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SoundGirls Sound System Optimization Workshop Denmark

20160921_114621In September, SoundGirls.Org hosted a workshop on Sound System Optimization that took place in Copenhagen, Denmark. The workshop was organized by SoundGirls Representatives Malle Kaas and Petra Randewijk and featured instructors Theis Romme and Rasmus Rosenberg. The workshop was held at Amager Bio and made use of their L’Acoustics Kudo System.

The two day workshop focused on the skills needed to properly tune a sound system using audio acoustical analysis software. Attendees were provided information on how to identify crossover points, optimal equalization, delay times and speaker placement.

20161122_131720Both instructors are industry veterans and brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the workshop. Theis Romme is a project manager at Victory Tour Production and System Engineer for ‘Volbeat’. Rasmus Rosenberg is a freelance engineer and an instructor at several institutes in System Design and Optimization, he is also a Super-User of Smaart and a Beta tester for Smaart v7 and v8.

Using analyzing methods to optimize a sound system isn’t a new idea. It started out in 1978 with engineers ‘Dr Don’ Pearson and Dan Healy, that toured with the Grateful Dead. They would utilize a Bruel & Kjaer 2032 Audio analyzer to optimize the PA of the day.They were posting their results in different articles and this led to a cooperation with companies like Meyer Sound and Rational Acoustics, who would go on to develop measuring methods that would later result in software applications like SIM3 and Smaart.

Rasmus hoped that the workshop would be driven by those attending, he was not let down. Stating that “The participants were well prepared and attentive. We hoped the class would be driven by the participants, their questions, curiosity and desire for new knowledge, and we got all what we hoped for”.  Theis and Rasmus designed the workshop and drew from several sources. Meyer Sound, Rational Acoustics, industry training sessions, power point presentations, and the unique drive rack they designed, built and use for system optimization.

This gave the participants a understanding of the workflow of a system tech, and the measurement platforms, role and function in that context. Rasmus says that “ by reviewing a “typical” day workflow and focused on the four different phases we divide a day into, Design, Verification, Optimization, Show. By showing, the workflow, context and results of our methods, we encouraged the participants to dig even deeper into the specific knowledge of the different subjects and techniques, that we touched on”.

20160920_163057The first day, Rasmus explained the theoretical side of system measurement by introducing the group to basic terms of Smaart. Smaart was chosen, as it is the most commonly used acoustical audio analysis software. With software like Smaart it is possible to find information on room acoustics, output of the speaker system, phase, SPL, room coverage, delay times and frequency response, all useful information to optimize a sound system. ‘Theis did recommend using Smaart for monitors as well.

It is one thing to understand the theoretical aspects of audio analysis software programs, but an entirely different thing to translate that into practical use. So on day two, Theis took the group through the practical side of working with a measurement program, how to optimize a system, showed on- and off-axis measurement positions, phase alignment,etc. He also gave the group some options for system design and sets of workflow.

Theis also took ran through a couple of practical exercises, where attendees could change position of speakers or adjust spl levels of the subs, so they could get a sense of the impact such changes have positively or negatively. Theis also imparted an important lesson -Often you will have to make compromises and make difficult decisions that may sacrifice audio and acoustical quality, but this is part of being a team player in the overall production. Knowing how to optimize less than positive conditions is a skill all engineers need to have.

While the experience level of everyone attending varied, Rasmus and Theis adapted information to everyone’s level. Both Rasmus and They did a fantastic and left those attending with more than enough information to continuing learning.The most important thing they imparted to the group was confidence to start working with a measurement program and to keep learning.

20160920_204912This might have been the first time so many women engineers from all over Europe were gathered in one place. We hosted a total of thirteen SoundGirls from six different countries and one SoundMan. Over the two days everyone dug into learning the complexities of tuning a system and Smaart. They also made new friendships across nationality and background. Everyone shared their experiences from their work back home.

We had members attending from Norway, Finland, Lithuania, Denmark, the Netherlands and England. While all that attended came to learn and grow as engineers – they all said that finding and meeting other women engineers was a driving factor. “To find out if I am all alone or if I have some fellow female techs” said Kristina a member attending from Norway.

When attendees were asked if they would use the information in the workplace the responses were a resounding yes. Terhi from Finland said “ time aligning a delay line has never been as easy as it was yesterday on my gig at a church”. Kristina from Norway had used it solve some low end issues, and Louise also from Norway was purchasing a new soundcard and giving measuring another go. Aiste from Lithuania says “ I work in a theater so first I will use it at my venue, and also as we are travel around with the shows I can measure the systems in all different venues. Gaining experience myself and making sure that the sound I get, coming to an unknown venue is matching the settings I am working in as much as possible”.

When asked if they would travel to attend another seminar Brigit from Denmark said “ I would definitely travel a long distance to attend a Soundgirl workshop again!” and Kristina from Norway said “Yes!Now even more willing! Both for the seminar and to hang out with the other techs”.

A big thank you to Theis Romme, Rasmus Rosenberg, Kim Kahn Technical chief at Amager Bio and Mikkel Alyd House tech at Amager Bio for doing a great job! And a big thanks to all the SoundGirls that attended.

