Creative Sound Solutions

On Point Audio OPA 18" Self Powered Subwoofer

2011-08-20T18:31:00.000-07:00

On Point Audio OPA-10 Active

2011-08-20T18:29:00.000-07:00

The OPA-10 Active is designed for applications where small size, premium audio quality and high output capability are required. Thanks to its high built-in power, sophisticated digital processing, premium components and tour-grade enclosure, the OPA-10 Active out-sounds and out-powers much larger systems. You won’t believe the huge, well-balanced, wide-band sound that emanates from this system!

Built-in class-D amplifier with 2,000 watts of total system power – a 1,000 watt low-frequency amp and a 1,000 watt high-frequency amp
Perfectly-matched power amps, digital processing and high-quality transducers deliver high output capability with incredible sound quality
10-inch (254-mm) woofer with large-format 4-inch voice coil and neodymium magnet structure delivers the sound quality and output of larger drivers
Tour-grade 13-ply 3/4-inch (18-mm) marine-grade birch trapezoidal plywood enclosure is finished with PowerCoat™ and equipped with full-faced steel grille, comfort-lift handles and metal pole mount.
10 x M10  inserts are included for permanent installation or rigging
Extraordinarily high acoustic output-to-size ratio

System Type: Powered 10-inch two-way full-range
Frequency Range (-10 dB): 60 Hz – 20,000 Hz
Frequency Response (-3 dB): 65 Hz – 20,000 Hz
Coverage Pattern (H x V): 90º x 40º rotatable
Total Power (Peak / Continuous): 2,000 / 1,000 watts
LF Power (Peak / Continuous): 1,000 / 500 watts
HF Power (Peak / Continuous): 1,000 / 500 watts
Crossover Frequency / Type: 1,600 Hz / Linkwitz-Riley
LF Driver: NP10N 10-inch
HF Driver: ND175 44.4 mm Titanium
Measured Max SPL (Peak / Continuous): 128 dB / 125 dB
Dimensions (H x W x D) inches: 22.2 x 11.4 x 14.57 in
Dimensions (H x W x D) mm: 565 x 290 x 370 mm
Enclosure Material: Marine-Grade 13-ply Birch
Net Weight: 55 lb / 25 kg
Suspension Accessories: Eye Bolt Kit-W (4 x stainless steel forged shoulder eyebolts); OPA-10-U U-Bracke

IMAG

2011-08-20T18:28:00.001-07:00

IMAG (Image Magnification) has been a growing trend in today’s house of worship. I want to go over a few IMAG topics that will help you make good decisions when it comes to bringing IMAG into your Church.

Choosing to go IMAG
IMAG is an enhancment for larger rooms. This allows larger Churches the same intimacy that you have in smaller rooms. Some smaller Churches have made big mistakes going with IMAG when the room does not require it. The system becomes distracting and people think the money could have gone other places. This is not what you want after spending the money to install a IMAG.

Rule of thumb is that if your Churches futhest seat is around 80-90 feet from the stage you should look into IMAG. Also if there are harsh sitelines or areas where people cannot see.

IMAG Projector
There is a lot of opinion on what is better DLP or LCD. Fact is either one works for 90% of all Churches. Get the brightest lumen output your Church can afford and give it a good input.

One thing to consider is the projector processing delay. If any at all, the last thing you want is image delay.

IMAG Camera
Everyone is pushing HD however we still think SD is just fine for IMAG. It’s funny…most people going HD go out and buy a 1/2, 1/3, or even a 1/4″ image sensor HD prosumer camera. I’d rather have a SD 2/3 inch image sensor camera that would blow the socks off any of the above mentioned HD cams in low light situations.

Keep in mind….no matter what you do your IMAG image will never get any better then what your camera can capture.

If your Church can afford the following this will be your optimal camera. Not in order of importance.
1. SD-SDI output, avoid composite outputs
2. The ability to turn off auto focus
3. Fast lens f1.4, f2.0 in brighter rooms
4. large image sensor

Having a great tri-pod is very important. If your shooting tight any wobbles will be noticeable. The head of the tripod is most important. Make sure there are arms where external controls can be mounted.

Have questions? Leave one below and we will answer them…..

YESTERDAY, I DID THAT.

2011-08-20T18:21:00.000-07:00

By: Rob Robinson
Written with no breaks....

You know when you offer to do something for somebody and they say, no, don’t worry about it, but you insist for some stupid reason and so you go to do the job and just after you get there, you discover that a very major element of the job was miscalculated, but now your in the middle of it and you can’t leave because you insisted on doing it, and now you need your tools so you go out to your car to get them and schlep them inside and you go you use your cordless drill only to find out that the battery is low, so you go to grab the spare only to realize that it’s back at the shop along with the charger, meanwhile the clock is ticking on all of the other stuff that you must do today, and you get back to the job with your stuff and after unscrewing what you thought held this bracket in place, you find out that they used a nail gun anyway so that bracket that you planned on moving isn’t going anywhere without a bulldozer, but luckily at the shop you grabbed some wood and after you take some new measurements you head outside to cut a new bracket and one step out the door, the rain sees you and decides to soak you and your skill saw, but you’re at a church and bad words must not come out of your mouth or you don’t look so good, and now you get to climb the ladder over all of the stage gear to install the new mount but everytime that you try to find a comfortable position to screw it in, the stupid drop ceiling gets in the way and you look like Clark Griswold on a ladder hanging Christmas lights, but you don’t have a choice and even if it’s uncomfortable you have to try to screw it with your left hand, which is totally useless sometimes and to add to the frustration somebody yells down “how’s it going?” and you have to grit your teeth and say “Great”, but that’s a lie and thank God that you don’t have a flame thrower, and later when you get the mount up and level you go to stretch the cables to their new position, you find out that they were only long enough for the old position and right there on the top of that ladder you immediately summon God to ask if this is somehow funny to him and you end up laughing a little yourself because you’re the idiot who insisted that he do this job and what was an hour job at the most now has sucked your day dry and you’re even wondering if you’ll be out of there before the Wednesday night church crew comes is, but you finally get a couple things to work in your favor and get things running despite every little set-back, but you’ve made a mess and you can’t just leave it so you search out a vacuum cleaner and after you plug it in it falls apart right in your hands and by now you’re sure that you are being video taped for an episode of punk’d but then realize that you couldn’t ever be so fortunate as to know Ashton Kutcher and nobody is watching you at all and this is just a very long series of unfortunate circumstances that are trying desperately to tell you something and your just not getting it at all but you finally get the vacuum back together only to realize that the belt on it is just floating around so of course your own cynicism starts saying things out loud on it’s own like “that’s just perfect”, but 7 hours later you managed to do a 30 minute job. Well, yesterday, I did that.

the moral: From my Dad to you, measure twice, cut once. Hey, even measure three times.

Worxaudio X2i 160 Degrees!!!!

2011-08-20T18:13:00.000-07:00

The X2-P Line array incorporates two modules, each with a medium format, 1-inch exit compression driver coupled to a stabilized proprietary FlatWave™ Former (wave shaping device) that delivers clear, penetrating high frequencies over a predictable and controlled coverage area. These compression drivers are paired with dual 8-inch cone transducers coupled to the (A.I.M. ™) Acoustic Intergrading Module that minimizes cone filtering throughout the entire operating spectrum and provides a rich, fully balanced sound with a frequency range that spans from 45 Hz to 20 kHz (-10 dB). Hence, the X2-P loudspeaker system provides a total of two high frequency drivers and four bass drivers—all housed in a rugged enclosure.

The new X2-P’s throw capabilities mark a dramatic departure from conventional line array systems of this size and class. The upper module of the X2-P provides 10-degree vertical dispersion while the lower module delivers a 25-degree vertical pattern. Combined, the two modules create a 30-degree vertical system with an unusually broad horizontal dispersion of 160 degrees. The new X2-P’s exemplary dispersion characteristics make this enclosure an outstanding choice for a wide range of sound reinforcement applications—delivering pristine audio quality with even coverage that eludes many competing systems.

The new X2-P’s cabinet is the result of painstaking attention to detail and is intended to provide years of great-sounding, trouble-free service. The loudspeaker enclosure is constructed from sturdy multi-ply Baltic Birch and is heavily braced for cabinet rigidity. Protecting the enclosure is a multi-layered, two part polyurea ProTex™ finish — available in black or white—designed to withstand the most demanding applications. A 14-gauge, perforated, cloth-backed, powder coated steel grill with a high transmission ratio protects the transducer complement.

Characteristic of WorxAudio Technologies’ TrueLine Series loudspeakers, the new X2-P ships with a first-rate complement of custom-designed flyware. The X2-P‘s black or white powered coated, aluminum TrueAim™ grid incorporates a series of holes that control the angle of the suspended enclosure. The system’s included EASE Focus aiming software incorporates all the various parameters—including weight, distribution, and rigging points—and provides a single-step “Auto Focus” process that details the optimum angle to suspend the enclosure at, which is accomplished by setting the TrueAim grid at the recommended hole. The entire process is quick, easy, and ensures optimum coverage throughout the space.

