GoodBuyGuys Blog

Big Mick Hughes is one of the best known live sound engineers in the concert industry.  He is the long time front-of-house mixer for Metallica, a larger than life personality, and until now, someone whose reputation as a legend was well earned.

The recent trend in print advertising to have technicians endorse audio products is, in general, a good one.  They normally have a useful perspective and their endorsements have value.  Big Mick has put the value of those endorsements at risk.

Here’s what Big Mick says about his microphone of choice, Audio Technica in May’s Pro Sound News.  “I love Audio-Technica mics.  You can definitely tell an Audio Technica gig as soon as you walk into it.”

Now, I’m no “golden ear” but I do know that between a microphone and my (and Big Mick’s) ears there is (at minimum) a mixer, an amplifier, speakers, and cables, all of which color the sound you hear, regardless of their quality.

The idea that you can identify a brand of microphone just by listening to a live sound system is laughable.

Put on your blindfold, Mick, and step into any music club in America.  Even your ears aren’t that good.

I hope Audio-Technica is paying you well.

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Sometime back, I speculated that perhaps we were approaching the point where the sound man would no longer be necessary. I was only half kidding-pointing out that quickly developing digital technology would let the sound system compare what it was “hearing” with digitized reference material that it could attempt to duplicate.

We’ll, at least in the realm of portable live sound, there is still at least one area where the sound person’s ability to problem solve still makes him/her valuable.

I’m talking about the use of microphone signal multicables (snakes as they are known) that delivery signal back and forth between the stage and the mix position.

There are so many different standards in use for the digital “snake” that making these links in the signal chain work with the equipment they meet up with on both ends guarantees the sound man will have a job for years to come.

There is a great push to digitize this signal path, because one of the greatest costs affiliated with touring productions is that of moving case after case filled with heavy copper and steel wire.  If the signal moving along these cables can be digitized and then carried along fewer and smaller conductors or along fiber optic cables, the weight and cost savings is significant.

At this point, there is no standardization among manufacturers who make this equipment, and it doesn’t look like either the connectors or the transmission protocol are anywhere close to being agreed-on.

Many years ago, the makers of pro audio equipment agreed on the XLR standard for equipment, and it has made it easy to use equipment manufactured by lots of companies together in the same sound system.

More recently, the Neutrik Speakon connector system has been adopted by lots of speaker and amplifier makers, and this connector appears to be well on its way to becoming an industry standard.

Until this lack of standards issue is settled among most of the major pro audio players there will be no rush to adopt the digital mic snake.

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We know that Edward R. Murrow never filed a podcast, but if he had, this is what he would have used.

The Sony Retro Wireless USB  has a great classic mic look, but is designed to be used with a USB interface on your computer.  Not only is it designed to be used with a USB port, its wireless!

You can use this mic anywhere within a 10 foot radius of your computer without any cables to trip over.  It uses RFI technology and is designed to work with all current Windows and Mac operating systems.  Best of all no special drivers are needed for use with Windows computers.  It even has an on/off switch.

If your podcasting has advanced to the point where your computer’s onboard mic no longer gets the job done, or you just love the idea of “walking the walk while you talk the talk” then this mic is just what you need.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Enterainment 1 extension cords , OnStage Stand mic stands and quality speaker cables.  We’ve also got cables for “Wired” microphones!

I try to blog at least once a week about some new innovation or clever device in the pro sound industry.  I spent 30 plus years as a “knob twister” and I try to keep up with new ideas.

Leave it to the British to bring us a decidely “low tech” solution to handling sound mixing for those interminable 8 hour corporate meetings or all night rehearsals.

Its the Canford Wine Rack, a 3 space rack mount module, designed to store up to four bottles of wine in an audio rack.

Apparently this is not a joke (even though I first came across it on “boingboing“).  It appears that you can actually order it.

Obviously cooling might present a problem if you prefer a Chardonnay or Reisling, but we are going to get to work right away on a nitrogen chilling system.

Check back here for updates.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords , OnStage Stand mic stands and quality speaker cables.

Many years ago when I worked in the Technical Services Dept. at Duke University, we embraced a speaker cable connector standard that seems to have fallen by the wayside.  We used the standard XLR3 connector for speaker cables-the same connector that was used on microphone cables.

With my background in pro sound, I was familiar with both the quarter inch standard , and the Canon EP    multipin standard. I had never seen the XLR used for speaker cables.  I quickly became a convert. Here’s why.

