Kia Ora and welcome to the new website of the School of Music Technicians!
We are here to help. This is a colabritive portal for John, Theo and Sean to share information we think you will find useful in your studies.
If you have any questions please email us on: music-technicians@aucklanduni.ac.nz
E rere ana te mihi whakaute ki e koutou mā. Ki e koutou ngā kaitiaki o te whenua nei, ki e koutou te mana whenua o ēnei whakaahua o te tūpuna, e tukuna nei te mihi kauanuanu, te mihi aroha ki e koutou mā.
Nau mai hoki ki te hunga ako, kia kaha, kia manawanui, kia ora ai te reo.
Its ‘Te wiki o te reo Māori’, and Māori Language Month. Fantastic kaupapa, with the goals of using, hearing, valuing and learning te reo.
From a pākehā perspective there is a lot to do. Here are some links to start:
For more challenging kōrero nei rā i ētahi tuihono:
Kia kaha e te whānau rā. Piki mai i te kōrero nei.
Nā
Sean Curham
Heres a great resource prepared by ETNZ.
ETNZ Safety Guidelines 14-April-2018. Note they use the same safety matrix for calculating risk as the H & S at UoA.
ETNZ have an excellent site ETNZ Resources with many relevant docs and links.
Kia ora e koutou mā
This post looks at the lighting setup in the KMC. The following set of plans can be used to create a basic lighting rig that would cover almost every event in the venue.
The plans were prepared by Dylan Sheehan in 2014 and are still relevant, however I will look to update the details.
Perhaps more importantly these drawings can be used to develop alternative designs for projects with more specific requirements.
KMC Electrical Plot – Use these venue drawings to produce new plans.
Studying at Auckland University is great but what happens when you leave and need to do work on creative jobs without access to Auckland University software licenses. Here are some great free software options.
Audacity is an easy-to-use, multi-track audio editor and recorder for Windows, macOS, GNU/Linux and other operating systems.
In my past life, I worked for New Zealand main reseller or Avid Products. Avids main claim to fame is Media Composer. But they later moved into audio purchasing Pro Tools from Digidesign. In recent years they
GarageBand is a fully equipped music creation studio inside your Mac — with a complete sound library that includes instruments, presets for guitar and voice, and an incredible selection of session drummers and percussionists. With Touch Bar features for MacBook Pro and an intuitive, modern design, it’s easy to learn, play, record, create and share your hits worldwide. Now you’re ready to make music like a pro.
With iMovie for iOS and macOS, you can enjoy your videos like never before. It’s easy to browse your clips and create Hollywood-style trailers and stunning 4K-resolution movies. You can even start editing on iPhone or iPad, then finish on your Mac.
Avid Assistant – Free Foundation Course | CauseandFX
VLC is a free and open source cross-platform multimedia player and framework that plays most multimedia files as well as DVDs, Audio CDs, VCDs, and various streaming protocols.
DaVinci Resolve is the world’s only solution that combines editing, colour correction, visual effects, motion graphics and audio post-production all in one software tool! Its elegant, modern interface is fast to learn and easy enough for new users, yet powerful for professionals. DaVinci Resolve lets you work faster and at a higher quality because you don’t have to learn multiple apps or switch software for different tasks. That means you can work with camera original quality images throughout the entire process. It’s like having your own post-production studio in a single app! Best of all, by learning DaVinci Resolve, you’re learning how to use the exact same tools used by Hollywood professionals!
Nau mai, hoki mai e mumu mate korona. Welcome back Covid survivors.
Ko te tūmanako e noho haumaru ana ,e noho āhuru rā, e koutou katoa.
We hope you are feeling safe and well supported. Our goal is to offer all the assistance we can to ensure that your online learning is as productive and positive as it can be.
Please contact us with any technical questions or problems you might be facing. If we are unable to help we can advise as to where to look for support.
Music Technicians email: music-technicians@auckland.ac.nz
One of our first tasks will be to review all the suppliers (and cost) of essential gear from our last Level 4 lockdown. For example on Theo’s excellent post entitled “USB Microphones Purchase Options for Home Recording” (click image below) you can find all the info for the “BLUE Snowball iCE Versatile USB Microphone with HD Audio”. (The worlds most popular usb mic??) The details on the purchase and use of this mic are still current.
Welcome to 820-106!
Studio 820-106 is suitable for recording, editing and mixing sound projects and offers a small vocal booth with good acoustic isolation of vocals and smaller instruments such as an acoustic guitar from the control room.
This guide covers the fundamental specifications, signal path and operational aspects that may come in useful for various recording and project specific situations.
Fixed Equipment list:
Guide Contents :
The Symphony MKII is our central hub in 106 and does all our analogue to digital and digital to analogue conversion (total 32 in/32 out) via thunderbolt. It has a front touch panel where you can control some of its core function such as levels, and engaging soft limit on the input channels.