If you couldn’t make this workshop we have asked Theis and Rasmus if they will teach this workshop again in September 2017.  Always check the website for up to date news and events. 2017 events are in the planning stages and will be posted as they are confirmed.

Soundgirls.org Sound System Optimisation Training

PrintSoundgirls.org is pleased to offer members a two day Sound System Optimisation training seminar from September 20 – 21 2016 in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Venue: Amager Bio, Øresundsvej 6, 2300 Copenhagen S, Denmark http://www.amagerbio.dk/

Dates: Tuesday September 20 12:00 – 20:00 CET and Wednesday September 21 10:00 – 18:00 CET

This course will be taught in English.

Course Content: The two-day course will include both theoretical and practical sessions. Attendees will learn basic measurement and operational concepts through FFT-based (dual-channel) acoustical analysis software platforms, including how to measure and analyse the frequency content of audio signals, study the timing and frequency responses of electro-acoustic systems, and perform basic room acoustics analysis. We recommend that participants download and review the Smaart V8 User Guide before attending the course and bring along a laptop or pen and paper to make notes.
Instructors:

Theis Romme, project manager at Victory Tour Production and system engineer for Volbeat. Theis is a Meyer Sound consultant and is considered an expert on the SIM3 audio analyser system, as well as Smaart V7 & V8 systems.

Rasmus Rosenberg, freelance sound engineer and workshop teacher in system design and optimisation for Rhythmic Music Conservatory (RMC) in Copenhagen and KTS (Copenhagen Technical School), among others. Rasmus is a Rational Acoustics Smaart super user, involved in program creation and assisting certified Smaart instructors and distributors. Since 2008 he has had the privilege of being a beta tester for Smaart versions (v7 and v8) before they hit the market.

Cost: The cost for the training will be £50GBP (around €58EUR) per person, payable by Paypal. This will include lunch and tea, coffee  and refreshments for both days. Attendees will be responsible for their own travel and accommodation.

Attendees will also have the option of attending a group dinner at a Thai restaurant on the Tuesday night following training. The cost will be €15EUR per person, excluding beverages.

To reserve your place on the course, please email soundgirls@soundgirls.org with the following details:

1) Name of attendee

2) Your arrival date and time in Copenhagen

3) If you would like us to arrange accommodation at a private residence (see below under Accommodation.) Please note that you may need to share a room with another Soundgirls.org member.

4) If you plan to attend dinner on Tuesday night

Places on the training course are limited to 15 people. We recommend you email soundgirls@soundgirls.org promptly to guarantee your place.

This training course is an exclusive offer for members of SoundGirls.Org. If you are not already a member, please visit www.soundgirls.org to register for free.
How to get to the venue:
Airport: Take the metro to ‘Lergravsparken’, walk 100 metres south of Østrigsgade, turn right onto Øresundsgade. You will see the venue on your left after 500 metres.
Centrale station: Take the Tivoli exit. Take bus no. 5A towards Sundbyvester Plads/Airport. Get off after 9 stops at Øresundsvej. Walk for 50 metres along Amagerbrogade and turn left at the intersection. Walk for 50 metres and you will see Amager Bio.

Accommodation:
Private residence – limited free shared accommodation in a private residence is available. Please indicate in your response email whether you would like to book a place.
Airbnb – https://www.airbnb.com/
Hotel Copenhagen – http://www.hotelcopenhagen.co.uk/
Hotel Amager – http://www.hotelamager.dk/english/

We recommend www.momondo.com to search for flight tickets. SAS & Norwegian are often more reliable than budget companies.

All enquiries and booking requests should be sent to soundgirls@soundgirls.org.

We look forward to seeing you in Copenhagen!

 

 

Workshop with Marcel van Limbeek – European SoundGirls

SG European Meet Up

SG European Meet Up

The European SoundGirls held an exciting workshop at SSR and invited longtime Monitor Engineer for Tori Amos, Marcel van Limbeek to speak. Women working in professional audio are often treated unfairly by our peers and face numerous obstacles that we often associate with sexual discrimination. Yet, men face some of the same obstacles and barriers.  Marcel shared the pressures and obstacles our male co-workers experience and offered advice on how best to handle these situations. It was an engaging discussion and pushed forward the conversation on gender inequality and sexism in the industry.

We want to extend our thanks to SSR for hosting this event and Marcel van Limbeek, for sharing his experiences with our members. We hope to continue this conversation with Marcel, so look for an upcoming article and interview.
We would also like to thank Malle Kaas for organizing the event
Karrie and Michelle


Thoughts on the Workshop

Representing SG

SoundGirls

Malle Kaas recently completed Brit Row’s Production Training, she organized this event. She resides in Denmark.

On my way to the event, I was reflecting on the latest blog from Karrie Keyes Unconscious Bias, I felt it related to tonight’s workshop. How we approach others, and how we react to others behavior. I was thinking how important it is to think twice in our approach and reaction to others. Very often, our behavior in the present comes from our history that has been shaped by our experiences. It often determines how we interact with other people.

