The First Baptist Church of Sebring, Florida, was founded in 1922. A lot has changed in the intervening 90 years, including the church’s move to its current location in 1987. Since then, the church has continued to expand its campus, adding a Fellowship Hall, kitchen, elevator, children’s department, and the “ROC” (Recreation Outreach Center) for athletic events, social gatherings, and youth activities. One of the things that didn’t change as quickly, however, was the church sanctuary’s sound system, which was both old and ill-designed for the church’s dimensions, which are wider than long, causing many sound problems (for instance, the 60-person choir would miss many of the weekly sermons due to lack of intelligibility through the PA system). A change needed to happen, so the church reached out to Guitar Center Professional (GC Pro), the outside sales division of Guitar Center that focuses on the needs of professional users, for help. Today, everyone in First Baptist of Sebring can hear every word spoken by the Pastor and every note of music sung by the choir and played by the worship band.

GC Pro’s team assessed the church’s needs carefully, noting in particular the specification for a sound system with excellent horizontal dispersion characteristics, to address the building’s interior dimensions and lack of acoustical treatments. Commuting from GC Pro’s Tampa office, GC Pro Account Manager Mick Hall spent hours at the church, figuring out the best systems for its needs. These included a JBL VRX928 line array system configured as a center cluster, with two VRX dual-15-inch subwoofers.

“The old systems left a number of dead spots throughout the church,� Hall explains. “It simply didn’t have the reach, and as a result intelligibility suffered. Rooms with these kinds of dimensions need very specific kinds of system solutions.�

The new PA system was rounded out with a new Yamaha LS9 FOH console, Aviom in-ear wireless monitoring for the band, an Ashly NE24.24M matrix processor, a Sennheiser Evolution wireless microphone system, and a pair of JBL CBT 70 mini-arrays for the choir’s monitors. Hall also specified two Mitsubishi 8100 video projectors. “The big picture was to get even and consistent sound coverage for the entire sanctuary, which is something the church had never had,� says Hall.

GC Pro was chosen as the partner on this project based on the comprehensiveness of their approach, which included detailed design and consultation services and installation availability through its Approved Vendor Program, in addition to competitive pricing. “We let them know we would be their partners in this project, not just a vendor selling equipment,� says Hall. “That’s how GC Pro does it.�

For more information, please visit www.gcpro.com.

— Ginsburg’s work on classic hit films and television shows including St. Elsewhere, A-Team, 90210, Caveman, The Island and Platoon has created a platform from which he is shaping a new curriculum for film sound that better incorporates the knowledge base for production sound —

133rd AES CONVENTION, SAN FRANCISCO, CA, October 27, 2012 — Audio-Technica (booth 705), a leading innovator in transducer technology currently celebrating “50 Years of Passionate Listening,� is teaming up with sound mixer/educator Fred Ginsburg to help students acquire the professional tools and skills needed for production sound recording.

A skilled Hollywood sound acquisition specialist who worked on classic television shows like St. Elsewhere and films including Platoon and Used Cars, Ginsburg uses his professional experience as a Production Sound Mixer and Sound Designer to refashion the educational curriculum of sound for picture. Audio-Technica provides microphones and educational materials for workshops Ginsburg offers throughout the country, helping students establish a base of knowledge about this critical but under-taught aspect of cinema and television sound.

Fred Ginsburg has a mission to empower the next generation of film-sound professionals with experience, understanding and expertise about cinema and television sound. Ginsburg, with a Ph.D. in audio and membership in the Cinema Audio Society (C.A.S.), has taught his courses in production sound at California State University Northridge and Chapman University, doing so with microphones and educational materials provided by Audio-Technica.

Ginsburg says that contemporary professional audio education programs have emphasized the post production elements of film and television sound, often at the expense of production audio, which is the foundation of a film’s or series’ sound, comprising dialog and authentic location ambience and effects.

“The emphasis has been on working with programs like Pro Tools and Final Cut Pro in post, but what’s lacking is what students need to know about sound acquisition on location,� Ginsburg explains. “Even at schools like Chapman, which has an ADR stage modeled after the one at Warner Bros. and a mixing room that rivals the one at Universal, there recently wasn’t enough emphasis on the foundation sound that is production audio. That’s what I’ve set out to do: integrate production audio into the curriculum at the level that things like post and mixing are at now.�

Ginsburg accomplishes this by demonstrating his techniques in classes and at workshops around the country, by showing and explaining how he chooses tools and how he uses them to create sound elements that combine with mixing and post production to produce exceptional soundtracks. For instance, when demonstrating how to take echo out of a small room so that dialog becomes more intelligible, Ginsburg shows how he sets up an Audio-Technica AT4051b Cardioid Condenser Microphone on a boom.