Designed expressly for use with the X2-P is WorxAudio Technologies’ highly-regarded PMD-1 digital power amp. Housed in the rear of the enclosure, the PMD-1 eliminates the headache of selecting the right amplifier/signal processing to mate with the loudspeaker and saves space as well. Featuring 500 watts of pulse pounding adrenalin for the low frequencies and 250 watts for the highs, this powerhouse amplifier incorporates twin digital program processors, a mute switch for each output, a detented volume control, an XLR transformer with isolated I/O, and industry-standard AC PowerCon switchgear I/O.

We dont have a budget....

2011-05-09T18:46:00.000-07:00

Had a great conversation with a Pastor on the east coast today. I saw what their vision was for their new Church but due to financing their budget was cut after construction began. This was a pretty heavy blow and would be for any organization.

One thing I want to stress. We have a God big enough that has a plan already in place. Trust in Him and all things will work out.

How silly would we feel if we sat in front of him talking about how we don't know how things are going to work out...

Turn it down!!! "Sir, we havent started yet"

2011-04-17T07:11:00.000-07:00

This is just a quick post I wrote during the first service at my Church. I'm using my android so pardon any mistakes.

For the past few weeks I've had this guy who has decided to bust my chops every chance he gets. Now this guy is your typical old school ex pastor who feels his ten percent is just a little better then everyone elses ten percent so he has the right to criticize every part of our service.

That said...it all started a couple weeks ago where this guy comes up during service and asks for it to be turned down....and not in a ( I know your working on 2 hours of sleep and I appreciate you being here volunteering your time kind of way)

SIDE NOTE: Now I'm not saying to ignore the requests of the congregation because it important to know what's going on. But you need to observe the worshippers....(read my blog "how loud too loud")

I told him OK and looked at the associate pastor and showed him the db meter reading 85db. He just shook his head and said leave it.

Next Sunday the dance began...he looked at me I looked at him and smiled. He again approached the Booth and pleaded for me to turn it down. This time I was confused.....I replied...."sir, we haven't started yet....that's just background music at 55db. Now with the inverse square law it may have been 61db at the front row. The entire worship service he held his hands to his ears. Now it bothered me that this guy is so wrapped around getting his way that he's missing out on the whole reason he got up this morning. And not only that...he's ruining it for me too.

Next Sunday he decides to recuit people....this is comical now...if you feel your right and you want your way what do you do? Divide the church. LOL....I see him talking to usher pointing and giving ugly looks. The user approached me and the associate pastor and said he wanted the sound turned down. I then said "ask him if he knows just how hard it is for me to volunteer....I have 4 kids two jobs and no sleep...I'd rather be home. I don't need to deal with his grudge.

Bottom line...if your the engineer remember the demographic your mixing for...if you try to make everyone happy your mix will suffer. Talk to your pastor...find out how they want to worship to sound and how loud they want it. If your consistent your church will filter out the people who are not into what your wanting to do and will be filled with people who do.

Second...if your the complainer....swallow this happy pill. When You waking up brewing coffee & getting ready....were here already preparing. If you want to express how you feel remember your dealing with volunteers. If they quit you just put the church in q bad place. Don't forget to praise your volunteers.....well I have to go....first service is wrapping up...

Forward this....

Saving for a rainy day

2011-04-13T16:58:00.000-07:00

We just put in the purchase order for two projectors today and the freight charge....

$935!!!

Got your attention? This was a eyeopener for me so I felt like sharing.

Last year we were asked to go to a Church and take a look at their current projection system. The system was installed about 5 years ago but still working enough to get by.

After inspection we noticed the lumen output was a little low for the ambient light in the room and the low contrast ratios of the old projectors didn't produce very good blacks. We recommended new higher lumen projectors with larger LCD chips & higher contrast to get a better picture on their large screens. The whole project was going to be a little more then they had to spend at the time so we talked about saving money for a bit and do it correctly when they had the funds.

On a side note: The projectors we were going to provide are perfect for Churches. The filters would scroll automatically so you wouldn't have to go up 30' and clean them & it came with 2 lamps built in! That means during your fall production if a lamp went out the other one would kick in. NO DOWN TIME! http://www.eiki.com/Products/LC-XGC500

So time goes by and we check in on them to make sure everything is still operational. Once every other week, once a month, to eventually once every other month. It seemed the funds were just not being put away.

Today we received the call. "How fast can we get two new projectors"? I told them it only takes about a week. "We need them tomorrow to install them for Palm Sunday"!!! I raced down to the Church...took more measurements and told them I'd do everything I could to get them projectors with special lenses next day.

Here's what had to happen. I pulled all my resources to make sure all the components needed were available...parts from California, Indiana, and Wisconsin all had to be shipped next day air to arrive in time to do the installation.

The Church had the original quote from a year ago and was relying on it to be accurate. Unfortunately there was a price increase of 2% plus the near $1,000 freight charge that had to be tacked on. We knew this was going to be a issue so Creative Sound Solutions donated the additional funds to the Church to make sure the cost didn't keep them from buying the right gear.

Moral of the story....you think you can't afford something now? Wait till you need it tomorrow!

Loud Low Frequency Noise from PGX4 or SLX4 Receiver

2011-03-08T08:38:00.000-08:00

If your having a low Frequency Noise from your SLX or PGX the following my be the solution......

The low frequency noise may be caused by a low power line voltage condition. Check these symptoms to determine if this applies to your situation:

1. Intermittent, intense, and offensive low frequency noise

2. PGX4 or SLX4 receiver

3. Does not occur with microphone transmitter turned off (receiver squelched)

4. Does occur when microphone is turned on

The PGX4 and SLX4 receivers can generate a low frequency oscillation noise when the DC power supply voltage dips below approximately 10.5 volts. Under normal circumstances, the supplied PS20 power supply provides 12 - 14 VDC at normal power line voltages of 110 -120 VAC. However, when the power line voltage dips to 95 VAC and below, the DC voltage output will dip below 10.5 VDC, resulting in the undesirable noise. Several reports of the low frequency noise issue have been received from DJs - the problem can be traced to a marginal or heavily loaded AC supply circuit for running both sound and lights - which results in abnormally low AC line voltages.

The solution is to replace the PS20 power supply with a power supply that is less sensitive to AC line voltage fluctuations. The Shure PS21 power supply is the recommended replacement, and should work on AC line voltages down to 80 volts or less. We do recommend that if you are experiencing AC line voltages below 105 volts AC, a qualified electrician should be engaged for analysis and correction. Unusually low line voltage can be detrimental to many electronic devices with linear power supplies.

A second alternative is to use a generic regulated switching power supply rated at 12 VDC with 400 mA (or more) current capacity, capable of wide AC input voltage swings, and with a matching DC connector (coaxial, 5.5 mm x 2.1 mm, center pin positive, such as the Switchcraft S760).

Red Flags

2011-03-03T19:24:00.000-08:00

I was talking with some people about some of my experiences with all the different Churches & Pastors I've worked with and thought.....If they only knew the things I've seen & heard. So, I'm writing a book about every job I've done and every Church I've been to.

I don't want to write a book about the 7 steps to change your church...I want to write a first hand account of what someone sees from the outside. There will be a lot of good which I hope people can learn from but there will also be Red Flags.

The book is going to be called Red Flags and its about just that...the little red flags that pop up that some people on the inside don't see.

Here are the first few paragraphs...it starts back when I was introduced to this new way of doing church. I hope this will help a lot of people.

8 AM, I’m dead tired; I was still at work just hours before I decided to head to a new “awesome” Church all my friends are attending. I have been toying with the idea of going but it was difficult because I did sound jobs until 2AM on Saturdays. 9 AM I’m up and getting ready. I’m really hoping this new church is everything everyone was talking about.

I left the house around 9:30AM, stopped and grabbed some coffee then headed towards the church. The directions were easy and much to my surprise there were signs all along the road side pointing me to the local high school. I’m thinking to myself, this is a high school, and not even a Christian high school…what’s the deal. I pulled into the school parking lot and noticed there was special parking for first time visitor’s right next to the entry doors. “Don’t mind if I do” I was thinking as I pulled into one of those coveted easy access spots. As I got out of my car I notice some contemporary Christian music playing from a strategically placed self powered speaker on side of the building…I’m thinking yea! This place rocks! And I haven’t even walked through the doors. First impressions….good!

The main hallway of the school was the churches foyer. Young and hip was the apparent theme which worked for me…I considered myself young and somewhat hip. Not a detail was missed! Coffee, sugar, non-sugar sweeteners, every type of creamer, special stirring sticks, napkins, kids wipes, donuts, bagels and high top tables all laid out in an atmosphere anyone could feel comfortable in. Walking towards the God’s 8^th day creation, the donut, I passed three kiosks. The signs on the kiosks read, 1^st time, 2^nd time & 3^rd time visitors and on the kiosks counter were what appeared to be gifts. I thought to myself “ok, I could use one more coffee mug”. Next to those kiosks were information tables with small group sign up lists & CDs from previous services. When I saw the CDs I felt what most people fell….O boy, another church that sells everything they could get their hands on. But, nope…they were free. Glad I didn’t think outloud…Again the atmosphere, the well thought out plan made me want to stay and see more. The further I walked down the hallway the more I was impressed. The closer you get to kids world the smaller the tables got. You could get there early, grab some breakfast and sit with your family and eat before church.

