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Tag Archives: Clive Young

Mix Blog: Moon-ing Over Pink Floyd in Dolby Atmos

Awaiting the premiere of Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon" in Dolby Atmos.
An trade listening occasion for Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon” in Dolby Atmos was held at Dolby’s NYC screening room.

Recently, I’ve been considering lots about, of all issues, Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon, which turns 50 this yr. It’s not a right away go-to album for me, however certain, I’ve it in my home. It’s bought an estimated 45 million copies through the years, so odds are you’ve got it too, and if not in bodily type, then on the streaming service of your selection. Dark Side’s legacy is deep—it spent 724 weeks (14 years) on the Billboard 200 chart, cemented the band’s exalted standing within the traditional rock pantheon, had arguably probably the most iconic album cowl ever, and impressed a thousand Laser Floyd reveals of questionable creative benefit. It’s additionally a reasonably good file.

Even now, the album stays so omnipresent that it’s the main focus of a brand new Fiftieth-anniversary field set containing an limitless assortment of mixes on Blu-Ray, DVD, CD and, only for outdated instances’ sake, vinyl. It options every thing you need from a field set: nice packaging, an unreleased classic live performance recording, and the unique album in a bevy of 5.1 Surround and stereo variations (Dark Side engineer Alan Parsons’ authentic Quad combine ought to have additionally been included). However, the gathering’s true calling card is its brand-new, never-before-heard Dolby Atmos combine.

While that field set seems mighty candy (and, at $300, mighty costly), I have already got Dark Side on a stunning 1978 vinyl image disk with completely execrable sound, and a 5.1 Surround SACD I used to be given 20 years in the past at a Thirtieth-anniversary press occasion for the album, held at New York City’s Hayden Planetarium in a nod to the unique 1973 launch on the London Planetarium. In the many years since that Thirtieth-anniversary occasion, I’ve by no means listened to the SACD’s 5.1 combine by James Guthrie—as a result of like most people, I don’t have an SACD participant. The format by no means actually took off, arriving simply because the file trade went into freefall as a result of filesharing, however Dark Side nonetheless managed to maneuver 800,000 SACDs in its first yr of launch—a statistic that claims way more concerning the public’s devotion to the album than the format.

That Thirtieth-anniversary occasion was unremarkable—I’m unsure in the event that they even had a 5.1 system set as much as allow us to hear the Surround combine—however it got here to thoughts sooner or later in March once I headed uptown to Dolby’s NYC screening rooms for Sony Music’s Dark Side Fiftieth anniversary occasion: an trade premiere of that much-anticipated Dolby Atmos combine, created as soon as once more by James Guthrie. Entering the constructing required signing a generic NDA that stated I couldn’t inform anybody about something I’d see or hear throughout my go to. The album and the Atmos combine might be out by the point you learn this, however even a pointless NDA continues to be an NDA; I needed to get permission to have the ability to write about listening to music that’s been round for 50 years.

Ushered into the splendid Dolby 88 theater, so named for its capability—and it was at capability—all of us sat in darkness for 42 minutes and easily listened to the album on one of the best Atmos system on the earth. No pictures on the Dolby Vision display, no cellphone use allowed. No distractions.

On The Cover: Las Vegas Takes Immersive Live, Part 1

What did I consider it? Whatever you want or dislike about The Dark Side of the Moon, you’ll expertise that much more whereas listening to the Dolby Atmos combine. I discovered the languorous, undulating circulate of “Us and Them” much more intoxicating, Clare Torry’s wailing vocals on “The Great Gig within the Sky” much more dedicated, and the interview soundbites much more irritating (I notice I stand alone on that final one). Interestingly, the chiming clocks on “Time” and cash-register sounds of “Money” have been way more front-focused than I anticipated, however that made excellent sense in a combination that resolutely valued readability and considerate placement over blunt showmanship.

In brief, it’s a sensible combine—and listening to it within the context of a theater was what made this occasion way more memorable than the one 20 years earlier, as a result of regardless that there was nothing to see and no efficiency per se, this was an expertise shared with different folks.

