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Friday, February 03, 2012

Biamp Systems Promotes Key Executives With Goal Of Bolstering Growth

Biamp Systems is further developing its executive management structure through the creation of three new key positions to provide new focus on product and services innovation; global marketing and sales strategies; organizational scalability; and even more effective service to its customers.

In support of these goals, Biamp has made the following executive appointments: Graeme Harrison has been appointed to the position of executive vice president of marketing; Matt Czyzewski has been named the executive vice president of operations; and Ron Camden has been named the vice president of worldwide sales.

“Our vision for the future requires an alignment of our organization with our goals for bringing fresh thinking and innovative products and services to our customers,” states Steve Metzger, president and CEO, Biamp Systems. “I’m very excited about the changes we’re making. Graeme, Matt, and Ron all have a wealth of experience and are extremely talented people, and their promotions will have far reaching and positive consequences for our company and our customers.”

In his new role as the executive vice president of marketing, Graeme Harrison will oversee the Biamp worldwide sales, marketing communications, and product management groups. Harrison has worked for Biamp Systems for 20 years and first started as the company’s regional manager in Europe serving Europe, Middle East, Africa and India. He then transitioned to international sales manager and most recently to vice president of international sales.

Matt Czyzewski has been with Biamp for 15 years and has more than 25 years of industry experience. Czyzewski will assume the role of executive vice president of operations, moving from his previous position of vice president of business development at Biamp. Prior to his last position, Czyzewski was the vice president of engineering. His new position will oversee the technical operations at Biamp.

Ron Camden becomes the new vice president of worldwide sales. Camden has more than 25 years of experience working in AV technologies and is passionate about sharing innovations and identifying trends. For the past 17 years, he has been the vice president of North American Sales. In his new position, Camden is charged with developing global sales strategies, and leading the worldwide sales team.

Biamp Systems

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Thursday, February 02, 2012

Stagetec NEXUS Supporting Jimmy Fallon Show Remote Production In Indianapolis

Tied into the upcoming Super Bowl game in Indianapolis, late night television host Jimmy Fallon is broadcasting four shows from the Hilbert Circle Theatre in downtown Indianapolis.

It presents a challenge in recreating the studio setup of the “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Show,” which is normally broadcast from NBC Studios at 30 Rockefeller Center. 

Nathaniel Hare, front of house mixer for the show, was tapped as the sound designer for the four dates (three live-to-disc and then a live show after the big game). Wireless First, a Clair Global company, was selected due to their experience in both TV and touring sound to supply all of the necessary equipment.

Hare decided on Stagetec NEXUS to provide the backbone of the audio routing, with all audio signals from all stage sources to front of house and monitor— and to the Music Mix Mobile and Game Creek Trucks parked outside—are being transported through the NEXUS system.

The NEXUS network comprises of some 1728 inputs and 1984 outputs. Central to the system is the NEXUS Star, which connects 12 remote base devices throughout the theatre and the OB trucks. 

Further, several consoles connect via MADI, including front of house, music and main production, and the rest have direct connections to the NEXUS via AES/EBU.

“As the show after the Super Bowl is going to be live, I need to be 150 percent sure that there will be no equipment failures,” states Hare, “and the NEXUS not only has complete redundancy built in but it’s track record on reliability speaks for itself.”

Stagetec

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PSAV Deploys Crown Audio VRack Amplification System For Hotel Events

PSAV Presentation Services, the world’s largest A/V rental supplier with more than 800 offices worldwide, many located on-site at major hotels, specializes in providing in-house audio-visual services to the hospitality industry for meetings and events, and maintains one of the largest, most up to date equipment inventories in the industry.

Since its introduction, PSAV has been using Crown Audio VRack, a turnkey amplifier rack system that includes three I-Tech HD I-T12000 power amplifiers, a versatile input panel with analog and digital connections, and a globally universal power distribution system that can be set to meet U.S. and international power standards.

All of the components are housed in a wheeled rack that can be flown in the same manner as a line array loudspeaker system.

“Typically, a hotel sells the meeting space and we work with the end client to provide the equipment and labor required to manage the event,” notes Jacob Ingle, audio product manager for PSAV. “Since we own all of our equipment, we have to select products that are cost-effective, efficient and reliable in order to maintain a profitable bottom line.”

“We have been using Harman products for quite a long time and even discussed building pre-configured amp racks with Crown before VRack was introduced. When they introduced the VRack, it was the perfect solution for a number of our amplification needs,” continues Ingle.

“One of our goals is to standardize gear as much as possible so our technicians can move from location to location and be familiar with the equipment they’re going to use,” says Ingle. “Having a unified amplifier package like VRack makes this a lot easier. We have many locations large and small, and VRack is adaptable to different situations because it allows multiple configurations for analog and digital inputs, for different types of speakers and for system networking.”