The kid’s church even had its own feel. A system was clearly in place. You would check in at a set of doors that were the only way in and out. If you went back into the kid’s area you needed a pass or a kid’s check out ticket. You could leave with a calm feeling knowing they were safe. The classes were setup for the age groups and looked nothing like a high school facility. I didn’t see how they could pull of such a feat every Sunday. But they did.

While looking lost I was greeted by a couple of members who seemed very interested in who I was and was happy I was able to come to Church. This broke the ice and made me feel very welcome. I talked for awhile and noticed they let me do most of the talking. They must have been trained to listen because if I was in their position and I knew the person I was talking to was new, I’d be talking a mile a minute about how awesome we are.

It was almost time for service to start so I began to head to the sanctuary. Walking into the sanctuary, AKA the school theater, I was again greeted by another welcoming smile and a bulletin. In my mind I was thinking this is the friendliest place I have ever been to. Up until then I had never experienced such a complete well thought out environment. They thought of everything!

The lights were dimmed a bit accenting the animated countdown screen and a pre recorded sound track was playing with intermittent announcements notifying everyone service was about to start.

When the Worship started you knew right away this was not your ordinary church. You could feel the kick of the drums and the bass guitar while the electric guitars ripped through your entire sole. The sound was amazing! You could tell no expense was spared on the audio equipment. The mixing console was very impressive and the flickering lights of the system outboard DSP reminded me of Christmas time. The projection screens were filled with live scenic scenes with the words of the songs overlaid. The two main screens were position clearly for the rear of the church so two additional smaller screens were at the front of the stage making it easy to interact with the worship leader.

The house lights at this point were completely off and your focus was on the performers. The stage lighting was full of color starting with the backlighting. Accent lighting was on the move with brilliant gobos and stage fills. I felt this was some of the best production around. Production, a funny word to describe your church isn’t it? Yet it was flawless and not distracting.

After the worship was done you felt emotional and moved. The band began to exit the stage, house lights came up and the announcement team got into position. It was a two man announcement show, sometime serious but always entertaining. As the announcements ended the house lights went down and a video was played to introduce the series the Pastor was preaching on. You kind of had a hint of what the sermon was going to be about because of the enormous 30 foot long banner on the backlight scrim. When the house lights came back up the pastor was sitting at a small high top table with a ear to ear smile.

The Pastor was not of this world. I’d admit, I’ve had some of my best sleep in the walls of a church, but not here. From the moment He opened his mouth I was hooked. I laughed, I though, and I questioned my life. After the message was done the band came up and played one last song and we were dismissed.

At that point I decided this was my church. It felt right. I knew I needed something and this was it. It impressed me so much that I found myself talking about the church all the time. People thought I was crazy and church should be that good. My excitement made people want to go.

After about a month the media director caught wind that I played drums and offered a position on the worship team. It was a good feeling to be asked but I knew there was a commitment so I had to think about it. Over the next few weeks I met so many Christians and began making new friends. I really started to feel like fit in. It was like a family.

At that time there was only one worship team so I heard they were looking to grow depth not to burn out any volunteers. So I decided to join. We had practice on Thursday nights and were at the Church at 7AM to setup for the early service. The team had a pre production meeting before the service to go over ques and the order of worship. A quick prayer and we were off. Every Sunday we setup, did two services, and tore down all out of a trailer.

Being on stage and being a part of the Church was an experience I needed. I learned a lot about the ins and outs of a mobile church. The time restraints of load in and load out was probably the most stressful to us volunteers. Having to be careful with someone else’s building was another. We started to come up new and faster ways to setup and consolidate our equipment. Putting the drums on a rolling stage and having them already miced saved about 15 minutes. Putting the mixing console on a rack that held all the pre-wired DSP saved about 10 minutes and using a multi-pin splitter snake saved us from patching in the mixing console every morning. We were a well oiled machine setting up a full production in under 30 minutes with sound check. This helped us not feel so burned out every Sunday.

Months pasted and I felt I needed more. Playing on the worship team was great but I needed to be fed as well. Sometimes we forget while were ministering we still need to be ministered to. One Sunday we finished setting up early so I went to go grab some coffee from the foyer. I passed the small group table like I did every morning but this time I felt something. I Stopped and looked at the different groups but nothing jumped out at me. I just figured I’d join when some of my friends join one. Just then one of the small group leaders stopped at the table and introduced himself. That was good enough for me. I joined his group and was in his living room that Wednesday night.

It was kind of awkward; I wasn’t big on going to strangers houses, especially with other strangers. The group was compiled of mostly new comers seeking more of what they get on Sunday. Much to my surprise, the leader has only been going to the church himself for a month! I asked if he had to do any special classes or become a member to lead a small group and evidently you don’t. This was the first time I felt the church that thinks of everything missed something. If they only knew the leader of my small group was planning on starting his own church and felt like asking us to be his first recruits. I never went back.

The Pastor and I became friends in church and professionally. See, I had always had a heart for church planters and this pastor wrote the book on church planting. Still to this day there is no one I would trust more to train a new pastor then him. He had me start helping him train the new pastors in Audio, Video & Lighting. I began to travel the country training and setting up systems for new mobile churches. From that my story continues.

Why do I need Sound Treatment?

2011-02-23T07:51:00.000-08:00

Many times we are asked to look at a Church and figure out what is wrong with a perfectly good sound system. Most times the problem is the acoustics in the room. If you took your sound system outside and ran everything flat it would probably sound great. So throwing more money at Speakers, Amps & DSP may not be the fix.

Acoustics in the room can cause a few audible issues which we will cover today.

Standing Waves

A standing wave is the result of a sound wave that bounces between two or more surfaces and emphasizes one specific frequency that you hear as the waves reinforce each other.

When the wave bounces off the surface, it cha
nges phase. In the case of waves that create a standing wave, the reflected wave is a mirror image of the original. The waves then combine.
If the amplitudes of the two waves have the same sign (both positive / both negative), they will add together to form a wave with a larger amplitude. This adding together is called constructive interference. This added wave doesn't appear to move, thus it's called a standing wave. Standing waves are usually low frequency waves below 300 Hz. Above 300hz, the waves tend not to reflect directly back and the sound is greatly influenced
by the objects in t
he room and the composite of the room's walls, floor, and ceiling.

Here's a chart to give you an idea of the size of wavelengths based on the frequency. As you can see, the lower the frequency, the larger the wavelength such as a 20 foot distance from crest to crest.

What Causes Standing Waves?

Standing waves are created when the distance between the walls is a multiple of a sound's wavelength.

Walls that are 20 feet apart, with a wavelength that is 19 feet long, won't produce the conditions for the wave reinforcement. However, if the walls are 20 feet apart and the wavelength is 10 feet or 20 feet, then a standing wave will be produced because of the reinforcement.

Standing waves can be caused when waves bounce between;

Opposite walls
Four sides of the room
All six sides of the room (given most rooms have four walls, a floor, and a ceiling!)

This image shows the blue and red waves moving back and forth with the resulting black standing wave being produced.

Echo - Reverb

A Echo is a single reflection of a sound source. If so many reflections arrive at a listener that they are unable to distinguish between them, the proper term is reverberation. When dealing with audible frequencies, the human ear cannot distinguish an echo from the original sound if the delay is less than 1/10 of a second.

When your dealing with your congregation, not distinguishing the message could be the difference in changing someones life.

Comb Filtering

Simply stated, comb filtering is two signals arriving at the same location at different times. Because of the differences in the arrival times, the sound waves will have additions when they perfectly overlap and reinforce each other, and also have cancellations or nulls where they cancel each other out (the latter is called destructive interference). This occurs in virtually all Speaker Systems whose musical ranges overlap, where both drivers are reproducing the same sounds, as in stereo or surround sound, and because of multiple drivers with different physical locations used to cover the same frequency range.

How do we fix our room and make the sound better?

You can fix your room with an assortment of sound absorption & deflection panels, padded seats, carpet, and the proper sound system. Try to stay away from too many hard surfaces, square walls if your building.

Grace United Methodist fixed their sound issues by simply adding sound absorption panels.

For more help you can call our office at 239-458-3408 or email info@creativesoundsolution.com

Tony

Keeping an open mind

2011-02-05T18:01:00.000-08:00

So I just watch a movie and as reluctant as I am to admit what it was I feel it needs to be disclosed. The movie was " Eat, Pray, Love"....now I didnt agree with most of the movie because of my personal beliefs, but...there we a few cool things said in the movie. One was "make every moment that happens in your life a clue and make every one you run into a teacher".

I thought this was a great concept. Few and far between is it that I work with a new sound techs and not have to be careful not to offend them. Being a sound tech is a very important part of your ministry and its great most people take ownership in their position. I found the way to learn quick is by soaking in everything I could from everyone I knew.

If someone has the skills you want, instead of trying to impress that person by showing them how much you know....ask as many questions as you can.

Dont forget to register for our FREE seminar in March 2011 Click Here

Buyer Beware!!!

2011-01-04T14:48:00.001-08:00

For many of us who do our due diligence find the best deals for anything online. But how good of a deal are we really getting? Before we spend our hard earned dollars listen to this story...

I was asked to quote a couple LED stage light fixtures for a local Church. I always check my cost plus freight and then look online for what everyone else is selling the same item for. I'll then beat that lowest price and write up the quote. Today I went online and found stores selling the same item for less then what I can buy them for as a dealer!