“That microphone was designed for music, but a lot of Hollywood location sound people have embraced it for their kit because it’s so great at mellowing out dialog and wiping out echo in a room,� Ginsburg explains. Similarly, he uses an Audio-Technica BP4071L Line + Gradient Condenser Microphone (aka long shotgun) to keep extraneous noises like traffic out of the background on exterior shots, again to keep the focus on the dialog. An Audio-Technica BP4073 Line + Gradient Condenser (short shotgun) allows the recordist to cover from 2 feet to 6 feet overhead for wider interior situations, as well as to serve as a secondary microphone to the long shotgun outdoors, or the 4051 indoors.

Lavalier microphones are critical to location dialog sound, and Ginsburg has hidden mics like the MT830R Omnidirectional Condenser Lavalier Microphone in planters and other props on a set, when close-in dialog recording is needed. He recommends using the AT899 Subminiature Omnidirectional Condenser Lavalier Microphone attached to the sun visor of a car, to capture interior audio and dialog without having to put a microphone on the actor, which could result in noise from clothing and body movements.

“Audio-Technica has fantastic warranties and repair services, and technical support is always just one phone call away. A-T always makes sure that there are good instructional materials available. It’s a big job making sure that production audio gets its due in the education mix, and I’m glad that A-T is there to help make that happen,� Ginsburg says.

For more information, please visit www.audio-technica.com.

Danny Abelson, Co-Founder of software startup Zeehi, announces that the CueCast Digital Mixing Console User File Conversion Service will support the DiGiCo SD7 platform beginning mid-November 2012. This raises the number of supported console models to five in CueCast’s latest Beta Release.

CueCast enables sound engineers, hire companies and production managers to quickly and easily convert complex show files between different digital audio mixing consoles.

“We’ve had a very positive response from the pro audio community since we released the first CueCast Beta version in July,� according to Abelson. “A growing number of engineers have been converting their files at our site, and new users from around the world are signing up for the service every week.�

CueCast gives every new user two free fully-featured conversions. That means anyone who’s interested can evaluate the service with no cost or commitment.

“We’ve been working closely with several of the large hire companies. One of their most frequent requests was that we add support for the DiGiCo SD7, since they have so many of these desks in their inventories. We were happy to oblige, and our development team is doing a great job implementing the new console. We’ve also made significant enhancements to the user interface.�

In its latest version, CueCast converts user files between Avid, Yamaha PM5D, and now three DiGiCo models: SD7, SD8 and SD10. The company plans to develop solutions for every major console model.

The web-based CueCast service solves a fundamental problem in audio engineering; transferring complex user settings from one console to another without the time-consuming headache of entering those settings manually.

“Converting show files on CueCast is reliable and takes just three easy steps,� says Abelson. “Simply upload your file to the secure Cuecast site, then specify the format you need, and download the converted file for installation in the new console. CueCast stores your files on a secure server for safe-keeping and future use.�

Abelson noted, “We are helping people improve the way they work by making the process of moving user settings to a new console fast and easy. We can bring the biggest benefit to the engineering community by expanding the number of different console models we support. Adding the SD7 was a significant step. Soon we’ll be announcing support for more Yamaha models, including the new CL range, as well as the Soundcraft Vista and Midas desks.�

The current Beta release of CueCast converts the most commonly used console features and functions including bussing, sub-group assigns, control group assigns, routing, labeling, mutes and mute groups, EQ and dynamic in/out settings, aux. send on/off/and assigns, and effects and matrix on/off and assigns. Future releases will support variable settings, snapshots and many other features.

Information on CueCast can be found at cuecast.com

—A leading audio resource for high-profile broadcast events, Audio-Technica has been outfitting the debates since 1988 —

133rd AES CONVENTION, SAN FRANCISCO, CA, October 27, 2012 — Audio-Technica (booth 705), a leading innovator in transducer technology currently celebrating “50 Years of Passionate Listening,� provided a wide selection of microphones to capture every word from the candidates, moderators and selected crowd members at the 2012 presidential debates. The events were held October 3 at Colorado’s University of Denver; October 11 (Vice Presidential) at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky; October 16 at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York; and October 22 at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida. Larry Estrin, of Best Audio in Studio City, CA, serves as Audio and Production Communications Director for the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) and chose to use Audio-Technica microphones at these landmark events. Steve Savanyu, Audio-Technica’s Director, Educational Services, was also present at each debate for on-site support. Audio-Technica microphones have been chosen for the presidential debates since 1988.

Michael Abbott, A1 for the debates, stated, “The Audio-Technica microphones, which we’ve used on all the previous debates, performed flawlessly – which is exactly what you need them to do for an event of this magnitude of importance. Every word, every nuance has to be captured and captured accurately, and that’s what the A-T mics did, at all of the debate locations. Dependability and accuracy – that’s what A-T delivered.â€�

A leading audio resource for high-profile broadcast events, Audio-Technica provided a host of microphones from their comprehensive product line to pick up crisp, intelligible audio and cover the diverse needs of each debate.

