designing a world class radio station · 2/1/1990 · day with db magazine's editors offering...

January\February 1990 S2.05

serving: recording, broadcast and sound contrectina fields

Designing a WorldClass Radio Station

Music from an Electronic CottageSound Reinforcement in North Africa, pH Iii

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January/February 1990P111111.-

VOLUME 24 NO.1

serving: recording, broadcast and sound coltracting fields

magazine

affinit_IP 1111.111"1Er4 1011011414',._ wk_

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See page 4.

Seepage 39.

About the CoverAt top, Matthews/Grifith

Music-the personal studios of twoof Los Angeles' most successfulmusic writers featuring multipleYamaha DMP Digital Mixers. Thelower photo is of NW Mobile Video, astate-of-the-art mobile -productionhouse. They are caught in prepara-tion for a live Sacramento Kingsbasketball broadrast.

Photos courtesy Ron Bennett,C.M.G., Studio City, CA

riF1 Tur rl riTfirsh111- 1-'1-0-TA r.r

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MUSIC FROM AN ELECTRONIC COTTAGEJames Becher

HOT TIPS: USING DELAYJohn Barilla

A TALE OF TWO COTTAGESJohn Barilla

39

48

54

LAB REPORT: YAMAHA MT3X MULTITRACK CASSETTE RI:CORDER 59Len Feldman

1404kiva e44154steil

DESIGNING A WORLD -CLASS RADIO STATIONJohn Barilla

AD VENTURESBrian Battles

BROADCAST AUDIO: ADVANCED TELEVISON: WHATFOR AUDIORandy Hoffner

SOUND REINFORCEMENT IN NORTH AFRICA-PART IIIEd Learned

SPEAKER REPAIRS IN THE FIELDPaul Hugo

AUDIO FOR THE CHURCHBrent Harshbarger

CALENDAR

EDITORIAL

BUYER'S GUIDE: PERFORMANCE AND MONITOR SPEAKERS 69

HOTLINE

NEW PRODUCTS 80

1989 INDEX 84

CLASSIFIED 88

PEOPLE, PLACES, HAPPENINGS 89

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Synergetic Audio Concepts (Syn-Aud-Con) is beginning its 18th year oftraining audio professionals. This istheir 1990 schedule for their 2 -day and3 -day audio engineering seminars:

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The 1990 Electronic DistributionShow and Conference (EDS '90) willtake place at the Las Vegas HiltonHotel, in Las Vegas, Nevada, with con-ferences and seminars starting onMonday, April 23, and exhibits open-ing on Tbesday, April 24, continuingWednesday and Thursday, April 25 and26. EDS '90, the marketplace of and forelectronic distribution, has over 7000management, sales and marketingpeople attending each year and over350 companies exhibiting.

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magazine

Editor/PublisherLarry Zide

Associate PublisherElaine Zide

Senior EditorJohn Barilla

Editorial AssistantDaniel Buxbaum

Contributing EditorsBruce BartlettBrian BattlesDrew DanielsLen Feldman

Brent HarshbargerRandy Hoffner

Graphics & LayoutKaren Cohn

BPA Audit applied for May 1989

db, The Sound Engineering Magazine(ISSN 0011.7145)is published Bimonthly by Sagamore Publishing Corn-pany Inc Entire contents copyright 1990 by SaoamorePublishing Company Inc , 203 Commack Road, Suite1010, Commack, NY 11725 Telephone (516)586-6530db Magazine is published for individuals and firms inprofessional audio recording, broadcast audio-visual,sound reinforcement -contracting, consultants, videorecording, film sound, etc Application for subscriptionshould be made on the subscription form in the rear ofeach issue Subscriptions are $15 00 per year($28 00per year outside U S Possessions, $16 00 per year inCanada)and payable in U S funds. Single copies are52 95 each Editorial, Publishing, and Sales offices areat 203 Commack Road, Suite 1010, Commack NY11725 Second Class postaoe paid at Commack, NY11725 and an additional mailing office Postmaster:Form 3579 should be sent to db Magazine, 203 Com-mack Road, Suits 1010, Commack, NY 11725.

Trademarked names are editorially used throuahoutthis issue. Rather than place a trademark symbol nextto each occurance, we state that these names are usedonly in an editorial fashion and to the benefit of thetrademark owner, and that there is no intention of trade-mark infringement

Whatever happened to the 80s? Suddenly it is the 90s!

Welcome, if you are a new reader seeing db Magazine for the first time at the WinterNAMM show or the later winter NAB Convention in Atlanta. Of course, our subscribershave received their copies in December, so to them and to all a joyous holiday season, and ahappy new year!!

What your are holding is the oldest professional audio magazine, save only the AESJournal, that has been continuously publishing since 1967. A lot has happened since then, ofcourse, as any perusal of even the last ten-year collection of magazines will attest. Perhapsthe most significant is the advance of the computer into professional audio as never before.

Even today, post -production and even master recording could hardly exist wit lout thecomputer. Never mind its growing pervasiveness in music production for film and TV, but somuch work today would not exist but for the digital hard disk-a product of the computerworld. Digital editing is all computer based.

It is the computer that has made possible the Electronic Cottage, featured in severalarticles in this issue. Each could not exist without the computer and/or its spin-offs.

Look again at our Contents page. The first three stories (actually four stories) each revolveabout some aspect of computer control or interface. The listed Lab Report on the YahamaM3TX four -channel cassette recorder/mixer exemplifies a product that "smart clips" havemade possible.

To the NAB audience, I would particularly recommend Senior Editor John Barilla'sDesigning a World -Class Radio Station. When New York City's classical radio stationWQXR was forced to move to new quarters it was an opportunity to truly start from scratchwith an all -new operation that will lead them well into the next century. With the aid ofNCC's Alfred W. D'Alessio (who designed and built the new complex) we really do lead youthrough the building of a world -class operation -and possibly adapting some ideas into anew recording or broadcast studio of your own. LZ

JOHN BARILLA

Designing a World -ClassRadio Station

WQXR in New York City is arguably the finest classical music station in the world. A pioneer inclassical music programming for over 50 years; WQXR broadcasts an innovative blend of re-corded music and live performance, interviews and special network feeds 24 hours a day.

n recent months, WQXR,AM & FM, (The Radio Sta-tions of the New YorkTimes) moved from its old

facilities in the New York Timesbuilding to a new, more spacious lo-cation at 122 Fifth Avenue.

The new complex was designedand engineered under the hand ofNortheastern CommunicationsConcepts, Inc.(NCC)-a leader in

the development of quality broad-cast facilities.

NCC's president, Alfred W. D'Ales-sio recently spent the better part of aday with db Magazine's editorsoffering our readership a tre-mendous opportunity to glean someinsights into the process of designinga world -class radio station.

ON THE MOVE

One of the first issues we wanted toexplore was the reason behindWQXR's relocation. To the listener,WQXR had always pumped out whatseemed like a quality signal, but re-cent advances in digital audio haveessentially changed the level of ex-pectation from broadcast audio.Since the advent of the compact discwith its superb noise specs, the lim-

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Figure 1. The "T" shaped layout of the WQXR offices. The studios are in the uppper left, entry from the elevatorsis at reception in the lower left.

iting factor has become the interac-tion between the other equipment inthe broadcast chain. In order tobring noise factors to near theoreti-cal limits requires an integratedacoustical/systems approach: piece-meal retrofittings are not sufficient.

A reshuffling of priorities at TheNew York Times Company (theparent company of WQXR) led to anunusual opportunity to redesign thefacility completely from the groundup. The 43rd street location of theNew York Times was simply gettingtoo cramped, so a decision was madethat the building should servestrictly the needs of the newspaper.Since the publication had officesscattered in various locations, they

planned to consolidate the news-paper in one central location. Theradio station howeve4 could exist al-most anywhere in the city. It did notneed to be located near the editorialoffices. So the decree went forth thatWQXR was to seek a new location.While this decree could have been re-ceived with groanings in some quar-ters, it actually turned into a goldenopportunity for WQXR to move up toa strategically -planned facility.

NCC was in on this move from theearliest stages, indeed, even frombefore the project was conceived.NCC was originally retained by DocMasoomian (who was previouslychief engineer at WQXR) to provideout -of -house engineering services to

the station. At that time NCC wasalso re -designing WNYC-anotherof New York's classical and news sta-tions. Herb Squire (now chief en-gineer at WQXR) was then the tele-phone -communications consultantto WNYC. So even before the designstages, working relationships be-tween NCC and the in-house en-gineering staff were being forged.The excellence of communicationbetween staff and design consultanthas been cited as an important factorin the success of this ambitious ven-ture.

NCC's Al D'Alessio notes thatWQXR's management wanted tomake two statements with themove: First, they wanted to make a cn

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bold pronouncement that WQXR isthe pre-eminent classical radio sta-tion in New York, and second, thatthe station was not at all content tosit on their laurels, but instead hadtheir eyes fixed on increasing excel-lence. In order to achieve this, theyrequired a facility that was techni-cally without parallel, and aestheti-cally pleasing and user friendly aswell.

As it turned out, WQXR's needswere almost a recitation of NCC'sdesign philosophy. According toD'Alessio, NCC specializes indeveloping one -of -a -kind solutionsto demanding design problems: "Weput big systems together holistically,taking an 'operations -oriented' ap-proach to designing a media facility.And we always try to have 'form fol-low function'." The advantage to theclient is apparent. Rather thanhaving to hire various individualspecialists (designei architect,acoustical and structural engineers)where the integrity of the functionaltheme can possibly get lost in amorass of communications: the

co client here deals with one central

STRUCTURALFLOOR

Figure 2. A (A)leakage canoccur if parti-tions are fixedto the floor, butat (B) isolatorsbetween the par-titions and thestructural floorand the iso-lated floor dothe full job. SeeAl D'Alessio'sside bar at theend of this ar-ticle for furtherinformation.

coordinator, in this case, D'Alessio-who is responsible for interpretingand clarifying the client's vision, aswell as piloting the various special-ists required for the project.

THE DESIGN PROCESSThe development of WQXR's new

broadcast complex fell into somevery definite phases. First, of course,was the choice of location, which isno mean task in New York City. As awhole, the city has a tremendousamount of microwave penetration,but some locations are better thanothers. The trick is to find a locationwith line of site to geo-stationarysatellite orbits and WQXR's twotransmitting sites. A structurecapable of supporting massiveacoustical construction and theworld's largest (and therefore, theheaviest) private classical music li-brary was also needed. While thatimmediately limits the number ofpossible locations, side-steppingmajor sources of RF is a helpful butless important consideration. Withthe world's most extensive under-ground transit system criss-crossing

the city, putting distance betweenthe facility and the nearest subwaybecame another important factor. Abuilding meeting these require-ments was found in the downtownsection on Fifth Avenue. It was con-sidered a very fortuitous find sincemany media facilities and advertis-ing agencies have recently relocatedto that area.

The layout of the floor space thatwas available to WQXR is a "T" for-mation. This once again was seen asa stroke of good fortune. Since aradio station has three main opera-tions, each operation was (more orless) allocated its own wing. The bus-iness office was to utilize the stem ofthe "T", whereas the horizontalwings were designated as a produc-tion area and a broadcast area (in-cluding both engineering and on -airpersonnel). The new location offereda substantial improvement over theold in terms of floor space as well:18,000 square feet as opposed to9,000.

But lack of space was not the onlyproblem in the old facility. Accordingto D'Alessio, the old WQXR was apoorly laid -out facility, "not inten-tionally-it just grew like topsy.When you entered the old `QXR youwent past a reception area for theauditorium (which was unattended),then down a very long "L" -shapedcorridor. You ended up walking pastall of the studios before you got to thereceptionist." The result was arather confused, inefficient mode ofoperation where personnel werewalking large distances to interfacewith areas which should have been inimmediate communication. Addi-tionally, there was always the chancethat unauthorized visitors might in-terfere with broadcast operations.The formula was not a happy one. Itwas simply a fact of existence thatpeople learned to live with. Muchmoney (salary) was wasted in whatD'Alessio terms "walking wages."Thus, organization of space was oneof the first design considerations forthe new facility.

THE ARCHITECTURALPROGRAM

The initial stage of NCC's involve-ment with the development of thenew facility involved architecturalplanning. Before any electrical oracoustical considerations becomepossible, the available space must bedivided. NCC sat down with

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WQXR's management and en-gineering people and said basically,What do you need in the way of of-fices? What do you need in the way ofstudios? And if you're not sure aboutthat, then just tell us what you wantto do and we'll tell you what youneed. And so began a dialogue thatlasted nearly seven months. Everyaspect of the design was planned andsometimes even tested before anyconstruction took place.

Architectural considerations wereof major importance. If you put anextra window in a studio or an extradesk or cabinets in a control room,the acoustics would need to be ad-justed. So to the extent that thesethings could be foreseen, they werefigured into the design as early aspossible. In practice, things changedsomewhat as the plans weredeveloped and new needs wereswertained, but once the basic lay-out was decided, acoustical calcula-tions could then be started in tan-dem with the architecturaldevelopment.

During this very crifstage, D'Alessio won], coil -tact with architec- U !tan.Ultan generatod scN83(:fifity,-fourdrawings th2i t Jv -tred everyaspectof facility action: from floorplans a r P. sections to detailing,fro nil changes to HVACa eal specifications. Ultan

creative contributions tobut one is particularly

or note. Amongst the archi-ral considerations was the need

o "humanize" this high-tech en-vironment in such a way that itwould become a low-key, non-threatening work space. This designobjective was made more difficult byseveral factors: The nature of the"T" -shaped space was that very fewoffices had windows with availablesunlight. Many were in the shadowof another building, and even morehad no windows at all. Ultan solvedthis problem by utilizing a conceptknown as "borrowed light." Concep-tually, what this means is that whereno natural source of light is availa-ble, you create an aura reminiscentof sunlight by causing a mix of natu-ral and artificial light from a neigh-boring space to leak into the room.By calling for clear glass transompanels between adjacent rooms (ex-tending down from the ceiling forabout two feet), Ultan gave the workspaces a more open feeling. Another

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Octave BandCenter Frequency (Hz) 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 NRCType 6 Panel NA NA NA NA NA NA NAPanel it nut nzononended for applications requiring interior absorption.

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technique he used to "warm-up" theentire facility was to call for a boldtheme of American cherry wood trimand wainscoting throughout the en-tire facility. The natural wood in jux-taposition with studio equipment oreven office accoutrements givesWQXR a coziness not usually foundin broadcast facilities.

EQUIPMENT ANDACOUSTICS

NCC was given a large degree oflatitude when it came to outfittingthe studios. WQXR's chief engineer,Herb Squire, had only one require-ment which was, as it were, laid instone:

All broadcast consoles had to befrom Pacific Recorders and En-gineering. These units are reputedamongst broadcasters as possessingexcellent specs and great simplicityof operation. But beyond this, Squireleft it to NCC to suggest the majorityof remaining peripherals. Whenseveral viable choices were available,NCC performed trial and evaluation

on the pieces and made decisionswith significant feedback fromSquire. While T&E of the equipmentwas going on, NCC was also workingout the acoustics of the rooms. SinceNCC had control of the equipmentand furniture selection as well asknowledge of virtually all other vari-ables (like how many people arelikely to be sitting in the room), theywere able to consider these factorsbefore making final acoustical calcu-lations.

One of the most important designobjectives was that adjacent studiosand control rooms should haveacoustical independence, in otherwords, work going on in one roomshould not have any interaction withthe next room.

D'Alessio says he knew this goalwas achievable, but as always, it tooka bit of wrestling to make it a reality.He puts it like this:

"I would also have you appreciatethe fact that when you're designingin New York City, most of the build-ings limit your freedom in terms of

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Figure 4. A detailing of the studio portion of the "T" as was seen in Figure 1.

where columns are located, what thefloor bearing capacity for heavyacoustical construction is. All of thatgets thrown into the same 'designsoup' out of which we have to createan environment that's going to beproductive for our client. Productiv-ity is a good key here, because a lot ofproduction -oriented enterprises(not just radio stations, but record-ing studios and production houses), alot of them can't use two adjacentrooms because they interfere acous-tically with each other. That doesn'texist here." Even at the outset, NCCwas so convinced that they coulddeliver an attenuation of 60 dB be-tween adjacent rooms that theyissued an "acoustical guarantee"which specifies a substantial price

0

penalty if they didn't meet the cri-teria. In other words they were pro-mising WQXR that no more than1/2,000,000 of the acoustical energy (atthe human ear's most sensitive mid-range and high frequencies) wouldbe allowed to enter any adjacentroom. Music can therefore be playedat some rather ear-splitting levels ina control room, yet be barely audiblein the adjacent studio.

FLOATING INTO SILENCEHow was this 60 dB figure

achieved with all the factors thatwere aimed against it? Floating con-struction, of course. (See sidebar.)While there is nothing revolutionaryabout floating construction, NCCdid develop an interesting new

Figure 5. StudioA This is alsoseen in color at thebeginning of thisarticle. Both theceiling and thewalls have ad-justable acousticalpanels.

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wrinkle on an old scheme. All of thecontrol rooms and studios at WQXR(with the exception of the AM con-trol room) are floating. But where isthe typical isolated concrete slab?There is absolutely no concrete slabto be found. The rooms are not float-ing on concrete or even on wood. AlD'Alessio explains: "All of the roomsare their own separate modules,which were actually built in a factory,made out of four basic ingredients:steel, gypsum, fiberglass and (whererequired) laminated acousticalglass." The result is the acousticalequivalent of 12 inches of solid con-crete in only 4 inches of space, and afraction of the weight!

The factory -built modules are inseveral ways superior to any similarkind of site -built construction. Onevery obvious advantage can be im-mediately seen by looking at asectional drawing (See Figure 3).Notice that the modules are a sand-wich of gypsum and fiber -glass, invarying layers and thicknesses,bounded by an exterior of rigid steel.The units are bounded on all sides bysteel, and are precision built units,easily fitted together. This, of course,makes acoustical sealing a rathereasy job. One interesting side effectof the metal -bounded modules isthat as large ferric surfaces, they

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offer a certain amount of Faradayshielding against stray RF, and as AlD'Alessio pointed out, "if the win-dows and doors had been outfittedwith RF screws, the whole studiostructure could then be earth -grounded offering even further pro-tection. Howevei in the case ofWQXR, which was already in a rela-tively quiet RF location, the processwould have been engineering over-kill."

The typical size of the modularpanels was about four feet by elevenand -a -half feet. Panels were used notjust for walls, but because of theirstructural integrity, they were usedalso for floors (sitting on neopreneisolators) and ceilings as well. In thiscase, the entire room floats-not justfloors and walls as in most conven-tional applications. D'Alessio ex-plains:

"One of the problems with floatingrooms conventionally (where youpour a concrete floor on top of an iso-lated plywood form) is what do youdo with the ceiling? Traditionally,ceilings have been hung by neopreneand spring isolators, which gives youa firm attachment to the floor above.If the floor above is noisy, or has me-chanical equipment on it, noise andvibration will be transmitted

00)a)

Figure 6. NCC'sAl D'Alessio at thepiano in studio AThis served as anexcellent sonic ex-ample of the fineacoustics of thestudio.

through the isolator because there isnever enough mass in the ceilingthat the isolators support, for the iso-lators to really do their work prop-erly.

"The modular ceilings that formthe roofs of the studios and controlrooms at WQXR have no mechanicalconnections whatP.never to the floorabove. They are supported entirelyby the walls and floors of that unit,which sit on a floor that WQXR hastotal control of."

While the modular constructionforms the "inner -box" (rigid, acous-tically sealed, and supported entirelyby a floating floor), the addition of anindependent "outer -box" with adampened air space in-between iswhat enabled NCC to deliver the 60dB attenuation between acousticalspaces and the outside world. Whilethe critical acoustical interface be-tween studio and control room in-volved two spaced modular walls,the less critical boundary betweencontrol room or studio and hallwayutilized a site -built secondary wall.To increase attenuation, the adja-cent walls were constructed withdifferent interior thicknesses, andeven the air space between them wasdamped with fiber -glass. The sameconcept of damping through use of

Figure 7. Theequipment bays inthe TerminalRoom. All thegear is fully acces-sible from the rearvia semi -con-cealed doors (notseen here).

different materials and thicknesseswas also carried through on the con-trol room windows. The glass chosenwas a laminate of varying thick-nesses of glass and plexiglass. Twosuch glass panels were installed foreach window with a damped airspace in-between.

With studio isolation well in hand,the room interiors were tuned tocontrol the absorption and dissipa-tion of sound in accordance with thepopulation and use of each space.Here, the American Cherry hard-woods were fashioned into Helm-holtz resonators to control low -frequency absorption and tocomplement the absorbent acousti-cal properties of the fabric -wrappedwall panels and splayed ceilings.

D'Alessio is resolute about not ap-plying live/dead end acoustics toradio station control rooms. In radio,the control room is also a studio andmust be treated with mic'ing as wellas monitoring in mind. Since thelargest radio control rooms featureless than 3000 cubic feet of volume,control of early reflections by at-tempting to create a reverberantfield confined to a contiguousvolume of less than 1500 cubic feet issuicidal. Ironically, the WQXR liveperformance studio is marked by oneof the most popular acoustical mate-rials among LEDE designers. Theceiling features a 200 square footfield of acoustic diffusers, custombuilt by RPG to NCC specifications.The RPG's, complemented by ad-justable room acoustics, permit thestudio to be used simultaneously forvoice and live music broadcasts andrecordings.

QUIETING THE AIRAir conditioning isolation was ac-

complished quite easily, says D'Ales-sio, by doing the following things:

First, "placing the (ducts) entrypoints where the acoustical flanking(leakage) path would be the leastfrom any adjacent room-as faraway as you can get it from anypotential noise source."

And second, "use acoustically -lined duct which will attenuate anynoise that can seep into the duct it-self-including it's own noise."

Third, keep air velocities low withducts having a large cross-sectionalarea. Beyond that, he specified usinga duct two gauges thicker than thatused in normal commercial installa-

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tions. Duct attenuators (which aresomewhat analogous to a car muf-fler) were also implemented. Whendone just right, the result is air condi-tioning you simply cannot hear. Ashe graphically puts it: "It's just likesomebody is taking a bucket of coldair, gently tipping it over and dump-ing it into the room."

MIC LINES AND 'TIE LINESAny attempt for an acoustical

isolation is limited by the weakestlink in the chain. If you have

Figure 8. ControlRoom 1. An-nouncer Matt Ed-wards can reacheverything that heneeds on -air fromhis seat. Note thecart stomge rackson the wall.

achieved an STC of 60 dB betweenrooms, and then poke a hole betweenthe rooms and create a mechanicalattachment by running wires be-tween them, the isolation couldsuffer by as much as 30 dB. NCCtook no chances in this matter. Infact, "there is no firm connection be-tween any of the walls of the innercontrol rooms and studios to the out-side," says D'Alessio. Wires weregenerally suspended over ceilings orunder floors and dropped straightinto the room without piercing the

wall. "If it was necessary to traversethe gap between inner and outerwalls, there would always be a "com-pliant component," that is, a flexibleconduit. Use of such a flexible con-duit where cabling exits or enters aroom serves to de -couple it andhence preserve the isolation.

Since stray capacitance can be aproblem in running long lengths ofcabling, NCC specified 26 gaugewire instead of the normal audio 22gauge. Since long parallel runs ofwire can be begin to react much like acapacitor (oppositely charged platesseparated by an insulator), adecrease in wire gauge effectively re-duced the surface area of the (inad-vertently formed) capacitor"plates."

GETTING GROUNDEDProbably the most troublesome

threats to a studio's signal-to-noiseratio come from grounding prob-lems. Many studios still endure theillegal and potentially dangerouspractice of lifting all electricalgrounds. This is mainly a stopgapmeasure, because the grounding sys-tem was never properly designed. In

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order to achieve hum -free operationproperly, NCC worked out a care-fully executed integrated groundscheme where both audio and elec-trical grounds were referenced to thesame ground point.

As D'Alessio points out: "Groundproblems exist if either electrical oraudio ground is seen by the equip-ment as being at a different potentialdue to different resistances toground. If howeve4 the ground pathresistance is made to be less than 1ohm, there will be no problem."

This was achieved by imple-menting a classic "star -grounding"configuration for all audio groundsand tying it in at the originationpoint for the electrical ground. Apleasant side effect of a properlygrounded studio is that it does offersome additional RF protection.

FINAL APPOINTMENTSIt's the final touches that really

show off a good design. The WQXRinstallation has its share of them.For example, there is automatic logicswitching built into all recordingconsoles in all control rooms. Any-

time a microphone is opened up,"QUIET PLEASE" signs are lit allalong the path to the designatedarea.

There are no "ON THE AIR" signsat WQXR. NCC advised against it,because there are more far moretimes a studio is used for productionthen for being literally on -the -air. Itwas reasoned that it's better to incul-cate considerate behavior amongstpersonnel and visitors thanblatantly lie and say you are on theair when you are not. It's perhaps asmall point, but it fits well the low-key ambience of the facility. Anothersmall but noteworthy appointmentis the use of acoustical analog clocks.Their oil -damped mechanisms aresmooth and totally noiseless and ofcourse, all tied together by housesync.

Another consideration is that allfloors (being metal clad) aregrounded and carpets are computer -grade, which are designed to dissi-pate static charge. Along with this,humidity is strictly controlled so thatnothing will interfere with micro-processor controlled equipment.

Monitoring the various systemsthat are incorporated in the broad-cast chain is humanly speaking, animpossible job. With signal routingchores inside the studio, networkfeeds from the outside world, andlinks to transmitter sites for simul-taneous FM and AM broadcasts,there are over 120 potential troublespots. Many of these systems couldbe down for hours before any humanoperator was aware of a malfunc-tion.

To avert this kind of broadcast hor-ror story NCC designed and built a"custom annunciator system" com-prised of electronic bulletin boardswhich keep the engineering staffconstantly apprised of the status ofeach potential trouble spot. If a mal-function should occur, it will specifythe location, the nature of the prob-lem, and offer an appropriate courseof action to remedy the situation.

NCC's comprehensive set of elec-tronic design documentation paidoff by shaving five -and -a -half weeksoff the completion date. Without ahitch, Spectrum Broadcast Inc. wasable to install and test the equipment

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required to get the station cut -overfrom their old studios in three -and -a -half weeks instead of the originallyscheduled eight weeks.

Together with the architecturalplans, the documentation will facili-

tate the maintenance and futuregrowth of the facility well into the fu-ture.

All things considered, NCC hascreated a virtual dream -machine forWQXR. The station is user friendly,

easy on the eyes and very, very quiet.

With this sort of edge, WQXR willundoubtedly remain the pre-emi-nent classical music station for quitesome time.

Why Float Acoustical Studios?Alfred W. D'Alessio, NCC Inc.

Most radio and recording engineers have long realized the value of floating construction. By suspending the walls,floor, and ceiling of a studio or control room resiliently, vibrations in the host building structure set up by mechani-cal equipment, air conditioners, foot falls, door slams, etc., can be isolated from that room.

However, an often overlooked requirement for floating construction concerns the limitation of sound transmis-sion properties of the partitions separating adjacent studios caused by the building itself. As can be seen in Figure2(A), even if double wall partitions are used between rooms, some of the sound energy originating in one room canbe transmitted through the host building itself, and reappear as sound leakage in another area. The floors andceilings common to each room are excited by sound waves setting up vibrations in the structure. Because sound orvibration travels over ten times faster and more efficiently in wood, steel, and concrete than in free air; anystructural element common to two adjacent rooms becomes an efficient pipeline (flanking path) for transmittingsound around intervening partitions of any design.

When the same two rooms are floated, they have no firm mechanical contact with each other, or with the buildingstructure. As a result, they will be isolated not only from building vibrations, but also from themselves as depicted inFigure 2(B), with the isolators serving as attenuators in the flanking path. Regardless of the materials and cost ofthe intervening partitions, it is difficult to achieve more than 50 dB of isolation between rooms at 500 Hz withoutemploying a floating constuction. a31

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ED LEARNED

Sound Reinforcement inNorth Africa, Part III

TUNISIA Tunisia was another bookend

stop for two groups: TerranceSimien began his tour here, while theSun Rhythm Section ended theirs.The former arrived in Tunis fromParis via Air France; the latter fromJordan via Royal Jordanian Airlines.

Customs clearance proved easy inboth cases; entry visas were not re-quired here. Tour scheduling in -

country was similar for both groups:we played the southern cities first,finishing up in Tunis at the end. Ci-ties visited were the same except forKairouan, which was played only bythe Sun Rhythm Section.

Figure 1. TerrenceSimien in per-formance at theMunicipalTheater, Tunis.

CC)T

KairouanThis city is a hundred miles south-

west of Tunis, about a two hour drivedue to traffic and road conditions.We played the Maison de la Culture,a facility of small art shops and out-door display areas containing asmall, rectangular -shaped indoorauditorium seating seven hundredin folding chairs. The stage wasabout three -feet high, and played tothe room's long dimension.

It was also raked slightly downfrom upstage to downstage a laShakespearean theaters. Rememberto block those casters! The room wascompletely hard, with wood andplaster surfaces, so the reverb time

was over 2 seconds. Power was avail-able offstage right from severalEuropean -style grounded recep-tacles; voltage was between 218 and230 with frequent fluctuations. Iwent with minimal drum mic'inghere due to the small size and live-ness of the hall. Our crowd at showtime consisted of twenty people, sowe decided to hold an extra half anhour to see what developed. At 7:00p.m., five minutes before we'd de-cided to start no matter what, a tre-mendous influx of kids, aroundjunior high age I'd guess, arrived outof thin air and filled the place tocapacity. I even had a circle of kidsaround me, watching my every moveand trying to figure out what exactlyI was doing with all those knobs andfaders.

SousseA resort city on the Mediter-

ranean, Sousse is a three hour driveslightly southeast of Tunis. Spendsome time there sampling the livelynight scene, and you'll understandthe inspiration behind Dizzy Gil-lespie's tune "A Night in Tunisia."Terrance played the Sousse PalaceTheater, a second floor movie housethat seated five hundred in a slightlyraked main floor area. There was noelevatoi so the gear had to go up twoflights of stairs. These were fairlywide, but it was an unpleasant ex-perience to say the least. Plentifulwood surfaces and an uncarpetedfloor made for "hard" acoustics, witha reverb time of 2 seconds. Powerwas available offstage right on aEuropean receptacle that supplied220 volts, but there was no ground. Ifound a ground wire coming upthrough the floor beneath the powerboard and tied to it. The plan for theday involved setting up around a3:00 p.m. movie, which meant wewould have half an hour to set up andsound check before we werescheduled to begin. Ron Minninger,

Figure 2. View of the Centre d'ArtVivant, Tunis, Tunisia.

CAS (Cultural Affairs Specialist),Jamil Halfaoui and I huddled withthe theater manager about this con-flict in scheduling, and it was agreedthat the afternoon movie would becancelled in deference to our needs.

With a small space to considei Ielected to let the drums and bass gounmic'ed, mixing the band to theiracoustic level. This let me get a goodsound without crushing volume. Acrowd of three hundred attended theshow, which quickly became a danceparty.

A local policeman attempted to sitthe kids down, and actually tried toeject two guys who wouldn't listen! Aquick conference with USIS officialsand escort Minninger reassured himthat it was okay for the audience todance; the band wouldn't be of-fended. The concert continued, and agood time was had by all.

Figure 3. Terrence Simien and theMallet Playboys at Ewart Hall, Cairo.

The Sun Rhythm Section playedthe Sousse Palace Hotel, about ablock south of the Sousse PalaceTheater. We performed in their ball-room, a semi -circular space orientedaround a like -shaped stage. Seatingcapacity could be as high as 1000, al-though we didn't "play" to thatmuch of the room. The rear wall ofthe ballroom was a series of win-dows, which made for some nastyslap -back echoes onto the stage. Theroom was partially carpeted, but itslarge size created a reverb time of al-most 2 seconds. Power was availableon a grounded European outlet stageleft, but the house electrician in-formed me it was only 5 amps, whichwas not going to cut it for theamount of gear we had. There werepower lines for lights in the ceilingover the stage; I had him tie an outletinto an unused circuit where I couldget a real 20 amps of 220 volt power.

The hall was set for seven hundredfifty seats, yet only about onehundred fifty people showed up; ourlocal sponsors attributed the poorturnout to competition from themany other events going on thatnight in Sousse.