1. Headphone level (touch to focus)
2. Monitor Speaker Level (touch to focus)
3. Headphone Output, controlled by 1.
4. Home Tab
5. Monitor Tab, you can mute, dim, mono sum either HP/Monitor
6. Input Tab – You can engage soft limit on/off on each individual channel.
7. Main Knob, follows focus
8. Power on/off
Patchbay Configuration
Most of the outboard units including the Monitor Speakers are all connected via the patchbay setup in 106. This is the current layout and may change in the future to accommodate upcoming needs. For now it is worth noting the following.
More on half-normal vs full-normal patchbay configuration on another post! (coming soon)
3. Using the SPL 2381 Monitor and Talkback Controller (MTC)
1. Listening source for the control room (Mix = Computer/DAW, Musician = separate Cue mix if setup). Note when both Mix and Musician buttons are engaged you can control the blend of the 2 signal by adjusting 10.
2. Speaker select (select SP1 for the Genelecs)
3. Mono button, push to check your mix in mono
4. Dim – attenuates 20dB
5. Needs to be turned on for 11. to work
6. Main volume knob for Speakers and/or Headphones connected to 11.
7. built-in Talkback mic
8. Cue mix blend section, here you can adjust level between Cue/Mix
9. Talkback toggle button and level
10. Blend of Cue/Mix level in control room
To book this space – https://practise.creative.auckland.ac.nz
conditions of use – max 3 hours per session (especially during assessment periods) and please no clean after use for the considerations of others.
Welcome to 820-102!
Studio 820-102 is suitable for recording, editing and mixing sound projects and allows stereo recording within the room via the front panel inputs on the interface. When used in conjunction with 820-101 as a live room, up to 8 channels can be recorded simultaneously. Good acoustic isolation is provided between the rooms enabling you to record and assess the recordings with clarity.
This guide covers the fundamental specifications, signal path and operational aspects that may come in useful for various recording and project specific situations.
Fixed Equipment list:
Guide Contents :
1. Order of powering on/off equipment
When you enter the studio, ideally all equipment would be turned off (Please do so at the end of your session). Before you turn on any equipment it’s generally best to follow these rules/order for your safety. (It is vital that you check the volume knob on the Monitor station is all the way down before you begin!)
Powering on order: Audio Interface → Computer → Mixer → Monitor controllers → Speakers
Powering down order: Speakers → Monitor controllers → Mixer → Computer → Audio Interface (Yes.. Exact reverse!)
In Studio 102, this would translate to:
Powering on order: Focusrite Pro40 → iMac → Presonus Monitor Station → Genelec 1031A
Powering down order: Genelec 1031A → Presonus Monitor Station → iMac → Focusrite Pro40
While following this procedure (especially during powering on) again please allow me emphasise that you check the volume knob on the Presonus Monitor Station is all the way to Nil!
** This ensures the equipment will last but more importantly this procedure will protect your hearing, which should come first before anything else! **
2. Signal Path in 820-102 (and through 820-101)
3. Using the Focusrite Pro40 and Mixcontrol software
The Focusrite Pro40 is a multichannel audio interface that allows us the record up to 8 analogue channels (more through digital IO) and is our central hub in 102.
Mixcontrol software
Mixcontrol software is the main control hub for the Saffire Pro40 and allows flexible routing. A good example would be to utilise this in 102 would be to setup a cue mix with lower latency than monitoring via the DAW of choice.
3. Presonus Monitor Station.
This unit is next in the chain in terms of signal flow after the Focusrite Pro40 and receives channels 1&2 and 9&10 from the
To book this space – https://practise.creative.auckland.ac.nz
conditions of use – max 3 hours per session (especially during assessment periods) and please no clean after use for the considerations of others.
Max/MSP/Jitter – more on DIY Lighting for musicians and artists.
One of the easiest ways to control your own lighting setup is via Max/MSP. I am certain all are familiar with Max but if not heres a link https://cycling74.com/products/max
The site promo describes Max as “an infinitely flexible place to create interactive media software. With in-depth tools for audio, graphics, interaction, and communication, Max is an environment to explore and develop your own ideas.”
I think of it as an appealing graphic representation of tools for the control and composition of media, having originally been created for sound. However it is described, its good fun and easy to use. Or relatively easy to use. Making simple ‘patches’ or programs is straight forward, which is all that is required for lighting. Once you have a basic vocabulary, Max becomes a limitless, and increasingly complex resource.
Lighting: To start you do need a couple of pieces of equipment.
OPTION 1: DMXking https://dmxking.com/usbdmx/ultradmxmicro
OPTION 2: ENTTECC Open DMX USB https://www.enttec.com/product/controls/dmx-usb-interfaces/open-dmx-usb/
3. LED of your choice. Beg or borrow one, or try TRADEME or Surplustronics.
MAKE A PATCH.