Now, If your not a dealer you wouldn't see this as a red flag and just brush it off as a great deal. But as a dealer it strikes up concern. I gave the list of "stores" to my supplier and asked if they knew they were advertising below MAP. (Minimum advertised price) Here was the reply....

"These dealers on ###.com are unauthorized dealers and Manufacturers warranty will not be ordered on any product purchased thru any of them. We are just getting started with our New Warehouse Tracking System, so once it is operational we will crack down on any distributor who is selling to these guys that are violating.

Sorry for the inconvenience, but please stress to your customer that any product purchased thru an unauthorized dealer does not carry any warranty.

Thank you for the heads up."

So when your pricing items online and all the well know companies are selling at the same price be assured that is the MAP price and you will be receiving a warranty. If you see a lower price it may be a refurbished or a unauthorized dealer. This could be a nightmare when your looking for support or Warranty.

If you have any questions or comment please let me know.

Tony 239-458-3408

Building a Church......Don't take it from me

2010-11-06T12:28:00.000-07:00

I was taking a class at the 2010 WFX expo called "Master planning for technical systems". They recommended bringing your Pastor but hardly any of them attended. The room was packed with technical directors and volunteers running the Sunday morning production. I've found in my own personal walk that its not always the easiest task to get your Pastor involved in technical training or future development of systems. However, they do tend to trust your judgment so soak up everything you can and make sure your making equipment decisions on what you need and not what the next church has or what you can afford today. There is a difference between a $800 & $15k mixing console. Will the congregation notice a difference? YES THEY WILL. Your not going to reproduce the same result with cheap gear.

I wanted to give you some highlights of the class. There were some key speakers from all over the Country giving testimony to how they did it....and what key points they would give. This is good information that we've all heard but now its coming from facility managers who have 10,000 members.

Jeff Vandergiessen: Technical Director of Mars Hill Church. Over10,000 members

1. Plan where your Church in going to be when selecting your AVL. The cost of changing later down the road cost way more. In the same token, overkill for bragging rights is just a waist of money.

Greg Bacus: Lifechurch, 13 Campus 130 Network churches.

1. Design your systems for the volunteer to run. We started with staff engineers and changed to volunteers. There was a huge learning curve after switching.

Daryl Cripe: Grace Community Church 13 separate auditoriums in one location

1. Technical AVL needs to be a part of the design process from day one. Not after the arch & engineers are done.....day one!

2. Your AVL company should be at every planning meeting

Those are a few key points they wanted to make.

Now, I would agree with all of them. Yes, design your church budget for AVL around who is going to be running the systems. Yes, you get what you pay for. Yes, the design team needs to be in place way in advance and be at every meeting.

If you have any questions about new facility design or how to get started visit www.creativesoundsolution.com or call 239-458-3408

Cutting Setup Time

2010-09-20T18:05:00.001-07:00

The fundraising is complete, your building lease is secure, everything is falling into place…and why not? When God is in it who can be against it? Right? All the preparation for the big launch has been carefully planned out. You’ve consoled with everyone under the sun about what to do and what not to do. Its Time….

But when it comes down to it…not one launch is the same as the other. People are different, buildings are different and they bring different challenges. A big proponent is how budgets are different, and with that “making it work” comes into play and when you’re making it work stress can become part of the equation.

In this article I wanted to share some insight on what I’ve seen working with different new plants. I would like to shed some light on some simple organic ideas that may prevent some volunteer burn out. Keeping your volunteers happy and not overworked is the key to healthy media teams.

It pre Launch day! Volunteers pour into the building like sugar ants and begin the setup process. For some reason during pre launch there is this need to see how fast we can get setup. This is great to see but the more important thing to gain from the pre launch setup is the “Sysem”. The system is the written plan of attack.

I visited a Church in New Jersey that was spending about 60+ minutes setting up. This required the volunteer to arrive earlier then most churches and stay later. By breaking down the setup and getting creative you can easily get in and out in 20 Minutes. First we took the acoustic drums and mounted them on a drum riser that was on wheels. As seen in the pictures, The mics were mounted to the drums and wired to the snake head that was permanently mounted to the drum riser base. The drums were mounted to the riser with “U” clamps and strap. The riser could fit through a single door opening and could roll right onto the trailer. This eliminated the setup of the drums (10 min) and Micing the drums (5 Min). Next we recommend a multi-pin snake and all-in-one console rack combo that holds all the wireless, DSP, and drawers for mics and DIs. This will allow keeping all the gear wired so when it’s time to setup you connect one snake cable.

Snaking out your stage cabling will also cut down setup time. This is where you run all your stage mic and monitor sends where you want then zip tie them together making a snake. At tear down these can be rolled up and left plugged into the snake mounted to the drum riser. Color coding your snakes and cables also help.

Carting your speakers or adding casters to your subs will also cut setup time. Imagine rolling your speakers off the trailer and setting them in place, running a power cord and your done. It also keeps your volunteers from lifting heavy equipment.

There are so many creative ways to make setup easy and like I said, no plants are 100% alike. If you would like more ideas or have a situation you want looked at give us a call.

Living Waters

2010-04-21T11:06:00.001-07:00

Living waters needed a solution that would leave them with a clean look and conserve space. We tossed some ideas around and came up with this solutions. Cut openings in the rooms on both sides of the stage. Placed the QSC HPR speakers inside the closets and covered the openings with sound scrim. We were able to match the scrim with the seats and backdrop.

If you have a Audio / Video / or Lighting questions give us a call or Email your question to info@creativesoundsolution.com

Family Life Church

2010-04-21T10:47:00.000-07:00

Family Life Church needed a hand with getting their current system to sound good along with getting their setup time lowered to about 30min. We recommended mounting the drums on a cart that can act as a riser/cart/snake box.

Coastal Community

2010-04-21T10:39:00.000-07:00

Pastor TJ McCormick had a special situation with planting his new Church in Fort Lauderdale. He had a school auditorium that was wider then it was deep, and in the back of the auditorium were stadium seating. This posed a issue with coverage and the amount of speakers that would be needed to cover the room.

The solution was a QSC ILA line array system with an 140 degree throw pattern.

Church At the Crossing

2010-04-21T10:05:00.000-07:00

The Church at The Crossing

Sunday Services are held at Northside Cinema # 2 located at the corner of Hwy. 231 N. and Ross Clark Circle. Each week their hospitality team will prepare coffee, juice and a snack for you to enjoy as you fellowship before the service. During the service you will hear anointed music, and a life-changing message in our Sunday morning services. Friendly volunteers will meet you as you enter our doors. These greeters are ready to give directions or answer any questions you may have.

When you visit the Crossing you'll find people hungry for God and ready to engage in worship. Whether you have followed Christ for years or just curious as to what church is all about, you are welcome at The Crossing! Your mode of dress is not important. We are more interested in learning about the you on the inside! At the Crossing, you will find a group of people who strive to find life, live life, and give life through Jesus Christ.

The system was a bit of a challenge due to the fact they have about 30min to setup and 30min to tear down after the service. We went with the QSC HPR series self powered speakers, Sonic Station 40ch input mixing console, Aviom system, and DPA wireless mic. After a few trial runs they were able to beat the time to setup and tear down. We alo had a custom rack/mixing console case made that turns into a table and holds the mixing console, all the rack equipment, projector, and all the cables.

The Crossing West is where the offices are located and where meetings, small groups, and practices are held during the week. 3000 Hartford Hwy. Suite 3 Dothan, Al 36305 Phone: 334-803-0341

Wireless Mics

2009-06-12T07:25:00.000-07:00

By: Tony Flammia

"The right to remain silent"

......was on the cover of one of the major Audio Mags for Worship centers. I don't know if its was scare tactic but it needed to be done. This topic is very important to House of Worship buildings and anyone using wireless mics.....surprisingly most everyone I talk to still has not heard of the issue.

Ok, here is the deal.....

Imagine you’re driving around listening to your stereo and your favorite song is on…your jamming out…. Looking around to make sure no one sees you singing into your tightly clenched fist…nothing but good times! Right at the best part you hear some static and then the song gets interrupted like your coming into a stronger signal, but you know for sure you’re not too far from the station…..why is this happening?

This is what is going to begin to happen after June 12^th 2009. If you’re wireless mics are running in the freq range of 698 to 806, you will be open to interruptions from other devices in that range. This wont happen suddenly...but over a period of time.

The Story behind the story....

The FCC is advocating for Digital TV vs analog due to the fact its better, and in short, the digital signal allows the FCC to tightly fit the channels one after another. Analog had to be spaced out.

So,…the frequencies from 698 to 806 has been auctioned off to the highest bidder . Why didn’t the wireless companies bid on it? Well, all the wireless companies together couldn't cover what it sold for. Even Google was out bid! 19 Billion dollars for those coveted white spaces.

So now that these freqs belong to others....mostly telecommunication companies, they will begin to produce devices that will use those freqs to go online. So at first, when we vacate the 698 to 806 spectrum, the whitespaces will be pretty clear. You may even notice your wireless working better! But, as the devices grow in numbers they will eventually take over.

FCC comes to the rescue.....