SfaxThe ninety mile drive south from

Sousse can take as long as two hoursif you stop a lot for crossing sheep.Both Terrance and Sun Rhythmplayed the Municipal Theatei amovie house with a stage. Seatingcapacity was a thousand, sevenhundred in the main floor areawhich included some mid -floor andrear floor "private boxes," and threehundred in a balmny. The theaterwas on a second floor; equipmentwas brought up via a chain motorhoist located at the rear of the stage.This is a rope -and -hook arrange -

co

anent that handles one piece at atime, so load -in can take some time.The plush seats and thick carpetingreally dampen reverb-reverb timewas around 1 second, and overall theacoustics were very smooth andpleasing. I felt it had the best acous-tics for an electric band in Tunisia.Power was available on the offstageright wall: 220 volts on a European -

type receptacle. These outlets had noground, but there was a ground lug,located directly beneath the powerdrop. I set up my mix point in one ofthe mid -floor boxes house left, givingme both an ideal location for audioand excellent security. The only realdrawback to this venue was themovie schedule, which went until al-most 6:00 p.m.-this required a late9:00 p.m. show time to allow forsetup time. Audience response tothese electric groups was excellent.When Terrance and Sherm asked

0ci

the crowd to stand up and party afterthe second number, they never did sitback down! Sun Rhythm had theaudience singing along enthusiasti-cally duringBlue Suede Shoes.

TunisBoth groups played a major con-

cert at the Municipal Theater thatwas recorded by Tunisian TV Thiswas an older hall in the Europeanopera house tradition. It seatedtwelve hundred, including threewrap -around -the -floor -area balco-nies. There were private boxes at therear and sides of the floor area aswell. Plush seats and carpetingagain dampened the room-the re-verb time of 1.3 seconds was longerthan Sfax due to the higher ceiling.Power was available from stagepockets offstage left. Each pocketcontained three European groundedreceptacles, but only the middle one

Figure 4. The Aida Ballroom in theCairo Marriott.

of each set actually worked-supply-ing 220 volts of very stable power.The theater -proper was above streetlevel, so gear came up on a ropeblock -and -fall hoist through a portalin the floor offstage left. Mix point lacation proved a bit controversial onmy first visit here with Terrance: I'dasked for seats in the floor area,about 41.4 of the way back on a centeroutside aisle. These seats were re-served for my use, yet the hallmanager demanded that I set up in aprivate box at the rear of the hall.The fact that my snake wouldn'treach mattered not at all-this wasthe way it was always done for safetyreasons. After two hours ofstonewalling, the fire marshall wasfinally summoned to solve the dis-pute. After surveying the situation,he assessed my plan as perfectlysafe, and gave it his approval. For-tunately, we didn't have the same

Figure 5. The Jay Hoggard Quintetat an atern000n rehearsal sound -check at the University of Assuit,Egypt.

Figure 6. Terrence Simien at the Out-door Auditorium of the KartoumArmy Officer Club.

problem a year later with SunRhythm, as there was a new, moreflexible hall manager! I gave the TVpeople a straight PA mix feed; theacoustics were so good and the hall solarge that I had everything up in themix. Tunis audiences were generally"hip" to Western music and ready tohave a good time. Both concerts weresellouts, with feverish audience re-sponse (see Figure 1).

So many people were up dancing toTerrance's music that the TVcameras were blocked. The SunRhythm concert had much highersecurity, with ushers and police pre-venting any dancing on the mainfloor in deference to the TV people.

This dampened the fun some-what, but the people in the balconieswere free to boogie the night away-and they did with a vengeance!

Terrance played a smaller concertin Tunis, at the Centre d'Art Vivant.

Figure 7. Again Terrence Simien andthe Mallet Playboys, this time at theAmbassador's Residence in Kartoum,Sudan.

41P"-`61trij111___

An exhibition of American art wasthere at the time, and USIS -Tunisthought that a concert of Americanmusic would nicely complement thisshow. The exhibition hall was greatfor art but lousy for music; themarble floor, plaster walls, and highceiling combined to make the roomdeathly bright, with a reverb time of2 seconds despite its small capacityof 250 (see Figure 2).

AC came from a basementEuropean -style receptacle. Voltagefluctuated between 190 a ad 205volts, very low for our 220 volt soundgear. There was no ground any-where; I pounded a copper pipe intosome pm -moistened ground behindthe arts complex to form a groundrod, and tied my ground to that. Iradically cut back on the PA andmonitors to make the most of whatlittle power we had. The room was sosmall that I only amplified vocals

and accordion. We even turnedSherm's guitar amp around so thatthe amp fired into the wall, not theaudience. A capacity crowd of in-vited dignitaries helped our acous-tics marginally, but it was thecooperation of the group in con-sciously holding back on their soundthat really allowed us to pull it off.

EGYPTMy very first trip to Cairo in 1984

(with the late jazz trumpeter WoodyShaw) illustrated how the localpolitical climate can affect yourtravel. Arriving from Syria, we spentthree -and -a -half hours in the airportwhile customs thoroughly took usapart. Relations between Syria andEgypt, strained at the time, trans-lated into rough treatment if you hadthe misfortune to transit customs.The 1985 Jay Hoggard tour arrivedin Egypt from Morocco via Rome.

The 1988 Terrance Simien tourcame from the Sudan. In each rasp,we encountered none of the hassles Ihad on my first arrival.

Knowledge of Egypt's relationswith your country of embarkationwill give you a clue as to the degree of"hell" you can expect in the Cairoairport.

CairoTerrance Simien played two differ-

ent venues here. Our first was atEwart Hall, on the campus of theAmerican University of Cairo. Thiswas a theater that seated 1000, in-cluding a small balcony. The roomwas very live, with a reverb time ofjust over 2 seconds. AC power was

Figure 8.The author mixes on bor-rowed gear at the Ambassador's Resi-dence in Kartoum. Main and side -fillspeakers are visible.

available offstage right, from UK -type receptacles that supplied 230volts.

The ground was not functional,however, so I tied to a water pipe in abathroom offstage right. The largestage gave the band ample room tospread out, handy because the con-cert was taped for radio and Egyp-

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Figure 9. The author is seen mixingJay Hoggard at the Omdurman TVstudios.

tian TV Channel 3. The radio peopledecided to put up their own mics andtake a feed from me, so the stagesoon looked like a forest (see Figure3)! The TV people elected to just takea feed from me. From a band stand-point, the show was a great success:people went wild, many of themjumping up on stage to dance. The

TV people had a rough night becauseof this; so many people were dancingon the apron that you couldn't seethe band.

The radio mix turned outgreat, and I was pleased to hear thatthe radio engineer eventually mutedmost of his extra mics, electing to usemy PA feed as his primary source.

The second Cairo concert was heldat our hotel, the Cairo Marriott, inthe Aida Ballroom. This was a rec-tangular room with a low ceiling,seating about eight hundred. Weplayed to the long dimension of theroom from a fairly large portablestage (see Figure 4). Reverb timewas a very manageable 1.3 seconds

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Power was available from UK -typereceptacles along the walls, but thehouse electrician gave me a separatereceptacle on a power board with itsown 30 amp breakei this supplied avery stable 230 volts. I had my Bosespeakers, on their tripods, placed onsound wings to safely get the extraheight I would need to insure projec-tion of sound to the back of this longroom.

Our one bit of excitement camefrom a bomb threat; the hall wascleared for two hours while policeswept the place. I was permitted tojoin them after an hour to reset allthe audio gear that was moved.Another capacity crowd turned theconcert into a happening. Afterseveral songs, Terrance pointed outthat the area in front of the stage hadbeen designated for dancing, and hewanted to see it jam-packed on thenext number. He got his wish: thecrowd never sat again for the rest ofthe evening.

AlexandriaBoth Jay and Terrance played con-

certs here, arriving by different

means. Jay's group travelled bytrain from Cairo; Terrance by bus. Inboth cases, the sound equipment andband gear was shipped via truck. JayHoggard's concert was held in theauditorium at the El Nasr Girl's Col-lege. This small hall seated aroundsix hundred, but what made itmemorable was its horrendous re -verb time of 3 seconds-amazing forso small a room. Everything in it waswood and plaster, there wasn't anabsorptive surface anywhere. Therewere various UK -style outletsaround the stage; the first one I tried,offstage right, measured 75 volts! Ifinally found one in an alcove en-trance offstage left that measured230, but was really two 115 -volt hotsand nothing else. I elected to use asingle 115 -volt hot, tying my neutraland ground wires to a water pipe out-side the hall on a wall. We now had aproper 115 -volt system, so I neededto bypass all the internal step-downtransformers installed in our bandgear. I also had to obtain a step-uptransformer to run the Crest poweramps, which were permanentlywired for 220.

Sound check was a real challenge:the live room made it difficult to getany clarity; I could only pray fora fullhouse. I did have the curtain at therear of the stage pulled down, whichhelped dampen stage reflectionsenough so that the acoustic pianocould barely be heard. I was forced tocompletely close the piano's lid to getany usable gain, something I hate todo. Fortunately for me, our concertsounded better, we did have a fullhouse, which allowed me to sneaksome of the instruments into themix. One interesting note: at the endof the first set, Jay announced an in-termission in English. Most of thecrowd got up and left, thinking theconcert was over! The ushers man-aged to intercept some of theaudience with the news that we wereonly taking a break, but we lost halfour audience.

Terrance's concert was held at theSayed Darwish Theater, an old operahouse that seated seven hundredfifty, including two wrap -around bal-conies. Lack of absorptive surfacescontributed to a reverb time of 1 and

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So, get into your Tascam dealer and see the machine that hasthem coming back for seconds. The ATR 60/16. ft's the industry's firstand second choice, because it's second to none.

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TT

away +4LJaissli

Alki -AftP°. mu."14 "71 1_4

3 4. p1

c 1989 TEAC America Inc , 7733 Telegraph Road, Montebello, CA 9064Q 213/726-0303.

Figure 10. The Jay Hoggard Quintet,again at the Onzdurnzan TV studios.Note the PZM taped to "tune" flat.

3/4 seconds that sounded especiallymuddy in the 200-400 Hz area.

Power was obtained offstage leftfrom a UK -type receptacle: voltagewas a single -hot 220, but there wasagain no ground.

I tied my ground wire to a bath-room faucet about twenty feet fromthe offstage left wing.

There was a small house PA sys-tem available, based on Altec com-ponents, but I elected not to use it.

The concert was completely sold out,so I was able to mix more aggres-sively than I had during soundcheck.

The crowd went wild when Ter-rance and the group launched intoLa Baraba; we discovered later thatthe song was number one in Egypt atthe time.

CO

AssiutThis city is located about halfway

down the Nile River from Cairo toAswan. Assuit University, thelargest university in that part ofEgypt, sponsored Jay Hoggard, whowas the first American artist ever toplay Assuit. We travelled by train

from Cairo, a journey that took alittle over five hours; our equipmenttravelled separately by truck. Ourvenue at the university was a largegym, seating around two thousand.We'd encountered long reverb timeson this trip, but this gym was by farthe worst: with a time of 4 seconds,

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any sound was soon rendered unin-telligible. A power board offstageright supplied 220 -volt powerthrough a strange 4 -prong connec-tor. I had the school electrician wireme directly into this service. Theband spent most of our afternoonsoundcheck working on two newtunes: Secret of the Desert, by OnajeGumbs, and Jamal's Dream, byVernon Reid (see Figure 5). The re-hearsal confirmed my opinion-thishall would make a great echo cham-ber!

The group sounded like they wereat the bottom of a well, and it was al-most impossible to hear the acousticpiano over the din of the other in-struments. The guys had turneddown as low as they could, but it wasstill bad. I explained the situation toOnaje; he agreed to only use acousticpiano on quiet numbers. Otherwise,he'd play the DX -7 exclusively. Theaddition of an audience helpedenough so that we were at least par-tially intelligible.

To add to our woes, Jay's vibesstarted cutting out in the middle ofthe second set; he was soloing withone hand while reaching under thevibes to check his pickup with hisother hand. He told me later thatsome screws holding the wires inplace had vibrated loose during thelong truck ride from Cairo-causingthe connection to come apart. Hemanaged to get it working longenough to limp through the rest ofthe set. A rough night, but a most re-ceptive audience made up for it. Theregional governor was in atten-dance, and he might have been themost enthusiastic of all!

SUDANAll three groups played the Sudan,

primarily Khartoum and the sur-rounding areas. Conditions in -country were very different for eachtour. Jay Hoggard's 1985 tour leftSudan only five days before a couptoppled the Nimety government.Tension was so thick you could cut itwith a knife. The Sun Rhythm sec-tion tour took place in 1989, and fellafoul of Egyptian -Sudanese rela-tions. Sudan was the first stop onthis tour; we arrived from Amster-dam, while the sound system andband equipment was to be shippedfrom Paris via Cairo.

Due to the unrest in southernSudan, Egypt has placed an embargoon Sudan-only relief supplies were

allowed to go from Cairo to Khar-toum. Despite delivery assurancesfrom the air -freight company, ourgear was off-loaded in Cairo, whereit sat for five days.

We were forced to do the first con-cert without our gear, causing somelast minute improvisation by your'struly. A word to the wise: if you needto get equipment into the Sudan,make absolutely certain it does notrequire connections in Cairo. Ourequipment was released only afterintervention by highly -placedfriends of the U.S. government. Car-riers like KLM or Lufthansa, thatoffer direct flights to Khartoumfrom Europe, are your best bet.

KhartoumJay Hoggard's major concert in

Khartoum took place at FriendshipHall, a major theater/arts complexbuilt for the Sudanese by thePeople's Republic of China. Themain theater seated twelve in a two -

tiered main floor area. It was also aworking movie theater, so my setuphad to be complete before the 3:00p.m. movie was shown. I set mystacks and house -mix equipment inplace, uncrating monitors and bandgeai which I stashed behind thescreen to facilitate a quick set-upafter the movie.

The room contained a lot of tile,which resulted in a high -frequencyreverb time of 2 seconds. Power wasavailable stage left from a stagepocket; it contained two UK -type re-ceptacles, each with a 230 volt, 15amp grounded circuit. I left around2:30 p.m., returning with the groupat 5:15 p.m. to finish setup andsoundcheck. I was pretty happy withthe sound here, except for the bass-the room seemed to eat up all thelevel that I could put out. To compen-sate, I had Jerome play louder thanusual, with added low frequency onhis stage amp. Out front, this madethe difference in maintaining the

bass impact of the overall mix. Theevening show was recorded by RadioOmdurman, taking a feed from mevia a post -fade aux send. I let myradio mix follow my live mix in thisinstance, using the aux pots to com-pensate for the drastically differentneeds of radio. Both TerranceSimien and the Sun Rhythm Sectionplayed the Khartoum Army Officer'sClub outdoor auditorium. This facil-ity featured a semi -circular stage,partly covered by a high roof. Theaudience area was constructed ofsteeply -raked concrete tiers, risinghigh above the stage, with seatingfor five thousand in portable chairsor tiered standing areas (see Figure6). Since the audience area was openair, reverb time was not a factor. Theconcrete environment did, however,make things slightly bright.

Power came from a panel on thestage right wall: 240 volts on a UKreceptacle, but no ground. Myground came from a water pipe

THand still the best.

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Enclosed in a rugged, weatherproof fiberglass case,the M4 is capable of producing average power levels

E FIRST..... midrange for your 3 -way system

in excess of 100 acoustical watts.Other features ir clude:

4.5 inch edgewoundaluminum voice coil

4 -inch diameter exit throat 61/4 -inch extremely rigid,

ultralight diaphragm Complemening fiberglass

pattern cont-of horns

The M4 can be found in countless 3 -way systemsaround the world where high quality sound and highoutput levels with low distortion are required. Ifyou're contemplating your own 3 -way design andhaven't experienced what an M4 can do, the timehas come.

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about thirty feet from the stage rightside. At this facility, I was hurting forPA-no way do four Bose 802s pro-duce the sound you need for two elec-tric bands outdoors for five thousandpeople! Handling this space requiredcareful balancing between the bandand the PA. Both bassists played"up" as far as they comfortablycould, and played with extra low end.Guitar amps were raised on casesand run hotter for Sun Rhythm. Wehad two guitar amps for one playeron Terrance's tour. At the officer'sclub, Sherm used both amps, anglingthem to try and cover the widesthouse area with stage sound.

I tried to get as much out of stagesound as I could, using the PA for vo-cals and drums; I would then add allI dared of the rest to round out themix. We did, however, get the ideaacross. Terrance enjoyed a crowd oftwenty-five hundred wildly enthusi-astic music fans. Sun Rhythmcompletely filled the place-the firsttime it ever happened for an Ameri-can group. The difference in soundlevel between the two would makeanyone a believer in the ability ofpeople to absorb sound.

Another venue shared by the twobands was the U.S. Ambassador'sResidence, where both Terrance andSun Rhythm were entertain-ment/guests at an invitation -onlyconcert/party. Invariably, two thingshappen: you meet many importantdignitaries from the diplomatic,governmental, and artistic circles,and then discover that they like agood time as much as anyone!

We played next to the pool, using acorner near a flowered trellis as astage. A seating area along the poolwas covered by one PA stack; theother was pointed at a different seat-ing area with a dance floor (see Fig-ure 7).

My mix point was located at therear of this second seating area.Power was supposed to come fromthe pool compressor shed, but thevoltage there was 268, way too highfor our gear. I ended up using a linefrom the home's auxiliary generator,which provided a steady 242 volts ongrounded UK receptacles. I assignedmonitor cabinets to our vocalistsonly. The bands cooperated by play-ing with restraint.

The Sun Rhythm had a specialhandicap: our equipment was heldup in Cairo, so we had no gear for theconcert. The night before our Am-bassador's concert, we'd been theguests of USIS at a "Welcome toSudan" party featuring Lomorika, aband from southern Sudan. I knewour gear was late, so I made arrange-ments to borrow what gear theyhad justin ease. This gear wasdelivered to the Ambassador's Resi-dence at 5:30 p.m., with guests arriv-ing at 6:00 p.m. My PA was a pair ofSaund cabinets, each containing two12 -inch woofers. The mixer/ampwas a 5 -channel PA head with hi -Zinputs. I carried mics and DIs withme, and by combining both withsome XLR turnarounds, I was able tocome up with two vocal mics. I usedthe best of Lomorika's high -Z micsfor my third vocal. All instrumentsand drums were on their own, exceptfor Smoochy's borrowed electronicpiano, which I ran directly into themixer. There was only one monitor,an LEM with a small 10 -inch wooferand built-in amplifier. I put it up on atable and used it as a side fill. Therewas no snake, and the cords weren't

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long, so I had to mix the show onstage with the group-literally sit-ting at the feet of guitarists SonnyBurgess and Paul Burlison (see Fig-ure 8). Definitely not state-of-the-art, but the bottom line was that wemade it work.

Sun Rhythm also played a concertin the ballroom of the Hilton Inter-national Khartoum, the hotel westayed in on every tour. The ballroomwas a rectangular -shaped room witha low ceiling; the stage was placed sothat we'd play to the short dimen-sion. Capacity for this show wasabout three hundred, seated aroundlong tables. The small room size andthick carpeting kept the room reverbto a very manageable 1 second.Power was available from the rearstage wall, on UK -type receptacleswith functional grounds. Voltagewas 240, and very stable for Khar-toum. The hotel even had its owngenerator, a necessity as power out-ages were a fact of life here.

Terrance Simien's third Khar-toum concert was at the Khartoumfairgrounds, where an internationaltrade fair was ongoing. The groupwas to play a special concert at a sitenear the exhibition hall housing theU.S. entry. A 16 X 16 stage was set to"play" across the fair's main en-trance, adjacent to the fair's maingate in an area framed by trees (rearof stage) and flagpoles. The rear 16 X8 of this stage was six inches tallerthan the front 16 X 8-creating ariser effect. Power was run from theU.S. exhibition: it was a 30 -amp,240 -volt service terminating in aUK -type grounded receptacle. I hadto do a field repair on both our guitaramps here, as neither worked right.One had the power transformerbreak loose from the chassis, pullingits wires off the amp's PCB; theother had several cracked solderjoints in the AC section. This latterproblem caused a capacitor to comeloose, so the amp had a huge buzzwith no input. Once we'd solved ourguitar amp problem, the rest of theday was easy. We didn't soundcheck,as our allotted time had been used inamp repair, so I did the show cold. Itdidn't take me long to get things inthe pocket, as I enjoy mixing out-doors. A crowd of around two thou-sand warmed slowly to the band, butwere dancing up a storm by the endof the 75 -minute concert.

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Khartoum, Jay Hoggard performeda special concert at the TV Omdur-man studios. The audio facilitieswere not extensive; only seven chan-nels were available, so we agreedthat I would set up our system,

minus the house PA, and mix audiofor the TV taping.

The studio i-self was quite large,with fairly good acoustics. I arrangedto set up my console and rack in ahallway outside the studio, mixingon headphones (see Figure 9). Every-one helped set up, but our major

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problem proved to be power. Therewere plenty of UK receptaclesaround, but none of them hadgrounds. I improvised one off awater pipe, then discovered that thehot line I was supposed to use was re-ally only 180 volts, with a whopping40 volts on the neutral.

The TV engineers said they used itall the time, but there was no waythat I was going to, as something was

very wrong with the neutral. Thestudio electrician was finally sum-moned; we searched around until wefound a real 225 volt line. Allneutrals had some kind of voltage onthem, ranging from 3 to 40 volts, so Iended up running my own neutral tomy grounded water pipe. This gaveme clean powe4 and allowed me togive a clean signal to the TV people.Once we cleaned our power up, the

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rest fell rapidly into place. I addedsome extra mics for the recording,including an ambience mic whichwas taped to a "tree" flat which waspart of the set placed behind thegroup as a backdrop. We did a quickfour -minute soundcheck, so I couldset levels, then did a practice tune.Jay and I listened back to this and,after making a few minor adjust-ments in tone, proceeded to cut sixsongs (see Figure 10).

After the music was done, we cut ashort interview with Jay. I mic'ed theinterview with my PZM, placed onthe floor in front of the seated sub-jects. It worked fine, with the addedadvantage of being invisible to thecamera. PZM's were new to Sudan;the engineers were quite amazed bytheir quality and versatility.

Was MedaniTravelling from Khartoum by van

and truck took about three -and -a -half hours. Sun Rhythm was the onlyband to come here; we did two per-formances, one at Gezira TV, theother at the Gezira Theater. TheGezira TV studios were much moremodern than the studio in Omdur-man. Again, the TV engineers pre-ferred that I mix audio on my equip-ment, kicking my output to TVinstead of a PA. Power came fromoutlets located behind the set; I hadno problems, as the UK receptacleswere all grounded and supplied 240volts with clean neutrals. We cut theinterview with group spokesmanStan Kessler first. The young ladydoing the interviewing wore a lava-lier mic tied directly into TV audio; Itook care of Stan through his vocalmic. The band cut four songs beforewe adjourned for lunch. While theguys rested, escort Toney Seaboltand I went over to the GeziraTheater to set up for our evening'sconcert. This theater was open air,with a stage arrangement similar tothe officer's club, except that thecapacity was only twenty-fivehundred in a long, very gradually -raked seating area. Power was avail-able on either side of the stage:grounded UK -type outlets provided220 volt AC. There were no side wallsor high audience area to contain thesound here, so I didn't have to worryabout reverb or reflections.

We had only about a thousandpeople, but as all the Sudanese con-certs went -it soon became a happy,dancing happening.

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Speaker Repairs in the Held

The term re -cone is to some extent a misnomer as it is applied to the speaker repair or rebuildprocess used today. In most cases, a "re -cone job" involves replacing all of the moving parts andgaskets. Relatively speaking, rarely is the cone the only part needed to be replaced.

While failures in the frameand magnet structure of aspeaker can be the sourceof problems, these are

most rare and not field repairable. Inthis article, we will focus primarilyon field repairable items. Speakerfailure can be divided into two cate-gories: thermal and mechanical.While thermal failure relates exclu-sively to the voice coil; mechanicalfailures can occur in any part of thespeaker.

Thermal failures are generally dueto misuse either in the form of a dis-torted signal being applied to theloudspeaker or the misapplication ofthe loudspeaker. An example of mis-application causing thermal failurewould be the use of an extended bassspeaker for a mid -bass (50 Hz -250Hz) application. In the case of a longcoil speaker used in a limited range,high -power application, a restrictedamount of the coil is used. Since coilcooling is somewhat dependent onmovement within the gap, the topand bottom of the long coil are notbeing cooled. The result is often ther-mal failure. A shorter coil speakerwould have performed better in thisapplication.

MECHANICAL PROBLEMSMechanical failures can be either

misuse or factory defect. Misuse usu-ally shows up in the form of rippedcones, domes, spiders or surround.

Paul Hugo is the National SalesManager for Gauss in Sun Valley,California.

Whether from a beer bottle or a foot,rarely is this type of failure coveredby warranty. When the bottom of thecoil/former is deformed or crushed, itis from overpowering or a large DCcomponent in the signal being fed tothe speaker-neither of which is amanufacturing problem. Separa-tions at any joint, frame/surround,surround/cone, cone/former, former/spidei spider/frame, or coil/formerare suspect. These are most likelymanufacturing defects, but thespecific circumstances of thespeaker's use should also be con-sidered. For instance, a short coilspeaker, intended for use in a horn -loaded enclosure, would be "un-

Figure 1. The cone is now removed.

loaded" in some ported enclosuresand with sufficient power at lowfrequencies, would take the suspen-sion elements to an extreme withoutbottoming out the coil. In this case, aspider/former joint failure might notbe covered under warranty. On theother hand, all manufacturers ofloudspeakers are at the mercy of out-side vendors for adhesives and whenvariations occur joint failures followand are usually covered by mostwarranties.

The re -cone process can be dividedinto two stages: cleaning and instal-lation. First the old, damaged partsmust be removed. The cone gets cutat the surround and down near the

dome. Removing this section allowsaccess to the spider (Figure 1).

In common speaker designs*, cutthe spider all the way around theforme; then remove the former/coilassembly and cover the exposed gapwith masking tape to prevent for-eign material from entering the gap.Remove the gasket material, re-maining surround and spider. Usinga razor knife, scrape off the materialadhered to the frame. A solvent, suchas M.E.K. or isopropyl alcohol willremove any remaining surround,spider or adhesive from the frame.

Next, uncover the gap and cleanwith masking tape. A piece of taperoughly 2 -inch by 2 -inch attached toa paper or plastic shim should be in-serted in the gap and rotated aroundthe pole piece (Figure 2). Thisprocess should be repeated for innerand outer surfaces of the gap untilthe masking tape comes up clean.Black material found in the gap isthe burnt remains of voice coil insu-lation. If the coil has separated fromthe former, special attention must be

*Gauss Loudspeakers are de -1signed around a double spider sus-pension. Theaffixed to a fiber-glass/plasticmounting ring at the outer edgeand to the former at the innerdiameter. This design allows for"active centering." The voicecoil/spider ass4Pmbly is not glueddown, it is held in place by sixscrews (Figure 6). There is noguess work in coil alignment andno waiting for glue to dry betweenthe spider and the frame. Thecoil/spider assembly drops intoplace in only one way. The termi-nations are an integral part of themounting ring and come completefrom the factory. After the screwsare in place and snugged down,some play remains to allow forvisual alignment. A low frequencysignal (20 Hz) at a low level (7 to8 volts) is applied to check for rub-bing or scraping. After alignmentis correct, tighten all six screws ina "star pattern" (like changing atire on a car). Then, recheck withsignal before proceeding as nor-mal. Some people prefer to useshims over visual alignment-thisis okay. You can still take advan-tage of the design by removing theshims after tightening the screwsand running a check on coil align-ment before going on.

Figure 2. Clean the gap with masking tape.

Figure 3. Apply adhesive carefully and in a bead.

Figure 4. Adhesive now goes on the top of the cone/former joint.

Figure 5. Applying the gasket. Be sure to line up the holes.

Figure 6. At Gauss, the voice -coil spider assembly is not glued down.

Figure 7. Removing the lead wires from a compression driven

A

paid to assure none of these parts areleft in the gap. Once all debris hasbeen removed and the gap has beeninspected with a high intensity lightand magnifying glass, the gap shouldbe checked for alignment. A gap gageinserted into the gap and rotatedaround the pole piece will point outany centering problem. Proper gapgauges should be available from themanufacturer. Magnet or pole pieceshift cannot be field repaired. Themagnet assembly must be de-gaussed, centered and re -magne-tized.

INSTALLING THE RE -CONEKIT

Assuming the gap check wentokay, the next step is the installationof the re -cone kit. All major manu-facturers of raw frame speakersoffer a three or four -piece re -conekit. The voice coil/former and spiderare shipped as one part.

The cone/surround, dome andgaskets make up the balance of thekit. In some cases, the cone is alreadyattached to the former.

The coil/spider assembly is in-stalled first. The coil is first insertedinto the gap. In common designs, thevoice coil leads should be orientedtoward the appropriate terminals.Centering is accomplished by plac-ing paper or plastic shims betweenthe coil and pole piece evenly aroundthe pole piece. For most commonspeaker designs, the spider is nowglued to the frame. Making certainthat the spider is level and not biasedtoward or away from the magnetstructure, apply a bead of adhesive tothe raised portion of the speaker

'Adhesives vary from manufac-turer to manufacturer. I recom-mend that you use those specificadhesives called for by the manu-facturer of the speaker that youare working on. A particular typeof epoxy, for example, may becalled foi due to not only the typesof materials being joined, but alsofor thermal, flexure and applica-tion properties. In general, anepoxy is used at the juncture of theforme4 cone and dome. The spiderto frame junction (conventionaldesigns) is sometimes made withepoxy and sometimes with a rub-ber -based adhesive like that of thesurround/frame junction.

SURROUND

VOICE COIL& FORMER

TOP PLATE

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BACK PLATE

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Figure 7(A). A cross-section dia-grahm of a Gauss cone speaker.

frame. After pressing the spiderdown to the frame, the speakershould be left to allow the adhesive todry-usually 24 to 36 hours. It's nota bad idea to place the dome over theformer at this point to prevent debrisfrom entering the gap. Do not gluethe dome down; I just let it rest overthe former.

After the adhesive has dried, re-move the shims and apply a low-levelsignal (see manufacturer's instruc-tions) to the coil. A low -frequencysignal is helpful (20 Hz) as this al-lows detection of rubs or scrapesmost easily.

These can occur from a coil/formerbeing "out of round" or undetecteddebris in the gap. Unfortunately, it'sdifficult to know this until it's toolate. If you have a problem at thisstage in conventional designs; youhave little choice but to cut the coilloose and try again.

This approach becomes expensiveand underscores the importance ofcleaning and inspecting the gap. Ofcourse, if the coil is "out of round," itshould be returned to the manufac-turer for credit.

VENT HOLES

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Figure 7 (B). A "typical" cone driver.

Figure 7 (C). A two-inch compression driven

DIAPHRAGMTERMINAL

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SCREEN THROAT-GASKET

DRIVERHOUSING

Figure 8. Separating the diaphragm assembly from the top plate.

Figure 9. Now lift the diaphragm assenzby by the outside ring.

r -

Figure 10. Clean the inner and outer surfaces of the gap.

(13CO

THE CONE IS NOW IN-STALLED

Now that the coil and spider as-sembly are in place, the cone gets in-stalled on the former. Place a bead ofadhesive around the outside of theformer near the top and anotherwhere the spider and former meet(Figure 3). Do not allow the adhesiveto run inside of the former as it mightget into the gap. Spread an evenlayer of adhesive on the rim of theframe. It is important that the adhe-sive joint between the surround andthe frame be complete not only allthe way around, but to the innermost edge where surround andframe meet. If the adhesive is notcomplete to the inner edge, a "tick-ing" will be audible when the adhe-sives have dried.

While it is important that theadhesive joint around the

dome be complete to assureno air leaks, buzzes or

rattles, exact centering isimportant for cosmetic, not

functional reasons.