“Crown’s VRack is the perfect solution for the audio rental supplier because of its benefits as a plug-and-play solution for customers like Jacob who face an ever-changing set of challenges based on each event,” states Brian Pickowitz, marketing manager for Crown.

“Another major advantage is that VRack interfaces with Harman’s HiQnet Performance Manager system design and setup software and is specifically designed to work with JBL VerTec loudspeakers. Because we use a lot of JBL, Soundcraft and other Harman gear in addition to Crown, VRack becomes part of an all-in-one solution where all components ‘talk to each other’ using HiQnet. This makes system setup and operation much easier and a great deal more efficient,” adds Ingle.

Crown Audio
Harman Pro

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Tuesday, January 31, 2012

New Integrated Cores Provide QSC Q-Sys Technology For Smaller Applications

QSC Audio has announced the next generation of Q-Sys products, designed specifically to deliver powerful digital networked audio solutions for the widest range of applications.

The new Core 500i and Core 250i provide advanced centralized processing, routing and control for contractors and consultants needing a solution for smaller venues such as restaurants, nightclubs, stores, schools and churches.

These two new Core models are fully integrated solutions, each with eight card slots on-board. The Core500i is capable of up to 128 network channels while the Core 250i provides up to 64 channels. I/O is selectable via the various Q-Sys I/O cards. Options also include the MTP-64, and MTP-128 multitrack players.

Like all Q-Sys Cores, these systems run under a customized Linux operating system on Intel microprocessors and motherboards. IT connectivity is easily implemented utilizing Layer 3 Gigabit networking protocols and standard Gigabit Ethernet hardware.

The systems are capable of providing simple and fail-safe redundancy for mission-critical applications. All system design, configuration, administration and control operate under a simple and straightforward GUI. 

Additionally, custom user control panels are easily created and can be displayed on any Internet-connected PC, iOS device or QSC’s own Touch Screen Controllers (TSC-3, TSC-8). Any incoming signals may be mixed and routed to any output and nearly unlimited DSP is provided, including Acoustic Echo Cancellation.

Also newly announced is the I/O-22 analog I/O box. It is a compact, standalone unit designed for widely distributed audio sources or destinations such as individual rooms in a multi-room venue (judicial chambers, classrooms, VIP suites, etc.)

It provides two mic/line inputs and two line outputs and connects directly to the Gigabit Ethernet network. It is powered by PoE or 24 VDC and includes an 8.5 watt mono amplifier and mounting plate for discreet and compact installation.

QSC Audio

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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

New Pivitec e32 Personal Mixer Provides 32-Channel Ethernet AVB Capability

Introduced at the NAMM 2012 Show, the new Pivitec e32 personal mixer is a 32-channel Ethernet AVB “listener” endpoint that can be used to build a stereo mix up to 32 channels of network audio sources that can then be controlled wirelessly from iPhone, iPod touch or iPad using Pivitec’s V2Mix app for iOS.

The e32 features a high-output headphone amp loud enough to work in loud stage environments as well as stereo line outputs for driving other devices, such as wireless IEMs, power amplifiers or powered loudspeakers.

Both are driven by a 24-bit/48-kHz digital to analog converter.

A built-in DSP provides three bands of EQ on each audio channel as well as a stereo three-band EQ and limiter on the master outputs.

The e32 also includes a “local” stereo line level input for connecting an MP3 player or click track for local listening.

Features:
—Stereo line level outputs on 1/4-inch TRS connectors
—High-output headphone amplifier
—Local 3.5mm line level input
—Rugged extruded aluminum chassis with black anodized finish
—Wireless control from Pivitec’s V2Mix App for iPhone & iPad
—Power from external 48VDC supply or PoE (802.11af)
—Made in USA

As an integral component in the Pivitec Audio Networking product family, the e32 is an ideal complement for the e16i input module. Multiple e16i and e32 units can be utilized to builde a personal monitor mixing system. 

Four e32s can be rack mounted in a single 1U rack, or a microphone stand adapter can be deployed for local mounting.

Pivitec

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Monday, January 23, 2012

Audinate Names Dave Anderson As New Director Of Sales

Audinate has announced Dave Anderson as the company’s new director of sales.

Anderson brings a successful record of sales leadership in the professional audio and video industries to the position. During 18 years with Avid, he held various sales roles, helping to establish professional audio, video, storage, and asset management technology products in the marketplace.

“I’m thrilled to be joining Audinate.” Anderson says. “Audinate is well positioned for significant growth as customers recognize Dante as the market leading solution for digital media networking while de-risking their future by providing a elegant migration path to upgrade to new standards such as the IEEE Audio Video Bridging (AVB).”