The Fcc did however make provisions for these telecommunication devices. Before the device uses a freq it has to check a database for the area being used to see if there are registered wireless devices in use. Anyone ever register anything with the FCC? I can only speculate fees and penaltys but I can see that coming.

Final Thought......
Bottom line....if your using a mic in the 698-806 range.....get rid of it. Its not lawful to continue to use these freqs. Its not what we all wanted to hear, but....what can you do? If I paid 19 Billion for clean airways I wouldent want anyone using them.

There is Hope......
Creative Sound Solutions, LLC is offering wireless units at cost to help those who were blindsided with this event.

www.creativesoundsolution.com
239-458-3408

What is proximity effect?

2009-06-01T20:42:00.001-07:00

Proximity effect is an increase in low frequency response when a microphone is very close to the sound source, and is an inherent characteristics of direct tonal microphones. Omnidirectional mics do not exhibit this effect and variable D mics (like the EV RE20) can limit the proximity effect.

What is the real difference in audio cable?

2009-06-01T20:41:00.000-07:00

Much of the difference is in ruggedness and in the quality of shielding. Speaker cable should not be shielded, but all microphone and line level cables must be shielded. Some shields are less than 100%, some are braided for flexibility and others are foil for permanent installations.

The quality of the connectors, connections and raw materials determine whether the cable can be used in a harsh environment. The connector quality is important if the cable will be reconnected often or seldom.

There are visible differences in video cables, but those differences are quantifiable in specifications such as impedance, velocity, capacitance, dielectric loss, and shielding quality.The sad truth is that much esoteric cable is designed on "faith," without any real specifications or measurements of quality.

On the humorous side are dealers who offer, for an added fee, to "break in " cable for their customers. We suppose that if you are going to buy into the myth, you might as well go all the way and loosen up those sticky electrons.

Our New Forum

2009-06-01T20:38:00.000-07:00

Make sure you join our new forum......Heres what you get.....

Q & A Forum
Post any questions and we'll do our best to answer, with the help of other forum members I'm sure we can come up with the right answer....

Churches Helping Churches
Our goal here was to provide a place for Churches to post items or services they need or could offer. This way.....If Church "A" doesent have speakers but has people that can paint.......And Church "B" has speakers but needs some rooms painted. Here's where "A" and "B" get together and solve problems. Help grow this community of classifieds and help each other out

House Of Worship
Post Questions, Comments, and stories related to house of worship sound, lighting and video

Classifieds
Post your new or used gear and contact info...

and updates about our Ministry of Sound Seminars.....

Bass Drum EQ Nugget

2009-05-22T20:20:00.000-07:00

When I'm setting up my board I typically start with the Kick, snare, tom, tom, tom, OH, OH, HH, Bass Guitar, Keys, then other instruments.......

So I figured I would post some blogs about each channel one by one.....

Channel 1 Kick:

With channel 1 muted and the PFL (Pre fade listen) Button pressed in, I always check the input level on the meter before moving up the fader or un-muting. This allows me to make sure the level coming into the board will not destroy any of the equipment. I then turn the gain knob (Typically the top knob of the channel strip) up or down to get the level on the meter to "0".

After me channel level is at Zero, I'll un-mute the channel and begin to bring the fader to Unity or "0". This of coarse is after the main fader has been brought to unity.

I'll listen to the sound of the kick drum to see what can be done to make sure it has the low end presents and the high in attack that allows it to cut through the mix. I'll begin by moving the mid-sweep freq to around 300hz to 500hz and cut 10 to 15db. I will usually be happy with the kick once I find the mid freq that make the drum sound muddy.

Now that we cut 10 to 15db in the eq....look at your PFL again...we may need to add more gain to bring the channel back up to unity. This is also something to think about when adding DBs with your EQ. Make sure your levels are as close to "0" as possible.

After I'm happy with the mids, I may add a hair of 63-80hz and 5k for attack.

Some drummers like to drive the sound guy nuts by not putting any pellow in the drum. Something needs to rest just slightly on the resonant head (Front head...not the one you kick) or the kick may have a after taste.

Make sure the heads are tuned...60lbs on the batter 65lbs on the resonant head. Make sure the kick beater is correct for the application. If your doing jazz, dont use a plastic head...use something soft.

If you have any questions please email me at Tony@creativesoundsolution.com

Call 239.738.2942

Is that too loud???

2009-03-29T17:39:00.000-07:00

By: Tony Flammia

In every Church I go to there are a set of parameters that someone has come up with when is comes to the overall volume of the PA. In fact, I've even heard exact figures to the Decibel what cannot not be exceeded.

"We never go above 95db in our worship" "We don't want to feel the music, just hear it" "We never go below 105db"

That's great that there are some guidelines in place for the volunteer engineer, but.....is 95db the same as 95db? I mean, if you heard 95db on a mix that was loaded up with high end frequencies it may sound ear piercing, but if you had your mix where all the nasty mid and highs were cut you may be able to get up to 105db and think it 95db.

I was mixing a VERY contemporary Church this morning with one of the best bands in town. During worship I noticed people were entering in and jumping up and down from the front to the back. The dynamics in my opinion were spot on. I was asked "How loud do you think it is? With out looking at the DB meter I figured we were running at 95db with 100db peaks." I noticed the house sound guy was looking nervous about overall volume so I told him... "listen.....you hear what everyone else is hearing.Now if the first couple rows were backing up and leaving you may have it a bit loud but everyone is jumping." Then I pointed out the pastor in the front row with his hands raised and jumping up and down like he wants someone to pass him the ball.

While I mix I look and listen for a few things.

Is the sound warm and pleasing?

Who is taking the lead?

How is the congregation responding?

First, is the sound warm? Some instruments are harsh to begin with...guitars could be ear piercing and female vocals can break glass. If the EQ is not set to "warm up" those channels, your overall volume could suffer. Try to cut some high-mid and highs from the guitars and vocal...not too much to where they become muddy, but just enough to take the edge off. (This will be a future blog on EQs)

Second,who is taking the lead? Is the main focus the verse of the song? If so, why is the guitar or the keys the loudest thing in the mix? Make sure your focus is on the lead instrument or vocal...don't be afraid to push the lead up to single out the lead. Remember, the vocals should be sitting on a bed of music. The vocal is the most important part in a worship setting.

Third, keep an eye on the congregation. If you see people backing up, standing still, or just plain leaving....TURN IT DOWN!!! If you see everyone entering in and jumping up and down...you may have found the sweet spot. Personally, I like to feel some kick drum, I like to feel some bass, I want to be able to close my eyes and hear only the music in a wide mix. (Wide mix...another future blog coming soon)

Some thing to remember when mixing a PA is you can really hurt someone. The NIOSH institute, which is where OSHA gets their sound level guidelines, had studied the effects on sound pressure level at extended time frames. Below is a chart that shows DB levels with time durations that OSHA will not allow a worker to be exposed to. According to the chart 95DB for 30mins is ok. 100db for 30 min is causing hearing damage!

Next time you go to a concert and listen to an hour of pounding 115db to 120db just remember... your fragile ears can only handle about 30 seconds..........

Download this DB level meter...its a bit scary to think how much damage we've done to ourselves already.....Click Here

For more information or if you have questions, visit www.creativesoundsolution.com or call our office at 239-458-3408

Why are my Wireless mics acting up???

2009-03-25T20:46:00.000-07:00

The transition to Consumer Wireless Devices Begins
The story goes back to 1996 when Congress began to look at the need to update the U.S. system of TV broadcasting. This process is finally coming to the point where analog TV stations will be gone soon, replaced by Digital TV. DTV is already online and stations are required to maintain both analog and digital signals until February 17, 2009, the official changeover to DTV....which has been pushed off a few months by our new President.

What is DTV?
OK....The FCC says it best: “Digital Television (DTV) is an advanced broadcasting technology that will transform your television viewing experience. DTV enables broadcasters to offer television with better picture and sound quality. It can also offer multiple programming choices, called multicasting, and interactive capabilities. “Converting to DTV also will free up parts of the scarce and valuable broadcast spectrum. Those portions of the spectrum can then be used for other important services, such as public and safety services (police and fire departments, emergency rescue), and advanced wireless services.”

This means better broadband penetration in your home and your city, and a whole host of new wireless devices.

How will DTV and these new devices fit in the available RF spectrum?
In order to free up space for these new broadband services Congress and the FCC have reduced the UHF spectrum space that will be used for DTV. Before this transition analog UHF TV stations used channels 14 through 69, for a total of 55 possible channels across the USA. Those have been given to DTV, but with a reduced number of channels. Beginning in February 2009 stations will only have channels 14 through 51, or 37 possible channels nationwide. This is more than a one third reduction of available space for TV broadcasting!

The remaining channels (52-69) are now reserved for new consumer wireless services and for public safety. The band spans 698 to 806 MHz, and has been described by the FCC as “beachfront property.” They are pushing the broadband capabilities of this part of the spectrum. This is good news for all of us who like our wireless devices to work everywhere, but bad news for all the UHF wireless mics out there.

Why is this squeeze a problem for UHF wireless microphones?
Wireless mics have traditionally coexisted with the much more powerful TV broadcast signals by using the “white spaces” between the TV channels. These “white spaces” vary in each area of the country and that is why you have to be careful to choose the right UHF frequencies according to where you will use the mic.