Place the center hole of the conedown over the former, rotating itslightly back and forth as the cone ispushed down to meet the spider.Press the surround down against therim. A bead of adhesive should nowbe applied on the top of thecone/former joint (Figure 4). Thisnot only adds to the strength of thecone joint, but in most cases, securesthe dome as well. The dome is some-what fragile, especially aluminumdomes, and should be handled care-fully while being put in place. Incases where the dome does not seatat the cone/former junction, a smallloop of masking tape can be used as ahandle allowing centering of thedome on the cone. While it is impor-tant that the adhesive joint aroundthe dome be complete to assure noair leaks, buzzes or rattles, exactcentering is important for cosmetic,not functional reasons. In mostcases, a bead of black adhesive is ap-plied on top of the dome/cone joint.Again, this is primarily cosmetic. Toapply the gasket, pull the backingtape off the gasket material, line upthe holes with those in the frame,and press into place over the sur-round/frame joint (Figure 5). Lastly,

Figure 11. Install a new gasket, again aligning it with the holes.

solder the voice coil leads to the ter-minals. Leave enough slack to allowspeaker movement but not enoughto allow leads to short out.

It is common practice to supplylight pressure to the cone and a bitmore pressure to the gasket whilethe adhesives set. A roll of maskingtape set on top of the cone worksnicely to assure that the cone stays inplace. Usually, another speaker ofthe same size is turned upside downand set on top of the speaker beingrepaired, gasket to gasket. Thisprocess provides enough pressurefor proper gasket and surround seat-ing. With or without weights, thespeaker should be allowed to dry andset up for 72 hours. For a final check,a low frequency (20 Hz) signal ap-plied at a low level (7 to 8 volts) willagain show up the most likely prob-lems.

CONSIDERATIONS OFHIGH -FREQUENCY DRIVERS

High -frequency compression driv-ers suffer more from mechanicalthan thermal stress. Because of theapplication they are designed for,lightweight materials must be used.Whether phenolic, aluminum or ti-tanium, the first failure mode isgenerally mechanical. Knowing howthese devices operate should helpyou understand how they fail. Thediaphragm operates in a pistonmode at the lower end of its range. Inthe middle of its range, the dia-phragm is in a "break-up" mode. Thesurface divides into small regions

which operate together. At the top ofits range, the surround or suspen-sion is the active portion of the dev-ice.

The most dramatic mechanicalfailure in high frequency drivers is ashattered diaphragm. This is gener-ally caused by a stress or crease inthe dome. The diaphragm mayoperate normally at first, but aftersome use will shatter into small frag-ments. This stressed condition maybe the result of mishandling duringinstallation of the diaphragm or astrong impulse applied to the driverwhich drives the diaphragm intocontact with the phasing plug. Animpulse, such as a turn on transient,can also pull the coil away from thediaphragm. One has to rememberthat the spacing between the dia-phragm and pole piece is only about14/1000 of an inch. It does not takemuch to cause damage to a devicewith such small tolerances.

If rubbing occurs, use a flatend punch and small malletto gently tap the diaphragm

assembly to correctpositioning and stop the

rubbing.

Surround failure can take the formof a split in the surround or "oilcanned" surround. A split or tear inthe surround is fairly self-explana-tory.

Oil canning is a permanent defor-mation of a flexiole part. After oilcanning has occurred in a suspen-sion element; the diaphragm is posi-tioned further away from the phas-ing plug than normal. This willresult in reduced high -frequency re-sponse. Both types of surroundfailures are cawed by excessivemovement-usually too muchpower at too low a frequency.

COMPRESSION DRIVERREPAIRS

To repair a compression drivel thefailed diaphragm must be replaced.Remove the screws from the backcover of the driver and lift the coverfrom the unit. If the cover does notlift easily, use a rawhide or rubbermallet to tap the side of the cover,loosening it for removal. Use cautionwhen usilng a mallet. An improp-erly -placed blow or too powerful ablow could damage internal struc-tures.

Using a non-magnetic screw-drivei loosen the t wo screws holdingthe lead wires to the diaphragm as-sembly and remcve the lead wires(Figure 7). Again using a non-mag-netic screwdriver, remove the screwsand washers hold_ng the diaphragmassembly to the tcp plate (Figure 8).Do not discard the screws and wash-ers as they are necessary for re -as-sembly.

Now, carefully remove the dia-phragm assembly by lifting it by theoutside ring (Figure 9). Using mask-ing tape, clean the gap thoroughly byrotating a piece of masking tapearound the pole piece. Be sure toclean both inner and outer surfacesof the gap (Figure 10). Check the gapwith a high -intensity light and amagnifying glass to insure all for-eign materials have been removed. Ifthe diaphragm has been shattered,extra care must be taken to ensurethat all the pieces are removed fromthe phasing plug assembly. Measurethe gap using a pin -type gauge.Proper gauges should be availablefrom the manufacturer. If a gap shifthas occurred, the unit must be re-turned to the factory for properalignment. Do not. attempt to installa new diaphragm.

At this point, if the replacement di-aphragm is not to be installed imme-diately, seal gap and slots in the phas-ing plug with masking tape to avoidcontamination.

DIAPHRAGM INSTALLATION

To install a new diaphragm as-sembly, orient the two terminalgroups on the diaphragm assemblywith the small notches on the insideof the top plate. Holding assembly byoutside ring, carefully insert the dia-phragm assembly into the plate,seating the coil into the gap andmaintaining the orientation alreadydescribed above.

Insert the screws and washers andsnug them down using a "star" pat-tern. Apply approximately 5 volts at500 Hz to 800 Hz and listen for anyrubbing. If rubbing occurs, use a flatend punch and small mallet togentlytap the diaphragm assembly to cor-rect positioning and stop the rub-bing. If rubbing persists, the unitmust be returned to the factory forproper alignment.

Remove old gasket aroundthe throat of the driver and

replace, making sure allhorn flange mounting holes

align with holes in thegasket.

Tighten down the screws, againusing a "star" pattern. Be carefulnot to exceed the force suggested bythe manufacturer. Repeat the tonegenerator test to insure rubbing doesnot take place.

Remove the old gasket and installa new one around the edge of theback cover, making sure that allscrew holes align with the gasketholes (Figure 11).

Connect lead wires to the termi-nals on the diaphragm assembly. Fol-low phase convention and markingssuch as the red wire to the terminal

with red dot. Be sure lead wires areproperly dressed so that they do nottouch the diaphragm itself.

Replace cover, insert the screwsand tighten down using a "star" pat-tern. Remove old gasket around thethroat of the driver and replace,making sure all horn flange mount-ing holes align with holes in thegasket.

This article has covered thevarious failures that can occur inloudspeakers, whether thermal ormechanical, and through detailed in-structions, explained the many tech-niques of repair used to correct theseproblems, thereby bringing yourspeakers back up to peak perform-ance.

Copies of articles from thispublication are now available fromthe UMI Article Clearinghouse.

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Mail to: University Microfilms International300 North Zeeb Road. Box 91 Ann Arbor. MI 48106

JAMES BECHER

Music from anElectronic Cottage

This is what I do. I make music. Sounds simple, right? Maybe. Technology has created the need(and the ability) for incredible precision and slickness in today's pop music, and making music,using MIDI for all aspects of the production and recording process, seems to be the key.

1n the 1960's, recording in-struments that were out -of -tune, especially guitarsand flutes (Can you name

those tunes?) were perfectly accept-able. Even "loose" rhythm trackswere often allowed to make the cut.This was due, I suppose, to the or-ganic nature of the bands and theirmusic. There was a certain edge andnatural "feel" created by the raw-ness of those elements. In today'smusic howeveg we tend to measurethe quality of musicianship by theprecision of the instruments.

The level of quality expected for re-cording (even demos) must be top-notch using state-of-the-art (sorryabout the use of an already played -out phrase) equipment.

A NEW BREEDFortunately, there is now a new

breed of musician/producer-arrang-er/engineer who possess the abilityto turn out great music from thehome studio, ergo the Electronic Cot-tage. With the use of MIDI key-boards, drum machines, and se-quencers, any sound texture can berealized, and complete orchestrationis possible-the performance infor-mation of which can be digitally re-corded and saved on disk to be re-called at any time. By having anextensive MIDI set-up, which vir-tually eliminates the need of havingto record any of the instrumentsounds onto analog tape, the onlyelement necessary to record onto thetape is the vocals (except for any liveinstruments not used in the MIDIconfiguration).

James Becher operates his Elec-tronic Cottage in Northport, NewYork.

Therefore, it becomes unnecessaryto use large format tape machines(eight tracks are usually just fine). Ifnoise reduction is used on the analogtape machine, and the tracks (bothtape and MIDI) are mixed onto aDAT machine, CD quality can beachieved. I say this because there isno signal degradation of the instru-ments because they are essentiallybeing mixed live direct -to -digital.Essentially the only noise occurringwould be the inherent noise of theMIDI instruments themselves, thenoise of the mixer and whatever out-board gear is used, and the residualnoise (after noise reduction) of thetape.

That's why utilizing eight tapetracks, let's say, instead of twenty-four or even forty-eight becomes ablessing (in terms of keeping thenoise floor low), rather than a short-coming. This is essentially the ap-proach I use for pop music produc-tion. It also seems to work for justabout any other type of music pro-duction, including soundtrack musicproduction.

SONS OF THUNDERMy production company is called

Sons of Thunder and we have twostudios located on beautiful Long Is-land, New York. Our specialty (of theday) is putting together high -qualitysongwriter's demos, composingsoundtrack music, and designingpromotional packages. We recentlyhad a pop song which charted in thetop 20.

In addition, we provided the musicfor the PBS television series entitledSouth Africa Now, a series dedicatedto the subject of apartheid in SouthAfrica. I, myself', have had the great

pleasure of working (or playing, re-ally) with such artists as Jon Ander-son (ex -Yes), Verdine White (Earth,Wind, and Fire), Ed Gagliardi (For-eigner), Bobby Rondinelli (Rain-bow), Kenny Aron -son and ThommyPrice (Billy Idol), and Meatloaf. Iserved as product specialist and key-board clinician with M.T.I. (MusicTechnology, Inc.) working on theoriginal Synergy digital keyboardproject with Wendy Carlos, TomPiggott, and "Stoney" Stockell. Ihave also been a consultant toEuropean keyboard manufacturersCrumar and Siel, and worked inJapan with the good people of Korgvoicing what is currently America'shottest selling keyboard, the M1MIDI workstation. So you can seenot only do I enjoy working with avariety of musicians from all walks,but I thoroughly enjoy the challengeof designing the actual synthesizedsounds themselves.

As I have mentioned, Sons ofThunder has two studios, and I ownthe studio located in East Northport,New York, and it is this studio ofwhich I would like to give you a"Cook's" tout

My MIDI studio is the quintessen-tial Electronic Cottage, and not just ageneral-purpose recording studio. Imake this distinction because I pre-fer working on a more personal levelwith the songwriter(s), and because Iprovide all (or at least, most) of themusic.

Many times the songwriter(s) willhave written lyrics only, so in that sit-uation I'll compose the music,making sure that the music reflectsthe images suggested by the words.If a band or large group is interestedin doing some recording, I will usu-

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ally refer them to another studio thatdoes general-purpose multi -track re-cording. I try to create a friendly,hassle -free working environment,and I find that it's generally easier todo that with fewer people anyway.

When I am working on soundtrackmaterial, I will usually do that solo. Idesigned my studio with ergonomicsin mind. My keyboard controllers,main computes; multi -track tapemachines, drum machines, primarymixers, signal processors, and patchbays (both MIDI and audio), are allwithin arms reach because of the"U" -shaped layout of the gear. Thismakes my life easier because notonly does this configuration reducestress when I'm involved in a lengthyproduction or programming session,but it's just simply comfortable.

POP MUSIC METHODOLOGYMy method for pop music produc-

tion is similar to soundtrack produc-tion, though my approach to sound-track music will often vary,depending on the nature of the piece.In general though, the first step forputting together a pop song involvesmapping out the song(s) with thesongwriter(s). We will discuss every-thing from arrangement, to vocalphrasing, to the types of sound tex-

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tures that will perhaps be used. ThenI do the programming.

I do all of my MIDI programmingusing the Atari Mega -2 computerwith the incredible Notator sequenc-ing program by C -Lab (distributed inthe U.S. by Digidesign). I absolutelylove that program because of its in-credible flexibility, and because youcan perform editing functions whileit is running. It even prints out musicnotation in real time. You can't im-agine how much time that saves! No-tator also has full MIDI automationwhich makes mixing a dream. TheAtari Mega -2 with Notator is liter-ally the heart of my Electronic Cot-tage. Korg's SQD -1 (affectionatelyknown as "Squid") and Roland'sMSQ -100 serve as back-up hard-ware sequencers, when that be-comes necessary. MIDI informationis then sent directly to my DigitalMusic Corp. MX -8 MIDI patch-bay/processor. All MIDI info is"looked -at," processed (merged, fil-tered, transposed, MIDI delayed,etc.) and then assigned to any of theeight outputs, which feed my synths,drum machines, and tape synchro-nizer.

AFTER THE PROGRAMMINGWhen my programming is

finished, I'll quickly assign tem-

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Custom Moog,ARP Electrocomsynthesizer with

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porary, usable scunds to the key-boards and expanders, and then re-cord the vocals. V3cal mikes includea pair of Audio-Technica AT -813 con-densers, and a Beyer M-500 ribbonmicrophone. The Audio-Technica'sare surprisingly smooth, and theBeyer has nice too -end. Using com-pression or some form of limiting onvocals is a must. I personally like thesound of compression on vocals, andthe fact that compressing the vocalsprovides a much more uniform levelwhen recording. This makes levelplacement when mixing much easieras well. The Yamaha SPX -90, dbxmodel 119 and 163-X Over -Easycompressors take care of all my com-pression and gating needs.

I use the Fostex model R-8 eight -track machine for my tape record-ing. It has extensive programmablememory, auto -locate, and auto -shuttle functions-I love that. It alsouses standard 1/4 -inch Ampex 456tape, which is cost-effective for theclient, and because it does not pre-sent any channel cross -talk prob-lems. I say this because as I men-tioned earlier, in most situations, theonly thing I record onto the tape isthe vocals, and the biggest offenderof channel cross -talk is the low -frequency energy from the basstrack, the kick di -1m track, and any

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low synth stuff. The R-8 will alsoallow its transport functions to becontrolled from the computer viaMIDI, and that's pretty "hip." I alsohave seven tracks available for thevocals (the eighth track being usedfor synchronization purposes), and

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that's usually more than mosttwenty-four track studios haveavailable after all of the instrumentsare recorded. Seven of the R-8 audiotape outputs are channeled into aFostex model 450 eight -channelmixing board, while the eighth out -

Figure 4. The main keyboards, computers, mixer, and signal processors at"Sons of Thunder".

put is fed directly into a tape -to -MIDI synchronizer which runs myAtari computer. For synchroniza-tion, I use J.L. Cooper's PPS -1 (ver-sion three) tape -to -MIDI synchro-nizer, which supports both SMPTEand "smart" FSK sync formats. Ipersonally prefer using "smart"FSK for pop music, because pro-gramming a tempo map isn't neces-sary. If a quick work tape is all that isneeded, I'll use my Tascam Porta-One four -track cassette system tolog the musical ideas. The Porta-Onehas built-in dbx type II noise reduc-tion, which mak?s for very quiet re-cording.

TIIE KEYBOARDCOLLECTION

With the vocals recorded, I thenbegin to pick the "real" sounds to beused, and assign all of the parts tothe appropriate keyboards and drummachines.

My keyboard arsenal includesan E -mu Systems Emax HD SE, Ro-land's D-50, Korg's DSS-1, Kurz-weil's K1000, Digital Keyboard'sInc. Synergy (with the Kaypro IIcomputer used for "voicing" and

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Figure 5. The Atari Mega 2 with the "Notator" sequency and music nota-tion program on screen.

data management), Oberheim'sMatrix 1000, Yamaha's TX81Z,Yamaha's CS -80, Yamaha's CP-80electric grand piano (with customlight -touch, heavy -action), Yama-ha's SY-2 lead -line synth, a customconsole Fender Rhodes electricpiano, a Toccata organ and a fewother synths and expanders byEuropean manufacturers Challeng-ing Technology (formerly Crumar)and Siel. I even cascaded a bunch ofMoog modules, an E.M.L.-200 Elec-tro-Comp synth, an Arp 16 channelsequencer, a ribbon controller (Whoremembers that?

Hint: Try to get your hands onsome vintage Emerson, Lake, and

Palmer concert footage-watchKeith Emerson.) and a host of analogsignal processors including a phaseshifter, an envelope follower; a flang-e4 and an overdrive module, all intoa single (and gigantic, I might alsoadd) road CARP that takes up thespace of an entire wall. All of the in-strument audio outputs are then fedinto a Tascam M-216 sixteen -chan-nel mixing board, and a modifiedBiamp model 1682 sixteen -channelmixing board.

As you may have noticed, I am afirm believer in using both digitaland analog synthesizers. One cannotreplace the other; mainly becauseeach synthesizer has its own sonic

Figure 6. The Moog, ARP and Electra -Comp looking over the E -muEMAX HD SE Sampling Keyboard.

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personality. Even the sounds of digi-tal synthesizers vary greatly, whichis why I use so many different types.

For example, I'll usually use the D-50 for rich, spectral colors, while I'lluse the Matrix 1000 and the CS -80for fat, punchier sounds. The E -max,DSS-1, and Kurzweil serve as mysamplers (the Kurzweil is read-only)providing me with the more tradi-tional and authentic sounds, thoughI must admit I do have some ratherwild samples that are anything buttraditional. If stereo sampling isneeded, I'll use an E -mu SystemsEmulator Three sampling keyboard,but I seldom have a need for stereosampling, and my E -max (which hasan internal twenty -megabyte harddrive) and DSS-1 samplers do justfine. The TX81Z gives me that cleanFM sound, and makes a great MIDI -mate. The CP-80 is customized withincredible action, and sounds greatas a stand-alone piano for pop androck stuff. The Synergy is probablythe most unique keyboard that I use,and its sound is hard to describe. Ituses additive and phase modula-tion/cancellation synthesis, havingan edge to its digital sound, yet some-how remaining very smooth -sound-ing.

Got that? I know, it sounds soughtof like that perfume commercialwhich claimed that its product was"Provocative, yet not too far from in-nocence" (or something like that).Well anyway, it is difficult to trans-late sounds into words, though Imust take my hat off to the guys andgals who spend hours and hours pro-gramming sounds for synthesizersand then tackling the chore ofhaving to name them. I say this be-cause more often than not, the nameof the sound attempts to describesome sonic quality or character ofthe sound.

Sounds like "Nasalfuzz," "Crick-ettell," and "Stringme" are ex-amples of what a little imaginationcan produce. In general, I try to useand blend all types of digital synthes-is with analog, thus running thegamut of sonic palettes, which seemsto keep the music sounding excitingand fresh.

DRUM PROGRAMMINGI do all of my drum programming

in the sequencer rather than in thedrum machines themselves. I do thisfor a couple of reasons. The first issimply because it happens to be ens-

ier for me to play the drum voicesfrom the keyboard instead of fromthe drum machine buttons. By play-ing the drums from the keyboard, Ican first record the kick, snare, andhigh -hat parts, and then when I amsatisfied with my basic drum tracks,I'll overdub the toms, cymbals, andpercussion.

In this way, I literally build therhythm section from the ground up. Ican also control the dynamic re-sponse of the drum sounds betterusing the keys, because they providea fairly large target to strike, andtheir pivoting quality in generaltends to provide a nice feel.

There is another advantage toplaying the drums from the key-board into the sequencer. Standarddrum programming requires thatyou create a series of individual pat-terns (corresponding to verses,choruses, the bridge, etc.), and thento chain these patterns together tocreate a finished song. Makes sense,right? Well, this kind of repeated pat-tern playing tends to become pre-dictable and even mechanical, andgets boring real fast.

If you desire to make a subtle (oreven not so subtle) variation of a pat-tern, it must be programmed as aseparate pattern, and then pluggedinto the chain. This is not only timeconsuming, but cannot be done inreal-time, which prevents any spon-taneity. The continuity of the songgets lost. Once again this is whereusing Notator really comes in handy.You see, Notator allows you to simul-taneously perform two types of

sequencing: the standard patternstyle, which is like that of a drummachine, and continuous programsequencing (playing from the begin-ning of the song to the end of thesong). This means that I could pro-gram the kick and snare drum partsusing the standard pattern style pro-gramming.

Then, I could overdub the toms,cymbals, percussion, and even oc-casional extra snare hits, playingcontinuously from the beginning tothe end of the song. This develops abetter flow and sense of feeling forthe song. There is still anotheradvantage to recording the drumparts into the sequencer-more effi-cient data management. That'sright. By using the MIDI sequencerto store ALL performance informa-tion, all of the information is kept ina common, central location. Thiseliminates the need of having to savethe drum machine data to disk orcassette, in addition to saving themusic sequences. Now you couldsave the drum machine data via aMIDI data dump (using system ex-clusive messages) into the sequencerand then onto the sequencer's disk,but that's not really time efficient,and why do double the work?

My main source of sound for thedrums is the Roland R-8 drum ma-chine, which I think is wonderful.It's multi-timbral, and in addition tofunctioning as a stand-alone drummachine, it also doubles as anothersound module, having the ability toplay up to four independent drumvoices, all assignable, melodically

Figure 7. James Becher in his "Electronic Cottage".

and polyphonical y from the key-board (picture playing chords withthe bell of a ride cymbal). I also havetons of custom drum and percussionsamples ranging from African, (notto mention Japanese and Indian), tothe "Twilight Zone" in my Emax andDSS-1 libraries. In addition, I keep aCasio RZ-1 sampl ng drum machinehooked -in to the MIDI system forthat occasional, :emporary, down -and -dirty sample that doesn't haveto have 16 bit quality. There's a veryhandy little sample in the RZ-1 that Iuse for doubling the snare drum parton pop music tracks. It's a shortsample, and by varying the mid-range center freql ency, and boostinga substantial amount of the mid-range gain, different kinds of "cah"type sounds can be gotten. This addsa real "crack" to the snare drumpart. I will even ind an occasionaluse for a neat little analog drum boxthat Korg used to make called theKPR-77. Remember that thing? Itdoesn't have MIDI, but it does haveDIN sync. Still, it's easier just tosample it.

FINISHING TOUCHESNow its time to make the musical

monster I've created sound likesomething. Outboard gear playssuch a crucial (and final) role inmusic production. It's not necessaryto have five -thousand reverts andninety-three zillion digital delayunits for the mix. It is necessaryhowever, to effectively and crea-tively use each of the units that arebeing employed for the mix. Havingone general purr ose reverb, a fewdedicated reverbE and D.D.L.'s (forboth long and short reverb and delaytimes), and a stereo chorus or har-monizer usually suffice. Creating athree-dimensional sonic depth offield is what's really needed, andthat's what I shoot for.

I use a couple of Yamaha SPX -90digital effect processors, a YamahaR-100 digital effects processor aLexicon Prime Time, a Roland SDE-1000 and Roland RSD/10 digitalsampler/delays, a Roland DC -10analog delay, a T. a Electronics (outof Denmark) digital stereo chorus, apair of T.C. Electronics fully para-metric four -band equalizers, UREI's565 notch/peak f lter set, a MutronBi-Phaser, the Roland SVC-350 vo-coder (which I sometimes use todouble the background vocal harmo-nies by "playing" the harmonies 01

from my Yamaha CS -80 synthesizer,which creates a very ethereal tex-ture), and an Aphex Systems AuralExciter Type Three, model 250, tocreate and shape the ambient en-vironment that the music will cometo life in.

Most of the keyboards and ex-panders I use have built-in multi -ef-fect processors, which is great forsome of those dedicated effects Ispoke of.

Lately, I've gotten more into usingshorter reverb times than I used to,and as a result the music does seemto retain a certain "snap" and intel-ligibility (longer reverb times arestill nice for slower tunes and bal-lads, though). I've come to realizethat it's really not necessary formusic to have that Phil Spector "wallof sound" in order to be powerful,and that the trick is to orchestrateand arrange the parts effectively,and to carefully choose sounds thatpaint the appropriate musical pano-rama which supports the attitudeand flavor of the lyrics. A little discip-

KeyboardsE -mu Systems Emax HD SE sam-plerRoland D-50 synthKorg DSS -1 samplerDigital Keyboards Inc. Synergysynth with Kaypro II computerKurzweil K1000 read-only sam-pler/synthYamaha CS -80 synthYamaha CP-80 electric grand pianoYamaha TX -81Z synthYamaha SY-2 synthOberheim Matrix 1000 synthChallenging Technology Bit OnesynthChallenging Technology Bit EX -99synthSiel DK-80 synthSiel EX -600 synthCustom console Fender Rhodes elec-tric pianoCrumar Toccata organCustom Moog, Arp, Electra -Compsynths

MIDI SequencersAtari Mega 2 computer with C -LabNotator software sequencing andmusic notation program

line and restraint (in terms of pro-duction) go a long way.

TO THE MIXAnd now I mix. Direct to DAT. The

Panasonic SV-3500 is the DAT. TheSV-3500 has all kinds of program-ming and looping functions, a digitalinput/output for digital transfers,and sounds great! I make safety co-pies of the mix on metal cassetteswith dbx type II encoded, recorded ashot as possible, and they sound justfine.

Since I will have pre-programmedthe majority of the mixing moves (in-cluding the changing of reverb andeffect programs) using computerautomation via MIDI, the only mixduties I need to perform are to pushthe DAT record button, engage theeight -track which is now controllingthe computer through SMPTE or"smart" FSK sync, and to watch thevocal levels. I like that. There is, intoday's music, a definite tendency(and trend) towards over -produc-tion or over -kill, and many times the

EquipmentKorg SQD-1 hardware sequencerRoland MSQ -100 hardware se-quencer

Digital Signal Processors(2) Yamaha SPX -90 multi -effect pro-cessorsYamaha R-100 multi -effect proces-sorLexicon Prime Time delayRoland SDE-1000 delayRoland RSD-10 delayT.C. Electronics stereo chorusAphex Aural Exciter Type III model250

Analog Signal ProcessorsRoland DC -10 delayRoland SVC-350 vocoderMutron Bi-Phaser

Drum MachinesRoland R-8Casio RZ-1Korg KPR-77

Tape Recording GearFostex R-8 eight -trackTascam Porta One four -trackPanasonic SV 3500 DAT deck

song gets lost or buried in the veryproduction that's designed to bring itto life. One thing is true; fancy pro-duction is no substitute for poorsongwriting-it only appears tosmooth -out the rough edges.

It's so important to have strongmelodic "hooks," sensible arrange-ments, and good lyrical content asthe raw elements for pop music.Then, with the proper use of "hip"sounds and tasteful production, thesong will sound simply marvelous!

Sitting on the cutting -edge of tech-nology keeps my music diverse andstrongly flavored. I enjoy the chal-lenge of pushing music beyond theordinary into the realm of teemingrhythms and exotic soundscapes. Ibelieve that music should jump outand confront the listener. Such quali-ties are better described with musicthan with words, so I'll just cue upmy latest piece of music to show that:"This is what I do!"

Pioneer, Sanyo, Sharp, and FisherraggPtte decksJ.L. Cooper PPS -1 tape -to -MIDIsynchronizer

Recording and SoundReinforcement GearTascam M216 mixing boardFostex model 450 mixing boardBiamp model 1682 mixing board(2) T.C. Electronics 4 -band para-metric E.Q.'sdbx 119, NX-40, and 163X compres-sorsUREI 565 notch/peak filter setDynaco 410 power ampRoland Cube 60 keyboard amp(2) Electro-Voice 3 -way room moni-tors(2) Pioneer near -field room moni-tors(2) Audio Technica AT -813 con-denser micsBeyer M500 ribbon mic

Patch BaysDigital Music Corp. MX -8 MIDIpatch -baySymetrix 32 point audio patch -bay eb

BRIAN BATTLES

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When it comes to productionmusic, what do you do if you aren't amusician? What do you do if youdon't have the ability to play guitar,drums, oboe, panflute, or fancyMIDI keyboards? The simple solu-tion most radio commercial pro-ducers turn to is to purchase"canned" music. Production musiclibraries are available for a variety ofapplications, in many different priceranges.

In the olden days, I remembergoing through some dusty produc-tion music/sound effects libraries.They featured lush strings and or-chestrations comparable in style andbrilliance to the finest Muzak offer-ings. These rugged LPs had some-how survived the decades despitetrampling by people wearing golfshoes, being run over by office chairs,dropped behind equipment racks,and being used as coffee cupcoasters. It is no exaggeration tostate that they still retained their as-tounding 1 kHz to 3 kHz frequencyrange and 35 percent distortion. Andmusicianship! The virtuoso per-formances found on these master-pieces would someday rival "music -on -hold" performances for itsdelicate grace, feeling, and sheer in-tensity.

Nonetheless, times change, andwith the advent of the digital com-pact disc (CD), the ancient analogLP recording went the way of thehorse and buggy, rotary -dial tele-phone, and Billy Beer. Now there are,in addition to old-fashioned LP re-cords, many contemporary produc-tion music libraries on the market inmodern formats including CD, DAT,rAPAPtte, and open reel. Some of theways radio commercial producersuse these special collections to en-hance their masterpieces are asjingles, background beds, and tocombine canned music with live per-formances.

If you are, in fact, a confidentsuccessful music composer and per-forme4 you may wish to considerproducing/selling your own musicfor fun and profit. If you have pre-pared a number of music pieces forradio commercials, if you have hadsome success with your demo tapes,or even if you just would rather re-cord music instead of writing andproducing complete advertisements,this could be a good venture for you.

How do you get started? There aretwo ways to market your service. Youcan sell some of your existing or cus-tom -recorded material: on a contractbasis to production companies oradvertising agencies in your area, oryou can put together a collection ofyour own original tunes and sellthem on the open market. Theformer approach requires that youmake contacts with businesses thatneed your service. The latter entailsthat you incur the costs of duplica-tion, advertising, and packaging. Ifyou choose to sell your material toproduction companies through yourown direct solicitation, you can askmore money per selection.

...many well-knownproduction houses gotstarted as simple music

production companies andsubsequently expanded toencompass copywriting...

On the other hand, if you prefer togo after the wider marketplace, youwill make less profit per song, butyou may be able to generate a largervolume of sales, i.e., sell the samemusic to more than one client. It's adecision you can make based on theextent of a commitment you wish tomake. You could also start out sellinglocally, and if you're successful,

branch out to offering your serviceon a broader scale.

The first thing, then, is to takestock of your inventory of music. Doyou have a healthy demo tape as-sembled yet? You can combinejingles, custom -produced musicbeds, and even material that wasprepared "on spec" and never sold;you might even include a few mock-ups done expressly for the demotape. Add a voice-over track to intro-duce your service, and briefly de-scribe the contents of the tape. Keepthe script for this short and tight,and let the music tell most of thestory. Unless you're a professionalannouncer, spring for a few bucksand hire someone as voice talent.

It's also time to print up some bus-iness cards and make sure you have atelephone number that's available(and answered) during the day. (Acouple of business tips: Leave your"title" off your business cards, ifpossible. That way you can presentyourself to prospects/vendors/talentas President, Producer, Account Ex-ecutive, or whatever title is mostuseful in a given situation. Also,when having a business telephoneline installed, most telephone com-panies will agree to assign you anumber you've selected, as long as itbegins with the proper exchange pre-fix for your location, and it's not cur-rently in use. Consider somethingmnemonically effective like AD -MUSIC [236-8742] or JINGLES[546-4537] or cther such suitablenumber; if you can acquire it in yourarea.)

As a matter of fact, many well-known production houses gotstarted as simple music productioncompanies and subsequently ex-panded to encompass copywriting,creating custom.iingles, and furnish-ing complete advertising campaigns.Perhaps you'll be next.

JOHN BARILLA

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This edition of Hot Tips willfocus on some creative applicationsof time delay. It's amazing what youcan do with a delay line once youstart diddling around with it inearnest. Unfortunately, we're reallynot encouraged to do much experi-mentation these days because mostout -of -the -box settings appear soawesome. Mostly, we just stepthrough the pre-programmedsounds, find one that pretty wellsuits our needs and continue record-ing. Don't get me wrong now, it'snice to have a selection of factory set-tings at our disposal, but we reallymiss something if we don't (at leastocrasionally) customize them to thesong we're recording.