That expertise, listening intently with 87 others in the dead of night, highlighted to me how essential immersive sound will develop into for group experiences within the very close to future—heck, it’s already taking place. Immersive sound codecs, together with Dolby Atmos, are making critical inroads into the stay sound world, and as this month’s cowl story illustrates, star-studded Las Vegas residencies have gotten the high-profile standard-bearers for these applied sciences, attracting vacationer audiences who will quickly count on that immersive expertise throughout an evening out again house. A residency’s use of spatial audio has an affect as a result of it sounds nice—and since listening to it’s an expertise shared with different folks.

The irony is that customers most frequently expertise immersive sound when it’s used to evoke real-world areas—for example, recreating an area’s reverberance in a live performance video watched on a house theater. What will occur as we introduce immersive sound expertise into extra of the areas it’s typically used to emulate? Will all of it get too meta for its personal good, or will beforehand unimaginable artistic alternatives come up? I don’t know, however we’ll discover out—and we are able to chat about it in 20 years on the Dark Side Seventieth-anniversary occasion.

Mix Nashville: Immersive Music Production Announces First Panels

Mix Nashville: Immersive Music Production
Mix Nashville: Immersive Music Production

Nashville, TN (April 20, 2023)—Mix Nashville: Immersive Music Production, an all-day event focused on the emerging technologies, techniques and artistic opportunities driving the surge in Dolby Atmos and Sony RA360 content, has announced its first programming offerings, with more to be announced in the coming weeks.

The event, which will take place along a one-block stretch of Nashville’s Music Row, followed by a nighttime networking party and listening sessions in nearby Berry Hill, will take place on Saturday, May 20, 2023, opening with a Keynote Conversation in the historic Columbia Studio A. Numerous top pro-audio brands are involved with the event, so they will be on-hand, too. The Early Bird Registration Price ends on Saturday, April 22, so book now to secure your ticket for just $99!

Separate But Equal: The Stereo and Immersive Mixes

Which comes first? The stereo mix or the immersive mix? Or can they take place simultaneously? For many, stereo comes first, with the immersive mix becoming a “blown-up” version of the two-channel spread. For others, the immersive mix offers an opportunity for an entirely new approach to the song. Still others work on both at the same time. No matter the approach, all engineers agree that it should be the artist’s intent and vision that drives the process.

Panelists: Chuck Ainlay, Matt McClure, Jeff Balding and Will Kienzle

Moderator: Tom Kenny, Co-Editor, Mix

 

Monitoring the Mix: Speakers and Headphones

Nothing beats the experience of listening to an immersive mix on a properly tuned 7.1.4, 9.1.4, or even 13.1.6 monitor system, but statistics show that more than 90 percent of consumers will be listening through headphones or soundbars. For the mix engineer, headphones have become much more than a tool to “check” a mix or keep an ear on the binaural version; they’ve become an integral part of the production process, from the initial mix on through the approvals. With recent technology advances from Sony, Sennheiser, Apple and others, both mobile production and studio-based workflows are taking advantage and edging ever closer to providing an optimum consumer playback experience.

Panelists: Vance Powell, Pete Lyman and more to be announced

Moderator: Clive Young, Co-Editor, Mix

Book your early bird pass today – offer ends this Saturday, April 22!

Interested in sponsorship? Contact [email protected]

Mix Nominated for 2023 Neal Awards

69th Jesse H. Neal AwardsWashington, D.C. (March 8, 2023)—Mix has been named as a finalist in two classes for the 69th Jesse H. Neal Awards, the premier awards honoring business-to-business (B2B) journalism, offered by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA).

Often considered ‘The Pulitzers of B2B,’ the annual awards acknowledge achievement in 24 totally different classes. Mix has been nominated in each Best Range of Work by a Media Brand and Best Range of Work by a Single Author.