Focused primarily on Avid’s professional audio business, Anderson aggressively grew sales and helped establish Pro Tools as the market leading solution for recording, editing, and mixing.  He formerly held the position of territory account manager and west coast sales manager, where he was responsible for the largest territory in Avid’s audio business.

Audinate CEO Lee Ellison remarks, “Dave brings significant knowledge and expertise from his past 20 years in the AV industry. Dave has always delivered a successful track record in all of his past roles, and we are excited to have him join Audinate.”

Audinate

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Monday, January 16, 2012

Lynx Studio Technology Debuts New Version Of Hilo Reference AD/DA Converter System

Lynx Studio Technologies is introducing a new Hilo Reference AD/DA Converter System at the NAMM 2012 Show in Anaheim, booth 6527

This latest Hilo model has a black anodized face, to complement the silver face model introduced earlier. Hilo includes a two-channel AD converter, DA converter, and a headphone amplifier, all controlled and monitored via LCD touch screen.

In addition to these core features, Hilo also acts as a monitor control system, location audio device (via optional battery operation), and a valuable device for mastering facilities.

“The NAMM Show is a great chance to show Hilo to our customers and let them hear its pristine audio quality and interact with the innovative touch screen user interface,” states Bob Bauman, chief engineer and cofounder of Lynx. “Since our soft introduction in May, we have added several hardware and software features and completely redesigned the user interface. The response was extremely positive to this new approach.”

Hilo significantly changes the performance and possibilities of two-channel converters. Unlike most models available, Hilo offers analog to digital as well as digital to analog conversion. Its headphone amplifier has its own D/A converter, which allows it to have pristine quality as well as the ability to output a different mix from the other outputs.

A second analog “Monitor” output is available, also with a unique mix as an option.

“With all of the options available on Hilo, the touch screen is an invaluable tool. For visual reference, the initial release will feature a retro VU style meter as well as a modern bar style meters. Any input or output pair can be chosen for any meter,” explains David Hoatson, chief software engineer and co-founder. “We have also included five sets of user-selectable parameter menus into the interface to fully customize the Hilo experience. And since the operation of Hilo is entirely software-driven, we will offer new features, screens, upgrades and enhancements. These will be available by a simple download from our website.”

Hilo’s analog I/O section includes two balanced inputs and four balanced outputs. Digital connectivity includes AES/EBU, S/PDIF (via coax or optical), 8 ADAT, and 16 channels using the included LT-USB. Any mix of inputs can be sent to any output, made possible by the internal 32 channel mixer.

“In my experience, there are very few products that redefine a genre, and Hilo is one of them,” adds Phil Moon, VP sales and marketing. “The combination of features, control and monitoring via LCD touchscreen, and stellar audio quality is the first in a new generation of two channel AD/DA converters.”

Hilo has a suggested retail price of $2,495 and will be available in early 2012.

Lynx Studio Technologies

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Thursday, January 12, 2012

Riedel RockNet Supports Open Air Opera Featuring Andrea Bocelli

For distributing the on-site audio, the organizers of the live open-air concerts of Andrea Bocelli in New York and Belo Horizonte (Brazil) used a RockNet installation from Riedel Communications.

The audio distribution within the two locations was one of the major obstacles, notes audio engineer Andrea Taglia, who was responsible for both shows.

While the location in the New York Central Park was of nearly 600 x 1,000 feet, the location in Belo Horizonte was even larger; including an over 1,300 feet long avenue next to the stage. To provide a satisfying audio distribution and reliable PA system, Andrea Taglia used six RockNet 100 devices at the events.

“I was really afraid about how we should distribute the signal through the delay lines for the concert of Bocelli in Central Park, as the six delay lines needed to be distributed on a field over 180 meters wide and 310 meters deep,” says Taglia.

He further explains that the small time frame was another obstacle that made the installation more difficult: “We were only able to install the cables just the day before the show, because we were not allowed to work on-site any earlier. Therefore I was looking for a redundant and fool-proof system and obviously Riedel RockNet came as the solution: we did not run into a single problem and I nearly forgot it existed during the event.”

For the event in Belo Horizonte, the Brazilian rental and live production provider Loudness was responsible for the audio system at the event, which consisted of one Midas LX3 and two Midas XL4 consoles as well as a L-Acoustics K1 system, while three towers of JBL VerTec 4889 were used for as delay towers on the avenue.

Andrea Taglia had to deal with the similar demands as in New York. “The other open air event in Belo Horizonte, Brazil was even larger than Central Park”, he continues. “This time we faced a 410m long audience standing on a road that had been closed to the traffic just on the morning of the show day itself.”