Admittedly, it was easier to get in-volved with "tweaking" a settingwhen delay lines were simple unitswith genuine knobs on the frontpanel instead of just a multi -purposefunction button like we find ontoday's processors. For me, twistingknobs offers more immediate resultsthan the somewhat nauseating taskof stepping through a series of para-meters. Nevertheless,program mod-ification can and probably should bedone for each song that you record. Ithink it would be wonderful if manu-facturers found a way to put morededicated hardware on the frontpanels of their digital signal proces-sors. But until that day, don't decom-mission your old delay lines. Theywill enable you to run through a lot ofcreative possibilities very quickly.Who knows, you might even stumbleon something really magnificent!

Delay Line Basics. I'm sure manyreaders have a grasp on this subjectalready, but it's always worthwhilereconsidering basic premises. Solet's take a quick look at the parame-ters of time delay. On the front panelof almost any delay unit -(or possiblyon the LCD readout of a digital sig-

Using Delaynal processor) you will find the fol-lowing controls:

TIMEThis is a fairly obvious parameter.

On the older delay lines it's usuallycontrolled by two knobs, a coarsetuning control which sets the centerpoint of a range and a fine-tuningcontrol which allows the user to setthe delay continuously within thespecified range. On the newergeneration digital signal processorsthough, you usually have to scrollthrough the range in consecutive in-crements. In any case, the result isthe same: You can set your basic timedelay anywhere from a fraction of amillisecond to several seconds in du-ration.

FEEDBACKFeedback (or "regeneration" as

some call it) does pretty much whatits name says it does:

It literally feeds back a proportionof the already -delayed signal backinto the delay line enabling one to ef-fectively echo the echo. In otherwords, since the delayed signal isbeing mixed with the unaffected sig-nal prior to hitting the delay, it toogets echoed again. Depending onhow much feedback is integratedwith the original signal you may geta long or short series of echoes. Andbecause we usually feedback a muchweaker signal than the original, theechoes predictably diminish inamplitude until they are no longeraudible.

Of course, if you turn the feedbackgain up real high, you will soon findout why they call it feedback, be-cause it will resonate with certainfrequencies of the original signal anddrive the whole circuit into oscilla-tion. At short delay times, this can bea useful and controllable effect thatwill allow you to tune the circuit so

that it resonates at a particularfrequency (I'll give you an applica-tion of this later on).

On some units you will have the op-tion to invert the phase of the feed-back signal. While by no means anessential function, it is a nice featurewhich can be utilized in a few differ-ent ways. If you are running delaysin stereo, kicking the feedback ,f oneside 180 degrees out of phase can im-part an interesting twisting effectthat seems to move from the rightchannel to the left channel (or vice -

versa). If you decide to use this effectin stereo, make sure you check formonaural compatibility. The delaysettings you choose should be closebut not exactly the same setting-orelse they may effectively cancel eachother out when auditioned in mono.If you decide to use a single delay lineplaced directly "behind" the originalsignal in your mix (in other words,emanating from the same direction),the invert feedback switch canenable you to get a whole lot morefeedback happening without over-powering your main signal.

MODULATIONThis is controlled by two knobs (or

parameters) usually labeled widthand speed. The speed control issimply a frequency selector for anLFO (low -frequency oscillator)which generates a waveform (usu-ally ramp or sine wave) in the rangeof about 0.5 Hz to 10 Hz. This is ob-viously a sub -audio frequency whichis not meant to be heard. Instead itspurpose is to modulate the time -baseof the delay line. Since the LFO putsout a periodic waveform (it repeatsitself going above and below a cer-tain zero point) it is made to vary thedelay time above and below the des-ignated setting. While the speed con-trol dictates how rapidly the timedelay will oscillate, the width control

dictates how wide of a range aboveand below the chosen delay time themodulator will be allowed to swing.In other words, will the delay bevaried by 5 ms above and below thedesignated time or 10ms above andbelow or 100 ms above and below? (Ifyou've ever used a Lexicon SuperPrime -Time, the LCD readout willactually show you this swing as a ser-ies of constantly changing delay set-tings incrementally positive or nega-tive about your chosen delaysetting.)

If you listen to the delayed signalonly, what do you hear? It might beanything from a very subtle vibratoto a tremendous warble. Since we'remessing with the time -base (and weknow that time and frequency areinterrelated), it follows that thepitch of the delayed sound will varyabove and below the original sounddepending on our settings. Used ju-diciously, modulation can impartsome very interesting and lifelikemotion to an otherwise static track.But the modulation settings have tobe just right, and the interactionwith delay time and feedback needsto be considered, as does the level ofthe effect relative to the dry signal. Itreally takes quite a bit of experimen-tation to arrive at appropriate set-tings. Lamentably, for most people itseems much less hassle to punch-upa factory preset chorus, double,flange, phase or whatever (all modu-lation type effects) and forget aboutfine tuning the parameters. But ifyou get into developing your ownmodulation effects, I assure you, itwill be rewarding.

OTHER FACTORSThat's about it for the front panel

controls. But there are a few othersignificant factors you should con-sider when using time delay. One ofthem is the notion of spatial configu-ration: where will you locate thedelayed signal in the mix relative tothe dry signal? It's really a very im-portant consideration, because thesame delay setting placed differentlyin the stereo panorama will renderan entirely different effect.

For example, say we have a guitartrack that is being sent to a delaywith a doubling type setting-say 35ms of delay with very subtle modula-tion and no regeneration. The guitaris panned hard left and the delay isalso panned hard left. The overall ef-fect in this CA Re would be one very fat

guitar-the doubling in this casewould meld with the original guitar.But if the delayed signal werepanned hard right in opposition tothe original guita4 the listener wouldperceive the distinct differences intiming which were masked when thedouble emanated from the sameposition as the original. Hence, thesame delay setting will be perceiveddifferently when placed differentlyin the mix.

Another factor always worthy ofconsideration is the critical ratio ofdry signal to delayed signal. While inmost cases aesthetics would dictateconsiderably less delay than dry sig-nal, in certain cases-such as flang-ing and doubling type effects, it ismandatory that the dry and effectedsignal be at very nearly equalvolumes before you will be able to re-ally hear them working. Once again,experimentation is the rule.

Finally, equalization is also a fac-tor. Back in the days when delay wasaccomplished primarily with tape re-corders or (later) analog delay lines,the sound came back (because of thenature of the available technology) alittle darker than it went in. Thatwas not seen as a real deficit backthen, because real sound generatedin real acoustical environments(concert halls, canyons, etc.) alwaysreturned a little dark anyway. Highfrequencies always seem to lose their"oomph" faster than mids or lowswhen they are actually bouncing offwalls. But today's digital technologyallows for full 'bandwidth even atlong delay times-which is actuallypretty unnatural. So no matter howmany times it bounces off that im-aginary wall, the sound never getsany darker. The point being, if youwant to get a good density of echoesbehind a sound-without actuallydrawing too much attention to theeffect, it may be prudent to roll off abit of the highs. This is probablymore important with long delaytimes than with short ones, but EQ isalways an important factor in craft-ing a natural sounding delay setting.

A DELAY LINE COOKBOOKDid you ever sit down and think of

how much mileage one can get out ofa delay line? Think of all thosegaudy -colored stomp -boxes for elec-tric guitarists: the Super-Flangers,Maxi -Choruses, Hyper -Echoes andsoon. Of course those names are fic-titious, but they do capture the flavor

of modern man's need for instantgratification. I don't mean to criti-cize these boxes-I've bought a fewof them myself and they do haveuseful applications. But the fact re-mains, you can perform all of theseeffects-much more cost-effectivelyand with greater versatility-with asimple rack mounted delay line.

HERE'S HOWFlanging with a delay line is an

electronic simulation of the classiceffect done with two tape recordersrunning in tandem, and of course, afinger on the flange to vary the tapespeed. While the electronic version isnot quite as dramatic, it's a lot easierto set up. To do this, set up a shortdelay-anywhere from a fraction ofa millisecond (say 0.05 ms) up toabout 10 ms. When mixed with thedry signal in relatively equal propor-tions this will set up deep regions offrequency cancellation-a phenom-enon known as "comb filtering."

If you turn up the feedback, theresonance will increase, therebydeepening the areas of cancellation.

One more factor is necessary tohave an authentic flange. You mustcause the comb -filtering effect tomove up and down-giving thatcharacteristic sweeping sound. To dothis, turn to the modulation sectionof your delay line and dial -in a mod-erate to slow speed and as muchwidth as you need.

As mentioned earlier, feedbackcan be used creatively in flange set-tings. By turning the feedback upjust to the point where it begins toring and simultaneously twiddle thedelay time very carefully, you can ac-tually tune the flange to a particularfrequency. A couple of applicationsare in tuning percussion instru-ments-such as creating a snaredrum the "speaks" a tone which isharmonious with the key of the song.Of course with vocals, tuned flang-ing can impart a Darth Varier -likequality which can sound pretty bi-zarre. co

0U)

CHORUSINGThis is an electronic way to simu-

late an ensemble sound. In commonusage though, the effect comes off assimply a more mellow version of theflange-something that makes gui-tars and synthesizers sound fatter,and slightly detuned with a niceglistening motion. It's an eminentlylistenable effect. Simply take theflange setting above, turn off thefeedback and run the delay time inthe range of 10 to 20 ms and you willhave something of the commercialnotion of chorusing. It however, youwant to pursue the kind of chorusfound on more upscale studio proces-sors, you will have to feed your signalto some additional delay lines set atslightly different delay times andthen either mix them all together orspread them around in stereo. Theeffect will be much bigger and moreakin to a large ensemble.

DOUBLINGDoubling capitalizes on the fact

that a real, authentic double -trackperformance-no matter howtight-will still have a certain discre-pancies in it; slight timing errors,pitch shifts and timbral shifts. Bysetting a delay in the range of 20 to70 ins a certain amount of this nativesloppiness can be achieved. Ofcourse, with settings under 30 msthe double will seem rather tight, butfrom 30 ms on up the desired degreeof looseness can be dialed in. A littlefeedback can help elongate thesound, and it will also cause some in-creased phase cancellation-all sub-tle cues of a realistic vocal double. Acertain amount of modulation willalso help make the performance lesspredictable. (Without modulation,the delay factor would be constant,but with modulation it would bemore variable, hence more naturalsounding.) Of course, like all theabove -mentioned effects, it is mostpowerful when mixed with the origi-nal sound in about a 50:50 ratio, buteven lesser amounts can be used tosubtly support and warm up a vocalwithout drawing attention to itself.

SLAPBACK ECHOThis is an electronic simulation of

the original 7.5 and 15 in./sec. tapeecho-and of course, everything inbetween. It's hard to imagine thatecho was once limited to twoflavors-slow and fast-but it's true(at least until some entrepreneurial

person invented the movable tapehead). And many classic hit recordsfeatured this effect and little else. Ionce sat down to try and figure outwhat delay settings would bestcorrespond to tape echo. Using thestandard physical relationshipv =d/t, I plugged in either 7.5 or 15in./sec. for velocity and an assumedaverage distance between recordand playback heads of about 1.5 in-ches. Solving for time, I concludedthat 15 in./sec. tape echo is about 100ms long and 7.5 in./sec. is exactlydouble that at 200 ms. Of coursethose delay times could increase a bitif the head distance was closer to 2inches, but in any (-ARP a delay settingbetween say 100 ms and 250 msshould cover the field quite authenti-cally.

I don't recall hearing much feed-back in records from the 1950's, butthat doesn't mean you can't use it. Alittle feedback will prolong the decayof the echoes by adding extra echoesof diminishing amplitude right be-hind it. Sometimes it can provide aninteresting trail behind lead instru-ments. But definitely stay awayfrom the modulation section on thissetting. This is meant to be a staticand predictable effect. Any waveringwill spoil the whole trick. It's thevery precision of the echoes thatgives tracks a very flattering con-stant cascade of sound.

LONG DELAYLong Delay involves settings of

any sort beyond the slapbackrange -250 ms to as much as 1whole second and more. I find the400 to 600 ms range most useful.Once again, this is generally used asa static effect-no modulation. Butfeedback-well that's another story.Long delays coupled with feedbackcan create a "mystical cloud of ac-tion" that can make almost any per-formance seem intriguing. Noticehow rock guitarists use long delay asan integral part of their sound. Itmakes them sound like they areplaying twice as fast as they reallyare playing. And mistakes? Well,who can point them out when theyare drenched in the mystical cloud.

All kidding aside, long delay is abeautiful, intriguing effect that canrender insignificant many normalperformance glitches. A famoussaint once said, "Love covers a multi-tude of sins." So does long delay.

SYNCHRONOUS DELAYThis is a quite useful application

which automatically creates inter-esting and highly rhythmic embel-lishments of an existing track. Itdoes this, of course, only after youfigure out how to set the delay. Thisinvolves a good pair of ears and/or afew mathematical tricks. While Ican't do much for your ears, I canshow you the mathematical tricks.But before I begin, let me mentionone caveat: the tempo of the tuneneeds to be a steady one. In otherwords, whether played by MIDI se-quencer or live performance, to re-ally get the most mileage from thiseffect, the rhythm should be con-stant.

Synchronous delay can be used onalmost any track, but deriving youroptimum setting is most easily ac-complished using a steady rhythmpart-such as drums. You can simplystart by soloing drums with the delayand listening for the appropriaterhythms to develop, or you can usesome simple mathematical calcula-tions as a point of departure. The lat-ter way is usually most efficient.

To get the setting in the ball parkmathematically, you must first de-termine tempo. That may be assimple as looking at an LCD readouton your sequencer or drum machine.g howeve the tracks have been re-corded on tape (or if it's a live per-formance) just get out your stop-watch and count how manydownbeats go by in the course of aminute. It's sort of like taking apulse, so you can use the old nurses'trick: count how many beats occur in15 seconds and multiply by 4.

You will thereby arrive at a numberwhich will represent the tempo ofyour song in beats -per -minute(BPM). While various kinds of com-plex rhythms can be created usingsynchronous delay, the most com-monly used setting-and a goodstarting point for all other rhythmicexcursions-is the simple V4 -notedelay.

If you are a trained musician youwill immediately grasp this concept.It on the other hand, you are more ofa "techy" and less of a musical typeperson, a little description might behelpful here. Let's say I alreadyknow the proper delay setting. If Iplay a single hit on a snare drum ex-actly on the first beat of a song, Ishould hear the second beat comingfrom the delay. Then if I turn the

EFFECT DELAY FEEDBACK-SCALE OF 1-10

MODULATIONSCALE OF 1-10

MIX COMMENTS

Flarging From 0.05 ms to 10MS

0-7 Width:5-10 Speed:1-4

50/50 Increased feedback will causefilter ringing-for furred flang-ing. No modulation yields astatic flange-more akin tophasing.

Chorusing From 10 ms to 20MS

0 Width:4-8Speed:1-4

50/50 Single delays are okay for gui-tars and keyboards, but for abetter effect on vocals set upmultiple delays.

Doubling From 20 ms to 700MS

0-4 Width:1-4Speed:1-4

50/50 Use less than 50% delay foramore subtle support.

Slapback Echo From 100 ms to 250MS

0-2 Not used According to taste Subtle use adds warmth to atrack. More overt use adds mo-tion, but overuse may soundgimmicky.

Long Delay From 250 ms to 1s 2-4 Not used According to taste Adds drama and mystery to atrack. Excellent on lead guitarand vocals.

Synchronous Delay Derived by ear or bymathematics

Derived byexperiment

Not used According to taste First,derive 1/4 -note delay:(60,003 divided by BPM). Forstraigrt rhythm use the abovesetting or mutipN or divide by2. For shuttle add 50% to I/4 -note figure. Multiply or divideas before. For triplets divideby 3 then proceed as above.

A compediuni of delay effects.

feedback control way up on the delay,I should hear a long series of beatsthat keep the actual tempo of thesong going perfectly. The delay playsthe beat, one beat (i.e., one 1/4 note)behind the actual track. 1/8 -notedelay would be double the timing ofthe 1/4 -note delay: for every singlenote played into the synchronousdelay, I would get not one note back,but two. If I turned up the feedback, Iwould hear a steady in -tempostream of notes in the ratio of 2:1. A1/16 note delay would multiply theechoes by another factor of 2 giving 4hits out for every 1 hit fed into thedelay.

How do I figure out a quarter notedelay for a given tempo? Theformula is quite simple: simplydivide the number 60,000 by theBPM of the song. So, for example, ifthe tempo of my song is 120 BPM,the synchronous 1/4 -note delaywould be 500 ms. To get an 1/8 -notedelay, I would simply divide thederived 1/4 -note setting by 2 and ar-rive at 250 ms. And so, a V16 -notedelay would be 500 ms divided by 4 or125 ms.

If desirable, more complexrhythms can also be derived onceI've figured out the basic 1/4 note set-ting. For example, the ever popularshuffle feel frequently heard inblues, jazz and even some rock musicis characterized by a perambulating,

forwardly propelled rhythmic feel-ing-much akin to walking or skip-ping: ergo the term, shuffle. Musi-cally, this refers to dividing a beatinto two unequal parts, with the firstof the two beats being longer in valuethan the second. While there are de-finitely several feel variations, theweighting of the beats usually comesdown to something like this: the firstis increased in duration by 50 per-cent and the second beat is decreasedby 50 percent.

To achieve this rhythmic feel withdelay, just take the settingyou derivefor straight 1/4 -note delay-say forexample, the previously mentionedfigure of 500 ms-and add 50 per-cent to it (500 ms + 250 ms = 750ms). You are now in the realm of theshuffle feel. If you'd like the feel tomove twice as fast, divide the setting(750 ms) by two (which gives you 375ms).

Still not fast enough? Divide thatfigure also by two (187.5 ms). Get thepicture? I have personally used thissetting over a rather straight drumbeat and gotten an hip jazzy feelfrom the part. What's more, if Iwanted an interesting fill, I wouldturn up the gain of the send to thedelay line and sometimes goose thefeedback also. The fills that emergedwere innovative and much like a realdrummer (one with oodles of fineqsp)might execute.

Finally, you may sometimes wantto use a synchronous setting that al-lows you to put e. poly -rhythmic feelto it; an odd number of beats wouldtranspire where normally an evennumber would occur. Something likethe musical triplet, a ratio 3:2 wouldbe the most commonly used ex-ample. By now, you may havedeveloped the mathematical intui-tion to derive this setting. (Test your-self: think about it for a moment...)

Here's the answer: Simply take thebasic 1/4 note delay figure-(onceagain, let's use tie 500 ms from ourprevious examples)-and divide it by3 (yielding 166.6 ms). Now this is atriplet delay figure, but perhaps-since this is a short delay, it's too fastfor your tune. In order to get a longertriplet feel simply multiply this fig-ure by two (yielding 333.3 ms). And ifthat still doesn't do it, well, multiplyit by two once again!

SUMMARYPerhaps this seems a little com-

plex, but it's really not. Once youderive your basic rhythmic feel-whether it be straight (1/4 -note, 1/8 -

note, etc.), shuffle (add 50 percent),or triplet (divide by 3), you then findthe appropriate quantum level bymultiplying or dividing by a power of2. It's really pretty simple once youget the hang of it. Don't think aboutit too much. Just do it.

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BRENT HARSH BARGER

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In the last issue, I talked aboutthe mixing console, its functions andhow it operates. I also promised atest for this issue. I will then coversome hands on operations that canbe encountered on any given Sundaymorning.

First the test:1) Can you add an effects device

just on one channel, and if so, wouldthe input signal be affected by theequalization circuit?

2) How many channels can you as-sign to a group output, and does theEQ circuit affect this function?

The first answer is yes: you can addan effects device just on one channelthrough the insert jack, and no: theEQ does not affect the device in thisinstance. For the answer to the sec-ond question; you can assign asmany channels as the board has to asub -group, and yes: for every chan-nel you assign to the group, that in-dividual channel EQ circuit affectsthe sub -group.

TYPICAL SETUPSNow for the main course of this

issue, hands-on operation. I amgoing to take you through a typicalSunday set-up as if you are visitingmy church. The first thing that I do isplug in the mics that are going to beused for the service, pulpit, andlectern (including any special micsalso to be used for the service). ThenI make sure that all the monitors areplugged in, and in their proper place.Next, I go to the mixing area andcheck to make sure that the mastersare down on the console. Nowproceed to power up the mixing con-sole and miscellaneous outboarddevices, waiting a few seconds beforepowering up the amplifier rack.

Starting the power up in this orderprolongs the life of the amps and thespeakers, and also is less annoying toanyone in the sanctuary.

Now I bring the masters up toabout a -5 or -0 dB, and if your con-

sole has only a 1 through 10 number-ing system-bring it up to approxi-mately 6.5. Now have the pastor stepto the pulpit (or whomever uses thepulpit the most), then slide the faderto 0 dB and have the person talk intothe pulpit mic as you slowly bring upthe gain pot until you have a strong,but not overpowering level. Goingthrough this procedure in this waywill give you the best signal to noiseratio. By this time, the soloist and thequartet will be ready for their sound-check.

In this example, the soloist will beusing an accompaniment track.There are many types of accompani-ment tracks, but you will find thatthe bestfrom the master tape of the originalrecording artist. The others varyfrom poor to acceptable. In a soloistsituation, the first thing you do isbring up the slider to 0 dB on thechannel with the tape, then slowlybring up the gain until you con-sistently have a -6 to -9 dB on theboard's VU meters. Now adjust theEQ to make the tape sound full. Onthe tracks that are from the originalrecording artist; you can usually cutthe EQ in the lower-mids approxi-mately around 250 to 400 Hz. Do notcut it any lower than 9 dB, this willtake out the boominecs.

The only way to set-up themix for the choir is to be at a

rehearsal with the choir.

EQUALIZATIONNext, increase the bags to around

80 Hz, but not more than 100Hz, toabout +3 to +6 dB. Finally, boost thehighs until they are crystal clear.However, if all you get is tape hiss,back it off some. The third -party ac-companiment tapes vary, but themajority of them tend to be bassyand lack highs other than tape hiss.

These you will have to judge on atape -by -tape basis. Before movingon to the singer, double check the VUmeters to make sure that you are stillaveraging between -6 and -9 dB, be-cause you could have increased thelevel while you were EQ'ing. If yourlevel did increase, turn the gainsdown to compensate for it. We'renow ready for the singer. Again, slidethe fader to 0 dB and slowly bring thegain up until you are averaging -3 to0 dB on the VU meters. From thispoint, adjust your mix from thechannel faders. One way of testingyour mix while using an accompani-ment tape is to match the soloistwith the backup singers on the tape.

singers are in unison, you have ac-complished a good mix. One word ofcaution, the third -party tracks mayor may not have a good mix betweenmusic and backup singers, but themaster tracks are ninty-nine per-cent dead on.

THE SOUNDCHECKThe gospel quartet is now up for

their soundcheck. First, bring up thepiano to the same VU level as we didfor the accompaniment track. Weare also going to set the mics up thesame way as we did for the soloistwith only one variation-how webring up the gains. Start by bringingup the bass singer's gain until he hasa good strong level, but not above 0dB on the VU meter. Next, bring thefirst baritone to match the level ofthe bass singer so they sound like onevoice, then bring the second baritoneto the first baritone. Finally, bringthe tenor up to match the secondbaritone. Check yourself by listeningonly to the bass and tenor; if theysound like one voice then you havecompleted the process. Any other ad-justments should be done on thechannel fader.

The only way to set-up the mix forthe choir is to be at a rehearsal with

the choir: making notes on the levelsand keeping them for Sunday. A goodtip on EQ'ing the choir is to cut thebass -6 dB at 80 Hz (if your consoledoesn't have a high-pass filter), andto boost the mid -lows approximately+3 to +6 dB at a frequency of 250-450 Hz. This will give you a full crispsound.

In the next issue, I will be coveringequalization in detail, but for thesake of mixing operation; I wouldlike to point out a rule to follow forequalization on the mixing console.First, try to always cut the EQ in-stead of boosting it. For example, ifthe sound is bassy, cut the bass in-stead of boosting the highs. This isthe proper school of equalization,and by doing it this way you can in-crease your headroom on the mixingconsole. Audio is full of com-promises: there are times you willwant to boost the EQ, but only ex-perience will let you know the righttime to do it. (You should always tryto think where you can cut EQ, how-ever.)

ADDING REVERBWhen using sound processing gear

such as a reverb or delay or any otherspecial effects devices; the first ruleis to use it in moderation, too muchcan be very distracting. If you areselecting a reverb for a soloist, asmall -to -medium bright room willwork very well-anything larger canbe obtrusive. For quartets and en-sembles use a medium room or asmall hall setting. Whereas, withchoirs a bright medium to a large hallsetting works very well.

Since we have gone through a set-up for a problem -free Sunday morn-ing, let's now imagine that thingsdidn't go so smoothly. Let's say thatyou have some distortion some-where. Distortion is a raspy soundcaused by too much signal goingthrough the electronics of yoursound system. The first thing thatyou want to see is if there are anypeak LED's on. If there is one on(let's say channel three), first turnyour gain down. If the gain is alreadydown, then you need to check tomake sure that you do not have a linelevel plugged into a microphoneinput. A line level is over 1 volt in abalanced system, whereas a mic levelis approximately 24000 of a volt. If allpeak lights are out, then you need tocheck to make sure that you are not

overloading the input of your pro-r-eqsing equipment. You can do thisby using your PFL on your effects re-turn section (or wherever you arebringing the effects back into theconsole), and listening to see if onlyone instrument or vocal is distorted,or if all are distorted. If only one isdistorted, turn down the effects sendpot in the corresponding channel.

Let your ear be the judgeand tweak, before the

service, as I described in thisarticle.

Feedback is the next area fortroubleshooting. There are manycauses of feedback and there aredifferent ways to help reduce feed-back problems. The first one is tomake sure that you are not using toomany microphones, because this re-duces your gain before feedback.Also, make sure that your micro-phones are three -times the distanceas the source to mic distance. Frommy observation, these are the twomost common mistakes when itcomes to the actual source of feed-back problems-more than any-thing else. Others include: having amicrophone too close to a very hotmonitor, and improper equalization.

The EQ settings that I have de-scribed above have been proven towork as a good starting place in awell -designed sound system. Again,the above is only a guideline. Be-cause of different room acoustics,house equalization, and limitationsin the equipment in your church,these may not be ideal settings (butthe principals still apply in any case).Let your ear be the judge and tweak,before the service, as I described inthis article. Practice makes close toperfect.

Finally, I would like to mention animportant part of the sound systemoperation. There is a science that canonly be experienced, which I callsound psychology. This is the scienceof dealing with an audience of "per-fect -ear" experts. This can be verydiscouraging to anyone donating alot of time and trying for perfection.But, in most cases it's not you. Listenand respond to each complaint, butI'm sure you will find a few peoplewho are never satisfied. I have come

to the conclusion that these peoplecan't hear the mix because they aretoo busy complaining.

One Sunday morning, the musicminister at the time came up to meand said the choir was complainingthat they couldn't hear, and that hewanted me to turn up the choirmonitors. I told him I couldn't be-cause I was on the verge of feedback,to which he replied that he wantedsomething done about it. So, Imeasured the SPL (sound pressurelevel) in the choir loft, thenmeasured the SPL from the house(and don't you knew it), the choir loftwas 6 dB louder than what the housewas getting. I went back and told themusic minister what I had found.

This wasn't going to satisfy thecomplaining choir, however, findingout later that it was only a handful ofchoir members who can never seemto hear. So, the only thing that I couldthink of to do was to tell the musicminister to give me a sign when thechoir monitor was loud enough. Heagreed and proceeded to the loft. Assoon as he left, I turned down themaster monitor send a considerableamount. The choir came in and thepastor came up to the pulpit andstarted talking, -he music ministermotioned for me to bring up the choirmonitor, so I slowly turned up themaster until he motioned for me tostop. The strangest thing hap-pened-the master send was stop-ping at a lower level than what I waspreviously setting it at.

The next few Sundays we set themonitors up the same way, and everyone could hear with no complaints.What was the difference? Sound psy-chology. The people heard a levelchange which satisfied their mindsthat the speakers were louder. Thereason for me telling this little storyis to let you know that you are notdeaf and crazy as you may some-times think. I could tell you all thetechnical information in the world,but you couldn't really master soundsystem operation without knowing alittle psychology.

COMING NEXT ISSUEIn future segments of Audio for the

Church, we will examine equaliza-tion, and an applications look atmulti -track in the church, includinga visit to a church making good useout of their multi -track tape deck. EtiJ

JOHN BARILLA

A Tale of Two Cottages

This is a tale of two cottages. One cottage is in a big city, the other ina quiet suburb. One cottage isoccupied by a successful songwriter heading for a banner year, the other by a struggling song-writer seeking his first major cut.

0 f course,these are notthatched cottages butElectronic Cottages-the1990's revival of that an-

cient concept: the cottage industry.As futurist Alvin Toffler aptlypointed out back in 1980, computer

technology has brought us aroundfull circle to a pre -industrial lifestylewhere work place and living spacecan be united once again.

So as we turn the corner of this de-cade, it seems appropriate to take an

in-depth look to help document thisquiet revolution in the field of audio.

To this end, we bring you the pro-files of two songwriter/producersand the Electronic Cottages thathave become the nexus of their crea-tive lifestyle.

Jeff Kent: Conquering The World With MusicA true believer in the Electronic

Cottage is Jeff Kent. The compact,but powerful studio in his New YorkCity apartment has seen a lot of useand paid -off for Kent in a big way. Heis a professional songwriter-a per-son who gets up in the morning, sitsdown at a keyboard in his livingroom and begins to create a musicalproduct. He is respected for hisunique sense of aesthetics andpeople pay him for it. Sometimes,other artists end up re -cutting hiscompositions, but lately Jeff Kenthas found that a lot of his recordingsare going directly from his Elec-tronic Cottage to CD, television ormovies. While most of the creditshould go to his considerable skills asa writer and producer-a hard wontrophy which does not come easilynor overnight, none of it would bepossible if Jeff had not invested in aquality, personal -use facility.

Kent, who spent six years as a staffsongwriter with two publishing com-panies, has this to say about his deci-sion to turn his apartment into anElectronic Cottage:

"When I signed a deal with MaryTyler Moore Music (MTM), that'swhen I made a decision-rather

1 -Lo than do all these demos at different

studios, I decided, look, give me allthe money you would give me to doall these demos in the studio in onelump sum, let me take some of myown money, put it together and buildmy own studio and truly become in-dependent for the first time-'causeI found myself writing with peoplejust because they had studios. Ididn't want to do that anymore."

Building his Electronic Cottagewas a real liberating factor for JeffKent. It led him to do more co -writ-ing with people he really admired.And because of his songwriting, andhis ability to play several instru-ments and to make broadcast qu-ality recordings, Jeff also gainedaccess into the world of advertising,doing jingles for several well-knownclients.

Jeff notes that he experienced thetypical learning curve when it cameto figuring out how to interface andoperate this collection of equipment,which incidentally, he bought all inone fell swoop, with very little pre-vious technical experience. We canimagine the anxiety he experiencedtrying to assimilate the technology:

"So I made a commitment to reallylearn how to use all the technology-at least enough to become inde-

pendent. I bought all this equipmentat one time, so for four months I wasjust sitting with a stack of manuals.It took a while to become oper-ational, but once I did it was in-credible."

Kent stops for a moment and re-flects on how autonomous the Elec-tronic Cottage has allowed him to be-come, something even he would nothave envisioned a few years ago. Hegoes to the shelf and pulls a DAT cas-sette and plays the new spot he re-cently finished for Coca-Cola Inter-national. It is (believe it or not!) aheavy-metal Coke jingle, slated forworld-wide use. Not surprisingly, it isa clean and spacious recording-as adigital master should be. But beyondthat, it is fresh and spontaneoussounding, as if it was actually playedby a live band. As I listened to more ofJeff's material, it became clear thatachieving a "human feel" was a hall-mark of his production style.

MUSICAL ROOTSHow did Jeff Kent develop the abil-

ity to make electronic instrumentsreally jam? Undoubtedly, his musicalpast has much to do with it, for he is amusician first and a programmersecond. His first successful band,

called Dreams recorded two albumsfor Columbia Records in the earlyseventies. It was one of the proto-typical jazz/rock fusion bands fromthat era, and featured the likes ofBilly Cobham on drums and thefamous Brecker Brothers on horns.Like Chicago and Blood, Sweat andTears (who Jeff Kent also wrote for),Dreams also featured intricate ar-rangements and smokin' solos. Afterthe demise of Dreams, Kent formedanother group which included RobinBatteau and David Buskin who, likeKent, have gone on to becomesuccessful song and jingle writers.