At Mix, we’re significantly enthusiastic about being nominated in Best Range of Work by a Media Brand, because the class appears to be like past Mix Magazine to additionally embrace our in-person occasions just like the upcoming Mix Immersive Music Nashville in May; on-line occasions like our well-liked Mix Sound For Film: Awards Season day each December; our free weekday e mail e-newsletter, Mix SmartBrief; our social media presences; the MixOn-line.com web site and extra. The general high quality of the multifaceted Mix model is the results of a workforce effort, significantly our well-liked occasions, and we’re grateful for the popularity.

Nominated for the Best Range of Work by a Single Author is Mix co-content director Clive Young. He was beforehand nominated for the class in 2019 whereas at Pro Sound News, which later merged with Mix in 2021.

Representing a variety of digital and conventional content material disciplines, 215 Neal Award finalists had been chosen for at this time’s announcement. Winners shall be revealed in the course of the Neal Awards Ceremony to be held on the New York Marriott Marquis, New York, NY on April 21, 2023. A panel of 136 judges will assessment the finalists in three phases to pick out the winners in 24 classes.

Mix’s Top 20 Articles of 2022, Part 5

Mix’s Top 20 Articles of 2022, Part 5

New York, NY (December 23, 2022)—Join us as we look back at our most popular articles of 2022, according to Google Analytics. The Mix Top 20 of 2022 lists our most-read news stories, reviews, blog posts, profiles and interviews of the year, so this Top 20 was chosen by YOU, our readers (Don’t miss Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4)! Have a happy and safe holiday break, and we’ll see you here on Tuesday, January 3, 2023 with all the latest pro-audio news!

4. Exclusive: Inside T Bone Burnett’s High-Tech Reinvention of the Record (5/20/22)

By Clive Young. Legendary producer T Bone Burnett revealed the tech behind his new Ionic Original discs—a format, he says, that offers the greatest fidelity and durability ever on an analog record.

 

3. Dead & Company: Keeping It Live (8/11/22)

By Clive Young. Dead & Company FOH engineer/tour director Derek Featherstone discussed the band’s 2022 summer tour, its new Meyer Sound Panther P.A. and his methods for mixing the famously improvisational act.

 

2. Peek Inside Whitney Houston’s Home Studio (4/5/22)

By Clive Young. Whitney Houston had a voice like no other and an award-winning, Russ Berger-designed home studio to match.

 

…and the NUMBER-ONE most-read article on Mixonline.com of 2022:

1. Recording the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Unlimited Love (5/2/22)

By Robyn Flans. We went deep with our five-part coverage on how the Red Hot Chili Peppers‘ hit Unlimited Love album was recorded, kicking things off with guitarist John Frusciante and drummer Chad Smith sharing how the band mended fences and got back in the studio together.

Mix’s Top 20 Articles of 2022, Part 3

Mix’s Top 20 of 2022, Part 3

New York, NY (December 21, 2022)—Join us as we look back at our most popular articles of 2022, according to Google Analytics. The Mix Top 20 of 2022 lists our most-read news stories, reviews, blog posts, profiles and interviews of the year, so this Top 20 was chosen by YOU, our readers (Don’t miss Part 1 and Part 2)! We’ll see you tomorrow with Mix’s Top 20 Articles of 2022, Part 4!

12. VIDEO: Counterfeit L-Acoustics Loudspeakers Destroyed by Authorities (2/8/2022)

By Clive Young. Chinese customs officials recently seized and destroyed fake L-Acoustics loudspeakers, then prosecuted the counterfeiters.

 

11. Steven Wilson Knows Surround (1/20/2022)

By Steve Harvey. Artist/engineer Steven Wilson has become the go-to pro for remixing classic rock in Dolby Atmos and Spatial Audio.

 

10. Restoring the Audio of The Beatles: Get Back (1/27/2022)

By Clive Young. Director Peter Jackson explains how modern AI technology was used to restore 53-year-old mono recordings, creating the audio of his documentary series, The Beatles: Get Back.

