Avid has announced that two of primetime television’s biggest shows, American Idol and Dancing with the Stars, are relying on Avid VENUE live sound systems for their live broadcasts this season. Both shows, each of which average more than 20 million viewers per episode, depend on the VENUE system’s sound quality and flexibility to deliver stellar audio mixes.
Creative Sound Solutions (CSS), which handles the music mixes for American Idol and the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars, required a reliable live system that could handle both recording and mixing for a live television broadcast.
CSS chose a 96-channel VENUE Profile System, with Waves and TC Electronics plug-ins, and a Pro Tools|HD 3 Accel system to complete its mobile studio.
With VENUE, CSS is able to seamlessly transition between live and pre-recorded mixes through a direct Pro Tools connection.
“As a mobile recording studio, we multi-track the orchestra and all of the singers on Pro Tools, which allows me to play back rehearsals and fine-tune the mixes just before show time,” explains Randy Faustino, CEO and president of CSS, and music mixer for American Idol.
“When we go live to millions of people, the VENUE Profile is the perfect solution because it allows me to mix live while tracking—on a console that’s designed for live mixing. VENUE sounds amazing in and of itself, and with the added power of so many possible TDM plug-ins, I can personalize my mix with effects and processors I’ve loved and used for years.”
Before each American Idol and Dancing with the Stars broadcast, CSS takes advantage of the direct VENUE and Pro Tools integration, taking a split of all microphone sources used for vocal performances and mixing the elements of the orchestra and vocalists together.
CSS then sends the mix to the production audio booth, which creates all of the show’s production elements and the 5.1 surround mix. Because of this, CSS can easily access the live show mix in its mobile studio while simultaneously managing the 5.1 mix for the live broadcast.