...it seems that MIDIsekUencin has become sodom today manyproducer ould opt for asequ erformance

over a ive one...

During the mid -seventies Jeffswitched from live music to serioussongwriting, going through a jour-neyman period as staff songwriterand in-house producer with April -Blackwood Music (and later on withMTM). In the early -eighties Kentbegan a very fruitful collaborationwith the legendary songwriter EllieGreenwich from which a host ofcovers by the likes of Cyndi Lauper,Nona Hendryx and Ellen Foley havegenerated. It was during this period,in his association with Ellie Green-wich, that Jeff became smitten withthe notion of a personal -use studio.He had helped Greenwich chooseequipment for her home studio andseeing the benefits, realized that thiswas the way to go. In 1986, when themoney became available from hisdeal with MTM, he decided to go forit. In just a few months of operation,he had generated a song for a majormotion picture, Roxanne with SteveMartin and Darryl Hannah. Re-corded in Kent's studio, the mix hedid went directly into the film sound-track-a testimony to the practicalvalue of the Electronic Cottage.

COTTAGE UTENSILSJeff's choice of multi -track re-

corder is the Akai 12-14, which headvocates highly, and he mixes downto a Panasonic SV-250 DAT recorder.With digital inputs and outputs anda choice of sampling rates, mixes can

Figure 1. JeffKent with his Mac51 and Akai 12-14. The Linn 9000is in the fore-ground.

be bumped over to professionalediting systems for masteringwithout ever leaving the digitaldomain. For MIDI sequencing, Kenthas made the somewhat unusualtransition from software sequencingback to hardware sequencing-amove that some "technoids" mightconsider to be a bit retrograde.

But Jeff Kent has his reasons, andthis may partially explain why hismusic has the sound of an inspiredfirst take, rather than antiseptic per-fectionism. After spending sometime on a Macintosh 512 with Op -code sequencing software, he re-turned to his trusty old Linn 9000 be -

Figure 2. JeffKent's equipmentrack as seen at therear of the equip-ment wall of Fig-ure 1 is hereshown in detail.

cause (as he put it), "it is musiciansensible."

While there is no denying that thesoftware sequencer can do morethings, Jeff found the "excessiveediting options" to be a distraction.Yes, it was more versatile, he goes onto say, "but that was almost a prob-lem. Like you could spend 20minutes on a note (tweaking thetiming, volume, etc.). I don't havethose choices (with the Linn 9000).Either it sounds good or it doesn't. Ifit feels good in real-time, yeah, Icould move it a little bit, but is thatgoing to make the difference be-

tween my song sounding like a greatsong or not? I don't think so!"

If real-time time sequencing is oneof Jeff Kent's production secrets,then so is the use of real musical per-formances on non -MIDI instru-ments. Was there ever a pre -MIDIage? Alas, it seems that MIDIsequencing has become so dominantthat today many producers wouldopt for a sequenced performanceover a live one-because the sampleis "fixable." Not so with Kent. Whilesome of his tracks are sequenced, agood deal of his production alwaysinvolves live performances. Playingkeyboards and a variety of stringedinstruments, percussion and vocals,Jeff frequently performs many ofthe live tracks himself-directly tomulti -track. (It seems weird that in1990 we should be patting a guy onthe back for having the guts to playlive in a recording studio, but here weare...)

Even though he is able to play all ofthe tracks, Kent is also a savvy pro-ducer, and when specific "feels" arerequired, he calls in a specialist.What really struck me was howspecifically Jeff casts his musicians.Over his many years in the business,he has apparently developed a exten-sive list of players and vocalists, andit is probably for this reason that hisrecordings (from Spanish music tocountry rock to heavy metal) alwayshave that authentic ring. In short,because of these live, wild -card ele-ments (the real-time performances),Kent's music does not suffer fromthe stiff mechanical feel so preva-lent in sequenced music.

Jeff does, of course, utilize MIDIsequencing. Rather than run tape inthe beginning stages of his produc-tion, he generally uses the Linn 9000to record basic tracks: drums, key-board pad and perhaps bass (some-times bass is done live with Jeff play-ing his ESP bass guitar). At someearly stage though, Kent voices hissynthesizers the way he wants themto sound and records the synths anddrums over to tape. He does this be-cause he likes the convenience of set-up for his overdubs. When he powersup the next morning, there are noprograms to load, no MIDI channelsto setup, nor voice patches to choose.He simply fires up the Akai 12-14and begins to record his overdubs.While some might argue that oneshould preserve the pristine quality

to of the digital synths and sampled

drums as virtual tracks, Jeff saysthat he likes the way these trackssound better after they hit tape.While his production methods arenot normative ones, they work.

It is also clear that Kent's lack ofregard for convention is really afunction of the rebelliousnPP,s in hisown personality. For this reason, Jeffmakes it a conscious policy to employa lot of talented younger musicians,because he identifies with theirenergy level. He explains:

"A lot of people that are my age Idon't connect with musically, be-cause they're into a whole other kindof music and I for some reason, justconnect with this very raw energy.Itdoesn't matter whether it be asophisticated song or just a heavymetal piece. Whereas, I know peopleof my age group (Kent appears to bechronologically at least, part of that"thirty -something" generation) thatif I said, 'heavy metal' to them,they'd go running to the hills, but Ihappen to love it. I'm not into badlyrics and stuff like that, but I aminto the rebelliousness of it, I am intothe energy of it. So I do it, I put it inmy music and it seems to be...I seemto be coming into vogue right now"

It jus e to him one day inh of satori that

n, French andsic share theorigins.

CONQUERING THE WORLDJeff Kent has been doing aggres-

sive music for some time now, but hewas not universally accepted for it.Now with his new heavy metal Coca-Cola ad, things may be catching up.It is probably most ironic, since Jeffwas known for a long time, as a bal-lad writer. Now he's getting calls forsports music, which is the essence ofhigh energy, hard -edged music. Butdespite stereotypes, Kent does notseem to be limited to any particularstyle of music. In fact, he's probablyabout as close to a musicalchameleon as you can get, which isindeed a high virtue in a songwriter.It means quite simply, that Jeff iscapable of tackling almost anymarket, and doing it with a good dealof authority. In fact, Kent's writingand personal publishing company

(Jent Music) is headed for thatbroad, international market.

For example, Jeff has recentlygarnered three cuts on the debut CDof British artist, Robin Beck. One ofthe songs features tracks that wererecorded in Kent's Electronic Cot-tage. The tracks were simply toogood not to use, so they were trans-ferred from the Akai 12 -track inJeff's living room to a standard 24 -

track recorder and finished. (Thiskind of inter -activity between thelarge professional studio and thesmaller personal -use Electronic Cot-tage is really what recording will belike as we enter the '90s.)

Jeff's most current opus is a verymoving Spanish (contemporary -pop) tune which was demo'ed withJulio Iglesias in mind. The idea here,of course, is to pitch Iglesias using aproduction that sounds tailor-madefor his sound. Kent's productionsucceeds in capturing all of theheart-rending emotionalism Iglesiasis famous for. Interestingly, Jeff Kentdoes not speak Spanish, nor has hestudied Spanish music. It just cameto him one day in a great flash of sa-tori that Spanish, Italian, Frenchand Jewish music share the sameorigins. Kent, who is Jewish, remem-bers his grandfather (who was thenstudying to be a rabbi) singing to himas a child. It was a sound he neverforgot. When he started to listen tomusic from other Mediterraneancountries, he realized that in somestrange way, they were all playingthe same song!

Jeff puts it like this: "It's all Sem-itic music. It's all based on the samescales, and as they (the Semiticpeoples) went to different regions,different instruments were pickedup and incorporated into the music.This is why I'm discovering that I'mstarting to write a lot more Spanishmusic. I'm realizing that there are alot of Jewish folk songs that I grewup playing, that if all I do is turn itinto a tango and change the words...!I mean, there's public domain songswhich could be giant hits all overagain."

With twenty years of professionalmusical experience propelling himforward like wind on his back, Jeffsurveys a new, larger market for hissongwriting-larger than he evermight have imagined. Is it possible toconquer the world with a song? Un-doubtedly, Jeff Kent will give it a try.

Brett Charles: Burning The Candle At Both Ends

It's not easy burning the candle atboth ends, but that's exactly whatBrett Charles does. By day he is askilled craftsman manufacturingcustom furniture. By night he is alsoa skilled craftsman, but his trade isof a different sort. By night he craftssongs in his Electronic Cottage. It'sreally like having two full-timecareers. Both are demanding, bothrequire precision, but only one paysthe bills. At least so far.

His profile, of course is not un-usual. It's the struggling songwritersyndrome. But for now, Brett has be-come adept at juggling both careers.He realizes that things take time tohappen in the music business-that"overnight sensations" are usuallyten years in the making. So he goesin to his shop earlier in the morning(7 a.m.) so that he can leave earlier inthe afternoon (3:30 p.m.). And if histiming is right, he may be able tomake a few calls to the professionalmanagers at some publishing com-panies before they go home for theevening. Then when evening comes,Brett can be found working in hisbedroom/recording studio/office,writing songs until the sandmanrocks him to sleep.

One of the reasons I puttog r this studio isbecauine I tried to put

tether several bands, butmy ex ri e always wasth8t ould call up at

the last minute...

While he hasn't been offered anygreat deals yet, his initial attemptsat marketing songs have been en-couraging. Music industry peoplehave been recognizing his talent anddoors are opening up him. Brett real-izes that success as a songwritermeans developing relationships withpublishers, and that requires a con-stant flow of new material. His Elec-tronic Cottage has been an in-credible boon to his productivity.

Interestingly enough, until a fewyears ago, Brett was almost bliss-fully unaware of the technologicalrevolution that was going on aroundhim. Even though he had been writ-ing songs for many years, he hadn't

really pursued it in a professionalway. With an old Farfisa organ, somedrum -drop records and a tape re-corder Brett wrote songs and re-corded them, but it wasn't until hewent to The Keyboard Expo at theSheraton -Centre Hotel in New YorkCity three years ago that he becamesmitten with "the MIDI bug."

GETTING HIP TO MIDIHe relates an interesting story

about how his eyes were opened tothe new technology. "I'm a song-writer" he says, "not an engineer.Up until three years ago, I didn'teven know what MIDI was. Then Icaught this guy demo'ing the Syn-ergy (an additive synthesizer popu-larized by Wendy Caros) and I saidto him, 'Can I ask you a question?What's MIDI ?'"

Apparently, the chap who was de-monstrating the keyboard couldn'trestrain himself from laughing atBrett's naivete. In any event, Brettnever got a straight answer to hisquestion that day. So he went out andbought every book he could on MIDIand recording. He bought pieces ofequipment, experimented withthem and learned them. As newpieces came out on the market, Brettquickly sold off pieces he already had(while they still retained their value)and purchased additional equip-ment. The process mushroomeduntil his room really got out of hand.There were wires literally all overthe place.

CUSTOM COTTAGENow here's where it comes in

handy being a furniture maker in afamily -run business. Brett and hismother (who is an interior designer)put their heads together and

Figure 3. BrettCharles is seen infront of his disap-pearing studio.The cabinets werecustom built.

developed an innovative way tomake Brett's room do triple duty: asbedroom, office and recordingstudio. They arrived at an overalllook for the room and then Brettmodified the design so that equip-ment could be located at appropriateheights and distances. Many pieceswere designed with roll -out racks sothat positions could be adjusted ac-cording to need. The result is a studiothat can actual.y disappear fromview in less than 10 seconds!

While this concept is not exactly atraditional studio design, it can beput to good use in family dwellingswhere space may be too precious todedicate to a studio facility, but canpossibly be time-shared with otherfamily activities. Some studioowners have been so impressed withthe convenience and efficiency ofBrett Charles' studio that they haveasked Reacine Irteriors of Freeport(the family custom -furniture busi-ness) to design a similar unit fortheir homes.

Regarding the Electronic Cottageera, Brett says: 'I'm so happy I'malive during this time-that I'm ableto do this in my home. One of the rea-sons I put togethar this studio is be-cause I tried to put together severalbands, but my experience alwayswas that people would call up at thelast minute (before a rehearsal) andsay, 'I gotta go shopping with mywife.' I hate to sound like this, but Icouldn't depend on people. I had todo it myself. When I found out aboutMIDI sequencing and being able toplay all the instruments myself Iwas like yeah, let s do this!"

MAKING THE PITCHBrett has been pitching his songs

to Warner-Chap2e11, Jobete, MCA,

crl

Chrysalis and Peer -Southern, thusfar, and has received all positive feed-back, but as yet, no signing. I did geta chance to listen to some of Brett'smaterial. One song, co -written withDon Bader really stuck out in my

Figure 4. BrettCharles has a leanand clean Elec-tronic Cottage.

mind. It was Brett's newest produc-tion, and the publishers had yet tohear it.

If it grabs them the way it grabbedme, I foresee less furniture makingand a whole lot more songwriting in

Brett's future. The song entitled It'sOver, has a relentless bass line andincredibly hook -laden vocals. It hasthe sensuality of a George Michaeltune, and the smoky, bluesy melodyof Sade. My opinion is, this tune de-finitely has all the "right stuff" tomake a hit record.

Brett has recently begun to getsome visibility as a writer. He did themusic on a Franklin Mint TV spotfor their new Eagle Watch and iswriting songs with producer RichardBennett on an album project for Mi-chelle Thomas (one of those Cosbykids) who is recording on Apollo Re-cords.

So things are beginning to happenfor Brett Charles. The light in hisElectronic Cottage will probably beon later and later in the night fromnow on. Ei5

KEEP UP IN ACHANGINGWORLDTake advantage of the wealth of knowledgeavailable from your Government. The U.S.Government Printing Office has produced anew catalog. It tells about the most popularbooks sold by the Government-nearly1,000 in all. Books on agriculture, business,children, diet, energy, health, history,space, and much more. For a freecopy of this new catalog, write-

New CatalogPost Office Box 37000Washington, D.C. 20013

c0(.0

LEN FELDMAN

Yamaha MT3X Multitrack Cassette Recorder

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11 11 1 I I I 1 1 30 0 0 0 0 0 0 [

411 I !GENERAL INFORMATION

The MT3X is a virtual production studio in a tinypackage measuring only about 17-1/2 inches in width by4-1/4 inches in height and 12-3/4 inches in depth. Essen-tially, this versatile little package is a 6 -input mixer plusa dual speed 4 -track cassette recorder. Line level signalscan be applied to all six inputs, two of which also accept

Figure 1. Frequency response of the cassette recordersection. Narrower bandwith was obtained with tapespeed at 4.75 cm./sec.; better response was achievedat 9.5 cm./sec.'Record/Play frequency Response. Yamaha MT3X (Level set to 0 dB on %eters)10.000

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microphone inputs. No patching is required to routetracks to faders for mixdown, as selector switches areprovided for that purpose. Each chann g is equipped withhigh and low frequency EQ controls. Channel pan con-trols let you place your sounds anywhere in the stereosound stage that you create. The MTSX also has two ef-

Figure 2. Distortion versus frequency, record levelset at 0 dB on the meters of the Yamaha. Highercurve is for 4.75 cm./sec. speed; Lowe- THD curve isfor the 9.5 cm./sec. speed.iO3 Diversus Frequency. at B JB Respect Level.

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fects loops allowing you to send to two separate effectsdevices from any one of the six available input channels.

Each track can be processed with its own effect usingthe individual tape -out jacks. Master aux send and re-turn controls are found right on the front panel. Trackassignment is easily accomplished with the input re -

Figure 4. Azimuth alignment was analyzed by record-ing sweeps on two adjacent tracks and then playingback the results using an azimuth angle test betweentracks.

cord/select switches located above each input channel.You can record on any or all of the four tracks at once.

The heart of the MT3X is a two -speed cassette trans-port that employs dual motors, light -touch controls,pitch control, "zero stop" and dbx for noise -free, hiss -

free recording. Yamaha recommends that the higher of

Figure 5. Spectral distribution of tape noise. Uppertrace is noise without dbx, lower trace with dbx. Tapespeed had a negligible effect on the test results.

Azimuth alignment analysed WIng adjacent tracks;113.00

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Low and hi51. L7 ChAta,ttriStACX and Ranor; Yamaha Mt3R itililtrack Recorder22.00d

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Figure 6. Wow -and -flutter, plotted for a period ofthirty seconds, revealed a slight reduction in w -fwhen the higher speed (9.5 cm./sec.) was used.

the two speeds (3-3/4 in./sec., or 9.5 cm./sec.) be used formaking your own master or audition recordings, whilethe lower; standard 1-7,' in./sec. (4.75 cm./sec.) speed canbe used when it is necessary to play back standard re-corded cassettes. The rasgette section is also equippedwith Auto Punch -In capability. You can easily programthe recorder to punch in and punch out at specific pointsin a recording. This allows you to concentrate more onthe musicality and artistic consideration of the recordingsession you are involved in.

The fluorescent display along the upper section of theMT3X is packed with useful information. There is sepa-rate stereo and four -track metering, transport status in-dicators, counter and more. The MT3X provides two setsof left and right output jacks. The stereo output jacks areintended for feedingyour mix to a separate mastering re-corder; while the left and right monitor output jacks areintended for connection to a separate stereo amplifier formonitoring. An on -board volume control adjusts controlroom listening level without affecting mix -down levels.

MIDI sequencers and drum machines can be slaved tothe MT3X by recording a synchronization code on Track4. Sync jacks are provided for this purpose. The monitor-ing capabilities of the MT3X are extremely versatile. Youcan mix up to six inputs of MIDI gear, two stereo effectsand tape tracks simultaneously.

CONTROL LAYOUTThe front lip of the MT3X is equipped with six phone-

jack unbalanced input jacks (the first two of which maybe used for either microphone or line -level signals), astereo headphones jack and a Punch In/Out footswitchjack. Slider channel faders are on the top surface, in linewith the various input jacks. Channels 1 and 2 also haveMic/Line trim controls that adjust the sensitivity of theChannel 1 and 2 inputs to accept a wide range of inputsignal levels-from line to microphone. Channels 1through 4 are also equipped with Tape-Off-Mic/Line (orLine) switches that determine whether the input to thecorresponding mixer channel is the output from thecorrespondingly numbered track of the cassette recordersection, or the channel mic/line or line input. The offposi-tion of these switches turns the particular channel off en-tirely. Channel 5 and 6 accept line -level input only andare active at all times. Rotary Pan controls associatedwith each channel input assign the signal from the corre-

15.000

19.095,

5.0599

9.9

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Figure 7. Equalization range and characteristics ofthe mixer section.

sponding mixer channel to any desired position in thestereo sound stage. Slider controls above each pan pothandle low- and high -frequency EQ whileAux 1 andAux2 controls associated with each channel determine theamount of signal from that channel that is sent to theAux Snd 1 or Aux Snd 2 jack. Those jacks, in turn, can beconnected to external signal processors using the auxsend/return loops of the MT3X. Record Select switchesalong the upper edge of the sloped frcnt panel assign thesignal from each mixer channel either directly to thecorresponding track of the recorder or to a differenttrack using the Pan controls. A sync switch is nearby, ad-jacent to the previously -described disolay area.

The mixer's mastering section incorporates aux send(1 and 2) and aux return (1 and 2) controls, monitor con-trols, a headphones select switch, the headphones levelcontrol and the master fader control. The area beneaththe ells -cede compartment also houses a dbx on/offswitch, the tape speed switch, a pitch control that variestape speed by about 10 percent in ether direction, thezero stop button (sometimes referred to as a memory re-wind button, since when depressed, tape rewinds to the"0000" counter setting), an auto punch in/out button,and an auto punch memo button that's used to specifythe start and end points for an automatic punch in/outfunction, and a counter reset button. Further downbeneath the tape compartment, towards the front of thepanel are the usual tape transport buttons.

The rear panel of the MT3X is equipped with four tapeout jacks, stereo L and R output jacks, sync in and outjacks, aux send and return jacks, L and R monitor outputjacks and a power onloffswitch. The power on/off switchwas wisely placed here so that it would not be inadver-tently pushed (thereby shutting down power) in themidst of a recording or mix -down session.

Before commenting on the performance of the MT3X Ishould point out that Yamaha wisely packed in a shortmusical tape with each MT3X. The tape consists of fourseparate tracks, in which a musical group called The HotHeads demonstrate how the unit can be used. The vortal-ist is recorded on one track while other instrumentalistsare on two other tracks. The fourth track (actually tracknumber 1) is reserved for the narration of a very attrac-tive -sounding young lady (dare I say sexy sounding inthis age of waning male chauvinism?) who "walks youthrough" the capabilities of the MT3X in a most appeal-

ing manner. Her narration is all the while augmented bythe music of the Hot Heads in the background, but youcan easily tune them out by lowering the monitor con-trols for tracks 2, 3, and 4. After her very detailed de-scription of the MT3X's capabilities, she invites you to doa mix -down of the next selection recorded by the group,using an external two -track mastering recorder. Thewhole thing (reggette, music, and narrated explanation)is a nice touch added by the people at Yamaha and onethat should make familiarization with the MT3X a loteasier. *

Nevertheless, I would strongly urge users of this inter-esting piece of equipment to read the well -written 30-

page owner's manual carefully. The step-by-step setupand application instructions will save even the most ex-perienced mixer/recordist time and, in some cases, willprevent frustration.

LABORATORY MEASUREMENTSThe Vital Statistics chart at the end of this report sum-

marizes all of the measurements made for this uniquelittle "studio in a small package." Most of our measure-ments concerned the performance of the cassette re-corder since the mixer's functions are essentially thoseof a pass -through preamplifier whose frequency re-sponse, noise and distortion characteristics were boundto be better than those of the tape recorder section. Fig -u re 1 shows the results of two plots made for the tape re-corder section. The curve having the wider bandwidthwas made using the 9.5 cm./sec. (3-3/4 in./sec.) tape speedwhile that with the poorer response was made using thestandard 1-&7/8 in./sec. eaggette tape speed. The deck isconfigured to use only type II (chromium dioxide or otherhigh -bias) tape formulations, and that is what we used tomake these tests.

At the higher tape speed, if you apply a ±tolerance of 3dB, response extended to around 18 kHz, as claimed byYamaha while low -end response extended down to 20 Hzfor the same overall tolerance, as opposed to the 40 Hzlimit stated by the manufacturer.

Figure 2 is a plot of harmonic distortion versusfrequency, using an input level that caused the level me-ters on the MT3X to read 0 dB. The upper trace resultedwhen we used the slower tape speed, while somewhatlower distortion was observed at the higher tape speed,where, over much of the frequency range plotted, THDhovered at or below the 1.0 percent mark. Of course, thedistortion readings for any cassette deck are also de-pendent upon the tape used, so you may expect to getsomewhat better or, in some cases, somewhat poorer dis-tortion.

The MT3X recorder is a two -head machine. In otherwords, a single head serves both for recording and play-back. Accordingly, we would have expected excellentazimuth alignment when recording a tape and thenplaying it back. Our expectations were confirmed, asshown in Figure 3.

We recorded a couple of silent tracks on our sampletape in order to measure the signal-to-noise ratio per-

* We have learned from Yamaha, after this re-port was submitted, corrected and typeset, thatthe tape Len Feldman refers to was sent to himby the company as an aid in evaluation, and isnot available with the MT3X.

!3.1%uo Analyisi of AIPSAAVAI hvIA! (491) V lrecuenco 0101 Mime, Section NT3C

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Figure 8. Spectrum analysis of residual noise, re-ferred to 775 77117 input and with levels adjusted toproduce 0 dB reading on the unit's level meters.

formance of the recorder section of the MT3X. Referredto 0 dB readings on the meters, A -weighted s/n measured53.9 dB without dbx turned on. Repeating the measure-ment with dbx active, S/N now measured more than 73dB, an improvement of nearly 20 dB. Figure 4 shows twoplots in which a spectrum analysis of residual noise ver-sus frequency was made. The upper plot represents noisedistribution observed during playback of the tape madewithout dbx, while the lower trace shows the spectral dis-tribution of noise when dbx was used. Notice that themajor noise peaks in both cages occurred at the powerline frequency (60 Hz), indicating that the random noisecontributed by the tape itself may have been even lowerthan the values mentioned earlier.

Figure 5 shows two plots of wow -and -flutter, takenover a period of 30 seconds. At the higher tape speed,wow -and -flutter settled into a value of 0.05 percent, ex-actly as claimed by Yamaha. At the slower tape speed, avery slight increase to around 0.058 percent was ob-served (represented by the upper trace in Figure 5).

We did make a few measurements concerning thechannel inputs and mixer circuitry. Figure 6 shows themaximum boost and cut range of the low- and high -

frequency EQ circuits available for each of the six chan-nel inputs. Results are similar to those obtained withordinary bass and treble tone controls. We also measuredthe signal-to-noise ratio of the mixer section of theMT3X and obtained a reading of -74.3 dB relative to 0dB readings on the meter. Yamaha's manual tells us that0 dB on the meters of this instrument corresponds to0.775 volts rms or in other words, 0 dBm. Again, we werecurious to see what particular frequencies were con-tributing to the residual noise and so another spectrumanalysis plot was made, this time involving only theinput -to -monitor output signal paths. Results are shownin Figure 7 and, once again, the major contributors seemto be at power -line frequency and at its third harmonic.

CONCLUSIONSOnce we understood the signal paths established in the

MT3X (an excellent block diagram is provided in theowner's manual), operating the MT3X was relativelysimple and in less than one hour we became thoroughlyfamiliar with its capabilities.

They are, to put it mildly, very impressive. Having suchsophisticated features as Automatic Punch In/Out is un-usual for a product of this type. The unit is also arranged

for easy ping-pong recording, so that if you follow theprocedure outlined in the manual it is actually possible torecord up to ten individual tracks without re-recordingany single track more than once. For less ambitious re-cording sessions, simple overdubbing is accomplishedwith ease using this product.

Clearly, the MT3X is either a rehearsal/demo-makingsystem-or can be used as a means for creating innova-tive and professional -sounding tapes. It is about the most

SPECIFICATION

flexible and well thought-out product of its kind that wehave seen. Yamaha is, as we all know, no newcomer to thepro -audio field and the engineering and logical layoutthat they have applied to the MT3X is further proof ofthat fact. This is one of those product -a that a reviewer isreluctant to part with-fun to use, and yet capable ofproviding surprisingly good quality mix -downs for creat-ing two -channel masters on another recorder to which itmay be connected.

VITAL STATISTICS

MFR'S CLAIM db MEASUREDTape Transport SectionTape TypeTape SpeedPitch ControlWow and FlutterRewind Time (C60 Tape)

Mixer SectionInputs 1 & 2

Rated LevelMax. Input Level

Inputs 3 to 6 and AUX ReturnsRated LevelMin. Input Level

Stereo Out (L&R), Tape Out (1Rated OutputOutput ImpedanceLoad Impedance

Headphones OutLoad Impedance

Max Output LevelEqualizer Range

Recorder SectionFreq. Response 4.75 cm/sec.

9.5 cm./sec.

DistortionChannel SeparationErasure RatioS/N Ratio, dbx ON

General SpecificationsPower RequirementsDimensions (WxHxD, in.)WeightPrice:

Chrome (70 µsec, EQ)4.75 or 9.5 cm./sec.±10%0.05% WRMS

100 second

-10 dB to -50 dB+10 dB

1 & 2-10 dB-16 dB

to 4) and Monitor Out (L&R)-10 dB1k ohmGreater than 10k ohms

8 to 40 ohms100 mW/40 ohms±12 dB @ 100/10k Hz

40 Hz to 12.5 kHz±-3 dB

40 Hz to 18 kHz±-3 dB

1%, 315 Hz55 dB at 1 kHz70 dB at 1 kHz85 dB

120V AC, 60 Hz, 24 W17-7/16 x 4-3/16 x 12-13/168 lbs. 10 oz. (3.9 kg.)$995.00

ConfirmedConfirmed+9. -11%0.05/0.058%95 seconds

ConfirmedConfirmed

ConfirmedConfirmed

ConfirmedConfirmed

ConfirmedConfirmed

20 Hz to 6 kHz±-3 dB

20 Hz to 18 kHz,-±3 dB

0.8.3%, 315 Hz58 dB at 1 kHzConfirmed73.5 dB re 0 dB

RANDY HOFFNER

E404.4441 44.40

ADVANCED TELEVISION: WHAT'S IN IT FOR AUDIO? The reader who has any contact

with the television industry is doubt-lessly aware of the large amount ofcurrent activity devoted to thedevelopment and standardization ofadvanced television production andtransmission systems. Advanced tel-evision or high -definition is a hottopic in the trade press, and the sub-ject has shown up in the popularpress as well recently, largely fornon -technical reasons. I am going tokeep this article in the technicalarena, however. Advanced television(ATV) is a broad term applicable tosystems that represent improved -definition television (ITV), ex-tended -definition television (ED -TV), and high -definition television(HDTV). That's the alphabet soup.

Cl AR.IFYING THOSE TERMS.Improved -television refers to im-

provements to NTSC televisionwhich remain within the generalparameters of NTSC emissionstandards. They may be imple-mented by broadcasters with little orno Federal Communications Com-mission action, and consist of im-provements in such picture qualitiesas definition, with no change in pic-ture aspect ratio. An example of ITVis the Faroudja system. Extended -

definition television refers to im-provements such as wide-screenaspect ratio and improved definitionthat may significantly modify NTSCemissions, but are still compatiblewith NTSC receivers. An example ofEDTV is Advanced Compatible Tele-vision 1 (ACTV 1), as proposed by theDavid Sarnoff Research Center.High -definition television refers to asystem that generally acceptedguidelines specified as comparable indefinition to 35 millimeter film orabout double the resolution of pre-sent NTSC. All proposed HDTV sys-tems have about twice the number of

scanning lines of NTSC and a wideraspect ratio, usually 16:9 rather than4:3. An example of a true HDTVtransmission system is ACTV II.

A discussion of advanced televisionmust be divided into two discretesubtopics: production and transmis-sion. The current NTSC video stand-ard is generally applicable to bothproduction and transmission. In amajority of cases (but not all cases)the same NTSC video waveform isemployed both in the production andrecording stages and in the systemused to broadcast television picturesto the home. There are exceptions tothis, of course. Graphics devices,which are really computers, oftengenerate images in RGB (red, green,blue) component form, convertingthe components to the NTSC com-posite waveform for use in furtherproduction and broadcast. The half-inch professional video recordingformats M -II and Betacam, and theRolls-Royce digital video recordingformat, D-1, record video in color-

difference (Y, R -Y, B -Y) componentform. The NTSC composite videosignal has a bandwidth of about4.2MHz, which when combined withan FM audio signal, fits into the U.S.television channel allocation of6MHz.

GREATER BANDWITH FORHIGH DEFINITION

In the case of advanced television,on the other hand, a production sys-tem that qualifies as "high -defini-tion" as previously defined will havea much greater bandwidth thanNTSC. A high -definition video signalwill reach or exceed 30 MHz in band-width, and this signal obviously can-not be transmitted via a 6MHz ter-restrial television channel, or evenreasonably by cable or direct broad-cast satellite. This produces the re-quirement for an emission system

that transmits a video signal dis-tinctly different from that used inthe production system. The trans-mission system must be capable ofemission within the constraints of alimited bandwidth. Thus, the fullhigh -definition production signalmust be reduced in bandwidth bysome means in order that it may fitinto the allotted transmission chan-nel, whether that is a terrestrialbroadcast channel, a cable channel,or a dbs channel. There are two cate-gories of systems proposed for thetransmission of HDTV signals overterrestrial broadcast systems:augmentation and simulcast.Augmentation implies the transmis-sion of an NTSC receiver -compat-ible EDTV signal on a 6MHz televi-sion channel, accompanied by anaugmentation signal transmittedvia an additional block of spectrumsuch as a second television channel.The augmentation signal itself is es-sentially the difference between theEDTV picture and the HDTV pic-ture. When the two are added in thereceives the full HDTV picture is re-covered. The simulcast approach isthe transmission of a separate, non -

compatible, full HDTV signal on aseparate channel, simultaneouslywith the NTSC or EDTV signal.There is a general agreement thatadvanced television production andtransmission systems demand im-provements in their audio charac-teristics as well as video. There are anumber of considerations involvedin audio for ATV. Many issues arecommon to production and trans-mission systems, and each area hassome unique requirements.