 

9. MSG Sphere’s Immersive Sound Technology to Debut in New York (7/26/2022)

By Clive Young. The immersive audio tech slated for the $1.8B MSG Sphere in Las Vegas has been installed in New York City’s Beacon Theatre and debuted in August with two Trey Anastasio concerts.

Mix’s Top 20 Articles of 2022, Part 2

Mix’s Top 20 of 2022, Part 2

New York, NY (December 20, 2022)—Join us as we look back at our most popular articles of 2022, according to Google Analytics. The Mix Top 20 of 2022 lists our most-read news stories, reviews, blog posts, profiles and interviews of the year, so this Top 20 was chosen by YOU, our readers (Don’t miss Part 1)! We’ll see you tomorrow with Mix’s Top 20 Articles of 2022, Part 3!

16. Hip-Hop Halftime: Remote-Mixing Music for Super Bowl LVI (3/30/2022)

By Steve Harvey. Remote-mixing music for Super Bowl LVI from the NFL’s new West Coast facilities was no simple trick.

 

15. Mackie Thump GO – A Real-World Review (4/11/2022)

By Steve La Cerra. Live sound pro Steve La Cerra puts Mackie’s Thump Go portable PA speakers to the test in this Real-World Review.

 

14. Back on the Road with Billie Eilish (7/5/2022)

By Clive Young. After a two-year pandemic pause—not to mention an Oscar win and a hit album—Billie Eilish and her sound team are back on the road, packing arenas around the world with audiences and audio.

 

13. Mix Live Blog: Finding Fire in a Bottle (4/7/2022)

By Steve La Cerra. With massive sanctions in effect against Russia due to the war in Ukraine, the supply of vacuum tubes is dwindling fast. Enter stage right: Western capitalism.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Pro Audio Holiday Gift Guide 2022 Addendum

New York, NY (November 22, 2022)—With the holidays nearly here, it’s that time of year again: that time when friends and family turn to you and say “You’re the professional; give me some ideas for audio presents to give people”—and you don’t have any ideas. You can try and explain that consumer and pro audio are two entirely different things, but they won’t understand and to be fair, the line between consumer and pro seems to get blurrier every year.

With that in mind, here’s a few gift guide items ranging from $70 to $1,200 that will give them plenty to consider.

Audio-Technica AT-LP2022 Turntable
Audio-Technica AT-LP2022 Turntable

Audio-Technica AT-LP2022 Turntable

Audio-Technica’s brand-new 60th Anniversary limited-edition AT-LP2022 Manual Belt-Drive Turntable ($1,200) pulls out all the stops. The turntable is built upon a 30 mm thick, high-density clear acrylic chassis that reduces unwanted resonances, complemented by a transparent anti-resonant acrylic platter with a mounted black AT-VM95E cartridge as well as a clear AT-VMN95SH Shibata stylus.

The turntable itself sports newly designed isolation feet that are height-adjustable, and also has an external power supply to keep unwanted electronic noise literally at a distance. The AT-LP2022 also comes with a removeable dust cover, detachable RCA cable and 45 RPM adapter.

RTM B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player
RTM B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player

RTM B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player

The only consumer audio medium more “throwback” than vinyl is cassettes, and there’s new gear in that realm, too. Audio tape manufacturer RecordingTheMasters recently rebranded itself as RTM, and is expanding its presence in the cassette tape marketplace, opening its own exclusive duplication facilities to manufacturer its RTM C-60 and RTM C-90 cassettes. RTM is also moving into electronics, however, with the launch of its new B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player ($85). The new player retains the built-in microphone and external microphone recording of RTM’s previous B-1000 model, along with an expanded window, USB power adapter and more .

AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ Headphones
AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ Headphones

AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ Headphones

Danish audio design company AIAIAI has been working with the likes of Richie Hawtin on the R&D of their products and now has artists like Benji B and, Fred Again… as brand ambassadors for their headphones. The latest addition to the company’s wares is the TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ ($350), designed specifically with music makers in mind. The headphones feature low latency and uncompressed audio from the company’s new “W+ Link” technology to provide a reportedly nearly latency-free wireless experience. Furthermore, the TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ also features Bluetooth 5.0 with 80 hours of playback time for music creation in any environment. The cans also come with a coiled cable so they can be used in wired situations as well.

Every Pro Audio Holiday Gift Guide Ever!

Mackie M•Caster Studio
Mackie M•Caster Studio

Mackie M•Caster Studio

Content creation is the name of the game these days, whether you’re an aspiring podcaster, video game streamer, YouTuber or something else. Like any studio, big or small, it all centers around the mixer, so Mackie has introduced the M•Caster Studio ($350) desktop live streaming mixer, offering processing, ContourFX Presets, a built-in 4 pad sampler, Bluetooth connectivity, full-color MixViewer display, a plethora of input/output options, and more.

METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums
METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums

METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums

Closing out this gift guide is one just for the recordists, regardless of whether they’re longtime or aspiring pros. Simply put, a great track without great drums is not a great track, because a well-captured, strong performance is the basic foundation that everything else is built upon. Capturing lightning in a bottle is never easy, but you can make that metaphorical bottle a lot bigger by following the hard-earned advice shared in the new book, METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums ($70). For those who don’t know, the METAlliance is essentially The Avengers of producer/engineers—a team of legendary pros with dozens of Grammy Awards between them—so their new book on recording drummers is not to be missed.

A Pro Audio Holiday Gift Guide 2022 Addendum

New York, NY (November 22, 2022)—With the holidays nearly here, it’s that time of year again: that time when friends and family turn to you and say “You’re the professional; give me some ideas for audio presents to give people”—and you don’t have any ideas. You can try and explain that consumer and pro audio are two entirely different things, but they won’t understand and to be fair, the line between consumer and pro seems to get blurrier every year.

With that in mind, here’s a few gift guide items ranging from $70 to $1,200 that will give them plenty to consider.

Audio-Technica AT-LP2022 Turntable
Audio-Technica AT-LP2022 Turntable

Audio-Technica AT-LP2022 Turntable

Audio-Technica’s brand-new 60th Anniversary limited-edition AT-LP2022 Manual Belt-Drive Turntable ($1,200) pulls out all the stops. The turntable is built upon a 30 mm thick, high-density clear acrylic chassis that reduces unwanted resonances, complemented by a transparent anti-resonant acrylic platter with a mounted black AT-VM95E cartridge as well as a clear AT-VMN95SH Shibata stylus.

The turntable itself sports newly designed isolation feet that are height-adjustable, and also has an external power supply to keep unwanted electronic noise literally at a distance. The AT-LP2022 also comes with a removeable dust cover, detachable RCA cable and 45 RPM adapter.

RTM B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player
RTM B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player

RTM B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player

The only consumer audio medium more “throwback” than vinyl is cassettes, and there’s new gear in that realm, too. Audio tape manufacturer RecordingTheMasters recently rebranded itself as RTM, and is expanding its presence in the cassette tape marketplace, opening its own exclusive duplication facilities to manufacturer its RTM C-60 and RTM C-90 cassettes. RTM is also moving into electronics, however, with the launch of its new B-1000EW Portable Cassette Player ($85). The new player retains the built-in microphone and external microphone recording of RTM’s previous B-1000 model, along with an expanded window, USB power adapter and more .

AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ Headphones
AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ Headphones

AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ Headphones

Danish audio design company AIAIAI has been working with the likes of Richie Hawtin on the R&D of their products and now has artists like Benji B and, Fred Again… as brand ambassadors for their headphones. The latest addition to the company’s wares is the TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ ($350), designed specifically with music makers in mind. The headphones feature low latency and uncompressed audio from the company’s new “W+ Link” technology to provide a reportedly nearly latency-free wireless experience. Furthermore, the TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ also features Bluetooth 5.0 with 80 hours of playback time for music creation in any environment. The cans also come with a coiled cable so they can be used in wired situations as well.