Taglia’s past experiences with RockNet at the New York show made him confident that RockNet would be the best solution. “Riedel RockNet is a very transparent, reliable, full redundant system that allows a quick set-up offering all the confidence that a full broadcast engineered product can provide”, he summed up the two events that both attracted more than 60,000 spectators.”

Riedel Communications

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Friday, January 06, 2012

Full Compass Systems Introduces Latest Production PC

Full Compass Systems has announced that its latest Quiet Speed Production PC is now available for sale. This new version includes the option of solid state hard drives, significantly increasing performance over the previous model.

The standard Full Compass Production PC boasts an Intel Core i7 3.20 GHz quad-core processor, 6GB DDR3 1333 MHz RAM, 650-watt power-supply and a Lightscribe DVD-RW drive. 

The solid state hard drive option gives the machine a 25 percent performance boost and a boot up time 50 percent quicker than its predecessor. 

Other options include a Blu-Ray recorder, nVidia GeForce 2000 high-performance video card, RAID-10 hard-drive configuration and a rack mount case.

Full Compass product manager Kevin Peckham states, “We make every effort to stay on the leading edge of technology with our production workstations. The fast read/write capability, low heat and silent operation of SSD storage are ideal for the professional A/V workstation applications our computers are used for. 

“The capacity-to-cost ratio has reached the point where we feel it is time to offer this capability in the Quiet Speed product line.”

Full Compass Systems

 

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Thursday, December 29, 2011

Symetrix Room Combine 788 Adds Flexibility, Fidelty At Florida’s Lakeland Center

Known as one of Central Florida’s most popular entertainment complexes, The Lakeland Center (Lakeland, FL) includes venues for sports, entertainment, events, meetings and hospitality.

The facility recently upgraded with a Symetrix Room Combine 788 processor in one of its three modular meeting/event spaces, which allows the venue’s technical staff to merge or split any combination of rooms using an intuitive interface, with comprehensive digital signal processing as a bonus.

Using air walls, the 25,000 square-foot facility divides into as many as eight separate spaces of varying size. The old room combiner was installed in the mid-1990s and operated on outdated mechanical relays.

“It worked okay,” says Joseph Havens, the technical director at The Lakeland Center. “We installed it and used its limited flexibility to create a few common configurations. It had no DSP and no analog processing of any kind. Recently, the unit gave up the ghost.” Havens removed its carcass and committed to finding a modern replacement.

Based on its flexibility and power, he chose the purpose-built Symetrix Room Combine 788, which takes up to 12 inputs and matrix mixes them into 8 outputs.

“As many of the technicians on my staff do not have expertise in the arena of installed sound, I had to have a combiner that was intuitive to operate,” notes Havens. “The user interface on the 788 is second to none. The new system is very friendly and not at all intimidating.”

Symetrix’ simple-to-use software allowed Havens to draw a schematic of the event space on the user interface with each of the eight smaller sections outlined. To combine or un-combine sections, his technicians simply highlight the relevant sections on the schematic.

To allow clients a measure of control, Havens positioned a Symetrix ARC-K1 rotary encoder in each of the 8 sections to control volume. Because each ARC-K1 receives its power and communicates with the Room Combine 788 via a single Cat5 cable, the installation was straightforward.

“At each position, we used the cable from the old system to pull a fresh Cat5 into place,” Havens explains. “That allowed us to keep the power supply in the main rack with the 788. The ARC-K1s communicate with the processor and, ultimately, each other (their controls become redundant when sections are combined) via a star topology. It couldn’t have been easier.”

Although the primary goal was, first and foremost, installing a new room combiner, the additional signal processing capability proved a bonus.

“The existing loudspeakers and amps were in good shape, so we left them alone,” says Havens. “Nevertheless, just hooking up the Symetrix Room Combine 788, without turning any processing on, significantly improved the system’s fidelity. Before, it had always had that ‘ceiling speaker’ sound, with an emphasis on the midrange. Now it was fuller and richer.” Havens didn’t stop there however, he used the Room Combine 788’s collection of filters, equalizers, and dynamics processors to dial in an even finer sound.

Symetrix

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Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Altinex Debuts TP115-201/202 Video+Audio Transmitter/Receiver

Convenient signal transmission over a single CAT-5 cable

Altinex has announced the introduction of the TP115-201/202 Video+Audio+IR+RS-232 To Twisted Pair Transmitter/Receiver.

The ideal solution for transmitting video (computer or component), stereo audio (analog or digital), RS-232, and IR signals over a single twisted pair-type (CAT-5) cable, the TP115-201/202 enables AV integrators to take advantage of existing cable infrastructure to contain costs while providing an effective means of distributing these signals up to 300 feet, making these units well suited for conference facilities, lecture halls, presentation spaces, and similar venues.