Because speaker cables with XLR connectors have a male connector on one end and a female on the other, its easy to extend the length of a cable without an adapter.  Not using an adapter  means not losing an adapter.  This is a really valuable feature when doing long outdoor speaker cable runs.

Each pin in an XLR3 connector is rated at 15 amps.   That’s more than enough current carrying capacity for most practical amplifier outputs.

The flexible strain relief boot on an XLR connector is flexible enough to handle 2 conductor 14 gauge, or even 12 gauge cable.

Each pin makes independent contact with the mating connector, unlike a quarter inch connector where the tip must make contact with the sleeve before it mates with the tip.

Finally the solid, easy to use locking mechanism on the XLR3 means that no additional securing of a connection is necessary when cables are linked together.

A couple of amplifier manufacturers adopted this standard back in the 1980’s, but they let it fall by the wayside when the industry as a whole failed to sign up.

On more than one occasion, I must admit that I used a microphone cable as a temporary speaker cable when I ran out of speaker cables.  Try that with a Speakon cable!

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Neutrik, the maker of a broad line of audio connectors, has a great new product that every sound person ought to know about.  Its a new style of XLR connector called the Convertcon.

How many times have you gotten to the end of a long XLR cable run, only to discover that you had the wrong gender connector in your hand?  The Convertcon makes that a thing of the past.

By simply sliding the connector barrel forward or back, a male XLR3 connector can become a female XLR3, or vice versa.  No more coiling and rerunning the cable or digging through your tool box for a turn around.

While the cost ($12.00 or more) keeps this connector from being practical to use on all mic cables, those special long run control cables or the ones you use to interface with someone else’s equipment are where this innovative connector shines.

The problem of running a long interface cable “blind” to a remote patch bay, an outboard production truck, or an unknown facility interface just got a whole lot easier.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords , OnStage Stand mic stands and quality speaker cables.

Today we introduce the newest of our GoodBuyGuys.com website, BuySpeakerCable.com.

BuySpeakerCable.com is hosted by Speaker Cable Sam , the latest addition to the GoodBuyGuys family. Sam is ready to provide lots of valuable information about speaker cables, speaker cable connectors and the proper set up of sound system speakers. Sam draws on 30 years of work in the concert production industry to help you make decisions about purchasing and using the best speaker cables and accessories, no matter what your application.

Buyspeakercable.com features cables from Mitee Cable. Mitee cables use quality connectors and wire to insure that your speaker cables deliver all the sound possible from your amplifier to your speakers. They have tough rubber jackets and copper wire that is durable, easily coilable and ready to stand up to the tough use sound and audio visual pros subject their equipment to every day.

Of particular interest is the in depth information provided about Speakon connectors, the new standard for pro audio speaker cables. Mitee Cables feature Speakon connectors that are fully compatible with the Neutrik NL2 & NL4 series connector, available at a fraction of the Neutrik price. Here, you will find valuable guides about wiring and using Speakon connectors, along with adapters that make Speakon speaker cables compatible with other connector types.

With the addition of BuySpeakerCable.com, you can turn to GoodBuyGuys.com for all of your audio visual and sound system cable needs.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords , OnStage Stand mic stands and quality speaker cables.

The addition of buyspeakercable.com to our family of goodbuyguys.com web sites has led to an interesting question regarding Speakon connectors. The Speakon, first introduced by Neutrik (a German company) has become the new standard for professional audio.

As with most popular products based on good design, lots of copies of the original Speakon have made their way into the marketplace. Neutrik has wisely decided to allow these “knock offs” to prolifierate, realizing that the more products on the market built to be compatible with their brand means the more connectors they will sell. This is how they have managed such total market penetration in an industry that always challenges change.

Our line of Speakon speaker cables is designed to mate effortlessly with Neutrik branded connectors and to perform comparably. Mitee Speakon cables use the same quality components as the Neutrik version and can be counted on to deliver the same reliability over a very long life.

Mitee Speakon speaker cables have locking tabs and are designed to latch securely to Neutrik panel mount connectors, whether mounted on a speaker cabinet or on an amplifier. A simple twist insures a solid connection. Strain relief is provided through a spring loaded “press to release” tab.

Just like the Neutrik version, Mitee Speakons are fully shielded so that there is no risk of ever touching an energized contact. All conductors are recessed and the connector body is heavy duty, non-conducting plastic.

Speakon connectors have a unique design that insure they are not switched with XLR, quarter inch, or any other low current audio cables. They are never used on microphones or signal processing equipment, only speaker cables.