Audio-Technica products used on both candidates at their lecterns (President Obama and Governor Romney) at the first 2012 presidential debate, held October 3, included Engineered Sound® ES991 dual-element podium microphones as well as AT898cW Subminiature Cardioid Condenser Lavalier Microphones with 5000 Series wireless. On moderator Jim Lehrer, wired and wireless versions of the AT898 Subminiature Cardioid Condenser Lavalier Microphones were used (AT898cW with 5000 Series wireless). Audio-Technica’s Broadcast and Production BP4071 Line + Gradient Condenser Microphones were used for room ambience.

Products used at the October 11 VP debate (conference table format) included A-T’s Engineered Sound® ES935ML6 MicroLine® Condenser Gooseneck Microphones on Vice President Joe Biden and Republican vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan. Two AT898cW mics with 5000 Series wireless were used for moderator Martha Raddatz. Audio-Technica’s BP4071 mics were used for room ambience. Backup mics at the event included AT898cW wireless lavaliers and AEW-T5400a handheld transmitters with 5000 Series wireless for the candidates, and AT898 wired lavalier mics for Raddatz.

Products used at the next event, a “Town Hall� format, included A-T’s 5000 Series wireless with AEW-T5400a condenser handheld transmitters and AEW-R5200 receivers for President Obama and Governor Romney (allowing the candidates to freely roam while answering the evening’s questions); AT898cW lavalier mics with AEW-T1000a body packs (doubled for redundancy) for moderator Candy Crowley; AE6100 Hypercardioid Dynamic Handheld (wired) microphones, connected to Audio-Technica’s AT-MX351a SmartMixer® Five-Channel Mixers, for audience members asking questions of the candidates; and BP4071 mics for room ambience. Candidate backup mics, required for redundancy, were additional AT898cW units with AEW-T1000a body packs and AEW-R5200 receivers.

The fourth debate (conference table format), held on the evening of October 22 in Boca Raton, Florida, wrapped the 2012 debate series. Microphones used included AT898cW lavalier mics (5000 Series wireless with AEW-T1000a bodypacks) on each candidate and moderator Bob Schieffer, as well as wired AT898 mics for backup and redundancy and BP4071 mics for room ambience.

Larry Estrin stated, “The primary reason that I chose to once again use Audio-Technica microphone and mixer products for the Presidential Debates is their ‘extra-mile’ support. We utilized the 5000 Series wireless, and we used the T5400a transmitter for the town hall meetings, giving us proven reliability and studio-quality audio. Two key features of the AEW-T1000a UniPak® body-pack transmitter are its safety cover, which protects the soft-touch controls from being accidently activated, and a superior locking microphone input connector. We used the AT898 miniature lavalier microphones at all the debates, and each candidate always wore two systems, for redundant backup. In most cases the wireless microphones were used as the primary mics while the wired microphones were the backup mics. In addition to the hardware support, Audio-Technica also sends one of their employees to all of the debates to assure the support we need from the factory.�

For more information, please visit www.audio-technica.com.

— Unique perspective of Omnicoustics LLC Owner shows how GC Pro has become the
single most comprehensive resource for AV technology and its installation —

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA, October 19, 2012 — When Braza Dancante, an authentic Brazilian churrascaria presenting the finest Brazilian cuisine to guests in Allen, Texas, opened last year, its menu drew from traditional South Brazilian churrascarias (similar to steakhouses), but its sound, lighting and video systems called for the most up-to-date AV technology. The restaurant’s PA and distributed audio systems feature components from Bose Professional Systems Division, a truss system was loaded with Chauvet Professional lighting products for the music stage and wash mood lighting, and a Key Digital video distribution system was put in place for televisions and digital signage.

The entirety of the system was sourced by Guitar Center Professional (GC Pro), the outside sales division of Guitar Center that focuses on the needs of professional users, and the installation and systems integration was handled by Omnicoustics LLC, a member of GC Pro’s expanding Affiliate Program. The Braza Dancante project illustrates how GC Pro has become the premier resource for AV systems integration projects, and how its Affiliate Program has grown into a principal source of installation and related services.