Now that one third of the space available for TV is gone, that means a huge chunk of the white spaces are gone, too. UHF mics are getting squeezed into a shrinking area of the spectrum, and that means it will be harder and harder to collocate multiple channels of mics. Many users are already experiencing this – getting 16 UHF mics to work together in a metropolitan area can be quite a challenge.

What is so appealing about these White Spaces?
Broadband network providers seek this for regional wireless networks – the kind that can cover an entire city and deliver high-speed Internet to an increasingly mobile population. This gives content providers a chance to compete with cable and satellite delivery – imagine getting rid of your cable and getting programming on demand via broadband. But broadcasters object to these potentially unlicensed uses – they claim that these will interfere with their new DTV broadcast signals.

What can we do about this squeeze?
It appears the new FCC allocations don’t leave enough room for conventional UHF mics, and this has users and manufacturers scrambling for solutions, both technical and political. There are industry groups lobbying Congress to allocate a section of the spectrum for wireless mics, but the persuasive power of the performance audio industry is tiny compared to the muscle of companies like Google, AT&T, or Verizon.

Beware of any wireless manufacturer that continues to sell microphones in the 700 MHz band. These will be illegal starting February 17, 2009. Don’t waste your money on a product that will be useless in less than a year.

The Solution:
Choose a wireless mic that is not UHF – Sabine 2.4 GHz Wireless, Sabine is way out in front of the industry on this issue. We offer the first complete wireless solution entirely outside the shrinking UHF band. Operating in the license-free and globally accepted 2.4 GHz band, Sabine Wireless is immune to all of the escalating problems with finding clear UHF frequencies.
Sabine gives you up to 70 simultaneous wireless systems usable anywhere in the world, and that means you don’t have to worry about choosing the right frequencies for your area. The solution is simple and robust. You don’t have to worry about DTV, white spaces, or whether you are operating legally. The 2.4 GHz band provides these key advantages:

• Globally-accepted and license-free
• Low-power devices only, by international agreement
• Does not share band with TV, so no issues with UHF or FCC
• All users at around the same power level
• 70 simultaneous channels
• Co-locate with UHF & VHF mics without frequency coordination
• Simple and easy - one frequency band for the whole world

2009-03-22T17:41:00.000-07:00

I would typically write my own instruction on this topic, however, a friend of mine requested direction on gating. I really liked this article and...Clint can get his info asap.....Tony Flammia

Advanced Gating techniques by: Paul White
http://www.creativesoundsolution.com/

At its most basic, a gate is a device which mutes a signal whenever its level falls below a threshold set by the user. Its most common use is for combating noise problems by automatically closing down the audio path during periods of very low signal level, when only noise is present. Clearly a gate can do nothing about noise that's present at the same time as the wanted audio signal, because then the gate will be open. However this isn't usually a problem, because low-level noise will normally be masked by your audio signal.

If this was all there was to gating then gates would not need anything more than a threshold control, yet a glance at a few different units will turn up all sorts of other controls, the action of which may not be immediately obvious. So, in the first part of this short series, I'll be explaining what all these controls do, and why you might need each of them to achieve the gating effect you require.

Attack & Release Times
If a gate could only be on or off, with no transition in between, decaying sounds would be cut off abruptly as soon as they fell below the threshold level. Because of this, most gates have the facility to make the opening and closing of the gate more gradual. Some gates have attack-time and release-time controls which specify, respectively, how quickly the gate opens and shuts. alternatively, there are other gates which can automatically adapt these times to the audio being gated. A more progressive gating action allows decaying low-level sounds to fade more naturally rather than being cut off abruptly.

The release time is certainly the most important parameter which needs setting after the gating threshold. Many natural sounds start fairly abruptly and the majority have a well defined decay characteristic, so matching the release time of the gate to that of the sound being processed is extremely important if you wish the fade into silence to be made to sound smooth and natural.

Not that all sounds oblige us by starting abruptly, and it is here that the attack-time control comes into its own. If a gate is set to open very quickly and the signal being processed has a slow attack, the abrupt opening of the gate, when the input signal exceeds the threshold level, can cause an audible click. In such cases, you can gradually extend the attack time until the clicking disappears.

On the other hand, percussive sounds need a gate with a very fast attack time, otherwise some of the percussive leading edge of the sound will be cut off. At its fastest, an attack time of just a few tens of microseconds is typical, whereas sounds with a slower attack may respond better to gating with an attack time of 10mS or more.

Hold Time & Hysteresis
If a gate is set with a fast attack time and a fast release time, any signal level which hovers round the threshold can end up causing a problem known as 'chattering', where the gate opens and loses rapidly several times in succession. One way in which manufacturers have addressed this problem is by adding a hold-time control. This allows the user to specify the minimum time for which the gate will remain open once the signal level has exceeded the threshold. When the signal falls below the threshold, the gate is held open for the duration of the hold time before starting to close.

Note that even though a particular gate may not have a hold-time control, the designers have probably built a fixed hold time into the system, usually about 20 to 30mS. This ensures that the gate doesn't try to trigger on individual cycles of very low frequency bass sounds when fast attack and release settings are used.

The second method used to avoid chattering is called hysteresis. Essentially, a hysteresis control raises the threshold for opening the gate and lowers that for closing it, such that they then differ by a few dBs. This means that, whatever the threshold level which opens the gate, the signal just fall a few dBs before the gate will be allowed to close again. As long as you also set the release and hold times properly, hysteresis can help make gates behave much more smoothly and predictably. Once again, many manufacturers build hysteresis into their gates, though some high-end models and software plug-ins allow the user to vary it.

The Range Control
Up to this point we have only considered a gating action where the signal is completely muted below threshold. However, there are gates that don't shut down completely, but rather attenuate the signal level by a user-defined amount. Such gates require a range control, which specifies the number of decibels by which the signal level is reduced when the gate is fully 'closed'. Naturally, if you wish to use such a gate in the more simple on/off manner, then this range control needs to be set to its maximum value.

The main advantage of reducing the range setting is that this can produce a more natural effect where the degree of unwanted background sound (such as spill from other instruments) is such that its complete disappearance would be very noticeable during pauses in the wanted signal. By setting the gate's range control to attenuate by a only few dBs the ambiance can be allowed through during pauses, but at a reduced level.

However, another lesser-known benefit of limited-range gating is that this can help the gate to open faster than it would if it were set to attenuate to silence — something that can be handy if you need a faster response than your attack-time control allows at its lowest setting. Attack and release times actually indicate the rate at which the gain changes, so the amount of gain to be covered alters how fast the gate appears to act. If the gate's gain has to go from -90dB to 0dB, the delay between the audio signal exceeding the threshold and the gate becoming fully open will be larger than if the gain had to go from -20dB — the gate will seem to open more rapidly, as it only has to change gain by 20dB.

Side Chain Filtering
Gates are based around a gain-control device, the gain of which is made dependent upon the audio signal level. Whether this gain control element is a FET, a VCA, a valve, an optical device, or a digital implementation of any of these, it helps in understanding how a gate works if you can make a mental distinction between the audio signal path and the control signal path (also called the side-chain). The audio path passes the audio signal through the gain-control element, allowing the signal level to be altered by it, while the sidechain carries a control signal to which the gain-control element responds. This distinction may not seem particularly relevant to what has been discussed so far, because both signal paths have been carrying the same signal, but it really comes into its own when the two signals are different.

But why would you want to have different signals in the audio path and side-chain? One of the most common reasons is when you need to alter the frequency content of the side-chain in order to get the gate responding exactly how you want it to. For example, let's say that you are attempting to gate a snare drum track to reduce spill from the rest of the drum kit, but find that the kick drum is also opening the gate even when you've set the threshold so that everything else is excluded. By EQ'ing the side-chain signal to roll off the low frequencies, the gate is less likely to respond to the kick drum and is therefore more likely to open only for the snare. Similarly, if hi-hat spill is causing false triggering on your snare track, you can take some top end out of the sidechain to reduce the problem. What is important to realise in both these cases, though, is that the EQ only affects the side-chain signal, not the timbre of the gated sound.

While serious equalisation of the side-chain signal can be necessary for clean triggering, it's worth bearing in mind that it might not a good idea to filter off more top end than necessary if the sound being triggered has a fast attack. This is because high-cut filtering works by slowing the rate at which a signal's voltage can change, and this will therefore slow down the attack of the side-chain signal, delaying the opening of the gate slightly.

While some gates provide facilities for patching an external equaliser into their side-chains, many commercial gates come with side-chain equalisation built in — usually in the form of high-pass and/or low-pass filtering. This is often combined with a facility for passing the side-chain signal directly to the audio outputs of the gate, allowing the user to tune the filtering such that the desired frequencies are most effectively isolated.

Side-chain Linking & Using Key Inputs
When gating stereo sound sources, it is necessary to have individual gain-control elements for each channel, and these need to have their actions synchronised to prevent one channel being processed differently to the other — the stereo image shifting that occurs if both channels operate independently is normally undesirable. In order to achieve this synchronisation, both side-chain signals have to be identical and must be derived by mixing the signals passing through the two audio channels. Normally such stereo linking is a built in feature of two-channel gates, and can be engaged simply by operating a front-panel switch.