AUDIO ISSUEIn the area of high definition pro-

duction, the audio issues include: thenumber of discrete channels neces-sary, the audio bandwidth limits re-

quired, and the quality level of suchdistinctions as dynamic range anddistortion. The number of channelsrequired depends upon the applica-tion of the product. Current produc-tion for stereo television often in-volves 6 channels of sourcematerial-two each for dialogue,music, and sound effects. These 6channels are then mixed down totwo -channel stereo.

In addition to television, anotherproposed application for high -defini-tion video production is the elec-tronic production of cinematic fea-tures, which would subsequently betransferred to film for theater pro-jection. If this application material-izes, we are told that a minimum of"5.1" perceptually separate channelsis appropriate. These channels in-clude three signals behind thescreen: left, center, and right, andtwo rear or surround channels.

The remaining "0.1" channel is thesubwoofer signal, and generally in-cludes audio material from about100Hz down. Fortunately, as audiofrequencies get lowe directionalityis progressively less perceptible, so acommon bass channel derived froma mix of all channels may be em-ployed without perceptual detri-ment. In addition to theatrical pre-sentation, surround sound willbecome more important in advancedtelevision because of the larger andwider screens and the subsequentdemand for a more realistic soundstage that will result from these sys-tems.

The 5 channels of surround soundare often reduced to 4 channels inthe theater when 35 millimeter filmis the source material, with the leftand right surround channels beingreduced to a single, diffused sur-round signal. In this case, the 4 chan-nels are mixed by a matrix process toyield a two -channel product. Thisprocess is called 4-2-4 matrixing, be-cause 4 signals (left, center, right,surround) are matrixed into two dis-crete stereo tracks which are de-coded into the four original signalsupon playback. Matrixed encoding isthe process that yields 35 mm DolbyStereo in theaters and Dolby Sur-round and other surround soundprocesses in consumer surroundsound decoders. Surround sound en-coded with the 4-2-4 matrixing sys-tem may be transmitted on normalstereo transmission systems, and infact, this is done now to a limited de-

gree on television. A production sys-tem must have the requisite numberof discrete audio channels, however,because editing will require the sig-nals to be in their discrete form.Other considerations regardingnumber of channels are the possibleinclusion of multiple languages andrequirements for data or ancillarysignals. Proposals for audio for ad-vanced television production havementioned from three to eight dis-crete audio channels.

IT WILL BE DIGITAL AUDIOIt is a matter of general agreement

that the audio accompanying any ad-vanced television production ortransmission format will be digital.It is also agreed by many that audiofor an advanced television produc-tion system should be of a qualitylevel at least comparable to compactdiscs, which means frequency re-sponse flat 20Hz-20kHz, very lowdistortion, and a dynamic range ap-proaching or exceeding 90dB. In theprofessional production world thisimplies a digital audio word length ofat least 16 bits and the professionalsample rate of 48kHz. Quantizationnumber and sample rate define thequality level of a digital audio signal.Sixteen bit quantization yields atheoretical maximum dynamicrange of 98dB. Allowing 20dB ofheadroom from operating level up tothe "digital full-scale" point, thisplaces the noise floor 78dB belowoperating level. Those who are in-volved in the digital audio field willattest that if 16 bits is desired as anend product, a greater digital wordlength should be used in the produc-tion steps to provide adequate head-room for processing. A mostdesirable method would be to use 18or 20 bit quantization in the produc-tion system, later reduced to 16 bitsin the end product.

Specification of audio for an ad-vanced television transmission sys-tem involves many of the same con-siderations as specification of audioto accompany advanced televisionproduction systems-with some ad-ditional factors to consider. A work-ing party of the FCC Advisory Com-mittee on Advanced TelevisionSystems (ACATS) has demonstratedstrong resistance to establishing anyminimum number of audio channelsor minimum data capacity. Thatcommittee agrees that currentNTSC audio capabilities must be

continued, and tiat any ATV trans-mission service should provide newdigital audio channels of near com-pact disc quality, in number at leastas great as the number of analogchannels provided by the existingMTS system. In addition, captioningand other present vertical blankinginterval signals must be preserved. Ifthese criteria are met, an ATV trans-mission system will have a total ofeight audio channels, four analogand four digital. Of course, monocompatibility must be maintained topreserve compatibility with presentMTS.

The inclusion of'even two channelsof digital audio in an advanced tele-vision transmission system for usewithin the present 6MHz televisionchannel will necessarily involve adata compression system to reducethe bandwidth requirement of thedigital audio data stream to amanageable level. A 44.1kHz samplerate and 16 bit linear quantization,as in compact dices, will produce adata rate around 1 megabit per sec-ond, which is far n- ore data than maybe readily sandwiched into an al-ready fully -packed television chan-nel allocation.

There are a number of percep-tually -based digital audio data re-duction schemes in various stages ofdevelopment.

One system cu -rently in use isNICAM-3, the source coding schemeused by the British BroadcastingCorporation's digital stereo televi-sion transmission system. This sys-tem uses a base quantization num-ber of 14 bits, compressed to 11 bits,requiring about 750 kHz of band-width for transmission. There aresystems currently under develop-ment which promise even furtherdata rate reduction, in some easesdown to an average quantizationnumber of two bits, which comparesfavorably in perceptual terms withcompact disc performance.

Some of these systems are consid-erably closer to th3 affordable andsize -efficient hardware stage thanothers. Many of the advanced televi-sion system proponents to be testedby the Advanced Television TestCenter (ATTC) are rather vague onthe point of "digital audio" but thosethat do mention a lata rate gener-ally specify a 500 kilobit -per -secondtransmission channel. Such a datacapacity demands I rather seriousdata reduction scheme to yield audio

quality comparable to compact discs.

ADDITIONAL SPECTRUMSPACE

In addition to a source coding sys-tem, spectrum space must be foundin which to locate a carrier for thedigital audio data. A high definitiontransmission system using theaugmentation approach may poss-ibly have the required spectrumspace for full compact disc quality

audio that is not digitally com-pressed, but any ATV transmissionsystem that is compatible with cur-rent 6 MHz channel is going to pre-sent a real challenge in finding aplace to put even a data -reduced dig-ital audio signal.

It must be remembered, however,that space was found in the mono-chrome television signal to sandwichin coloi and now space has beenfound to sandwich in a wider aspectratio and higher definition. The

chances of finding a way to sandwichin digital audio are pretty high.

It's apparent that there are a num-ber of obstacles to overcome beforeadvanced audio for advanced televi-sion is a reality. Eventually, of course,they will be overcome, and the con-sumer may look forward to the manyadvantages of digital audio to ac-company advanced television pic-tures. II:

serving: recording, broadcast and sound contracting fields

magazine

Buyer's Guide-Speaker Systems,Performance and Studio Monitor

On the pages that follow, you will find a Guide to speakers, both studio monitors andperformance/stage types, each treated separately. The Guide is in chart form and isimmediately followed by manufacturers' adressses. As usual, be aware that we attemp to contact every manufacturer but not all are promptor cooperative enough for our necessary deadlines.

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ALTEC LANSING CORPORATION30 g'ay black 9 35-20k 12

bA 34 lacq nylon18

30 oak black 8 35-20k 12 coneEJ 34 yen, nylon

18

30 gray black 8 20k 1240 lacq nylon20

APOGEE SOUNDAl- 1 16 black gray 8 63-19k 8

10.25 text foam 4

8 paintAUDIO MEDIA RESEARCH (PEAVEY)PRM 25 black black 8 42-18k 12312A 15.88 fabric 3

13

PRM 21 black black 8 44-18k 10310S 14 fabriC NMI11.25PRM 17.5 black black 8 45-18k 8308S 12.25 fabric 3

11.5PRM 8.25 black black 8 79-18k 5205A 11.5 fabric 3

6.75PRM 9.75 black black 8 68-18k 8208S 15 fabric 3

8.25ELECTRO-VOICESent- 17.25 black gray 6 45-18k 8ry 12 vinyl cloth 3100A 11.13Sent- 17.25 black gray 6 45-18k 8ry 12 vinyl cloth 3 ail100EL 11.13Sent- 23.75 black gray 8 40-18k 12ry 27 vinyl cloth 3

500 13

Sent- 19.5 black gray 8 40-18k 12ry 25.6 vinyl cloth 3505 18.7MS- 17.2 oak 6 45-18k 8802 12 vinyl 3

11.1

FOSTEX CORP. OF AMERICA -See our ad on CoverRM800 15 black black 8 55-25k 6 5 cone

8.5 vinyl cloth8.6

RM900 17 black black 8 50-25k 810.25 vinyl cloth10.43

RM1000 24.5 black black 8 25k 8 co14.5 vinyl cloth11.75

JBL PROFESSIONALCo, 6.25 charc black 4 120-20 5.3trot 6.25 gray metal 3

1 5.63 paintCon- 15.25 charc black 4 75-20k 6.5tot 8.88 gray metal 35 9 paint4425 16 oiled cloth 8 40-16k 12

25 walnut 312.25

4435 35.75 oiled cloth 8 30-16k 1538 walnut 3 121

17.1344:6 15.38 oiled cloth 8 55-20k I

9.38 walnut8.5

4408 17.25 oiled cloth 8 50-20k 812 walnut 211.63

4410 23.5 oiled cloth 8 20k 10 cons14.25 walnut11.25

4412 14.25 oiled cloth 12

MONITOR SPEAK

23.5 walnut11.25

come

con*

cone

cone

con*

II

8.5

5

5

5

5

1

horn

horn

Vented 2 -way studio or broadcast monitorsystem.

2 -way vented studio or broadcast monitor

2 -way vented monitor system.

18 $420.00 Exceptionally clear reproduction ofvoice and music in foreground musicapplications.

soft 300 58 8439.50 3 -way system with rear level control fordo 3k both the high ant' midrange drivers. Pow-

er handling is 200 watts program.soft 300 $399.50 3 -way system with a power handling ca -do 3k pacify of 150 watts program. gissoft 300 28 $299.50 3 -way system with response mode switch.

3k power handlir g capacity of 180 wattsprogram.

soft 2.5 '7 599.50 2 -way system with drivers that are moun-do ted on the sa ne vertical axis. Power

handling cap city is 50 watts program.soft 6 $199.99 2 -way system with drivers mounted on

the same vert cal axis. Power handlingcapacity is 6C watts program.

1.5 do 2k 27 5360 00 Incorporates t ont mounted high -frequen-cy shelving cr.ntrol. Rack mountable.

1.5 do 2k 33 5750 00 Internal 50 watt MOSFET power amplifier..Rack-mountat le.

1.5 1.5 70 $71400 Constant dire tivity and time -coherentstudio monitor

1.5 1.5k60

1.5 2k

1.25p.

$71400 Constant dire tivity and time -coherentstudio monito suited for 1/4 spaceplacement.

27 $599.90 Rack mountable studio monitor. Incor-pair porates front-iiounted high -frequency

shelving control.

7k 14.75 $500.00 Coaxial two-way system. Employs con -pair stant directivity RP square horn.

7k 18.75 $788 00 Has high freq Jer,Cy attenuation andpair field switch

2.0 7k 49 51000 00 Double spyder woofer. Binding posts for

75 6k 4

dome 3k 10

bi- 4 1.2 57radhorn

bi- 250radhornTi 3k 17

dome

pair

$200 00

8335.00

$950.00

inputs.

Shielded mag let structure, option-al mounting h udware. Miniature system,Control Series family.

Smooth, accu ate response, flat powerresponse, 20C watts cont. program capa-city.

S2 CS5 00 Stable stereo maging that remains fixedover a wide ra nge of horizontal posi-tions.

6225 CC Ideal for cons.,le or close -in listening.Deep, powerful bass.

Ti 2 5 26 0275 OC Ideal for broadcast and general monitor -dome ing applications.

800 43 $420 00 Vertical line ar-ay that gives maximum4 S special detail at greater listening dis-

tances.800 47 5.350 00 Tight cluster arangement and superior4 5 power efficien:y.

C)co

O

N5\045

d'ef s\O0\kl:

04 .At5 e

9° xA c,0 c-49 000

yO?' .4CS sg" )Ct 004C't1

0\5 C,1°' OP° c.\ 00' 2,eptk ocoSS04 st100.0tP

KLARK-TEKNIKJade 21.5 black no 20k 55-17k 8

One 15.5 text grille 1:: 3

MKII 10 epoxyKLEIN & HUMMEL (GOTHAM AUDIO CORP.)

coneneoflex

' 25 soft 2 5 48.5dome

52 255 00 Optimum phase linearity, creatingan accuarate stable soundfield formixing, mastering, etc.

098 15 gray black 4 7 50-16k 8 cone dome 75 dome 800 26.4 S1255 00 Active, tri-amplified, 2 electronic10 cloth 2.5 6k X-overs with location dependent7.25 equalizer. (amps:1-100W, 2-50W).

096 20.7 gray black 4 7 50-20k 10 cone dome /5 dome 600 48.4 $2.270 00 Active, tri-amplified (3-60W), 212.4 cloth 2.5 4k electronic X-overs with location11.4 dependent equalizer.

092 31.5 gray black 4 7 50-17k 10 cone cone 1 dome 500 66 S4 195 00 Active, tri-amplified (1-120W, 2-6017.3 cloth 2.5 2) metal 3k W), 2 electronic X-overs with lo-11.8 cation dependent equalizer.

KLIPSCH AND ASSOCIATESKSM 16.0 text black 8 35-15k 12 reflex 2.75 horn 5 9 5435 00

19.5 black grill 5.0 8.7522.0 cloth

KSM-1 18.0 text black 8 50-15k 15 reflex a°4_ 'horn 1 5559 $529 CO20.0 black grill 5.0 10.2522.0 cloth

KSM-2 24.0 text black 8 50.15k 15 reflex 3 25 horn 15575 5545 0025.5 black grill 5.0 10 2520.0 cloth

MEYER SOUND LABORATORIES INC.833 32 satin foam 8 35-18k 15 cone rad 115 56 300 00 Studio reference monitor system includes

20 black 4 horn electronic control unit.19.75 larnin

834 38.5 satin24.13 black foam 8 30-100 18 cone 127 51 500 07 130 dB SPL. Used as a subwoofer with the20.13 lama, 833 monitors.

PANASONIC RAMSAWS- 8 black black 8 80-16k 5 full - 6 $120 00 Compact full -range, near -field monitor.A10 12.5 resin metal range Magnetically shielded. Accessories opt.

8 coneWS- 6.1 white white 6 80- 4 7 cone 5.7 $120.00Ala 6.1 black black 16k

9.8 mold metal 5

PROFESSIONAL AUDIO SYSTEMSSM-1 25 oak black 8 37-20k 15 cone horn 1.2 90 $4,600 00 Studio monitor with time offset correc-

19.5 black cloth 3 bon.18.5

SM-2 38 black 4 8 25-20k 15 cone 15 cone 2 horn 190 510,500. 3 -way studio monitor with time offset36 3 correction.24.5

STUDER REVOX A m ERICA I", -See our ad on page 302706 12 dark black 4 42-20k 12 cone 2 dome dome 720 48 $825 00 Compact. Can be installed on floor

15.1 gray anod 3 5k stands or suspension brackets. High13.5 nextel alum power dome transducers.

A723 22.9 wal- black 40-20k 12 cone 5 cone dome 300 88 $1850.00 Each crossover has dedicated 100w amp.12.7 nut cloth 3 27k 'RE Useful in small to medium sized listen -16 venr ing environments.

TANNOY NORTH AMERICA INC.PBM 12 vinyl black 8 57-20k 65 poly 75 dome 2.4 18.5 $338.00 Small size. Ideal for portable desktop

8 materia pair reference monitor8.5

PBM 15 pewter black 8 47-20k 8 poly dome 2.4 $478.00 Deep extended low frequency. ideal8 10.13 gray materia. pair for acoustic and classical music.

10.63 vinylAUM- 15 black black 8 55-25k 6 5 poly dome 3k 1 $548.00 MT ("Oifferential Material Techno-TP1 10 ash material pair r). Fully sheilded. Ideal for

8.5 vinyl dcast and audio for video.NFM8- 18.5 Nextel black 8 48-25 8 poly dual comp 2.3 6998.00 ear -field reference monitor forDMT 10 grey material conc horn pairphase coherent mixing. Ideal for

8.5 portable reference.LGM 23 walnut black 8 55-20k 12 paper dual 2 comp 1 25520 051 8 00 Point source primary mix monitor for12B 16 venr material c.7,,,_ horn pair portable reference.

11

SCM 20.5 walnut black 8 55-20 paper 1,. i' 2 comp 1.2k40 C/0517',8 same as above.10B 14.5 veneer material horn pa r

8.5TASCAM rEAC CORP. OF -See our ads on page 22-2567010 black black 205

M metal metal100-18 4 cone 5 $300 CO Reference monitor system with built-in

amplifier.CM -4 9.2 black black 8 80-20k 4 cone 1 dome 2 5 5 5'25 00 2 -way reference monitor speaker system.

5.8 metal metal5.8

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O'e, 34 .,09 90:F Ot4S

s045, iNfc sles0 _4.05\ ..60.

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TOA ELECTRONICS22 -ME 6.7 gray black 8 100-17k5 coneAV 6.7 poly jersey

265 -

ME -AV

280 -

ME

312 -

ME -AV

5.813.88.1

9.815.7

9.39.322.13.211.8

TRANSDUCERef 20Stnd 22TLS 48Mon- 18'tor 12TLS 47Stu- 16dio 12TLS 39Stu- 15dio 11

TLS 35Super 14Com- 11

pactCom-pact

UREI-JBL639

8110

813C

20129

18

mot2316.5

13.520.7626.519

3631 ,

23815C 32

43.521 t

YAMAHA CrInoNS10

MS

NS41)

M

S1OX

520X

8.5 ;.

157.7523.5 "11.5126.1

9.56.57.511.857.75

gray black 8

poly jersey

gray black 8

poly jersey

gray black 8

poly jersey

DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED -Seeour ad on pageblack black 8 16-35k 9.5 cone 4.5 cowood brown 6.5 (21

walnut clothblack black 8 18-35k 9.5 cone 4.5 cone 1 domewood brown 6.5walnut clothblack black 8 20-20k 8 cone 1 domewood brown (2) fluidwalnut clothblack black 8 24-20k 8 cone 1 domewood brownwalnut clothblack black 8 28-20k 8wood brownwalnut clothblack black 8 30-20k 6

wood brownwalnut cloth

ESSIONALflat optblack grillepaintflat optblack grillepaintflat optblack grillepaintflat opt.black grillepaint

ORATION OF AMERICA -See our ads on page 4- 5black black 8 80-20k 7 cone 2.4wood cloth

8 50-17k 12

3

8 70-17k 15 cone3

8 50-17k 15 cone 15 co3

8 40-17k 15 cone 15

3 (2)

ALTEC LANSING

black black 8 30-20k 7 cone 2.4 soft 12wood cloth (2) do

black black 8

metal65-20k 4 carb

fiber

black black 8 65-20k 4

metal 12,

carbfiber

dome

,014S

04S

ON'0C4s1 ctS4'

- I\304'.

Ai"?' ,6CJEc 09

sm, 05tk.'" stlY, c'vs.

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$74.50 [ar-field cube. Audio/video sheildedmountable.

194 50 120 -degree eve.i dispersion,near-field,AN shielded, mountable, symetricalcomponent placement.

5249 50 Tweeter level co ltrol. 120 -degreeseven dispersion NV shielded,mount-able Symetrical ;omponent placement.

35.7 5419 53 Tweeter and mic -range level controls.120 -degrees even dispersion. ANshielded. Symet ical component place.

200 154 56 995 00 Transmission lin( design. Low freq.3.5 separately terminated.13k300 103 54.595 00 Transmission lin4 design. Low freq.13k

3k

separately terminated.

51,995 00 Transmission lin( design, featuringmagnesium allot suspended dome with sep-arate chamber.

3k 48 S1,595 00 Same design an I high frequency compo-nent as the Stud o-3.

dome 3k 26.5 S1.095 00 Reflex design.

dome 3k 22 5935 00 Reflex design.

compdriv

IfCmoompe

driv

compdriv

compdriv

softdome

soft

60

110

$750 33 Time aligned, flat power response main-taining freq. bal. at low distortionover wide range output levels.

St 5,+0 90 Minimizes listenilg fatigue, accurastereo imaging.

198 52,290 00 Minimizes listenilg fatigue, accurastereo imaging.

260 52,990 00 Minimizes listeni ig fatigue, accurastereo imaging.

2k 132 S237 00 Industry -stand I studio close -fieldmonitors.NS10M:: is commercial version.

1.2 37.4 5465 00 Bigger version o' the NS1OMS with great -5k er low -end response.

6.2 5145.00 Very compact wide range system. Handlesup to 150 watts )f program materiel.

4.6 5210 00 Compact dual -d iver wide range system.Handles up to 3)0 watts of programmaterial.

PERFORMANCE SPEAKERS937 30 black black 8 70.15k 12

23 text nylon20.7

9872 30 unfin neut 8 80-20k 128A 23 birch brown

149872 30 tan neut 8 20-20k 128F 23 text brown

149812 34 gray black 5^ 60-13k 158A 23 text nylon

22APOGEE SOUND

45 black gray 8L 53.19k 15

29 text foam 8N' 430 paint 16H

cone

cone

cone

cone

dcone

18x9 horn

constdirec

3k Multi -purpose, vented, two-way moni-tor loudspeaker system.

1F.9 hornconstdirec

fik Two-way, venter, full -range.

16x9 hornconstdirec

a Two-way, venter, full -range.

30x horn 500 Two-way, venter, full -range.17 const

direc

2 horn 21 horn 1k

7 61250 sa 400 00 Extremely high power, wide range,

fully horn-loadsl, trapezoid designwill array for ccvicert reiforcement

&5

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cookstk0

Ot.S,IC?"00 cti'

cNS\ o4'tts c2 0\.4

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C:OS' 04> \ORC°' *09-' Cr- ° es 'CP x",*' c)5 c,", 00 c\0 !P." N\C' C° 440 p° FO.

AE -2 10.5 black gray 16 63-19k 8 cone horn ak

32 text foam10 paint16 black gray 8 70-18k 10 cone 3x5 horn 4k

12.5 text foam 3

paint23 black gray 8 55-16k 12 cone horn 5, horn 11,

14 text foam 4 t 3 5

14 paintAE 5 23 black gray 8 53-17k 12 cone 5x horn 16

14 text foam 4 13 5

16 paintAE 6 14 black gray 8 53-17k 12 cone 5x horn 1k

23 text foam 13 5

15.5 paintAE -10 22.5 black gray 8 36.120 15 cone 100

32 text foam 12'

24 paintAE -12 30 black gray 8 35-120 18 cone 100

44.8 text foam 4 021

22.5 paintARX SYSTEMS -See our ad on page 21812 40 poly acous 8 40-206 18 reflex12 dome 2 horn 250

40 paint foam 16 2) (2) 2k22.7

212 34 poly acous 8 200- 12 dome 2 horn 2k

20 paint foam 16 20k

23.5912 48 poly acous 8 40- 15 bass 12 dome horn 250

20 pil -.1 foam 18k horn

22KA118 22.5 poly acous 8 40- 18 bass 80

40 paint foam 200 horn 250

KA115 37 poly acous 8 35- 12 heavy 100 94

22 paint foam 100 duty

306 22.4 poly acous 8 50- 12 cone 1 CD 2k

15 paint foam 206 flare

15

303X 24 poly acous 8 50- 12 cone CD 2k

15 paint foam 20k flare

15

CARVIN CORPORATION30.5973 g,ey black 8 50-19k 15 cone 6.5 cone 3.5 horn 400

22 Orate metal 3 f3 4.5 4k

15.

993 47 grey black 4 45-19k 15 cone 8.5 cone 35 horn 400

25 Ofle metal 3 (2) (2) 4.5 4k19.25 MN (2)

852 26 grey black 8 65-17k 15 cone 6 horn 2k20 Oz,te metal 16 5

14

962 31 grey black 8 65-17k 15 cone 6 horn 2k24 Czite metal 16 5

15

1331 32 grey black 8 60-3k 15 cone 26

28 Ozte metal

241210 23 grey black 4 100- cone 150

28 Ozte metal 3k 2k

24

3018 24 grey none 8 60- 18 cone 150

42 Oz,te 50024

752 22 grey black 8 80- 12 cone 3 horn 26

18 Ozte metal 17k 10

13

CELESTION INDUSTRIES, INC.SR- 7 grey black 8 80- lx dual

Corn- 9 mesh 20k 5 conc

pact 7 3

SR- 10 grey black B 60- 1x dual3 13 mesh 20k conc

9 3

SR -1 12 grey black 8 50- 2x dual

r- 22 mesh 20k conc

30 SI .095 00 165 degree horizontal dispersionenables underbalcony applications -or in facilities with low ceilings.

40 5750 00 Tremendous power/size ratio in vo-cal range. Works well with subs forclub and disco installations.

65 51 495 00 High power, full -range, single-amped speaker system. Ideal forchurches, auditoriums, PA systems.

78 62,150 00 Exceptionally clean, natural highfrequency response. Trapezoid de-sign enables multiple coupling.

78 52 r 70 00 High power stage monitor. Multipleangle design, polar response foroptimum stage coverage.

138 $1 78, 03 Powerful bass reproduction fromcompact enclosure for small clubapplications.

60 52,110 00 Powerful bass response for largeclubs and concert venues. Built-inrigging points.

260 One -box concert speaker in trape-zoid cabinet. Comes with flyingpoints. Optional dolly set

100 52.699 00

132 53100.00 Offers the amplifier efficiency of3k a 2 -way system with improved fre-

quency response of 3 -way system.195 52299.00 Extends bass response of 912 sys-

tern; or use as full range system. 4 5To be used with 303X where exten-ded frequency response is needed.

50 51299 00 Operates at continuous high SPL.Has three angles of profile.

50 61299 00 Compact 2 -way speaker suited forconvention centres, nightclubs,theatres,etc.

85 5369 00 Full -range 3 -way speaker systemHandles 400w.

146 5620 00 3 -way system will handle 800w ofpower. Projects sound accuratelyat full power.

58 3299.00 Has large 45/90 degree exponentialhorn. Deep bass response. Formedium size club use.

90 6349.00 Designed for maximum projection.Tuned horn -loaded and port -loaded.Handles 400w continuous power

130 5349 00 Horn and port loaded woofer speak-er will handle 400 w continuous power.

85 5290 00 Midrange speaker system for usewith a tn-amped speaker array

145 54.16 00 Folded horn 18in. bass speaker.Used for high level sound reinforcement. Strong subsonics.

55 5239 00 2 -way monitor will handle 200w.Excellent vocal monitor.

7 5199 00

20 5330 00 Requires SRC3 controller forproper operation

20 6545 00 Requires SRC1 controller forproper operation 14

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oP ce-`' 5;,55 00c- s' ,os-C°- 0.0°4 v,65-s 9

N10°C4 \\" CC4r. 40' 0:C

CS70 26.7 black black33.5 carpt metal18

CS52 38.5black black 4 40-

18 carpt metal18

CS50 33.5black black 8 35-

26.7 carpt metal18

CS45 33.5 black black3k 80

18 carpt metalCS38M 17.5 black black

17.5 carpt metal25

CS35 23.7 black black17.5 carpt metal13.5

CS28M 14 black black15 carpt metal22.5

CS25 18.5 black black15 carpet metal13.5

ELECTRO-VOICEDML- 23 black black1122 14.6 text steelA 14 paint w/foamDML- 29.88 black black1152 18 text steelA 16.28 paint w/foamDML- 36 black black2181 22.5 text steel

29.88 paint w/foamSH18- 49 black black10ER 25.8 carpet steel

25.8SH150 31.9 black black2ER 24.7 carpet steel

16S-120 25.5black black2ER 19.5 carpet steel

12

FM12 19.5black black 8 75-02ER 19.5 carpet steel

24.8S-200 24 black grey

15 plastic cloth8.5 steel

FORMULA AUDIO INC.DR- 24 gray black4401 14.5 Ozite metal

13 foamDR- 36 gray black4402 19.5 Ozite metal

22 foamDR- 36 gray black4403 36 Ozite metal

22 foamDR- 45 gray black4428 22.5 Ozite metal

30 foamSM22 15.5 black black

22.7 text metal17.7 poly foam

SM25 15.5 black black25.7 text metal18.5 poly foam

PLUS 43.2 black black2HM 22.5 text metal

28 poly foamPLUS 43.2 black black30B 22.5 text metal

26 poly foamRAM- 54 black black300 22.5 text metal

22.5 poly foam

COMMUNITY LIGHT AND SOUND -See our ad on page 274 45- 12 ferr 2 comp

Cone18k drvr

15 ferr 8.5 ferr horncone20k cone

18 ferr

500 cone

4 50-

18k8 60-

18k

8 60- 15

18k

8

8

70-

18k

70-18k

12

ferr

coneferrcone

ferrcone

cone

8 674 12 one3

8 50-20k 153

8, 36-100 188

8 IS20k3

8 62- 1520k3

8

12 come20k3

8 50-18k3

16H 63-16k 128M

8H

8L

3

43-20k

10

15 n dir 23 rad

2

(2)

15.5fe8

15.5x8

2418

8

horn 100

82

5k

100

horn

horn 25kduct

horn 25kduct

horn 3k

$979 00 3 -way passive, f 111 range speaker.

$506.00 3- way full range passive speaker

$599.00 Compact subwo)fer.Internal 150Hz cossover with dualhigh pass outpu s.

$545 00 2 -way passive ft II range systemwith HF section.I8

$399.00 Wedge stage m >Mot.

$349 00 2 -way full range speaker.

$327.00 2 -way wedge m mitor.

$295 00 2 -way full -range system.

2 horn 1.3k $1,860 00 High output electronically control-led system feat, ring high excursioncomponents. 2 -way system.

2 horn 1.1k 98 $2,184.00 High power wid f range 2 -way elec-tronically contro led system pre-vents over-heati 1g/over excursion.

100 164 52,328 00 Electronically cc ntrolled subwooferutilizing Manifof 1 technology, highexcursion drivers.

horn 250 bscoop encic sure with reverse2.5k unted ProLin j 188.0110X mid

DH3 tweeters.horn I 1.6k 1 5629 90 Horn loaded. N1 VI EVS-15 woofer and

2010A tweeter.

1.8k $709.90 Proline 12S ant 2010A on HT94

90 Floor monitor in operates Proline12S and 2010A on HT94 horn.

$1250.00 ?air of speaker: and stereo rack-systm mountable equ ilizers

1.2 $1,300 .00 Flying hardware standard, trape-zoidal, 310 watt; RMS.

12,100.00 Flying hardwart standard, trape-zoidal, 370 watt; RMS

$3,500.00 Flying hardwarr standard, trape-zoidal, 740 watts RMS.

$1,800 00 130 dB continumis, 133 peak,1000 watts RMf.:.

2 horn 1.2k $1,400 00compdrvr

2 horn 1.2k $1,600 00compdrvr

12 horn 2 horn 1.6k $3,600 00 Fully horn load.kd system.comp comp Will exceed lev :Is of 138 dB.Can bedrvr drvr flown in tight cl osier.

I8 horn 250188 5822,,880000 0000 Module) can

(2)

2

1 5k

exceed levels cf 138dB. Can beflown in tight cl Jster.

SPL.rotate 90 degrees. Handles 130dB.

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Nt\C)9005k siAOCI r?OG

FOSTEX CORP. OF AMERICA -See our ad on Cover IIISP11 7 black black 8 60-18k 4 cone 12 5270 00 Built-in power amplifier.

14 plas metal 3 12)

8.4SPA11 7 black black 8 60-18k 4 cone 17 5399 99

14 plas metal 3

8.4GAUSS3588 8 40-18k 15 cone 2 comp 1 2k 25 5990 00 C.naxial raw loudspeakerhandles

200watts RMS. Sensitivity of 9648.For studio and live use.

3288 8 40-1Bk 12 cone 2 comp 2k 24 5925 00 Cflaxial raw loudspeaker handles200watts RMS.Sensitivity of 91dBFor studio and live use.