“Working with GC Pro is the simplest, most straightforward way to get a project done and done right,� says Adrian Gamez, Owner of Omnicoustics, the two-year-old AV systems integrator that installed, among other systems, the following Bose Professional Systems products: ControlSpace® ESP-88 engineered sound processor, FreeSpace® DS 100SE Loudspeaker, Panaray® MA12EX Full-Range Modular Line Array and MB24 Modular Bass Loudspeaker at Braza Dancante. “Even though we faced some challenges on the project, working around the general contractor, we always had every piece of equipment and product we needed exactly on time, thanks to GC Pro.�

Gamez should know how well GC Pro services projects like these – prior to opening his integration company, Gamez worked for the same GC Pro office in the Dallas area that serviced the Braza Dancante project. “I know what GC Pro can accomplish because I worked there,� he says. “They can get just about any piece of equipment you can think of, from a $30,000 audio console to a $3 connector, and have it all there on time for the job. When I worked for GC Pro, we prided ourselves on how well we could service AV systems integrators. Today, as one of those integrators and as part of the GC Pro Affiliate Program, I can really appreciate how well they do that. They have a great workflow.�

Jeffery McDaniel, GC Pro Senior Account Manager, stated, “This was a great project to work on because we were able to work with the customer from the conceptual blueprint stages all the way through the construction and final installation stages of the project, and we were able to make sure everything was perfect for their needs. It was also a pleasure to work with one of our affiliates, Omnicoustics LLC, throughout all of these stages, resulting in a project that exceeded the customer’s expectations at every step of the way. This is what it’s all about.�

Gamez also appreciates the fact that the Affiliate Program has also helped his company grow, allowing him to bid on and spec more projects than he could have on his own. “I’ve been on both sides of the fence with GC Pro – selling products and now buying them,� he says. “And from that perspective you can really see how good GC Pro is at what they do.�

For more information, please visit www.gcpro.com.

— Treme’s use of live music in the show is unique on television, and Bigelow relies on A-T microphones to capture the sounds of street musicians, parades and club shows —

— A-T further supports Bigelow’s educational efforts as a teacher of recording and mixing techniques at the University of New Orleans, providing microphones and other support materials —

133rd AES CONVENTION, SAN FRANCISCO, CA, October 27, 2012 — When viewers of HBO’s hit series Treme watch a parade of street musicians leading a crowd through New Orleans’ French Quarter or listen as a blues trumpet wails late into the night in a jazz club, they’re not hearing music dubbed in later in post production. They’re hearing that musician play those actual notes. That’s what sets the work that the show’s Music Recordist, Robert C. Bigelow, has done for the last three seasons of the program, distinct from most music in television drama. On Treme, the music is as real as can be because it’s recorded on site as the show is shot, and Bigelow chooses microphones from Audio-Technica to capture Treme’s music.

“The big challenge for Treme is that the music you hear on the show is what we film live on location,� says Bigelow. “Most television shows will shoot to pre-recorded music and mix it in later; on this show, we record the musicians playing live in front of the camera, so you’re hearing the real thing. This really sets Treme apart from any other drama on television.�

Bigelow says Audio-Technica offers him what no other microphone manufacturer can: the ability to capture a huge palette of sound using just a few key microphones. He uses the A-T BP4027 and BP4029 Stereo Shotgun Microphones to create the ambient sound foundation for the show’s music. “They give me the big picture and context for the music, and we build the package on them,� he explains. A-T’s ATM350 Cardioid Condenser Clip-on Microphones are used for the brass instruments in parades and club scenes. “They’re incredibly versatile and I’ll use them on instruments from a trombone to a piano,� he says. “They’re very easy to hide – unlike other clip-on mics, I can just take the capsule of the 350 and attach it to the horn, yet they still give me full-range sound.� One very cool trick Bigelow has developed is to tape the 350 to the back of a shirt collar of a musician in a marching band to record the sound of the horns that are behind him.

Bigelow uses several microphones from A-T’s Artist Elite® wireless Series, including the AE5100 Cardioid Condenser Instrument Microphone and AE4100 Cardioid Dynamic Handheld Microphone, on both vocals and instruments, and the ATM450 Cardioid Condenser Instrument Microphone for nearly invisible miking of guitar amps and pianos, as well as overheads for drum kits. “The 450 has a really low profile so it’s great for capturing a little guitar amp on a street corner, and on drum overheads it’s got a pristine high end with absolutely no sibilance – crisp highs with no shrillness,� he raves. “The real beauty of this is that I’m able to capture the entire range of music for this show with just a few key microphones. You don’t need a big microphone closet to do this show.�

In addition to his groundbreaking work on Treme, Bigelow also heads a mentoring program in audio recording for film/TV at the University of New Orleans, helping the school further develop its film/TV production program. And A-T is a big part of that, too, providing microphones for classes and educational support materials for students. “One of the nice things about A-T microphones when it comes to teaching is that A-T mics are a great value without giving up any performance, so they’re the microphones that students can build their own tool kits with affordably, and those microphones will stay with them for the rest of their careers,� he says. “And it’s great that I’m able to teach using the very same microphones that I’m using on a multi-million-dollar film production. These are really the only microphones that can truly do it all.�

For more information, please visit www.audio-technica.com.