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On the Digital Edge

Waves Plugins (Part 3): H-Comp, Hybrid Compressor

Waves Hybrid Compressor (H-Comp) offers ways for users to achieve dynamic control over horn sources.

To quote Adrian Monk, one of my favorite TV characters, "Here's the thing." Horns are cool. They add excitement, movement, color and personality to arrangements. But horns can be loud. Horns can take over mixes in seconds. Horns need to be respected, but horns need to be respectfully controlled. It's necessary to compress horns, but dynamic control has to be implemented without repressing their timbre, vitality and energy.

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Waves Plugins: Snare Drum (Part 2)

In last month's issue (FOH, May 2011), I discussed using the Waves C4 multiband compressor as an insert on the snare drum top mic – in my case, an Earthworks DP25C. This column will tackle the snare bottom mic and the Waves C1 compressor/gate plugin.

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Waves Plugins, Part 1: Snare Drum

Five years ago, I migrated from working on analog mixing consoles to the digital platform. Leaving a familiar environment caused more than a little trepidation, but I decided to jump in with both feet. No hybrid world for me, I decided to go digital all the way. Dealing with latency and multiple conversions were not attractive prospects, so I also left behind the thoughtfully assembled racks of beloved outboard gear on which I had depended for so many years.

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Waves C6 Multiband Compressor

The Dynamic Line (orange) indicates instantaneous changes in frequency response.

Calling the Waves C6 a "compressor" is like calling Ben & Jerry's Phish Food "chocolate ice cream." It really doesn't complete the description. Users of Waves' C4 Multiband Compressor will find the C6 familiar, but the C6 adds two "floating" bands (details below) as well as a sidechain input. Combining this with the C6's ability to perform dynamic EQ results in an incredibly flexible and powerful dynamics tool that does way more than just "compression."

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Look What’s In Store for the Future

By the time you read this, the Fall 2010 AES in San Francisco will have long come and gone, but thankfully, the toys will remain. As we'd all have expected, there were cool product announcements for both studio and stage, among them the RM 510 microphone capsule from beyerdynamic.

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The Pros and Cons of Subwoofing

Everyone likes fat bottom – at least in their mix, anyway (get your mind out of the gutter). There's no debate that augmenting a system with subwoofers increases the power handling, maximizes SPL and improves clarity in the upper frequency range by reducing intermodulation distortion.

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Wireless Is Dead; Long Live Wireless!

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to a hard-wired connection for your favorite microphone or guitar, here comes some new wireless technology. Undaunted by the recent restructure of wireless frequency allocation by the FCC, at least two manufacturers are rethinking their approach to wireless audio. Rather than transmitting analog audio via conventional methods, new systems from Line 6 and AKG refine wireless transmission of digital audio, providing resistance to interference in busy RF environments.

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Do a 180

In his January 2010 FOH "Theory and Practice" column, Brian Klijanowicz discussed the concept of subwoofer time alignment. If you haven't read that article (or even if you have) you should revisit the January issue for a refresher. Brian pointed out the fact that venues often have physical constraints requiring less-than-ideal placement of top boxes relative to subwoofer boxes.

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Oh, My Paws and Whiskers, I’m Late!

One of the problems with digital audio is latency. Analog audio happens in real time, traveling down a wire from point A to point B at a speed of roughly 186,000 miles per second. That's pretty friggin fast, even if you're in a Lamborghini Countach.

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Word Clock: Part Science, Part Voodoo

In his April FOH Theory and Practice, Brian Klijanowicz discussed the concept of word clock. If you missed class that day, here is a brief recap: Every digital device employs an internal word clock circuit as a timing mechanism. Word clock determines sample rate, and its accuracy is paramount to audio quality.

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iPad = MixPad?

James Duvall of Creative Engineering & Solutions in Austin, with the laptop he uses for The Memphis Train Review.

In "I Thought I Saw a Mixer In My Laptop," (FOH, "On the Digital Edge," Feb. 2010), we looked at Software Audio Console (SAC), a virtual mixer that works with any PC running Windows. (We take another look at a SAC system being used for a Michel Legrand tribute show in this issue's Production Profile, page 30. – ed.).

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