Every Pro Audio Holiday Gift Guide Ever!

Mackie M•Caster Studio
Mackie M•Caster Studio

Mackie M•Caster Studio

Content creation is the name of the game these days, whether you’re an aspiring podcaster, video game streamer, YouTuber or something else. Like any studio, big or small, it all centers around the mixer, so Mackie has introduced the M•Caster Studio ($350) desktop live streaming mixer, offering processing, ContourFX Presets, a built-in 4 pad sampler, Bluetooth connectivity, full-color MixViewer display, a plethora of input/output options, and more.

METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums
METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums

METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums

Closing out this gift guide is one just for the recordists, regardless of whether they’re longtime or aspiring pros. Simply put, a great track without great drums is not a great track, because a well-captured, strong performance is the basic foundation that everything else is built upon. Capturing lightning in a bottle is never easy, but you can make that metaphorical bottle a lot bigger by following the hard-earned advice shared in the new book, METAlliance Recording & Mixing Drums ($70). For those who don’t know, the METAlliance is essentially The Avengers of producer/engineers—a team of legendary pros with dozens of Grammy Awards between them—so their new book on recording drummers is not to be missed.

PRO SOUND NEWS MOVES TO MIX

Dear Pro Sound News Reader—

PSN and Mix are merging. We are combining both iconic pro-audio news brands, bringing together the best features of each under the Mix name.

Starting in July, you’ll find all the great stuff you come here for—our Real-World Reviews, our trademark live sound coverage, industry analysis and more—over at mixonline.com.

To be clear, PRO SOUND NEWS is still bringing you the latest pro-audio coverage, just over at Mix. Same staff, same crucial news, different website and magazine.

PSN subscribers will start receiving Mix with its July, 2021 issue. Since we’re cramming two magazines into one, Mix will be growing in size, giving you even more to read and discover.

Also, starting July 6, the Mix SmartBrief email newsletter will increase to FIVE days a week to add all of PSN‘s coverage. Set up your free subscription now at https://bit.ly/3gVh4Gf so you can keep up on the latest pro audio news.

We’re looking forward to bringing you more of the great content you read PSN for, so we’ll see you in the pages of Mix!

Clive Young

Content Director, Pro Sound News (and now Mix!)

Book Review: Major Label Mastering—Professional Mastering Process

Major Label Mastering: Professional Mastering ProcessMastering is one of those corners of pro audio that everyone knows about, but doesn’t necessarily know what it truly entails. Shedding some light on the subject is Evren Göknar’s new book, Major Label Mastering: Professional Mastering Process (Focal Press/Routledge; $42.95), which breaks the topic down into understandable concepts and actionable steps that can be grasped by everyone, whether they’re students, musicians or fellow pros.

Göknar knows from whence he speaks—a Grammy winner, he’s worked more than 25 years in the mastering field, spending much of that time at Capitol Studios where he mastered everyone from Mariah Carey to the Beastie Boys in addition to putting his talents to work for TV shows like The Voice. During that time, Göknar developed the centerpiece of his book, The Five Step Mastering Process—a thorough system of considerations and procedures for crafting and implementing a mastering game plan will best serve the music. Readily acknowledging that there can be as many subjective assessments to be made (“Does this approach fit the genre?”) as there are technical ones, Göknar finds ways to help readers determine what’s necessary and bring quantifiable logic to more nebulous parts of the process.

That said, there’s plenty of straight-forward ‘how-to’ content, from best practices for documentation, to equipment sequencing, to a go-to section on advanced mastering chain tools and techniques. The book is also filled with cool gear photos, informative screenshots, useful illustrations, documentation examples and more, providing additional clarity and insight. Whether a budding engineer or a seasoned pro, readers will come away from Major Label Mastering with far greater understanding and appreciation for the newly demystified process of mastering.

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