However, there are cases when it is useful to feed the side-chain from a completely different source than that which feeds the audio path. Some gates provide an external side-chain input, called a 'key' input, for just this purpose and this allows for a host of useful operations. For example, several gates can be made to operate identically by sending the same signal to all
of their key inputs — useful where you have a group of backing vocalists on separate tracks who aren't performing tightly. By gating every vocal channel and feeding all key inputs from the channel with the best timing, you can often make a real improvement to the perceived quality of the performance.

This technique is also popularly used to tighten up bass guitar tracks by gating them and feeding their key inputs with the kick drum — you can at least prevent the bass note from starting before the kick drum. Just make sure you set the hold and release controls to suit the type of sound you want.

Simple Feedback Trainer

2009-03-21T07:17:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone....

I found this great tool that will help you learn the 31 frequency bands. After about a month you should be able to pinpoint feedback frequency's and help hear how to dial in instruments. Right now its totally free. I've been using it for about a year now. Its great!

Download the program

Use a pair of quality headphones (keep the volume low and turn up after the program begins) Computer speakers cannot reproduce all the frequencies.

Give it 10 min a day

Good luck!

Click HERE to download

Hear the Squeez

2009-03-16T19:05:00.000-07:00

Compression

The most common DSP

If you have a Compressor in your rack...the following is good information, don't care who you are....

On a compressor you'll find some nobs on it....starting typically with...

Threshold: With manual gain riding, the level above which the signal becomes unacceptably loud is determined by the engineer's discretion: if it sounds too loud to him, he turns it down. In the case of a compressor, we have to 'tell' it when to intervene, and this level is known as the Threshold. In a conventional compressor, the Threshold is varied via a knob calibrated in dBs, and a gain reduction meter is usually included so we can see how much the gain is being modified. If the signal level falls short of the threshold, no processing takes place and the gain reduction meter reads 0dB. Signals exceeding the Threshold are reduced in level, and the amount of reduction is shown on the meter. This means the signal peaks are no longer as loud as they were, so in order to compensate, a further stage of 'make-up' gain is added after compression, to restore or 'make up' any lost gain.

Ratio: When the input signal exceeds the Threshold set by the operator, gain reduction is applied, but the actual amount of gain reduction depends on the 'Ratio' setting. You will see the Ratio expressed in the form 4:1 or similar, and the range of a typical Ratio control is variable from 1:1 (no gain reduction all) to infinity:1, which means that the output level is never allowed to rise above the Threshold setting. This latter condition is known as limiting, because the Threshold, in effect, sets a limit which the signal is not allowed to exceed. Ratio is based on dBs, so if a compression ratio of 3:1 is set, an input signal exceeding the Threshold by 3dB will cause only a 1dB increase in level at the output. In practice, most compressors have sufficient Ratio range to allow them to function as both compressors and limiters, which is why they are sometimes known by both names. The relationship between Threshold and Ratio is shown in Figure 2, but if you're not comfortable with dBs or graphs, all you need to remember is that the larger the Ratio, the more gain reduction is applied to any signal exceeding the Threshold.

Hard Knee: This is not a control or parameter, but rather a characteristic of certain designs of compressor. With a conventional compressor, nothing happens until the signal reaches the Threshold, but as soon as it does, the full quota of gain reduction is thrown at it, as determined by the Ratio control setting. This is known as hard-knee compression, because a graph of input gain against output gain will show a clear change in slope (a sharp angle) at the Threshold level.

Soft Knee: Other types of compressor utilize a soft knee characteristic, where the gain reduction is brought in progressively over a range of 10dB or so. What happens is that when the signal comes within 10dB or so of the Threshold set by the user, the compressor starts to apply gain reduction, but with a very low Ratio setting, so there's very little effect. As the input level increases, the compression Ratio is automatically increased until at the Threshold level, the Ratio has increased to the amount set by the user on the Ratio control. This results in a gentler degree of control for signals that are hovering around the Threshold point, and the practical outcome is that the signal sounds less obviously processed. This attribute makes soft-knee models popular for processing complete mixes or other sounds that need subtle control. Hard knee compression can sometimes be heard working, and if a lot of gain reduction is being applied, they can sound quite heavy-handed.

Attack: The attack time is how long a compressor takes to pull the gain down, once the input signal has reached or exceeded the Threshold level. With a fast attack setting, the signal is controlled almost immediately, whereas a slower attack time will allow the start of a transient or percussive sound to pass through unchanged, before the compressor gets its act together and does something about it. Creating a deliberate overshoot by setting an attack time of several milliseconds is a much-used way of enhancing the percussive characteristics of instruments such as guitars or drums. For most musical uses, an initial attack setting of between 1 and 20 mS is typical. However, when treating sound such as vocals, a fast attack time generally gives the best results, because it brings the level under control very quickly, producing a more natural sound.

Release: The Release sets how long it takes for the compressor's gain to come back up to normal once the input signal has fallen back below the Threshold. If the release time is too fast, the signal level may 'pump' -- in other words, you can hear the level of the signal going up and down. This is usually a bad thing, but again, it has its creative uses, especially in rock music. If the release time is too long, the gain may not have recovered by the time the next 'above Threshold' sound occurs. A good starting point for the release time is between 0.2 and 0.6 seconds.

Auto Attack/Release: Some models of compressor have an Auto mode, which adjusts the attack and release characteristics during operation to suit the dynamics of the music being processed. In the case of complex mixes or vocals where the dynamics are constantly changing, the Auto mode may do a better job than fixed manual settings.
Peak/RMS operation: Every compressor uses a circuit known as a side chain, and the side chain's job in life is to measure how big the signal is, so that it knows when it needs compressing. This information is then used to control the gain circuit, which may be based around a Voltage-controlled Amplifier (VCA), a Field Effect Transistor (FET) or even a valve. The compressor will behave differently, depending on whether the side chain responds to average signal levels or to absolute signal peaks.

An RMS level detector works rather like the human ear, which pays less attention to short-duration, loud sounds than to longer sounds of the same level. Though RMS offers the closest approximation to the way in which our ears respond to sound, many American engineers prefer to work with Peak, possibly because it provides a greater degree of control. And though RMS provides a very natural-sounding dynamic control, short signal peaks will get through unnoticed, even if a fast attack time is set, which means the engineer has less control over the absolute peak signal levels. This can be a problem when making digital recordings, as clipping is to be avoided at all costs. The difference between Peak and RMS sensing tends to show up most on music that contains percussive sounds, where the Peak type of compressor will more accurately track the peak levels of the individual drum beats.

Another way to look at it is to say that the greater the difference between a signal's peak and average level, the more apparent the difference between RMS and peak compression/limiting will be. On a sustained pad sound with no peaks, there should be no appreciable difference. Peak sensing can sometimes sound over-controlled, unless the amount of compression used is slight. It's really down to personal choice, and all judgments should be based on listening tests.

Hold Time: A compressor's side chain follows the envelope of the signal being fed into it, but if the attack and release times are set to their fastest positions, it is likely that the compressor will attempt to respond not to the envelope of the input signal but to individual cycles of the input waveform. This is particularly significant when the input signal is from a bass instrument, as the individual cycles are relatively long, compared to higher frequencies. If compression of the individual waveform cycles is allowed to occur, very bad distortion is audible, as the waveform itself gets reshaped by the compression process.

We could simply increase the release time of the compressor so that it becomes too slow to react to individual cycles, but sometimes it's useful to be able to set a very fast release time. A better option is to use the Hold time control, if you have one. Hold introduces a slight delay before the release phase is initiated, which prevents the envelope shaper from going into release mode until the Hold time has elapsed. If the Hold time is set longer than the duration of a single cycle of the lowest audible frequency, the compressor will be forced to wait long enough for the next cycle to come along, thus avoiding distortion. A Hold time of 50ms will prevent this distortion mechanism causing problems down to 20Hz. If your compressor doesn't have a separate Hold time control, it may still have a built-in, preset amount of Hold time. A 50ms hold time isn't going to adversely affect any other aspect of the compressor's operation, and leaves the user with one less control to worry about.

Stereo Link: When processing stereo signals, it is important that both channels are treated equally, for the stereo image will wander if one channel receives more compression than the other. For example, if a loud sound occurs only in the left channel, then the left channel gain will be reduced, and everything else present in the left channel will also be turned down in the mix. This will result in an apparent movement towards the right channel, which is not undergoing so much gain reduction.

The Stereo Link switch of a dual-channel compressor simply forces both channels to work together, based either on an average of the two input signals, or whichever is the highest in level at any one time. Of course, both channels must be set up exactly the same for this to work properly, but that's taken care of by the compressor. When the two channels are switched to stereo, one set of controls usually becomes the master for both channels -- though some manufacturers opt for averaging the two channel's control settings, or for reacting to whichever channel's controls are set to the highest value.

Any Questions?...visit http://www.creativesoundsolution.com/ give us a call

Church Planting 101...or 102 what ever it takes

2009-03-16T18:45:00.000-07:00

“People Don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care”, Theodore Roosevelt

This is a very General Blog....for more detailed information visit http://www.creativesoundsolution.com/ or http://www.upthemiddle.com/

The biggest stumbling block we come across is the fact we are a retail store. It’s not until people get to know our passion for Church planting they begin to open up and trust our suggestions. To save everyone a lot of time…….Our goal is to equip, empower, and educate. No matter how long it takes!

