesign booth with the D-Show and Profile.

If you’re going to be there, respond to this post and perhaps we can connect for lunch or something to talk shop.

If this year holds true to last, I’ll probably have a bunch of posts after the event with learnings for our team.

Twitter

You’ve probably noticed the infrequency of blog posts of late. My life has been way too busy the past few months and I’m working to establish margin for more free time, reflection, and relaxation. This blog falls into that margin category.

In the meantime, I must admit my latest addiction for fast updates: Twitter. If you haven’t tried it, you really should. From the homepage: “Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co-workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?” Facebook has its place to reconnect with lost friends and classmates, but Twitter is for everyday use. It’s addictive.

And the choice is…

Lots is happening at Kensington right now as we plan how to best utilize the capital resources allocated for production as a result of the Trans4mation campaign that completed in March.

One of the biggest decisions that I’m most excited about is the new PA that will be installed in Troy’s auditorium next summer. After nearly 6 months in process with Acoustic Dimensions, our acoustical and systems consultant hired to lead the selection and design, this past week we finalized our decision. Drumroll please…

The main left and right clusters will be comprised of seven Qi-1 line array cabinets with two Qi-Subs hung in an adjacent column on the insides of each cluster, serving as mid-bass boxes. Three total Ci-7 cabinets will be used for outfill and center fill. 4 B2-Subs will be placed under the stage in ultra mode to provide the bottom end to the system. EAW UB82 will be used for front fill on the stage lip, JF80s in two rows for over balcony fill and more JF80s in a single row for under balcony fill.

Amplification will be a mix of d&b D12s for the main arrays and Lab Gruppen 28:4 & 48:4 for fills. Drive processing will be provided by BSS London Soundweb Processing (BLU-800 and BLU-120). We are using a BLU-80 in our current PA and I’ve been very impressed with its capabilities and sound, so I’m sure it will be a good choice for the new rig.

If you’re interested, I’ve attached the drawings of our room with box placement.

Boxes in the air

Boxes on the floor or under balcony

Elevation