With a compact form factor, the TP115-201/202 transmitter/receiver can be installed in areas behind desks, displays, etc., wherever free space is limited.

The TP115-201 transmitter provides buffered local outputs for both video and audio—with the local video and audio output in the same format as the input. This enables the presenter, for example, to have a personal monitor and loudspeakers nearby while the audience views a larger display and listens through the house audio system.

When a local monitor is connected, the TP115-201 passes the EDID (Extended Display Identification Data) data from the monitor to the computer video source; otherwise Altinex’ built-in EDID data is passed to the video source—thus ensuring a proper signal match.

The TP115-201 and TP115-202 support analog audio with RGBHV video and optical/digital audio with YPbPr component video. The TP115-202 receiver accepts the twisted pair signal from the TP115-201 transmitter and decodes the video, audio, and control signals for output to a projector, display, amplifier, speakers, etc.

The transmitter has a 15-pin HD female connector for video input (RGBHV or YPbPr) and a 3.5 mm optical mini jack for audio input.

Local outputs use a 15-pin HD female connector for video and a 3.5 mm optical mini jack for audio. The transmitter’s female RJ-45 output provides the main drive to the twisted pair cable that is accepted on the receiver’s female RJ-45 main input connector.

The receiver also has a 15-pin HD female connector for video output (RGBHV or YPbPr) and a 3.5 mm optical mini jack for audio output.

These latest generation devices enable IR (Infrared) or RS-232 data to be transmitted bi-directionally. RS-232 data transmission requires the construction of a simple 3-conductor cable.

IR transmission is easily achieved with the purchase of the optionally available AC301-110 IR Receiver and AC301-111 IR Emitter, which both connect to the control terminal block connector. The IR capabilities enable one to run their presentation either locally or from the display location.

The TP115-201 and TP115-202 can be configured to transmit IR and RS-232 data, though not simultaneously.

“The Altinex TP115-201/202 Transmitter/Receiver are outstanding tools for addressing a variety of audio, video, and data transmission issues in a presentation space,” says Larry Drum (CTS), Altinex regional sales manager for the Central United States. “These latest generation Twisted Pair devices use an innovative, patented technology developed by Altinex that enables the transmission and reception of fully equalized computer video signals and stereo audio signals over long distances.

“With an assortment of LEDs and an illuminated Altinex logo to provide visual feedback for operational status, this transmitter and receiver pair make a compelling choice to address a wide range of presentation space audio/video transmission challenges.”

The Altinex TP115-201/202 Video+Audio+IR+RS-232 To Twisted Pair Transmitter/Receiver each carry an MSRP of $445. MSRP for the AC301-110 IR Receiver is $12 and the AC301-111 IR Emitter is $12. The equipment is available now.

Altinex

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Monday, December 19, 2011

Symetrix DSP Provides Sophisticated Paging And More At New Montreal Concert Hall

Solotech programs and installs Symetrix SymNet-based signal processing and interface technology at La Maison Symphonique de Montréal

The La Maison Symphonique de Montréal, new home of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, was built to exacting acoustical standards by Tateo Nakajima of Artec Consultants and will host a wide range of musical and theatrical performances.

While most of the publicity surrounding the building’s opening is justifiably centered on the acoustics, La Maison is just as sophisticated behind the scenes, with Artec Consultants designing a comprehensive yet intuitive paging system.

Philippe Beaudoin of Montréal-based A/V integrator Solotech programmed and installed the Symetrix SymNet-based signal processing and interface technology that makes the powerful paging system possible.

Six zones comprise the paging system. The lobby zone conveys pages for patrons, typically before performances and during intermission and retransmits the audio captured within the hall for late arrivers. (Basically, there’s a camera that captures the video and sends to displays on all 3 levels of the lobby and a microphone gets the audio and sends to the paging system.)

Based on their physical layout and intended usage, there are two separate dressing room zones. The stage manager’s booth, the recordist’s booth, the house audio mixer, the follow spot operators and the lighting board op, get their own zone. The venue managers’ offices get their own separate zone.

The final zone patches through the main audio mixer into the house sound system. Over three-hundred McBride 820CXB paging loudspeakers powered by two QSC Audio CX-204V and two QSC-1202 amplifiers deliver the paging system’s output.

The lynchpin of La Maison’s paging system is the Symetrix ARC-SW4 and ARC-XLR, a pair of wall panel remotes with integrator-programmable push buttons and an XLR jack.

Room managers and stage managers have their own Symetrix ARC-SW4 and ARC-XLR to handle outgoing pages, and each one is configured the same way.

Two mobile racks can be plugged and patched from different areas of the venue for temporary needs of traveling productions and events.