Mitee Speakon speaker cables utilize the four pole connector, even though the cables are two conductor. The four pole standard has been adopted by amplifier manufacturers that equip their amps with Speakon connectors so that the amp can be switched internally between mono and biamped. This means that you can be sure that speaker cables from buyspeakercable.com will mate with all popular Speakon equipped amplifiers.

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Now featuring speaker cables at BuySpeakerCable.com

I retired for active involvement in the sound business just at the time when digital mixers were being introduced into the sound reinforcement industry. Consequently, I have observed from the sidelines as this change in technology moved into the live sound world. Sometimes it is easier to be a backseat driver than it is to learn new production skills.

The biggest impediment to having rank and file sound people (not those on the bleeding edge) embrace this technology has been that there were too few knobs capable of doing too many things. Sound people with years of analog mixing experience couldn’t just step up to a new mixer and build a mix. Intuition as to which knob will give the desired result simply didn’t matter anymore.

Digico, long a leader in digital mixers, has introduced a new series of consoles, the SD7 that speak directly to this problem. Instead of embracing the line of thinking that computer processing power would allow the manufacturer to decrease the number of knobs on the mixer (now called “control surface” in digital-speak), Digico is turning this idea on its head.

Decreases in cost and size of computer processing allows the SD7 to have MORE knobs and sliders. The result is that this mixer looks almost like a conventional analog desk. This is the part of the digital puzzle that has been missing, and it is an idea that will lead a whole generation of “over 40 something” sound people to take the digital plunge.

Recognizing that having separate knobs for tone control (eq) and aux busses (monitors and effects) is of more value than making a mixer as small and multi-functional as possible is an idea that is long overdue.

The Digico SD7 is expensive and you shouldn’t expect to see them in churches and schools anytime soon (probably never!). What you will see is some of the more reasonably priced offerings from companies like Yamaha and Mackie following Digico’s lead and using additional processing power to make their lower priced digital mixers something that late adopters will actually recognize.

When that happens, I just might come out of retirement.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords , OnStage Stand mic stands . Now offering Mitee Speaker Cables at buySPEAKERCABLE.com.

When asked about the invention of the automobile, Henry Ford said “If I’d asked people what they wanted, they would have asked for a better horse.” Ford realized early on that a potential purchaser of his invention had no way to conceive of what an automobile was. They were thinking about how to make their current reality better.

Digital audio is quickly bringing live sound to the point where Ford stepped beyond his customer’s reality.

Up to now, the design theory behind bringing digital audio to live sound has been to make the sound person’s reality better. Give them more powerful tools while keeping them in charge of deciding how something should sound.

Now that digital mixing consoles have come way down in price and complication, they are being embraced at every level of the live sound industry. It’s common to see them in churches and schools. Digital microphones are next. When this new mic technology is embraced (sooner rather than later) by the live sound community, the digital signal chain will be almost complete.

I say almost, because there is one giant analog bump in what is otherwise soon to be a complete digital signal path. If you mix sound, that bump is YOU!

How far are we away from the digital live sound reality that doesn’t include the sound guy?

Here’s what I’m talking about.

Take the latest Dave Matthews Band album. It’s recorded digitally and everything on the album can be reproduced and analyzed in the digital domain. Stick with me here. I’m not talking about how a song is actually played, but rather the volume, tonal quality and relationship of all the sounds on the album to each other.

If the band wants to closely reproduce the sound of the record (the “mix” if you will) in a live performance, then why not have the person who used to mix the sound be replaced by a computer that knows what the song is supposed to sound like. Every instrument on stage will soon be introduced into the live sound system either by a digital direct box or a digital microphone. Instead of a human moving faders and twisting knobs, the computer doing the mix will maintain the tonal integrity, relative volumes and dozens of other parameters analyzed from the recorded sound. There will be no problem if the arrangement on stage changes from night to night, because the mixing computer doesn’t really care about how the song is played, only about how it sounds.

It wasn’t long ago that most of us believed that cost, reliability and user-complication would keep digital mixers from ever being accepted in the live sound world. We’re over that.

Look for this to happen with spoken word first.

A presenter will simply read a couple of sentences into a digital recorder that interfaces with a digital mixer. When the speaker steps up the podium, the sound system will already know what he or she is supposed to sound like. When this info is combined with the digital analysis of the output of the sound system (we’ve had this software in common use for years) then the true sound of the presenter’s voice can be delivered directly to every seat in the house.

Will the future of live digital sound need us at all? Let me know what you think.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords , OnStage Stand mic stands and “value added” customer service.