3265 70-15k 12 cone 2 comp 2k 24 5925 00 Coaxial raw loudspeaker handles200wattsRMS. Sensitivity of 99dB.

SYSTEMSHARTKE -See ad cilille 26Flush -mountable in ceilings.

-1S401015 black black 8 30-4k 10 alum 87 1999.00 JI9. rivers exhibit quick transientIIB 24 carpt metal cone ' ponse.%s

24HS1 ISB15 black black 8 30- 15 alum at-

I$799.00 Drivers exhibit quick transient

24 carpt metal 2.5k cone response.24

HS412612 black black 8 40- 12 alum 904 61150.00 same as above28 carpet metal 5k cone28

HS210 12 black black 8 50- alum 45 5699.00 same as above24 carpet metal 4k cone14

JBL PROFESSIONAL46120 18.5 multi cloth 8 60-21k 8 cone 3 ring 3k 45 5665 00 Wide, tightly controlled disper-

21.5 lamin bi- sion, extended freq. res.,high pow -10.25 hdwood radial er, high efficiency.

0-734 26.25 Tay black 8 50-17k 13 cone 88 horn 1_5 53 5555 00 2 -way portable system designed to20.25 tole), metal 10 comp deliver wide bandwidth and high SPL12.75 driv

3-791 5 8 1.5-171 5 10 5260 00 Contains horn, driver and X -over

15.25 10 for musicians who want to custom9.75 load components in own cabinets.

3-730 21.75 telex black 8 70-17k 12 cone 0 88 horn 28 45 5495 00 Compact, 2 -way system ,high yield18.25 metal 10 comp acoustic output from small/portable11.75 driv package.

G-731 16 tole), black 8 70-17k 12 cone 0 88 horn 2k 47 5525 00 Lightweight, 2 -way floor monitor18.25 metal 10 comp designed for high acoustic output21.75 driv from small/portable package.

G-732 33.25 tole), black 8 45-17k 15 cone 0 B8 horn 1 5 77 0660 00 High efficiency system utilizing a24.75 metal 10 comp G -135A-8 low freq. driver mounted17.75 driv in a horn enclosure.

G-733 20.25 tole), black 8 50-17k 10 cone 8 cone 3k 52 5595 OC 3 -way keyboard system.26.25 metal 1012.25

46288 30.19 multi cloth 8 35-21k 15 cone 8 cone 3 ring 800 108 0950 00 Specially designed for synth,20.13 lamin rad 3, piano and organ with superb bottom18.8 hdwood end for clean pedal tones.

JOE'S SOUND & SALAMI CO.IBUL 24 black metal 35-1k 18 cone 35 5475 00 Ultra -light empty cabinet.

21 pebble black16

018 48 black metal 35-1k 18 cone 100 5899 00 Perfect for sub -woofer appl ca -PRO 21 pebble black bons.

16

PRO 24 black metal15 21 pebble black 45-2k 15 cone 50 5399.00 High output empty cabinet. Made of

18 wood/chemical laminate.RL 24 black metal 6 45.15k 15 cone 4x horn 28 50 5449.00 High volume monitor where low15M 21 pebble black 3 10 frequency punch is desired.

16

RL 21 black metal 6 75-15k 12 cone 4x horn 26 38 $399 00 High output speaker for space re -12 pebble black 3 10 stricted applications. Ideal for16 portable PA and discos.

RL15 24 black metal 6 45-15k 12 cone 4x horn 2k 50 5449.00 Stand -mounted speaker with good21 pebble black 3 10 low -frequency punch. Designed for16 DJ installations.

RL 21 black metal 6 75-15k 12 cone 4x horn 26 38 High output from a small package.12M 16 pebble black 10

16410- 28 black metal 75-2k 10 cone 45 5399.00 Designed for bass players lookingCBB 24 pebble black punch. Smooth transients.

14

15CBB 24 black metal 45-2k 15 cone 35 5330.00 High output, cost effective unit.21 pebble black18

- \-19' AF q,.. O., cil ,I."NOP ,,..\\ 0k, eV". citc-5c - 0,, C:)\° 1414 00.1S .ros v.,0-',... ,o, 4.

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KLIPSCH & ASSOCIATESKR 28.6 text black 8

201 16.3 black grill13.5 paint cloth

KP- 22.6 text black 8


KP- 32.6 text black 8


KR 55.7 text black 8

450 27.7 black grill18 paint cloth

LS1 35.1 text 8

24 black24.7 paint

MARTIN AMERICAYRS 22.5 black black 831000 51 black metal BM

26 1611

F2 22.5 black black42 metal25

F2 22.5 black blackBass 42 metal 8

36.5MEYER SOUND LABORATORIES IUPM-1 6.75 black exp 18

18.5 text metal7.5

UM -1A 14 black ['metal 8,

22.5 foamUFA- 14.5 black metal 8,1A 22.63 text w/gray 8

14.5 foamvSL-3 31.25 black metal 8,

56.75 text w/gray 430 foam

USW.1 blacktext

metal 4w/grayfoam

650- 45 black metal 4R2 30 text w/gray

22.5 foamUPA

1A 22.3black metal 60-16k 12

14 5

14.5 textfoam

With

633 32 waln acous 820 or trans14.7 black mater

834 38.1 black acous 824.1 satin trans20.1 mater

PANASONIC RAMSAWS- 13 black black 8A70 21 or wht or wht

12 paint clothWS- 14 black black 8A80 21.5 or wht or wht

12 resin metalWS- 28 black black 8A200 20 or wht or wht

16 resin metalWS- 28 black black' 8A240 20 resin grille

16

WS- 22 gray metal ( 8A500 10.7 or grille

16 whiteWS- 22 grayA550 10 or metal 8

1 white grille

50-20k 12 seal 2.7x 4.554 end 8.7 2

65-20k 12 bass 2.7x 4.554 reflx 8.7 2

45-20k 15 bass 3.3x 4.554 reflx 10.3 2

45-20k 15 bass 8.554 (2) rafts 21

55-17k 15 horn 5.7X 1.7x5 (2) 18.7 4.3

18

.

20k 5 54

60-16k 12

60-16k 124

75-20k 12

4 62:0

40-100 154 12)

30-100 184

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35-18k 153

30-109, 184

50-18k 8 120x120

80x

12

12

12

12

700 $425.00 Sensitivity 96d 3 (2.83v)

gnaw Sensitivity 101 lB (2.83v)

mom

*1748.00

*1071.00

2201.5

Sensitivity 101 f13 (2.83v)

Sensitivity 10418 (2.83v)

Sensitivity 10418 (2.83)

3 -way all horn loaded. Verticalformat. One be x system.

2222lbs is unk aded weight.Modularsystem can ac :ept variety of hornand driver con binations.

horn *893.00 'Ultra -compact and light weight, ef-ficient high po ver.

CDnom

redhorrt

$2,390.00 Efficient high tower, ultra -lowdistortion, flat esponse, requiresM -1A control e ectronics.

$2,490.00 Efficient high ( ower, ultra -lowdistortion, con- dad and versatile.

rad 265 54,820 00High power, high clarity and coher-ho ence, arrayabl 3, requires electron-

ic control unit M -3T).$1,785.00 Sub -woofer, hi ;h power, low distor-

tion.

X2.52.5

52,215.001Sub-woofer, hi ;h power, low distNon.

$2,390.00 Compact, high power, arayable.

5 $6,300.00 High continuo is output Low distor-tion.

houtput sr bwoofer for 833.$1600.00

*240.00

$280.00

$590.00

$510.00

1.5k 81200.00

Power capacity is 80 watts. Mag-netically shieliied, variety ofmounting opti ins.High SPL, compact, stackable, var-iety of mountir g options.

125 watt pow+ r handling, cornhigh SPL, star kable, variety ofmounting opti ins.Subwoofer sy tern requires modelWS-SP2A eler tronic crossover.

A mid/high sy :tern for use withtwo WS -A550 low -frequency sys-tems and WS-SP2A crossover.

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NP° ISCs tk\C"x's '1466 cCP `N06cs \°*'

PEAVEY AUDIO MEDIA RESEARCH30HDH2 carpet black 8 40-16k 15 cone 2 horn 1.2 10827 mesh 3 (4)

27

3020 38 black black 4 45-20k 15 cone 10 cone 2 horn 400 161HT 36.5 carpet pert 3 (2) (2) 1 twt 2.2k

18 steel 8kHDH1 59 black steel 40-16k 15 cone 12 horn 2 horn 300 250

27 carpet 3 121 (4) 1.2

271245M 17 black black 8 100-14 12 tone 2 horn 1k 53

20 carpet pert 3

17 steel1545M 20 black black 8 60.16k 15 cone horn 800 59

20 carpet pert 3

17 steelHDHM 24 black steel 8L 60-16k 15 C0110 2 horn 800 95

22 carpet Sol (4) 1.2k33

SP- 31 black black 8 60-16k 15 cone 2 800 862A 23.7 text mesh 2

17

SP -4 52.5 black black 4 40-16k 15 cone 2 1 2k 13525.7 carpet mesh 121

19.3

PROFESSIONAL AUDIO SYSTEMS51MRS -2 gray black 8 40-15k 15 cone 2 horn 1k 18532 carpet metal 3

23CX 25 gray black 8 60-15k 15 cone coax 1 26 7015.3 19 carpet metal 4 horn

10

RENKUS-HEINZFRS 20.1 black black 8 50-17k 15 cone 2 comp t 66 751S1C 30.2 carpet metal

16.2FRS 48 black black 4 45-17k 15 cone 3 3 comp 1 6k 1231S2 20 carpet metal 121

CD6 17.7

SUB 48 black black 4 45-200 15 cone 138152 20 carpet metal (2)

17.7

SR 24.3 black black 8 50-17k 12 cone 3.3 comp 52121D 157 carpet metal

14.2

SR2A 51 black black 4 40-17k 15 wane 3.3 comp 5223.7 carpet metal (2)

17

C-1 36.5 black black 8 300-17k 15 cone 5.6 comp 138M/H 31.5 carpet metal (4)

28

C-1 36.5 black black 4 50-300 15 185LOW 31 5 carpet metal (4)

28c -I 24 black black 4 36.80 18 175SUB 31.5 carpet metal (2)

31.5ROSS SYSTEMSH218 38 grey black 4 35- 14x comp 8x CD 300 176EV 38 carp metal 18.5k 23 drvr 10 horn 3k

18 3dBH118 43 grey black 4 45- 14x comp 8x CD 300 125EV 26 carp metal 18.5k 23 drvr 10 horn 3k

18 3

T183 30 grey black 4 45- 8 cone 8x CD 300 100EV 24 carp metal 18.5 10 horn 3k

17 3

T153 28 grey black 8 55 - cone 8 cone 4x CD 300 88HS 23 carp metal 18.5k 10 horn 3k

16 3

1152 24 grey black 8 55 - 15 cone 4x CD 3k 65HS 18 carp metal 18.5k 10 horn

17 3

T122 21 grey black 8 60 - 12 cone 4x CD 3k 45HS 16 carp metal 18.5k 10 horn

16 3

T122 21 gey black 8 65- 4x HF 3k 4516 carp metal 18.5k 10 4416 3

M152 28 epoxy black 8 55- 8x CD 3k 58(0 EV 17 metal 18.5k 10 hornr- 14 3

$749.99 High-level, 2 -way, direct radiatingenclosure. Processors and bi-ampcapable.

$949.00 High-level, full -range or triampedenclosure. Internal 4 -way passive

X -over. SPL is 99.5 dB.$1,899.99 High-level, 3 -way enclosure,tri-arnp

only. Processor capable.

$449.99 2 -way, biampable stage monitor.Built-in passive X -over. SPL is102 dB.

5479 99 2 -way, biampable stage monitor.Built-in passive X -over for full -range operation. SPL is 103 dB.

6749 99 Biampable, high-level, 2 -way stagemonitor with internal passive X -

over for full range operation.6499 99 Front loaded, direct radiating.hi-

level passive crossover. Biampable.Handles 300 watts.

5699 00 Front loaded, direct radiating,hi-level passive crossover Biampable.Handles 300 watts.

SI 490 00 Modular, full -range with time off-set correction.

5684 00 Compact, full -range, high outputstage monitor with time offset cor-rection.

51198 00 Compact 2-way,passively crossed-over,with 90 degree horn. Standmountable.

61860 00 Double 15 inch system with largeformat compression driver. Boxpassively crossed -over

$1700 00 Low -profile, band-passed,tunedsubwoofer.

51820 00 Compact trapezoidal enclosure. Maxcontinuous output of 126dB @ 1M.

$2890 00 Trapezoidal 2 -way system underprocessor control. Max continuousoutput of 134dB @ 1M.$4900.00Large-format coaxial point sourcewith constant directivity controldown to 300Hz.

63960 00 Four 15inch low frequency sec-tion of C-1 system. -3dB downpoint is 5 0Hz.

63505 00 Band-pass tuned, double 18inchsubwoofer will produce 136d80 1M.

$1249.95 3 -way biampable in Thiele alignedvented enclosure. 500Watts RMS,1000watts peak.

5895 00 3 -way biampable in Thiele alignedvented enclosure. 300watts RMS,600watts peak.

$699.95 3 -way biampable. 300watts RMS,600watts peak.

$549.95 3 -way biampable, with constantdirectivity horn. 350watts.

5399.95 Hurricane LF-15 and HF01/CDTin a compact cabinet. 300W.

5249.95 Premium 12inch speaker plusHFO1/CDT horn. 200watts

$199.95 2 -way, 100 watt. Features HF44compression driver.

$499.95 HT -94 horn flare for high powerand extended bandwidth stagecoverage 200watts RMS.

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SHURE B ERS IN, -See our ad on Cover IVit -J 1 r3200 25 black black 8 60-13k 12 cone 128 CD

17 vinyl metal 5 8 horn13

3122 24 beige brown 60-13k 12 cone 12x CD 2k

'6 paint fabric 5 8 horn'2

SUNN28 gray black 8 50-20k 15 cone comp horn 1.3k 7

12; 5 25 carpet metal 3 diver19

so. 46 gray black 4 38-20k 15 cone comp horn 1.2k12:7,3 25 carpet metal 3 (2) driver

19

1282 17 gray black 8 60-15k 12 cone camp horn 1.21c

25 carpet metal 3 driver19

1285 17 gray black 8 50-15k 15 cone camp horn 1.2k25 carpet metal 3 driver19

1201 gray blackcarpet metal

8 60-17k 12 cone dualpiezo

1.5k


8 60-17k 15 cone dualpie

1.5k


8 50-20k 15 cone compdrivr

1.2k

1228 gray black 8 45-20k 18 cone comp 1.2k 82

TURBOSOUNDmetal drivr

TXD- 16. blue pert 8 100- 12 cone soft

520 11. Paint steel 18k dome10. 4TXD- 12slotblue pert 8 90- 10 cone

530 25 paint steel 20k twt

13 4

TXD- 45 blue pert 8H 45-18k 18 cone '0 cone 1 horn

580 21 paint steel 8L 4 (2)

17

TFM-2 22 black black 60-18k 15 cone 15 turb 2 turb 1

14 foam 3 conc conc3.3

TMW- 14 black ck 41_ 17k.1L0- 15 cone horn 92.6

215 34 paintfoam 18H r (2)

20.7TMW- 12hornblack black 110.18 12 cone 66

212 16 paint foam 3 (2)

27TMW- 10 blue black 150.18 10 cone twt 33

4210 23 paint foam 3 (2)

13

TXD- 29 blue pert 8 45- 18 cone 82

518 21 steel 2501 7

TOA ELECTRONICS iro380- 29.8 gray black 8 50- 15 cone horn exp 800

SE 19.13 poly 1 jersy 20k supr 8k18.1 Paint (

5 twtr

480- 32.3 gray I black 8 40- 18 cone horn exp 800SE 22 poly 1101sY 20k supr 2k

17.7 paint 5 twtr

380- 26.8 gray black 8 50- 15 cone horn 3 5 horn' .5

SD 19.4 tolex metal 20k 10kgg

15.4 5 1

300- 23.1 gray black 8 60- 12 cone horn 3 5 horn 1k 348.3

SO 18.1 tolex metal 20k 10k12.3 5

SL- 23.8 gray black 8 70- 15 cone horn

150 18.1 tolex metal 20k12.2 5

SL- 20.5 gray black 8 70- 12 horn 2k 28.7120 15.0 tolex metal 20k

12.2RS- 17.5 black black 8 5 1.5k 29.8

20 13.7 vinyl jersy 20k (4)

13.2 5

SEB 19.7 gray black y 40- 18 120 103

28 poly jersy 150

18.1 paint 5

.00*0'

$418.00 120 watts, prott ctive corners,handle, stand n ounting bracket,tlme-sync cross rver.

$470.00 120 watts, pain'able finish, T -nut hanging hardware, time -synccross -over.

$499.99 Trapezoid plywod cabinets, 200Wpower handling 100 dB SPL.

$899.00 Trapezoid plywi,od cabinet, 400Wpower handling 100 dB SPL

$449.99 150W power -handling, 100 dB SPL

$479.99 200W power -hr ndling, 100 dB SPL.

$239 99 Cost effective 2 -way systemwith 100 watts rower handling

$269.99 Features simila to 1201.

$399.99 Full range 2 wry system. 150watts-95dB SPL.

$599.99 Ideal DJ speak u. 150watts, 95dBSPL.

$665.00 Low frequency enclosure for TXDseries.

91,084.00

$2,244. Full -range high power wide disper-Won enclosure 'or bands, club,cinema, DJs, nobile systems.

92,093. Very high pow( r. Concentric disper-sion.

511,47 00 High power, ow profile

5s)',+ 00 Low profile, 2 -,ray passive monitorfor vocal, keyb3ards, percussion.

5895 DO Extra low pro63 vocal wedge foracoustic and jzz applications.

55,6 00 Low frequency enclosure for TXDseries.

8899.00 Bi/triampable,f IF and HF atten-uators. High a ficiency 360wattsRMS continuo's.

$1179.00 Bi/triampable, MF and HF atten-uators. High e ficiency. 360 watts

1kRMS continuo ls.$878.00 Bi-ampable,MI attentuator, slot -

loaded LF driver Stand mount -able. 360wattERMS continuous

$619.00 Bi-ampable, fVF attenuators, slotloaded LF driver. Stand mount -able. 360watt!RMS continuous.

.00 Interlocking cc rners for stacking.l'Stand mounta roe. 240watts RMS

continuous.

$299.00 Same features as SL -150

$299.00 Front latching covers, standmountable 4C Dwatts RMS con-tinuous.Subwoofer, bass reflex, passivecrossover and direct input.

S4115Hill

30.7 black25.2

blackmetal

8 45-18k 15

18.2S2115Hill 23.3

21 plyw/blk metal

black 8 50-16k 15

26.2S115MT

22 ply28.6 w01k

blackmetal

8 40-20k 15

139S112H 18 ply

24.3 w blkblackmetal

8 60-16k 12

11.8SM15H 20.5 ply

25.75 w.blkblackmetal

Ei 30-16k 15

15.5SM1OH 14.75 ply

18.75 w/blkblackmetal

8 60-16k 10

14MS-101

8.5 black5.8

blackmetal

30.20k 4

7.7MS- 8.5 black black 4202 11.5 metal 121

7.7YORKVILLE SOUNDMX 40 2 black black 4 55-16k 151000 27.2 c, !n

19.1pertsteel

3 (21

SW - 27.8 back black 8 50-300 18600 23.2 orlte

22pertsteel

3

SW - 4.3.3 black black 4 45-300 181000 28.5 ozIte

24.5pertsteel

3 12)

M-160 17.9 black black 8 65-19k 1014.6 ozite13.6

pertsteel

3

M-400 23.5 black black 8 60.20k 1020 5 ozIte13.8

pertsteel

3 121

M-600 19.5 black black 4 50-16k 1023.2 oz,te pert13.5 steel

3 (2)

MX - 27.2 black black 4 45- 15401 21.7 ozIte pert 19k

16.1 steel 3MX -160M

Altec Lansing Corporation10500 West RenoOklahoma City, OK 73128Apogee Sound Inc.1150 Industrial Ave., Suite CPetaluma, CA 94952ARX SystemsP.O. Box 842Silverado, CA 92676-0842Audio Media Research (Peavey)711ASt.Meridian, MS 39301Carvin Corporation1155 Industrial Ave.Escondido, CA 92025Celestion Industries Inc.89 Doug Brown WayHolliston, MA 01746Community Light & Sound333 East Fifth St.Chester, PA 19013Electro-Voice600 Cecil St.Buchanan, MI 49107Formula Audio Inc.RT. 5, Box 4403, Hwy. 39Zebulon, NC 27597Fostex Corp. of America15431 Blackburn Ave.Norwalk, CA 90650Gauss9130 Glen Oaks Blvd.Sun Valley CA 91352

\1,C60 .15

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klC) NIO NC' O stA 9

YAMAHA CORPORATION OF AMERICA -See our ads oncarbfiber

carbfiber

page 14-151 7 comp 1.6k

drvrhorn

1 7 comp 1.6kdrvr

cone b 5 cone 3 7 bullet 1.25k

cone

cone

cone

fullrange

fullrange

comp 1.6drvrhorncomp 1.6drvrhorncomp 2kdrvrhorn

cone 16x5 horn

cone

cone

cone 9x5 horn

cone horn

cone horn

horn

ADDRESSES

97 5695 00

77 5695 00

$445.00

$345.00

$395.00

$295.00

4.9 $125.00

8.8 $195.00

cc'*

New version of the 2 -way stagemonitor.Rugged cabinet withrecessed handles.High power -handling and excellentlow frequency response. Rugged two-way system for stage monitoring.All -cone 3 -way system for close -field reinforcement applications.Available in oak finish.Compact, 2 -way system for medium -throw applications. Ideal for tightstage situations. Opt oak finish.2 -way slant -front stage monitorwith wide high frequency dispersion

Ultra -compact stage monitor withhigh power. Ideal for applications

requiring "invisible" speaker.Compact self -powered (10watt) mon-itor with mic and two line inputs.Volume and tone controls.Wide -range self -powered monitor(20watt) with mic and 2 lineinputs. Volume and tone control

2.3 143 $1,250.00 Sensitivity is 105. SPL is 134 dB(1W/1M). Protection circuitry. XLRor 1/4 inch connectors.

100 8675.00 Program power is 600watts, effi-(rec) ciency 100daOyerload breaker.

Stand socket on top.100 81,299.00 Program power is 1200 watts,effi-(rec) ciency of 103dB.Overload breaker,

tilt -back dolley wheels.4k 33 $440.00 Program power is 160watts, effi-

ciency is 99dB. Stereo processor,subwoofer crossover

4k 62 $699.00 Program power is 400watts Effi-IS 97dB. Stereo processor, sub -woofer. Overload breaker.

1.8 77 $899.00 Program power is 600 watts, effi-ciency is 103dB. Stereo processing,subwoofer crossover.

2.k 68 $825 00 Program power is 400 watts. Effi -

ciency is 102dB. Stereo processorand subwoofer crossover.

Hartke Systems .

485-19 S. BroadwayHicksville, NY 11801JBL Professional (UREI)8500 Balboa Blvd.Northridge, CA 91329Joe's Sound andSalami Co.303 Clymer Ave.Morrisville, PA 19067Klark-Teknik(Turbosound)30 B Banfi PlazaFarmingdale, NY 11735Klein & Hummel(Gotham Audio Corp.)1790 BroadwayNew York, NY 10019-1412Klipsch & AssociatesBox 688Hope, AR 71801Martin America21000 Devonshire St., #205Chatsworth, CA 91311Meyer Sound Laboratories Inc.2832 San Pablo Ave.Berkeley, CA 94702Panasonic/Ramsa6550 Katella Ave.Cypress, CA 90049Professional Audio Systems1224 West 2.52nd St.Harbor City, CA 90710

Renkus-Heinz17191 Armstrong Ave.Irvine, CA 92714Ross Systems1316 E. LancasterFort Worth, TX 76102Shure Brothers Inc.222 Hartrey Ave.Evanston, IL 60202-3696Studer Revox America Inc.1425 Elm Hill PikeNashville, TN 37210Sunn1130 Columbia St.Brea, CA 92621Tascam (Teac Corp. of America)7733 Telegraph Rd.Montebello, CA 90640TGI North America (Tannoy)300 Gage Ave., Unit 1Kitchener, Ont., Canada N2M 2C8TOA Electronics601 Gateway Blvd., Suite 300South San Francisco, CA 94080Transducer Developments Ltd.652 Glenbrook RoadStamford, CT 06906Yamaha Corporation of AmericaP.O Box 6600Buena Park, CA 90622Yorkville SoundWitmer Industrial EstateNiagara Falls, NY 14305

NOtINE. . . . .. to the experts.

Dear Mr. Learned:I have read with interest your arti-

cles on Sound Reinforcementaround the world. What I would re-ally like to know is how do youmeasure the reverberation time in acertain room? What instruments doyou need? Is there a simple methodto do this measurement?

J.S. JusakIndonesia

To which Mr. Learned replies:Your letter made me realize that

my choice of reverberation ter-minology may have confused someof our readers. Strictly speaking,there is no such thing as "room re-

verb time." There is, however, a veryspecific reverberation decay time forevery individual room. Each in-dividual frequency of sound emittedinto a room decays at its own rate-defined as the time it takes for theamplitude of a given frequency tofall 60 dB below its original emittedamplitude. Measurement of aroom's reverb decay time must takeinto consideration each frequencywithin the range of human hearingindividually, as it is quite common toencounter rooms where certainfrequencies decay faster than others.This phenomenon can wreak havocwith amplified sound: if a speaker

system in a particular room hap-pened to be over -enhancing frequen-cies that take longer to decay, theroom would, in effect, amplify thesefrequencies further by increasingtheir duration time. This would re-duce intelligibility and "color" thesound.

There are many sophisticatedaudio analyzers that can performthese measurements. TEF or FFTanalyzers provide the most accuratemeasurements, but at the greatestcost. Certain types of real-time ana-lyzers can perform these measure-ments if they are equipped with anRT60 package. RT60 is the termused in reference to this reverb decaytime measurement. While there aremany schools of thought on the idealsound source for these measure-ments, my personal preference is apink -noise burst. My use of the term"reverb time" in reference to thevenues in my articles refers to myown simple method of assessing anaverage RT60. I stand in the centerof the audience area, and loudly clapmy hands. I then use a stopwatch totime the duration of the reverb, stop-ping the clock when I can no longerhear any. Something to remember:individual reflections or flutterechoes are not reverb. I also shout,using words like "you" or "hoe" that

contain lower free uencies; this givesme some idea of the relative differ-ences in decay times between highand low frequencies. When thesound system is up and operating, Iusually play a tape or CD of musicthat has excellent fidelity and a widerange of sounds. quickly mute thissignal, again observing the time ittakes for the reverb to die away.

With experience, this method cantell you a lot about where your prob-lem areas will be. Remember, how-ever; that colored system responsecould give you a false read on roomreverb. As a very general rule, if asound system exhibits the samesonic coloration in rooms of differentsize and composition, the problemlies with the speaker system.

If a specific coloration occurs onlyin a certain room, the problem maylie with the room's decay time atthose frequencies The bottom line inall of this is to remember that whatyou hear from a sound system is acombination of what the system putsout and how the 1: stening area colorsit. Remember tE at more level in-jected into a room will result in morereverb. Often, turning down theoverall volume is an excellent solu-tion to intelligibility problemscaused by long reverb decay times. kb

Write to HOTLINE!, db Magazine, 203 Commack Road, Suite 1010, Commack, NY 11725. Allletters become the property of db Magazine.

CD

New Ne4444

INTERFACE The RW760 is a rack -mountable

unit which will allow the HME 700Series Intercom products to connectto two -wire, non -compatible three -wire, four -wire or telephone inter-com systems. The RW760 includes amodular phone plug and the featureof capturing and holding the tele-phone line. An AC adapter is availa-ble to power the unit if not beingpowered by the three -wire intercomline.Mfr.-HM Electronics, Inc.Price: available upon requestCircle 31 on Reader Service Card

VOCAL MIC Electro-Voice has introduced the

MS -1000 wireless vocal microphonewith the EV N/D757 capsule. TheMS -1000 is a dual -receiver true -di-versity system with two separate re-ceivers on the front end. To virtuallyeliminate dropouts, the receiver withthe strongest signal is automaticallychosen. To assure interference -freeoperation in harsh rf environments,the receivers provide high selectivityfor rejection o f adjacent and interfer-ing signals. The transmitter in theMS -1000 delivers 50 mW of outputpower. To eliminate popping noises,the transmitter has separate rf-onand mic-on switches and operates forup to 10 hours on a single standardnine -volt alkaline battery. The 19 -inch, rack -mountable MS -1000operates in the VHF range, 165-216MHz. The system has a switchablemic/line XLR output, line level 1/4 -inch output, detachable antenna andan internal power supply.Mfr.-Electro-VoicePrice: $1,368.00 (includes receiver

and microphone)co Circle 32 on Reader Service Card

POWER AMPLIFIER The FET-2000C power amplifier

features up to 500 watts RMS perchannel into four ohm loads, with theFTC rating of 250 watts RMS perchannel into 8 ohms. The FET-2000C is meterless and features bar-rier strip input connections for per-manent installations. Paralleledphone jack input connectors arestandard for bench testing or for useas alternative inputs. It meets all Un-derwriters Laboratories' testing re-quirements and is now U.L. Listed.Mfr. Ashly Audio, Inc.Price- $999.99

AUTOMATION SYSTEM The MAGI II Console Automation

System is an integrated state of theart automation system that easily in-terfaces with any mixing console toprovide SMPTE-locked fader andmute automation. MAGI II consistsof rack mounted, high quality dbxVCAs, the MAGI II Controller unit, aMAGI remote fader unit, and soft-ware. The MAGI II software runs oneither an Apple Macintosh (SE, Plusor 512) or an Atari ST (520, 1040 orMega) computer. The system is avail-able in 16, 32, 48 & 64 channel con-figurations. MAGI II also features abuilt in SMPTE generator that canread and write all formats of SMPTEtime code.Mfr.-J.L. Cooper ElectronicsPrice: available upon request


AUDIO SYSTEM The KF300 is the latest addition

to the Forsythe Series of high defini-tion audio systems. The KF300 in-corporates the company's uniqueVirtual Array technology in an ultra -compact package designed for near -field applications. Dimensions are:271 -inches high, 14 3/4 -inches wideand 14 3/4 -inches deep. A separatesubsection reproduces the entire mi-drange. The KF300 is composed of a12 -inch woofer, a VA design mid -basshorn loading a carbon -fiber 6 1/2 -inchcone driver, and a constant coverageHF horn loading a titanium dia-phragm compression driver. The 3 -way system is capable of SPLs inexcess of 125 dB over a frequencyrange of 80 to 20 kHz.Mfr.-Eastern Acoustic WorksPrice: $2,125.00

d1111=1111111111111111Oz .