Of its eight buttons, six are labeled by zone. To deliver a page, the user pushes a button for each of the zones that he or she wants to include. Then a push-to-talk button, combined with a Shure 527B microphone, executes the page.

Additional features include a push-button chime, which calls patrons to the hall prior to a performance or after an intermission, and a volume control override button.

Although it may find other uses, the volume override button’s intended purpose is to deliver urgent messages, such as when a musician or the conductor needs to be called from the dressing room to the stage.

An open-architecture Symetrix SymNet 8x8 DSP, supplemented by a Symetrix Control I/O, sits in the middle of the system. It ably handles the complex routing required of the system, along with all of the frequency and dynamics processing nuances that make the pages not only functional, but also pleasant.

“Symetrix delivered on two essential features that make the paging system at La Maison comprehensive, easy-to-use, and cost-effective,” says Beaudoin. “First, it has a wealth of flexible logic modules, which meant that I could design the system to hang together robustly. Second, the ARC remotes convey logic controls and audio on a single Cat5 cable with very liberal distance restrictions. That made the physical installation as easy as it could possibly be.”

Symetrix

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Friday, December 09, 2011

In The Studio: Five Steps for More Dependable Hard Drives

Working toward stable, dependable hard drive resources

 
Media production is synonymous with data-creation; so to say that we’re completely dependent on our hard drive resources would be an under-statement.

This is why we all adhere to systematic data backup routines.

Some creative pros hesitate to wade into the acronym-rich, apparently esoteric world of hard drive diagnostics. Still others approach the topic too eager to apply outdated lessons or irrelevant myths.

While there is no foolproof approach to preventing or predicting hard disk drive failure, this article will introduce five steps that media production pros can take toward stable, dependable hard drive resources.

Step 1: ‘Burn In’ New Hard Drives
It’s probably no secret to many readers that so-called “infant mortality” is an all-too-common occurrence with hard drives. This experience is verified in Google’s illuminating study Failure Trends in a Large Disk Drive Population.

Specifically, the Google study found that if a typical hard drive is going to fail related to high or low utilization, it was most likely to happen in the first three months of the drive’s useful life.

‘Burning in’ a new hard drive provides a stress test (whether highly systematic or less formal) in which the drives that are doomed to fail early in life can either do so before they’re in use, or give strong indications that they will in the near future.

There are really two ways to approach burn-in:

—Use a disk utility or specialized burn-in utility to run a proprietary heavy-load test on your new drive(s) before integrating them into your system. These utilities will either cause a doomed drive to fail, or provide diagnostic feedback that will predict early failure.
—Devise an informal use-specific test of your own. For example, fill a disk to about 60 percent capacity, then create a high track count, edit-dense DAW session with a long duration. Leave it in loop playback for 12 or more hours. The disk will catalog some important diagnostic information that can help predict early failure (see Step 2).

Step 2: Be Smart About Using S.M.A.R.T. Attributes
Contemporary hard drives are almost always equipped with the standardized internal diagnostic system called SMART (Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology).

There are a number of SMART utilities on the market today that give us access to this abundant data. Knowing which parameters or “attributes” to focus on can make SMART a helpful tool.

Another important finding in Google’s unrivaled study is that there are particular SMART attributes that more closely correlate with drive failure than others. Specifically:

—Scan Errors are errors that can result from physical defects on the surface of a hard disk. Google’s study showed that drives with one or more scan errors during burn-in were 39 times more likely to fail in the first 60 days of use.
—Reallocation Count reflects the number of time a drive has remapped a presumably faulty sector to a new location on the disk. In Google’s study, reallocation counts greater than zero meant a drive was 14 times more likely to fail within 60 days.

There are limits to which attributes can tell a useful story. It’s also important to note that the above selected SMART parameters only predicted 44% of failures in Google’s study. Still, these two attributes alone present a significant advantage over working without diagnostics.

Step 3: Defrag Media Drives Every 6 to 12 Months
Defragmentation is the process of reorganizing data on a disk into the fewest contiguous regions as possible.

Low fragmentation can drastically improve drive performance, especially for large disks.

Media storage specialists like Studio Network Solutions recommend a regular 6- to 12-month cycle of defragmentation .

There are integrated operating system utilities and third-party utilities that let you defrag your internal and external drives. Be sure to have your data completely backed up before beginning this process.

Step 4: Don’t Get Distracted by Apparent Myths

In addition to the factors mentioned above that the Google study was able to correlate with drive failure, there were a number of factors that were exposed as apparently irrelevant (or at least distracting). Among these factors:

—High operating temperature doesn’t correlate with drive failure.
—Higher utilization doesn’t predict failure if the drive isn’t power on/off. Of course this only applies to drives beyond the 6-month mark.
—Seek errors don’t reliably predict failure.

