Unit 49: brief 1 Setting up sound production equipment

Setting up equipment for a live performance;

Process: (steps taken)

First we had to open up the boxes, which contain the mixing table and the power supply, and then once the desk is set up and moved to the side away from where any speakers will be set up then lock the wheels so the boxes stay stationary. After we put the boxes to the side we move the lids away from the boxes and put them away from the main area so they are not a safety hazard.

After the mixing desk and power supply has been set up the next thing set up would be the base bins which we had to place on the left and right side or the designated area so that the stereo sound would be projected correctly, compared to a mono sound which would not have directional sound once the base bins have been moved there by 2 people so it is not a safety risk the next thing to do is to put the pillars on the base pins to hold up the main speakers making sure they are secured tight. After this is done we add the main speakers to the pillars and make sure they are secured on the top of the pillars to not cause any hazards. We then have to plug the speakon cables into the speakers to then be put the power supply however the cables are also powered to help provide the power to the speakers.

Once the power supply cables have been plugged in we managed the cables by sticking the cables to the back of the room/floor to stop anyone tripping up over them and stop a health and safety risk which will also be applied to the jack tables once they have been plugged into the speakers they must be moved out of the way and taped down so they cannot be tripped over.

The jack leads will be plugged into the desk and then plugged into the amp to have a balanced sound coming from the speakers and to make sure the panning is correct.

We then set up the microphone with its stand in the middle of the two speakers and behind them in order not to cause a feedback loop, where the sound keeps being picked up from the speakers via the microphone and looping, once this had been done We then plugged them into the mains and then we plugged the xlr cable into the microphone and then into the mixing desk to enable the microphone to be amplified through the speakers then we turned on the desk and check the desk to make sure everything is working correctly then I turned the speakers on and then after that do level testing to make sure the sound is clear and there is no feedback.

After this one person then stands between the four speakers to make sure the stereo sound is correct and is playing out of both speakers.

Once all of this is done we then packed up by turning off both the speakers and the desk we then unplugged all of the cables and rolled them up and taped them together so they did not tangle themselves together and to prevent and damage being caused to them we then took the speakers off the top of the pillars using two people to prevent risks then took the pillars off the bass speakers and moved the speakers and bass speakers back into their original position, and then finally we put the lids back on the power supply and mixing desk and locked them in.

Equipment list:

Equipment list:

Mixing desk, Yamaha EMX 5016 CF

Power Amp, ASX 18 dB technology for mixing desk, the t.amp  A 2400 for the sub speakers

Sub speakers dBs

Main speakers dBs

Support pillars

XLR cables

Speakon cables

Jack cables

Masking tape

Power Leads

Shure SM58 microphone

Risk Assessment:

Risk:	Why it’s a risk:	How to prevent it:
Cables	If the cables are loose somebody could trip over them and hurt them selves.	I can prevent the wire from being tripped over by taping the wires on to the floor around the back of the speakers and not in the main area.
Wire	Wires are a risk because if there they become exposed they could electrocute someone and hurt them.	I can prevent the exposed wire from harming anyone or the wire being exposed at all by making sure all of the wires are securely taped down and checking them before using them.
Plug socket	A plug socket is a risk because if it is left turned on and unsupervised if a conductor is put near the plug it could generate an electric shock.	I can prevent this risk by turning the plug off when it is not in use.

Water near electric	This is a risk as water can conduct electricity and could cause harm to someone near them	I can prevent this risk by keeping liquid’s and drinks away from the wires and plug sockets
Health risk	This is a risk when it comes to moving equipment as lifting an object in the wrong way could seriously injure somebody	I can prevent this risk by lifting things with 2 people at a time and lifting with your knees and not your back
Noise levels	It is important not to go over 120db as this will break social laws that have been put in place	I can prevent breaking the social laws by making sure the noise level on the speakers is set to a sensible level and is monitored during the performance
Feedback	Feedback can be an risk and cause sound problems and hurt the audiences ears, as when sound travels from the speakers into the microphone and loops it will get louder and louder	This can be prevented by making sure the microphone is behind the speakers and is not picking up any of the sound from the speakers.