MIMED ONNIMP=IMMO MINIMONMEDelnIMP 4011ENDOIMINP MIMEDIMMO MINIM

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SOUND ABSORBER The 11 -inch Super Trap, a high -

efficiency broadband sound ab-sorber, is a second generation ofASC's popular 11 -inch Tube Trap. Itfeatures extended bass response andenhanced damping of standingwaves into the 70 Hz range. 11 -inchSuper Traps are specified for roomswith an 8 -foot ceiling, to control fun-damental floor -to -ceiling resonancesthat are often accentuated by dy-namic speakers and subwoofers.They are available in three and fourfoot standard or custom lengths, andare covered with Guilford 701 com-mercial standard fire-resistant fab-ric, available in a range of designercolors.Mfr. Acoustic Sciences Corp.Price- Dependant upon roomspecs.Circle 36 on Reader Service Card

PORTABLE SOUNDSYSTEM

The FMR-25P is a portable soundsystem with wireless microphonecapabilities. It is a complete, self-con-tained system with amplifier andspeakers housed in a compact enclo-sure. The unit weighs only 18 lbs. andis 9 inches high by 13 inches wide by9 inches deep. It comes with a protec-tive cover with handle for easy carry-ing. The FMR-25P features a power-ful 75 watt MOSFET amplifier and atri-radiant speaker array in anacoustically -tuned durable roadieCARP It is easily capable of handlingcrowds in excess of 500. Bass andtreble tone controls and separatelevel controls for each input allowcomplete control over the programquality and mix. It also has an exter-nal speaker output that can drive anexternal, unpowered speaker.Mfr. Telex Communications, Inc.Price- $940.00


RACK -MOUNTABLEDRAWER Rackdrawer is a "two space"

rack -mountable drawer that will fitinto any 19 -inch equipment rack.Shipped fully assembled, it mountsinstantly and securely into a studioor mobile rack. Rackdrawer has beenconstructed for on the road durabil-ity, and provides a storage space forcables, adapters, tuners, effectspedals, tapes and more.Mfr. Four Designs Co.Price- $44.95


REFERENCE GUIDE

The Custom Reference Guidedevotes nearly 100 pages to a graphi-cally -rich layout of case and con-tainer types, styles, optional attach-ments, interior treatments, shippingcosts and time estimators. The guidealso features a comprehensive "how-to" chapter on "Measuring, Tem-plating & Design Conception."Mfr. Star Case ManufacturingCo., Inc.Price- $3.00 (US.), $3.50 (Canada)


CARDIOM MIC The Type 4012 Professional Mi-

crophone is a pre -polarized con-denser microphone with a first -ordercardioid directional pattern,powered from Bruel & Kjaer Dual -Channel Power Supply Type 2812.Type 2812 supplies 130 V to thepreamplifier of the Type 4012, whichenables the microphone to handle upto 168 dB SPL before clipping occurs.The on -axis frequency responsemeasured at 30 cm distance is flatfrom 40 Hz to 20 kHz (+1,-2dB). Italso has a high output level and theability to drive very long cableswithout noticeable deterioration ofthe signal.Mfr.-Bruel & KjaerPrice: $1,633.00Circle 40 on Reader Service Card

SPEAKER ENCLOSURE The redesigned 112T two-way

speaker cabinet now contains a newenclosure featuring a 12 -inch STSspeaker vented through a pair oftuned ports. Highs are handled by aMotorola tweeter focused throughan acoustic lens. The lens controlsthe vertical dispersion pattern to 45degrees while dispersing the soundover a horizontal plane of 80 degrees,wider than could be obtained with ahorn alone. At only thirty pounds, the112T is easily transported.Mfr. SoundTech Int'l.Price- $179.50Circle 41 on Reader Service Card

CORD FASTENERS Cord -Lox will color code your ca-

bles, sort by size, length or type, andkeep them neatly coiled for protec-tion and safety. Cord -Lox are de-signed in such a way as to easily at-tach to your cords, and then wraparound them to keep securelybundled and tangle -free. There arecurrently 19 standard models availa-ble, to fit the smallest or largestcords. The company also custombuilds virtually any size or type youwould require for special needs.Mfr. Toleeto Fasteners Int'l.Price- Various

Circle 42 on Reader Service Card coco

magazineA Minimalistic Philosophy. Rick

Shriver. March/April 1989, p. 38.

A Technically -Minded Musician-Charlie Elgart. Corey Davidson.May/June 1989, p. 32.

Acoustical Design for Large Facili-ties. Michael Klasco. March/April1989, p. 6.

Ad Ventures. Brian Battles.January/February 1989, p. 41.

Ad Ventures. Brian Battles.March/April 1989, p. 32.

Ad Ventures. Brian Battles.July/August 1989, p. 68.

Ad Ventures. Brian Battles.May/June 1989, p. 35.

Ad Ventures. Home Brew SFX.Brian Battles. September/October1989, p. 20.

AES Seminar on Live TheaterSound Design. Bruce Bartlett.March/April 1989, p. 56.

An Interview with Jim Risgin ofMaryland Sound. Ed Learned.July/August 1989, p. 26.

Audio for the Church. Brent Har-shbarger. September/October 1989,p. 61.

Audio for the Church. Brent Har-shbarger. November/December1989, p. 52.

Broadcast Audio. Randy Hoffner.March/April 1989, p. 62.

Broadcast Audio. Randy Hoffner.May/June 1989, p. 54.

Broadcast Audio: The BTSC Sys-tem. Randy Hoffner. July/August1989, p. 60.

Broadcast Audio: Stereo Synthesiz-ers and Surround Sound Decor.Randy Hoffner. September/October1989, p.18.

Broadcast Audio: Multi -ChannelSound Around the World. RandyHoffner. November/December1989, p. 10.

serving: recording, broadcast and sound contracting fields

1989 INDEXINDEX BY TITLE

Church Reinforcement. RobynGately. January/February 1989, p.53.

Computers, Humidity and Sound.William R. Graham. July/August1989, p.41.

Concert Loudspeaker Processors.Andrew T. Martin. March/April1989, p. 25.

Creative Use of the Macintosh forAudio Post Production. Frank Sera-

fine. November/December 1989, p.28.

db Visits Boston: Jay Rose's AtticStudio. db Staff. September/October1989, p. 22.

db Visits Boston: Soundtrack,Editel, Silver Linings, Vizwiz, Tar-get. Steve Langstaff. September/Oc-tober 1989, p. 22.

db Visits the Windy City, HarpoStudios. Carol A. Lamb. May/June1989, p. 6.

db Visits the Windy City, ShureBrothers, Inc. Larry Zide. May/June1989, p. 6.

db Visits the Windy City, SotoSound Studio. Jerry Soto. May/June1989, p. 6.

db Visits the Windy City, Streeter-ville Studios. Jim Dolan. May/June1989, p. 6.

db Visits the Windy City, UniversalRecording. Murray R. Allen. May/June 1989, p. 6.

db Visits the Windy City, WFMT.Gordon S. Carter. May/June 1989, p.6.

From Seoul in Stereo: The 24thOlympiad. Randy Hoffner. January/

February 1989, p. 8.

Hands On Review: Aphex AuralExciter III. John Barilla. Novem-ber/December 1989, p. 62.

Hands On Review: ART Multiverb-EXT. John Barilla. September/Oc-tober 1989, p. 70.

Hot Tips for the Home Studio. JohnBarilla. May/June 1989, p. 56.

Hot Tips for the Home Studio. JohnBarilla. July/August 1989, p. 63.

Hot Tips for Akai 12 -Track Users.John Barilla. September/October1989, p. 54.

Hot Tips: A MIDI Ditty. JohnBarilla. November/December 1989,p. 6.

Insights on Mastering. JohnBarilla. September/October 1989, p.10.

Jagger Down Under. Ian "Mack"McKenzie. March/April 1989, p. 60.

Lab Report: Rocktron Hush IICX.Len Feldman. January/February1989, p. 54.

Lab Report: Soundcraftsmen300X4 Power Amp. Len Feldman.March/April 1989, p. 48.

Lab Report: Tascam MSR-16. LenFeldman. May/June 1989, p. 48.

Lab Report: ART Multiverb-EXT.Len Feldman. September/October1989, p. 68.

Lab Report: Fostex D-20 Digital(DAT) Recorder. Len Feldman.November/December 1989, p. 57.

Mike Mandel: The Songwriter'sDreammaker. John Barilla. March/April 1989, p. 52.

On Tour with the Dixie Dregs.Corey Davidson. March/April 1989,p. 18.

Pianos I Have Known. RobynGately. March/April 1989, p. 35.

Production Tips from the Elec-tronic Cottage. John Barilla.January/February 1989, p. 57.Recording Techniques: AES Work-

shop, Remote Recording. Bruce Bar-tlett. September/October 1989, p.58.

Recording Techniques: DemoTape. Bruce Bartlett. January/Feb-ruary 1989, p. 38.

Recording Techniques: On -Loca-tion Recording. Bruce Bartlett.May/June 1989, p. 38.

Recording Techniques: Operatinga Small Concert Sound System.Bruce Bartlett. July/August 1989, p.80.

Sigma Sound Studios-NY. TobyCohen. November/December 1989,p. 23.

Sound at MSG-Like Standing inthe Middle of a Hurricane. JohnBarilla. July/August 1989, p. 85.

Sound Recording in India. SanjeevKumar. November/December 1989,p. 42.

Sound Reinforcement for theGyuto Monks. Larry Oppenheimer.July/August 1989, p. 37.

Sound Reinforcement in New Zea-land and Southeast Asia, Part II. EdLearned. January/February 1989, p.44.

Sound Reinforcement in CentralAmerica and the Caribbean, Part I.

BRIAN BATTLESAd Ventures. Brian Battles.

January/February 1989, p. 41.

Ad Ventures. Brian Battles.July/August 1989, p. 68.

Ad Ventures. Brian Battles.March/April 1989, p. 32.

Ad Ventures. Brian Battles.May/June 1989, p. 35.BRENT HARSHBARGERAudio for the Church. Brent Har-

shbarger. September/October 1989,p. 61.

Audio for the Church. Brent Har-shbarger. November/December1989, p. 52.RANDY HOFFNERBroadcast Audio. Randy Hoffner.

March/April 1989, p. 62.

Broadcast Audio. Randy Hoffner.May/June 1989, p. 54.

Broadcast Audio: Multi -ChannelSound Around the World. RandyHoffner. November/December1989, p. 10.

Broadcast Audio: Stereo Synthesiz-ers and Surround Sound Decor.Randy Hoffner. September/October1989, p. 18.

Ed Learned. March/April 1989, p.42.

Sound Reinforcement in CentralAmerica and the Caribbean, Part II.Ed Learned. May/June 1989, p. 42.

Sound Reinforcement in CentralAmerica and the Caribbean, Part III.Ed Learned. July/August 1989, p.47.

Sound Reinforcement in NorthAfrica, Part I. Ed Learned. Septem-ber/October 1989, p. 48.

Sound Reinforcement in NorthAfrica, Part II. Ed Learned. Novem-ber/December 1989, p. 47.

Sound Reinforcement: GuestSoundmen. Robyn Gately. July/August 1989, p. 58.

Sounds and Surprises at the Winter1989 Special Olympics. Bruce Bar-tlett. July/August 1989, p. 8.

System Intelligibility Criteria.John Eargle. March/April 1989, p.28.

INDEX BY COLUMNIST

Audio: The BTSC Sys-tem. Randy Hoffner. July/August1989, p. 60.JOHN BARILLAMike Mandel: The Songwriter's

Dreammaker. John Barilla.March/April 1989, p. 52.

Hot Tips for the Home Studio. JohnBarilla. May/June 1989, p. 56.

Hot Tips for the Home Studio. JohnBarilla. July/August 1989, p. 63.

Sound at MSG-Like Standing inthe Middle of a Hurricane. JohnBarilla. July/August 1989, p. 85.

Hands On Review: ART Multiverb-EXT. John Barilla. September/Oc-tober 1989, p. 70.

Hot Tips for Akai 12 -Track Users.John Barilla. September/October1989, p. 54.

Hot Tips: A MIDI Ditty. JohnBarilla. November/December 1989,p. 6.

Insights on Mastering. JohnBarilla. September/October 1989, p.10.

ED LEARNEDSound Reinforcement in New Zea-

land and Southeast Asia, Part II. Ed

Tek Text #105: Noisegates-Backto Basics. Andre Walton. July/ Aug-ust 1989, p. 45.

Tek Text #106 Archiving Audio.Shelley Herman. September/Oc-tober 1989, p. 75.

The Changing Face of Film ScoringUsing the "New Technology." ArlonOber. November/December 1989, p.31.

The Electronic Cottage Moves Ups-cale. Corey Davidson. Januaty/Feb-ruary 1989, p. 16.

The New Buena Vista SoundStudios. Chip Murray. Novem-ber/December 19.39, p. 16.

Time -Code Features of the FostexD-20. Clay Hu:chinson & DanHetzel. November/December 1989,p. 61.

UB40 in Israel. Ron Altman.July/August 1989, p. 53.

Learned. January/February 1989, p.44.

Sound Reinforcament in CentralAmerica and the Caribbean, Part I.Ed Learned. March/April 1989, p.42.

Sound Reinforcement in CentralAmerica and the Caribbean, Part II.Ed Learned. May,'June 1989, p. 42.

Sound Reinforcement in CentralAmerica and the Caribbean, Part III.Ed Learned. July/August 1989, p.47.

Sound Reinforcement in NorthAfrica, Part I. Ed Learned. Septem-ber/October 1989 p. 48.

Sound Reinforcement in NorthAfrica, Part II. Ed Learned. Novem-ber/December 1989, p. 47.

LEN FELDMANLab Report: Rocktron Hush IICX.

Len Feldman. January/February,1989, p. 54.

Lab Report: Soundcraftsmen300X4 Power Ary. Len Feldman.March/April 198C, p. 48. CO

CP

Lab Report: Tascam MSR-16. LenFeldman. May/June 1989, p. 48.

Allen, Murray R. db Visits theWindy City, Universal Recording.May/June 1989, p. 6.

Altman, Ron. UB40 in Israel.July/August 1989, p. 53.

Barilla, John. Production Tipsfrom the Electronic Cottage.January/February 1989, p. 57.

Barilla, John. Mike Mandel: TheSongwriter's Dreammaker. March/April 1989, p. 52.

Barilla, John. Hot Tips for theHome Studio. May/June 1989, p. 56.

Barilla, John. Hot Tips for theHome Studio. July/August 1989, p.63.

Barilla, John Sound at MSG-LikeStanding in the Middle of a Hurri-cane. July/August 1989, p. 85.

Barilla, John. Insights on Master-ing. September/October 1989, p. 10.

Barilla, John. Hands On Review:ART Multiverb-EXT. September/October 1989, p. 70.

Barilla, John. Hot Tips for Akai 12 -

Track Users. September/October1989, p. 54.

Barilla, John. Hands On Review:Aphex Aural Exciter III. Novem-ber/December 1989, p. 62.

Barilla, John. Hot Tips: A MIDIDitty. November/December 1989, p.6.

Bartlett, Bruce. Recording Tech-niques: Operating a Small ConcertSound System. July/August 1989, p.80.

Bartlett, Bruce. AES Seminar onLive Theater Sound Design. March/

April 1989, p. 56.

Bartlett, Bruce. Recording Tech-niques: AES Workshop, Remote Re-cording. September/October 1989,p. 58.

Bartlett, Bruce. Recording Tech-niques: Demo Tape. January/Febru-ary 1989, p. 38.

Bartlett, Bruce. Recording Tech-niques: On -Location Recording.May/June 1989, p. 38.

Lab Report: ART Multiverb-EXT.Len Feldman. September/October1989, p. 68.

INDEX BY AUTHOR

Bartlett, Bruce. Sounds and Sur-prises at the Winter 1989 SpecialOlympics. July/August 1989, p. 8.

Battles, Brian. Ad Ventures-Home Brew SFX. September/Oct-ober 1989, p. 20.

Battles, Brian. Ad Ventures. Jan-uary/February 1989, p. 41.

Battles, Brian. Ad Ventures.March/April 1989, p. 32.

Battles, Brian. Ad Ventures. May/June 1989, p. 35.

Battles, Brian. Ad Ventures. July/August 1989, p. 68.

Carter Gordon S. db Visits theWindy City, WFMT. May/June 1989,p. 6.

Cohen, Toby. Sigma SoundStudios-NY. November/December1989, p. 23.

Davidson, Corey. The ElectronicCottage Moves Upscale. January/February 1989, p. 16.

Davidson, Corey. On Tour with theDixie Dregs. March/April 1989, p.18.

Davidson. Corey. A Technically -Minded Musician-Charlie Elgart.May/June 1989, p. 32.

db Staff. db Visits Boston: JayRose's Attic Studio. September/October 1989, p. 22.

Dolan, Jim. db Visits the WindyCity, Streeterville Studios. May/June 1989, p. 6.

Eargle, John. System IntelligibilityCriteria. March/April 1989, p. 28.

Lab Report: Rocktron Hush IICX.January/February 1989, p. 54.

Feldman, Len. Lab Report: Sound -craftsmen 300X4 Power Amp.March/April 1989, p. 48.

Feldman, Len. Lab Report: TascamMSR-16. May/June 1989, p. 48.

Feldman, Len. Lab Report: ARTMultiverb-EXT. September/October1989, p. 68.

Feldman, Len. Lab Report: FostexD-20 Digital (DAT) Recorder. Nov-ember/December 1989, p. 57.

Lab Report: Fostex D-20 Digital(DAT) Recorder. Len Feldman.November/December 1989, p. 57.

Gately, Robyn. Church Reinforce-ment. January/February 1989, p. 53.

Gately, Robyn. Pianos I HaveKnown. March/April 1989, p. 35.

Gately, Robyn. Sound Reinforce-ment: Guest Soundmen. July/ Aug-ust 1989, p. 58.

Graham, William R. Computers,Humidity and Sound. July/August1989, p. 41.

Harshbarger, Brent. Audio for theChurch. November/December 1989,p. 52.

Harshbarger, Brent. Audio for theChurch. September/October 1989,p. 61.

Herman, Shelley. Tek Text #106-Archiving Audio. September/Oc-tober 1989, p. 75.

Hetzel, Dan & Hutchinson, Clay.Time -Code Features of the Fostex D-20. November/December 1989, p.61.

Hoffner, Randy. From Seoul inStereo: The 24th Olympiad. Jan-uary/February 1989, p. 8.

Hoffner, Randy. Broadcast Audio.March/April 1989, p. 62.

Hoffner, Randy. Broadcast Audio.May/June 1989, p. 54.

Hoffner, Randy. Broadcast Audio:The BTSC System. July/August1989, p. 60.

Hoffner, Randy. Broadcast Audio:Stereo Synthesizers and SurroundSound Decor. September/October1989, p. 18.

Hoffner, Randy. Broadcast Audio:Multi -Channel Sound Around theWorld. November/December 1989,p. 10.

Hutchinson, Clay & Dan Hetzel.Time -Code Features of the Fostex D-20. November/December 1989, p.61.

Klasco, Michael. Acoustical Designfor Large Facilities. March/April1989, p. 6.

Kumar, Sanjeev. Sound Recordingin India. November/December1989, p. 42.

Lamb, Carol A. db Visits the WindyCity, Harpo Studios. May/June1989, p. 6.

Langstaff, Steve. db Visits Boston:Soundtrack, Editel, Silver Linings,Vizwiz, Target. September/October1989, p. 22.

Learned, Ed. Sound Reinforce-ment in New Zealand and SoutheastAsia, Part II. January/February1989, p. 44.

Learned, Ed. Sound Reinforce-ment in Central America and theCaribbean, Part I. March/April1989, p. 42.

Learned, Ed. Sound Reinforce-ment in Central America and theCaribbean, Part II. May/June 1989,p. 42.

Learned, Ed. An Interview withJim Risgin of Maryland Sound.July/August 1989, p. 26.

Buyer's Guide: Speaker Systems,Performance and Monitor.January/February 1989, p. 67.

Buyer's Guide: Power Amplifiers.March/April 1989, p. 67.

Buyer's Guide: Consoles and Mix-ers. May/June 1989, p. 57.

Learned, Ed. Sound Reinforce-ment in Central America and theCaribbean, Part III. July/August1989, p. 47.

Learned, Ed. Sound Reinforce-ment in North Africa, Part I. Sep-tember/October 1989, p. 48.

Learned, Ed. Sound Reinforce-ment in North Africa, Part II.November/December 1989, p. 47.

Martin, Andrew T. Concert Loud-speaker Processors. March/April1989, p. 25.

McKenzie, Ian "Mack." JaggerDown Under. March/April 1989, p.60.

Murray, Chip. The New BuenaVista Sound Studios. November/December 1989, p. 16.

Ober, Arlon. The Changing Face ofFilm Scoring Using the "New Tech -

BUYER'S GUIDE INDEX

Buyer's Guide: Microphones (in-cluding Wireless Mics), RecordingTape and Tape Accessories.July/August 1989, p. 69.

Buyer's Guide: Delays, Reverbs,Multi -Effects Processors, OpenReel, DAT, and Cassette Tape Re-

nology." November'December 1989,p. 31.

Oppenheimer, Larry. Sound Rein-forcement for tilt. Gyuto Monks.July/August 1989, p. 37.

Serafine, Frank. Creative Use ofthe Macintosh for Audio Post Pro-duction. November/December1989, p.28.

Shriver, Rick. A MinimalisticPhilosophy. March/April 1989, p. 38.

Soto, Jerry. db Visits the Windy City,Soto Sound Studio May/June 1989,p. 6.

Walton, Andre. rCek Text #105:Noisegates-Back to Basics. July/August 1989, p. 45.

Zide, Larry. db Visits the WindyCity, Shure Brothers, Inc. May/June1989, p. 6.

corders. September/October 1989,p. 77.

Buyer's Guide: Compressors,Limiters, Expand( rs, Noise Gates,and Noise Reduction. Novem-ber/December 1989, p. 71.

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Peekte, Pt4a4... HAtteift

Ben Rizzi of Master Sound As-toria, New York has signed an agree-ment for a joint venture with the Re-public of Latvia, which will completethe design, construction and instal-lation of the new recording studios tobe called Master Sound Riga.Rizzi, along with Maxine Chrein,will manage the new operation.The facility will open with two fully -

equipped, state-of-the-art recordingstudios. "This will mark the first op-portunity for artists from WesternEurope, the Baltic Republics andacross the Soviet Union to have theirproduct compete more effectively inworld markets from a technologicalperspective," said Rizzi.

In 1987, Master Sound Astoriapioneered the world's first interac-tive all digital, bi-coastal recordingsession via fiber-optic and satellitetransmission. Plans are being madeto create a permanent link betweenthe Riga and New York facilities util-izing similar technology. This willenable musicians to record simul-taneously in Riga and in New York.The digital signal will be sent be-tween the two locations without anyloss in sound quality.

Additional features of MasterSound Riga will include multi-track analog and digital recording,computerized mixing, internal fiber-optic interfacing, and superioracoustics. The contract signed re-cently in Riga by Raimonds Pauls,Minister of Culture of the Republic ofLatvia, signifies the first joint ven-ture agreement of this magnitudeentered into with the United Statesby a member of the Baltic Republicssince they were promised economicautonomy from the Soviet Unionthis summer. The deal further posi-

tions the Baltic Republics on thefront-line of glasnost and per-estroika."This venture between Master

Sound Astoria and the Republic ofLatvia will allow all musicians in theSoviet Union access to one of thehighest quality recording facilities inthe world," said Pauls, after signingthe agreement. Pauls, besides beingMinister of Culture of Latvia, is oneof the most well-known musicians inthe Soviet Union. He is renowned forcomposing jazz and popular music aswell as being a virtuoso pianist andbandleader. The Baltic Republicsshare the love and appreciation of therich cultural diversity of the USSR'smusic and arts, and yet the Baltic Re-publics' cultural heritage is con-sidered more westernized than therest of the Soviet Union.

Bob Herrold has accepted a newposition with Crown Inter-national as Microphone ProductLine Manager. In this capacity, Her-rold will determine product needs forthe broadcast, recording, film, prosound, and MI markets, and workwith Crown's engineering andmarketing departments to designand manufacture products to meetthose needs. He will also determinepricing and corporate programs, andconduct educational seminars onboth the dealer and end -user levels.Prior to taking on these new duties,Herrold spent 12 years with Audio-Technica U.S., Inc. as a design en-gineer and product manager. Pre-vious to that position, he spent 12years being employed by Electro-Voice, Inc.

Tan noy North America is nowTGI North America. In January1988, Tannoy, Goodman's and

Mordaunt-Short joined forces tobecome a new publicly -listed com-pany in the U.K. under the new nameof TGI plc. TGI North Americawill continue to distribute Tannoyproducts in North America as well asexpand its distrikution network toinclude other TGI companies.

Electro Sound Inc. has soldmusic duplicating systems to threeleading companies in the People'sRepublic of China. Simex, in Shan-ghai, and Kong Sen Tape Factory,located in Panyu, Guanzhou andGuandong, have acquired new dupli-cating systems, while ShaanxiAudio, based in Xi' an, has acquiredequipment to expand its duplicationcapability. "The penetration of high-speed tape duplicating systems andequipment in Chita is significant be-cause it indicates that China is ad-vancing its technology in the musicand tape industry" said Jim Willi-ams, President of Electro Sound.

Keith Clark has been namedPublic Relations Director for Elec-tro-Voice, Inc., as announced byJesse Walsh, Director of Advertis-ing. Clark's responsibilities withElectro-Voice include corporate com-munications and trade publicationrelations.

In related news, a new full -line serv-ice center for repairing Electro-Voiceelectronic components, microphonesand speakers has opened in Rich-mond Hill, N.Y. The facility, operatedby ECS, Inc., provides EV with aservice center for :he eastern regionof the U.S., to go along with existingfacilities in Buchanan, MI, andVisalia, CA.

Pte, &fi4fre4p Deane Ellsworth Jensen

died suddenly in his privateaudio engineering laboratoryat Jensen Transformers,Inc., North Hollywood, CA,the weekend of October 21,1989 at the age of 47. Deanewas well-known for his effortsto improve the fidelity of soundin the recording, reinforce-ment, and broadcast in-dustries. Jensen Trans-formers was dedicated to highquality, both in its hardwareand software. The companywill continue Deane's work:building quality products andserving the audio communitywith engineering leadership.Jensen was born in Annapolis,MD, 15 October 1942. He livedin Princeton, NJ and Bal-timore, MD. He attended theUniversity of Pennsylvaniawhere he started in audio tech-nical engineering and opera-tions at WXPN, the student -operated radio station. Hefou 'lied Jensen Trans-fr..-.str?rs, Inc. in 1972, a few

after he moved to Holly-woo r..1, CA, and led it as ownerit CEO throughout its

successful growth to its pre-sent prominence in the in-dustry. In lieu of flowers, etc.,the family requests that anycontributions be sent to the Ri-chard C. Heyser MemorialScholarship Fund, c/o theAudio Engineering So-ciety.

My personal thoughts on the pass-ing of a friend, By Gary D. Davis.

Deane Jensen and I met in 1972when I was working as a technicianfor Automated Processrks, Inc. inFarmingdale, NY. Deane had beensent there as a consultant for WallyHeider Recording Studios to dothe final acceptance/checkout on alarge recording console API wasbuilding for Heider. Deane ended upstaying in New York for severalmonths to oversee completion of theconsole through many bug -fixes andimprovements. Due to the length of

the unplanned stay, he was invited tomove out of the motel and share ahouse with my roommate, engineerFred Addison, and I for a couple ofmonths. I learned a lot from Deaneabout the application of scientificprinciples and ethics-at a point inmy early career where a lasting im-pression was made. Our friendshipgrew, and when I moved to Californiaa year late4 Deane helped me get es-tablished. Jensen Transformers be-came one of our first clients, and ourrelationship was always one ofmutual respect. I especially learnedfrom Deane that there is a best wayto do something-that "goodenough" is not really an option whenperfection is the goal.

Those who did not know him wellsometimes thought of Deane asbeing somewhat aloof. In fact, he wasvery warm and concerned about hisfriends. If he thought he said some-thing that might have been in someway offensive, he would often phoneback and make sure there was no in-sult or misinterpretation. He wentout of his way to make sure he wasclearly and fully understood.Magazine editors winced at his in-sistence of a "no edit" policy on any-thing he wrote, but he refused to havehis concepts truncated or mistakenly"improved." This was, perhaps, anextension of his attitude of not ac-cepting anything at face value.If some equation or theory had al-ways been assumed to be a certainway, Deane would do his own basicresearch to affirm to disprove it. Heseldom took anybody's word aboutan engineering principle without agrain of salt, and this quality servedhim well. It enabled him to makebreakthroughs in many areas. It iswhy, for example, he ended upmaking transformers in the firstplace. Deane simply thought thatbetter ones could be made, and hewanted to have better transformersto use in the audio circuits he was de-signing. His true goal was betteraudio, not just better transformers.Ultimately, he devised new ways ofwinding coils, and was involved informulating special new alloys toachieve orders of magnitude im-

provement in transformer perform-ance.Deane was dedicated to his work.

He was not a workaholic in the tradi-tional sense, but he was driven tocomplete a number of ambitious pro-jects. Many of them involved basicscientific work not specifically aimedat development of a new product. Itwas this unselfish, persistent, in-quisitive attitude that will forever re-main my most treasured memory ofa good friend.

Gary Davis is President of GaryDavis & Associates, Santa Monica,CA. The firm has provided technicalwriting, advertising, and consulting(primarily for professional audioequipment manufacturers) since1974.

The Audio EngineeringSociety regrets to inform ourfriends and associates of thedeath of Ann Marie Smyth,Wednesday, November 8, 1989in New York City. Ms. Smythjoined the AES in the lateseventies, and was an effectivemember of the AES conven-tion and administrative staffat AES International Head-quarters in New York. Annwas involved in all domesticand international AES con-ventions and conferences. Hersudden death in the lobby ofthe Lincoln Building-site ofAES headquarters-in NewYork was symbolic of her dedi-cation to the organization. Herprevious career included salespositions in the hotel field.Prior to joining the AES, shewas associated with theCahners and Snitow groups inthe organization of high-fidel-ity shows and the consumerelectronics show (CES). Sud-den death at the age of 46 hascut short a productive life, a lifethat touched so many in our in-dustry with concern and com-passion toward all who had thegood fortune to work with her.

0cr)

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The Fostex D-20 operatesjust like the most expen-sive analog open reel 2 -channel recorders withSMPTE/EBU capability,and now we're offering alease program whichmakes it easy for you tohave all the benefits ofeven better performanceat lower rates (see detailsbelow).

With the D-20 profes-sional digital audio mas-ter recorder, you can post -stripe time code on anexisting DAT tape (re-corded on any DAT ma-chine), or you can recordtime code and stereo au-dio on the D-20 and play thattape back on any other DAT ma-chine with complete compatibil-ity.

The 20 -pin synchronizer portallows interface with all thepopular synchronizer systems(ours included ) and there's anRS -42 2 port for control which re-quires serial communication.There's an external sync inputfor composite video, plus WordSync Input and Output capability- all standard on the D-20.

Because of our 4 -head recordingsystem the D-20 features off -the -tape monitoring so that you'llalways know exactly what youhave on tape - a very importantfeature considering the DAT'sability to record for two straighthours (no more multiple reelsand alignment hassles).

You'll be able to control all trans-port functions by remote con-trol-including punch-in/out.Built-in cross -fade timing givesyou seamless punches. There's

even a pitch control com-plete with digital read-out.

Most important of all, theD-20 sounds great. It rec-ords and reproduces allthe music completely,faithfully, and better thananalog alternatives. Soplug into the digital mas-ter recorder that has theprofessional features youneed now al. a price youcan afford now.

The analog recorder refer-enced is the Studer A-80 1/2"with 3 -track head nest; the pricecomparison is based on option(A) below and an average ofpublished rates of major atidiorental companies for the Rider.

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Details of the D-20 Lease Program A simple one page application is allthat's required. Maximum 48 hourturnaround approval. Two attractivepayment schedules: (A) $199.70 permonth, 60 months, first and lastpayments in advance: 10% pur-chase option. (B) $287.20 per month,36 months, first and I ist payments inadvance; 10% purchasi: option. Pleasenote that this lease with option to pur-chase is not offered through Fostex Cor-poration. All documents and associatedpaperwork will be comlleted by SignetLease Group. Call them directly at (215)783-6666. High approval rating inthe audio industry.

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Shure L Seriesbrid)Tz reliability to affordable wireless.

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We didn't forget the details.Designed and built by Shure in the U.S.A., L Series

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mountable. Antennas are detachable and may beplaced in remote locations, providing excellent per-formance in situations where many other wirelesssystems have trouble.

Our LI Body -Pack Transmitter has features like aseparate audio mute switch and a universal 4 -pin"Tiny QG" connector that accepts a variety of micro-phone and musical instrument sources. And L Series

lavalier systems come with the 839W, a reliable Shurecondenser microphone designed for clear, naturalvocal pickup.

Performance meets economy.Even though L Series components are economically

priced, they incorporate sophisticated RF technology.The L4 Diversity Receiver utilizes "intelligent"MARCADTM circuitry to monitor signals from its twoindependent RF sections, blending them in the opti-mum proportion-not merely switching them. Theresult is reliable, uninterrupted audio with no clicks,no pops. And all L Series systems feature Shure"Mirror Image" companding, plus high -gain, low -

noise MOSFETs, a high-fidelity quadrature detector,and a 3 -pole Chebyshev audio low-pass filter. It alladds up to outstanding audio quality with exceptionalfreedom from noise and distortion.

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