How IT Works…
So you received the call…it’s your time to plant a Church and begin to change the lives in your community. As you well know, some of the biggest roadblocks are costs, and some of the largest costs come from your Audio, Video, and lighting systems. In this pamphlet we will go over all aspects of an A/V/L system. We will give you suggestions regarding quality and where not to cut corners. We have also included some resources and training documents to help you get a understanding of audio engineering.

Creative Sound Solutions began as a small sound company providing cost effective solutions for Churches that could not afford the full cost of production. Every show we did we had the same questions. “How can I get my Church to sound like that”….We’ll needless to say we began training and sound checking Churches across Florida. 3 Years later, we have become dealers for most all Pro audio/Lighting/Video brands and have done many installs in the Church market. We have also worked hand in hand with mobile Church plants. The Church at the Crossing was our last Project…..

Pastor Stacey Turney, Church at the Crossing, Dothan Alabama
“I recently purchased a complete sound system through Tony Flammia and his company Creative Sound Solutions. As a new church plant, we were working on a tight budget, but knew that we needed quality sound from quality equipment. I had a list of equipment that was provided by the Association of Related Churches (ARC), and had researched pricing for this equipment. While attending recent 9 day training with the ARC in Ft. Myers, Fl., I met Tony Flammia and discussed our sound equipment needs. Tony sent me a quote on the equipment and after comparing the different prices from other companies, our church made a decision to do business with him.

Tony has consistently given us great customer service and has always been competitive in his pricing. After we purchased the equipment, he drove 10 hours to our church and spent 3 days assembling the system and training our workers on it. I found that Tony not only has expertise in sound systems but also has a heart for ministry and particularly church planting. He went out of his way to make sure we were taken care of and that we were ready to launch our church right. Now that we are up and running, Tony calls on a weekly basis just to see if we need any help.”

Audio Equipment
Your sound system is crucial to the overall experience for someone coming to your Church for the first time. If it’s too small the sound will feel very hollow and empty. If it way too big, it may end up muddy and boomy. The idea is to look at the area your setting up in and take into consideration the style of music you’ll be playing. Then design a system that fits all your needs. Sound treatment may also need to be figured in for rooms that are too live like cafeterias, gyms, ect…..

A sound system will generally include….
· Speakers (Passive or Active)
· Mixing Console
· Digital Signal Processing
· Multi Channel Snakes
· Microphones
· Power Amps
· Monitors, DI boxes, Specialty Cables

Speakers
When it comes to speakers most people think bigger is better. Some of the best sounding speakers, however, come from small packages. Look at Bose! 3.5” speakers, but unbelievable quality. This quality comes from using speakers that can reproduce the frequencies very efficiently. For rock concerts 15” speakers will work fine. But with church worship and spoken word, you want more clarity. A 15” woofer with a 6” mid range ans 1” horn will do the trick. These speakers are generally three-way powered speakers and will give you a full clean sound. Couple that with a 15” or 18” sub and your golden. 12” speakers work great for vocals but may not be able to fill the room. They make great monitors though. Some speaker manufacturers make dual 12” mains that are very loud...but I still like the ability to have a 6” or 8” also.

Sub woofers are almost a necessity if you’re playing contemporary Christian worship. These speakers handle the low frequencies typically from 120hz down to 30hz. Too much will muddy a room, not enough will make your mix thin. This is where a separate aux send or a mono fader on your console come in handy.

f you’re a mobile Church self powered speakers help during setup time and come in a wide variety of models. They also cut down on cable costs.

Recommend Speaker Brands: Danley Sound Labs, WharfedalePro, RCF, QSC,
Allowance: 3K to 30K Depending on brand and QTY

Mixing Consoles
The mixing console is where most Churches decide to cut corners. This is the worst place to do so…. Imagine you buying a brand new car and its perfect from bumper to bumper, it runs like a champ. Then you sit down and the steering wheel is a set of vice-grips clamped to the steering shaft. It works but it’s hard to get it to do what you want it to.

The mixing console is the heart of your system. It contains the pre-amps, the EQs, aux sends for monitoring, and faders. Cheap Pre-amps will add noise to your mix and a cheap EQ will not allow you to obtain the sounds you want.

Make sure the Console you get has good pre amps, at least two mid sweepable frequencies on the EQ, 4 to 8 aux sends, or….a good warranty. Allow 4K to 8K for high end consoles. 1K to 3K for mid.

Recommended Consoles: Yamaha, Allen & Heath GL, Phonic
Allowance: 1K to 8K Analog, 8K to 50K Digital

Digital Signal Processing (DSP)
DSP is most commonly left out of most Churches due the tech team not knowing how to use it. All of our systems come with compression on all sends to the speaker amps, compression on vocals, Bass, and Keys. Gates on Drums and vocals and so on. All mixes should have an EQ for feedback elimination and to get the equalize the mix in the room.

Other DSP units like Drive racks, Feedback Eliminators and processors are becoming more and more popular. These unit are a luxury if you can fit them in the budget.

What’s a Compressor? In simple terms, a compressor is an automatic volume control. Loud sounds over a certain threshold are reduced in level while quiet sounds remain untreated

What’s a Gate? A piece of sound processing equipment that reduces background noise by muting a sound signal when it falls below a certain level, restoring it when the level increases again

Recommended Processors: DBX, Phonic
Allowance: Depending on system size allow anywhere from 1K to 3K

Multi Channel Snakes
This is another area where you do not want to go cheap. If you’re a mobile Church you may end up spending as much as 3K for a snake. Why? It would be nice to run one cable then attach it to the back of your snake box and console. Using split snakes can save a lot of time during setup. The one downfall is they only make them in the highest product lines…which is a blessing in disguise. It will last forever.

If you’re a permanent installed Church then a standard high quality snake will work. If there is no way to run a snake from the console to the stage a digital snake may need to be looked into. A digital snake will allow you to run CAT5 cable.

Recommended Snakes: Pro-Co, Hosa, Aviom
Allowance: Allow 3K to 6K for high end. $500 to 1.5K for mid

Microphones
Ok, now I’ve said not to cheap out on pretty much everything…..well mics you can get away with. Don’t quote me on it but if you’re not going wireless a SM58 for vocals is perfect. Astatic has come out with some great mics that compete with Shure but half the price….I’d recommend those.

If you’re using acoustic drums make sure your mic kit is decent….Beta52 on the kick sm57 on the snare and toms, and some decent condenser overheads.

Wireless mics have seen a challenge due to the FCC regulation, yet many companies have seen this coming and come up with options. Most wireless mics you buy today should be ok. Make sure they do not run in the 698-806 frequency range. Allow for at least one wireless headset, and a mic pack for your band. From 2K to 4K

Power Amps
If your speakers are passive (Non-powered) you will need power amps. It is important to buy amps that are known for dependability. Once the amp goes…everything goes.

Recommended amps: QSC, Wharfedale, Crown

Monitors, Misc, Cabling
Monitors come in many sizes…the smaller the better for vocals. A 12” for your from line and a 15” for your bass player and drummer will work great. Make sure you have a EQ dedicated for each monitor mix. If your console has 4 aux sends….that means you can have up to four monitor mixes and will need four EQs.

Many Churches are going with in ear systems like Aviom. This allows for low stage volume, less feedback, and less damage to the bands ears. Aviom systems include an input module that turns the analog signal to digital. Then it sends the digital signal to the distributor where is splits the signal to each personal mixer. Each band member will then have their own personal mix customized by their own mixer. Aviom systems range from 3K to 8K

Aside from monitors an assortment of direct boxes and cables will be needed.

A direct box takes line level instruments (Like a keyboard) and steps it down to mic level. See the example system list for cables.

How far can we go?
Creative Sound has committed to help plant Churches no matter where they are located. After the equipment is shipped to your location Creative Sound will fly/or drive to where you’re at, assemble the system and train your people.

Video
Nothing looks cooler then a well done video presentation. If all the components are in place your video presentation should be flawless. From the words for worship to the scripture during the message there are tons of programs out there that can make this task seem easy.
If video cameras are a necessity additional switchers and components would need to be added.
Recommended Video: Kramer, MediaShout

Lighting
Ok…here is a tough one. How much is too much. Are we lighting up the stage or are we entertaining the audience. This can be a fine line. However some lighting effects can be great for setting a mood or getting people excited about the music.
Lighting systems can range from $500 to $500,000 depending on what you want to do. If you’re in a dark theater you may want to shine some additional lighting up so people can see.
Recommended Lighting: Elation, American DJ, Acclaim

Save Time setting up
Now you own all the equipment you need its 2 weeks from launch Sunday and the theater you’re in needs you to be out 30min after service. What do you do? Is it possible?
When working with NLCs head of media we came up with many shortcuts and ideas to save time to where they are setting up in under a ½ hour! And it’s a large system.
Some Ideas that shave off time:

Multi pin snakes
All in one racks. Console sits on top while the DSP sets below next to the wireless components. All this is pre wired to the board where to take the lid off and connect one multi pin snake connection
Live drums on a moving platform pre wired to the snake.
Cables measured out and snaked together