Tonight was about hearing a male co-worker talk about his experiences.  What to do when you lack confidence?  Or you have just made a huge f*** up on a major TV-production, and you can’t just run away, but have to stay and face the 200 other people on the production. How devastating it is at an age of 50 to keep knocking doors down for work. What it is like to never really to feel like a part of the industry, even though you have worked for a critically acclaimed artist for over 20 years. I think that the majority of those who attended the event, felt it was a relief to hear that an industry veteran faces the same issues that many of us do.
Marcel offered advice on how to cope with the difficult feelings we may have about our jobs.  You must be “aggressive” (courage may be a better word). Aggressive enough to be able to apologize if you have made a mistake. Aggressive enough to be able to come and ask for work over and over again. Aggressive enough to be determined to do a good job, (dress properly, prepare and know the gear, etc.). Aggressive enough to be honest. It is important to remember, it is a friendly industry but also very competitive. And whatever stories you make, they stick to you – especially the bad stories.  But hey, everybody messes up – and when you do, be sure to have a friend to talk to about it.


Petra is a live sound engineer working in Holland.

Take away the industry is one of praise, and everything is overly important.  It’s an addictive, bright place to be, but this also comes with a flipside. When there is no praise, or you make mistakes, which happens to every human being, you can get very big throwbacks as well, and it might seem you’re worthless.
When you’re sensitive to this, (which I am) and I found out from the talk that many people are, the lows can really take you down. So make sure you don’t take your worth just from your days work, but also make a steady foundation from past days. It is also important to have people and things outside the circus, (who don’t have ulterior motives, like wanting your job for themselves or their friends) to talk to.

Men are always welcome

Men are always welcome

Second, I discovered that probably the only reason I have stayed in this business is to prove to everyone who told me I couldn’t do it that they were wrong. Apparently, I’m very stubborn and the more you tell me I can’t do something, the more I want to do it and do it well.

One last thing that struck me is that the SoundGirls Forum seems to fill a void. Not only for women working in sound, but also for men, who also have a need to discuss their place in the industry in a less business like manner. This is actually quite wonderful.


Laura is currently interning at a local studio in London

Personally, I found Monday night fantastic. This third SoundGirls meet up felt like we’d taken these nights up a notch. The talk by Marcel I found was very interesting; he is a naturally entertaining person.  He managed to hold my attention for all of it of his talk, which is a rare thing. As well as his successes in the sound industry, he shared his failures with a refreshing honesty, which is brilliant because he obviously wants others to learn from his experiences. I loved (and related to) his all or nothing attitude towards sound and it was reassuring to hear that hard work and ambition do pay off. He confirmed my belief that the best thing you can do is to be awesome at your job. Learn everything you can, treat people well, work as hard as you can, and then no one, sexist or otherwise, can deny you the right to be where you are. Thank you again to Marcel for the talk (and the drink), and I look forward to seeing everyone again next month!

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European SoundGirls – Shure Introduction to Wireless Workbench 6

Please join European SoundGirl.Org members as they welcome Tuomo Tolonen from Shure. Tuomo will introduce attendees to Shure’s Wireless Workbench 6.The event will take place on May 21st at Britannia Row. The event is free – please RSVP on the event page. We wish to thank Britannia Row and Shure for hosting this informative workshop, and Malle Kaas for organizing it.
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Wireless Workbench 6 Desktop Wireless Control App
From pre-show planning to live performance monitoring, Wireless Workbench® 6.10 provides comprehensive control for networked Shure wireless systems and includes several new features.
  • Networked control of QLX-D™ Digital Wireless (still offers networked control of Axient®, UHF-R®, ULX-D®, and PSM®1000)
  • An interactive view of frequency conflicts and their contributing factors, a detailed listing of conflicts found per frequency, and the ability to filter conflicts by type
  • Ability to select from a list of backup and in-use frequencies
  • Monitor Only mode that safeguards against unwanted changes

March European Meet Up

Attachment-1Second European Meet Up

The reasons people get into doing sound are wide and varied. We have all heard this reason ”yeah, I was playing guitar in this band, but wasn’t good enough, so I started mixing the sound instead”. But who has heard stage fright given as a reason? At our second European Meet Up, we learned that stage fright was indeed a reason that led to a career in sound. (more…)

March European Meet Up

Attachment-1Second European Meet Up

The reasons people get into doing sound are wide and varied. We have all heard this reason ”yeah, I was playing guitar in this band, but wasn’t good enough, so I started mixing the sound instead”. But who has heard stage fright given as a reason? At our second European Meet Up, we learned that stage fright was indeed a reason that led to a career in sound. (more…)

Join European SoundGirls for a Discussion with Marcel van Limbeek

P1010054-smApril 13, 2015 – London
Marcel van Limbeek and SSR to host SoundGirls.Org for a special discussion on the emotional aspects of working in live sound. Marcel has been Tori Amo’s monitor engineer since 1994 and has over 25 years of experience in the industry. (more…)

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