Step 5: End of Life Planning
Every drive will eventually reach an age when all indications will point to oncoming failure. Heed the warnings, and be prepared to replace aging drives. For drives that make it past the critical early stages, mortality becomes very make/model specific, but also very uniform. In general you can expect to get 2 to 4 years out of a well cared for media drive.

I keep a log that shows when each drive in my system was introduced, it’s defrag schedule, and any warning signs from SMART logs. This has proven to be a very useful tool in maintaining drive health and predicting drive failure.

Equally important, I try to stay up-to-date on known issues with the hardware and software systems in my studio. Many DAW and I/O hardware problems can masquerade as drive problems. Being able to eliminate the most likely and routine drive maintenance issues accelerates the troubleshooting process, and keeps downtime to a minimum.

Rob Schlette is chief mastering engineer and owner of Anthem Mastering (anthemmastering.com) in St. Louis, MO, which provides trusted specialized mastering services to music clients across North America.

Be sure to visit the Pro Audio Files for more great recording content.

 

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Wednesday, December 07, 2011

Lectrosonics ASPEN & Intent Digital Team Up For Northern Arizona University AV System

“The ASPEN processor and our Energize control system make a great combination." - Bob Ginger, Intent Digital

With 39 satellite campuses throughout the state, Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a highly respected research university offering both undergraduate and graduate degree programs to approximately 25,000 students - 17,000 of which are enrolled at the Flagstaff campus.

At the Cline Library on the main campus, the University recently upgraded its Assembly Hall - a multipurpose space for lectures, presentations, meetings, movies, and more - with a new digital video and audio system.

Encompassing a wide assortment of input sources that includes computers, document camera, VCR’s, DVD and Blu-ray surround sound playback plus microphones, the various audio feeds constitute a complex audio setup—one that is very competently managed by an ASPEN processing system from Lectrosonics.

NAU Cline Library contracted with its long time AV technology provider, Phoenix, AZ-based Intent Digital, to develop and install the AV system upgrade in the Cline Library auditorium.

Intent Digital is a technology company that focuses on system design and engineering as well as the design and development of control systems used in AV projects for government, medical, house of worship, and institutional clients.

Using the combination of its Energize configurable control system - coupled with a Lectrosonics ASPEN SPN1624 processor and SPN32i input expander - Intent Digital created a highly functional, flexible AV system.

“This new system was designed to increase the auditorium’s audio and video input capacity and provide additional surround sound capabilities,” explains Bob Ginger, Intent Digital’s technology partner. “All audio, from mono microphones to stereo sources to surround sound DVD and Blu-ray sources, are now handled by the ASPEN processor. This involves mixing, surround sound processing, crosspoint routing, presets, EQ, everything audio related. This, of course, includes audio feeds to the surround sound speaker system. While the audio system can be used unattended, our Energize software / hardware control system provides for live mixing and switching.”

“The Energize control system accommodates source selection and live mixing via a touch panel control surface,” Ginger continues. “There are two touch panels— a 12-inch panel in the control room and a 10-inch panel at the podium. From either location, operators have full control of everything in the room, including projector, the DVD and Blu-ray players, audio sources, etc.

“As the system is operated by both University staff and student workers, we implemented a combination of full operational and simplified operation of input/output audio mixing and muting. Some functions such as equalization are not accessible from Energize to minimize the possibility of something being inadvertently changed.”

He adds that the combination of the Lectrosonics ASPEN processor and the Energize control system work beautifully together. “The ASPEN processor and our Energize control system make a great combination. There is so much functionality in the ASPEN. I love the fact that you don’t need to create all the DSP routing, mixing, and EQ blocks to build a system.

“With its ability to be configured in so many ways, the ASPEN processor is a lot more straight forward than many competing systems I’ve encountered. We also have the entire setup programmed so that, in the event of a power failure for example, the Energize system restores system settings to the last known state—making the entire setup easy to manage and maintain.”

The close business relationship between Intent Digital and Lectrosonics is due, in part, to Lectrosonics’ first-class support and customer service. “We have a great relationship with Lectrosonics,” says Ginger. “Our products integrate very closely with Lectrosonics products and, as a result, we’ve developed a very good relationship with their engineering staff. Lectrosonics support is consistently knowledgeable and very responsive.”

Lectrosonics

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Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Open Control Standard For Audio Gear? Looks Like The Time Is Arriving

The time is right for open public media networking standards. There is simply too much potential to continue ignoring them...

While the topic of audio media transport has been (and continues to be) examined extensively, the area of control standards has not been as adequately addressed.

