StageSoc Training 2011-2012

Oliver Trojak

Techy things (Signal path, general equipment etc)

Equipment in The AnnexDesign

‘Doing the design’ (sfx, micing, communications w/ director etc)

Choosing equipment Crew Etc

The Signal Flow

AKG C1000sSM57sAllen & Heath MixWizard 16:2FOH amplifierPeavey auxiliary amplifierSpeaker ‘wedges’Ramsa Speakers Install and relayBehringer DI boxes

C1000

MixWizard

Two areas: Balancing the sounds on stage with the

sound of the orchestra (sound reinforcement)

Adding sound effects to add atmosphere to the performance, or simply to tell part of the story (eg. phone ringing)

Before reinforcement the stage might sound like this!

Our aim is to BALANCE the sound, not to necessarily make it louder!

Our aim is to BALANCE the sound, not to necessarily make it louder!

The listener hears a combination of the two

Stage Sound

PA Sound

Sound effects alone are a huge part of the sound design allowing plenty of space for your creative flair to get to some exercise!

They can either be a distinct event…Or can be used to add atmosphere

Sound effects or a sound-scape aimed to set the scene

Where can you get them? Variety of internet sources, some you have

to pay for some you don’t. Sfx libraries

Make your own! Much more fun Useful for a very specific sound

Use a DAW or waveform editor to ‘sculpt’ your sound to literally anything you want!

Then use CD/MD/computer for playback

Most of the time we’ll use many more speakers than simply a FOH PA May add ‘fill’ to boost/mimic FOH PA

where there is no coverage Often speakers will be placed around

the auditorium or on stage Foldback Source speakers (hidden behind a

telephone or TV, or perhaps for a more general use)

Dynamic Close micing, versatile,

crude sound

Condenser Close & ambient micing,

precise sound

PZM Ambient micing, Boundary

mics

Electret Head worn mics, used

with radio mics

Omnidirectional Response is identical in all

directions Mostly used in lav-radio

microphones

Cardioid Heart shaped pickup Don’t pickup anything from

behing Most widely used polar pattern

Hypercardioid Narrower pickup at the top Small pickup at the back Good at rejecting sounds

from other sources

Shotgun Long narrow pickup pattern Good for picking up the

stage from a distance Construction aids polar

pattern

Pre-amplification

Equalization

Auxiliaries

Fader/Routing

Master Section

Smoothens out a waveform

Used to tighten up a sound….

Or can be used to make a sound more punchy

Essentially limits the maximum sound level

Limiter, gate

Time based effect The sound of a

room Used to stop the

singer sounding ‘dead’

Could also be used for a very deliberate effect

Echo, Chorus

Now that we know what equipment we have at our

disposal, and how to get the most from it, we can think

about doing the sound sound designdesign

Designer and technician/engineer overlap surprisingly often

Sound CuesSystem Design and Equipment

selectionSound Department (your crew!)Logistical Co-ordination

Get to know the show! Read the script Read the book Watch the film Listen to the soundtrack See rehearsals (note the plural additive ‘s’!)

Figure out what your doing for each cue/idea Including speakers/microphones

Be prepared to make changes! Director/logistics/finance

Communicate with the director and other members of the production team

It is important that your design matches the lighting, set, and director’s ‘vision’

The director may have a very specific idea of what he/she wants from the sound (and lights)

Elements of the set and lighting can have a large impact on your design, especially with respect to speaker placement

Start sourcing/making sfx

Make sure you’re in budget!!! Try and plan in detail FOH console, Loudspeakers (and

cabling), Amplifiers (and cabling), playback devices (and cabling), microphones (and cabling), fx units (and cabling), radio microphones (and cabling? :S)….oh and what happens if something goes wrong??

How well do you know the equipment? How many people will it take to run/get-

in the rig?

The size of the sound crew will depend on how many people you need to implement your design (and how many budding noise boys there are!)

You don’t need experts… But anyone keen and a quick learner Who you think will make a good noise boy

Make sure your team can all contact you and each other!

Pre get-in Make sure everyone in your team knows what

is going on….BEFORE the get-in! Confirm equipment delivery, check you’ve

got everything you will need. Organise a sound plan on paper)

Get-in & fit-up Make sure all equipment is there Introduce you and your team to house

techies And you have completed and

implemented your successful design!

There is no right or wrong way

Experiment

Have fun!!!