One of the best things about MAX are the endless supporting documents, examples and great community feedback/input. As a beginner almost every patch you might imagine will already exist. This of course is the case with lighting. Although it is now dated here is a link to a fantastic series of introductory tutorials on lighting. https://cycling74.com/tutorials/working-with-hardware-dmx-part-1/
The basic patch for lighting control is straightforward and can be downloaded from OLAF MATTES(http://www.nullmedium.de/index.php?category=software ) who made a much copied version. Or you can find it here on the community pages https://cycling74.com/forums/dmx-hardware-software-compatibility-question At the bottom of the discussion you will see the link.
The other thing you need to know about is the Max Objects Database . This is a free library of existing patches that you can download. http://www.maxobjects.com/?fbclid=IwAR3EVFZloFNnf1q_yt_TXrjqbndAi0wAkxXIQFC33e6T3VFRLGpUwcc1Fzo
Heres the patch.
The good stuff sits inside the box labeled p DMXalt. This is a ‘patcher’ object which is essentially another window or patch that has been ‘encapsulated’, so that it can be reduced to this simple object. Helps keep things tidy.
Heres what sits inside p DMXalt.
MAKE IT WORK.
3. Refresh the serial port menu. Then open the lower blue menu and you will see your driver. Select. You are now good to go.
Using the sliders shown below you can control up to six channels. This can be expanded to 512 seperate channels. We will look at that process in the next post.
Finally the good stuff.
Whats the goal? The goal is to start to think about (and put into practice) how lighting reflects or further expresses the ideas a musician or artist is exploring.
Following this idea, lighting becomes an aesthetic, conceptual medium that can embody the interests of an artist. There is an overlap here between the disciplines of music/sound and light.
To progress a conversation about light you need two elements. Time to play and darkness. Plus a light source, but that is the easy part.
The most important element is darkness. The best place to start a lighting project or collaboration is in the dark. With no light present. I am not sure about the analogy, but it’s like starting a sound project in silence. An absolute blackout is so rare it almost never experienced. In public spaces this is impossible due to health and safety requirements. There will always be an EXIT or safety light present. Plus all the incidental light from the lighting and sound equipment.
DARKNESS. Why?
Like all research projects the trick is in the research question. Complete darkness is a very provocative experience. In a truely lightless space you can’t see your hands. There is no floor, no sky or ceiling, no horizon. Proximity disappears, proprioception is disturbed, time is unsettled. It’s all about sensation.
Conceptually this can be exciting. Focus is forced back on the question making, whereas in a light space the lack of a solid question can be buried in our stylistic habits or cultural/social preferences. We can end up simply working to make something ‘look good’.
Its hard to be current, or relevant or even liked in darkness.
Darkness is subversive. And methodical. The introduction of light becomes a rupture. Any lighting gesture will create a problem or question. The slow addition of light can be a very productive process.
Dont get stuck on the abstract. Get working.
Set up a completely ‘lightless space’. Its not hard to do.
Now introduce some light. Tiny 2 Dollar Shop lights are a perfect place to start. They are safe and easy to control. By control I mean limiting or increasing the amount of light that is present. Using your hands you can control the focus, position, direction and intensity of the light.
Think about your favourite music videos or performances. Where was the light coming from? At the feet of the singer or from behind as backlight? Was the light hanging close to the performers head or did they use a giant follow spot from way back in the space. Scale becomes important. Linked to this is proximity, meaning how close the artist is to the light fitting/light itself. With this proximity goes intensity, the closer the artist to the light the greater the intensity of the light on them. Scale, proximity, intensity are a good place to start.
All of this is done with one small light.
DIY Lighting for bands and sound artists. Basic setups.
The first section is all about power. If you want to get started straight away go to EASY SOLUTIONS (see below).
You will need:
ure out how many parcans you can plug into a domestic wall plug you simply divide the ‘watts’ of the light by the ‘voltage’ of your power supply. In NZ this is easy as all domestic power arrives as 240 volts. So here is the equation. We have a parcan which is a 1000w light. The power at the wall is 240v. Watts/volts = amps. In this case the parcan uses 4.16A. The wall plug can handle 10A maximum. Final answer is that we can plug 2 x parcans into a single wall plug or circuit. Its not many.
EASY SOLUTIONS.
The following offers some simple and pragmatic steps to getting started with lights for a gig. Note however, the question of design is completely absent from these solutions. if you want to start to think about lighting from a critical or design perspective please go to Lighting 103/Blackout.
Start with LED light fittings. They draw very little power, they are generally smaller and they produce almost no heat. Much SAFER all round. For example a small Chauvet LED light like the ones in KMC need 42w. So that means you could plug 50 lights (or thereabouts) into a single domestic wall plug. More than you will ever need.
SUMMARY OF GEAR