As a result, Open Control Architecture (OCA) is being developed and promoted by the OCA Alliance, a group of nine audio manufacturers working toward the goal of creating an open public standard for control operations of media networking devices.

Previously (here), I discussed the scope and goals of OCA, but there is another question that must be asked: How exactly will this benefit the industry at large, and what advantages could an open public control standard provide to end-users, designers, specifiers and manufacturers.

Different groups have different views of what proprietary control protocols bring to the party. Traditionally, they have provided closed ecosystems of equipment that work well within their specific environment.

However, anybody who has ever had to integrate equipment from different manufacturers or expand existing systems has quickly found the other side of that coin - if a product is not part of “the club,” it’s going to be difficult to get it to play along.

The reality of our industry is that different equipment from different manufacturers is frequently used together to create a complete system, and the components of that system need to operate as a unified entity to get the job done.

Not The Same
One concern about standardizing things like control is that it will result in a homogenization of products from different manufacturers. As mentioned earlier, it’s important to understand that standardizing control is in no way the same as standardizing features or functionality - elements of a product that are unique and exciting will remain that way, but the industry will have a whole host of new options for how they interact with those features.

From the customer’s perspective, this means that a product can be examined and specified on the merits of its performance, features and unique properties, rather than concerns about it being able to function in a given system under a certain set of proprietary rules. Customers can really pick the best tools for the job without dealing with artificial restrictions.

From a manufacturer’s perspective, the same holds true. It is easier for customers to specify and purchase equipment for use in situations or systems where they previously could not. The reality of a manufacturer’s proprietary systems is not that they lock others in; far more often, they lock others out.

Standardization Concerns
There is a whole segment of the professional AV industry that is devoted to solving the problems of getting two or more pieces of equipment to communicate, even though they were never intended to. Whether you’re talking about a systems professional or a manufacturer who makes equipment for this purpose, there is sometimes a concern that standardization of control protocols will damage these businesses. It won’t.

This area of the business is always going to exist, because at the end of the day, customers are not purchasing a pile of random boxes - they are purchasing a solution to a problem. Sometimes the problem is simple, but sometimes it’s very complex and requires special expertise to really deliver a superior experience.

It’s a cold, hard fact, but customers really doesn’t care about the clever script or hack that an integrator came up with to finally get those two pieces of gear to communicate. What they do care about is how many billable hours went into creating that hack, and that when they push button x, function y happens consistently and reliably.

An open public standard for control will allow integrators to become more creative and efficient in how they create solutions, it will add value to their services, and this section of the industry will prosper and thrive.

Lift All Ships
Now let’s think about manufacturers for a moment. I work for one, and I want to sell equipment. I want that equipment to be valuable and desirable, and I want to run a profitable business. 

Our industry is made up of a lot of entities, applications and needs. Innovation and competition are important to drive both the products that are available to the market as well as the methods, techniques and solutions that we provide to end users. So let’s take a look at a couple of challenges that may exist for manufactures and purchasers alike.

Creating and industrializing a great product isn’t free. If a company’s only option is to develop all technology from the ground up, it may be cost prohibitive (particularly for smaller companies), or the final version of the product may have been diluted to hit a certain development cost. 

Alternately, to recover those development costs, the product might be priced out of its market. By being able to implement and adopt an open public standard for some of this development, the cost of entry is lower, and we can expect to see new and innovative ideas flourish in the market.

To illustrate another challenge, let’s say a new company has developed the coolest controller for a DSP that you’ve ever seen, but in today’s environment, connecting that device to other manufacturers’ equipment can require some pretty complex and time consuming methods and programming. Further, this can still lead to limitations or compromises in actual functionality.

All of it increases the real cost of the product for everybody - the system professional must spend more time programming and configuring, the end-user must pay for those additional billable hours, and the manufacturer might have a higher support load. But if that product could hit the market ready to talk to anybody’s hardware, it suddenly becomes much easier, more attractive and more economical for all parties.

Open Ecosystem
So now, let’s come back around to my original question posed last time: Why are we doing this? Simple – it’s good for the AV industry. Manufacturers benefit from lower development costs, new sales channels and happier customers, while customers benefit from more competition, new innovation, greater flexibility and reduced integration time.

The time is right for open public media networking standards. There is simply too much potential to continue ignoring them. Open public standards will provide a way to make our entire industry more agile and more profitable.

This conversation will continue for years to come, but for the first time, we can begin to see some of the fruits of our labor.  I believe in a matter of years, we will look back and the question will not be “Why?” but rather, “What took us so long?”

Ethan Wetzell has worked in audio for over 20 years, in positions ranging from front of house and studio engineer to global product manager for Electro-Voice DSP. He currently works as platform strategist for Bosch Communications Systems and works with the OCA Alliance.

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