Effects: (How they work and different types):

Equaliser:
An equaliser works by changing the frequency,which is measured in Hz, of the audio by changing the wavelengths of the sounds, this helps optimise the track and makes it easier to listen to as the audio will be more level. 

Reverb: when the reverb effect is turned on this makes the sound feel as though it is being

performed in a room and not in a studio, when the reverb effect is turned on the sound is

called wet when it is turned off it is called dry.

Compression: is a dynamic processor the slows down sounds waves which the narrows the

dynamic range, on the mixing desk compression is either 0% or 100% meaning you either

have it on or off, compression works in a ratio effect where the dB in, is in a ratio with the dB

put on a graph for example if the threshold is lower that 6 and and dB in sound is at 6 dB it

will be lowered to 4 dB.

Noise Gate: A noise gate works in a similar way go compression by changing the sound due

to a certain threshold however a noise gate completely cuts off any sound waves above a

certain dB for example if you set the threshold to 4 and a sound wave at 6 dB was input the

sound would not be output.

Delay: a delay creates an echo effect by replaying the sound that is input over and over

again by using a buffer, which the user edits to their prefences, to create an echo with the

dry input sound.

Microphones: (how they work and different types):

Dynamic Microphones:

Dynamic microphones work by having the diaphragm vibrate which then has a magnet attached to the coil which, when it vibrates from the sound waves ,creates and a current in the coil  which is channelled from the microphone along the wires. 

Condenser / capacitor microphones:

These types of microphones work via the sound waves vibrating the front plate,the diaphragm, in the head of the microphone which then vibrates changing the distance between the two plates which then changes the capacitance. when the plates are closer the capacitance increases and when they are apart decreases. A voltage, usually provided by a battery but can also be powered by phantom power, is needed to power these type of microphones.



Setting up a recording studio:
First log in to the Mac and open cubase 7 after that has opened click cancel on any screens which appear when it has finished loading go to file and open a new project at the top bar then select 'empty' from the tab on the right then click more and check the desk is set up look at the devices and check te audio driver asio is connected to the onyx firewire and also check the vst connections. under inputs and output the preset should be on onyx too.
go to project ass track and add as many mono audio tracks as you need
change the input for each track using the bar on the right which says mono in each input respons to the input on the desk,
click monitor on the track to test the audio is coming through.

Unit 49 brief 2: sequencing a pop song

Rather Be Sequencing: https://soundcloud.com/user-219131996/rather-be

What is a DAW? A DAW is a Digital Audio Workstation eg. Cubase 6, I have used cubase to sequence my task by sequencing various instruments and sampling drum kits and using synths in order to create a cover of the song rather be. The computer used is a mac with OSX version 10.7.5 using cubase 6 as the DAW

How to setup a new project in Cubase:
To first setup a project you have to double click on empty to start up and empty cubase project.
(setting up a project)
How to create tracks:
To create a track either ctrl click on the empty space and click add track, instrument, or go to project, add track instrument.


(creating tracks)
How to assign synth to tracks: (Hal Lion SE & Sylenth)
To assign a synth to a track click on either Hal lion SE or Sylenth to assign it to a track.


(sylenth and hal lion)


Sylenth Effects:
Oscillator:
An Oscillator allows you to change the fundamental shape of the sound and allows you to choose between different ones


Envelope:
An Envelope starts and ends sounds by their ADSR, Attack, Decay,Sustain,Release.

Filter:
The Filter is a type of EQ, you can boot low and boost high.

Low frequency oscillator:
An Low Frequency Oscillator allows you to change the fundamental shape of the sound and allows you to choose between different ones.

How I have used sylenth in my work:
I have used sylenth in my work to create a synth track in my work in order to get the correct sound for rather be.
This is the settings I used for the synth treble:

This is the settings I used for the synth bass:






How to input midi data:
to input midi data you have to double click on the track ,that has been drawn via the pencil tool, which then opens up a screen which then, by using the pencil tool, you can add notes to the track and you can remove them by using the eraser tool.



MIDI stands for:
Music Input Digital Interface,
Midi isn't music as it does not play any sounds, it is also not a digital music file like an MP3 or WAV file.
A midi file is a set of instructions it is a list of events or messenges that tell an electric device,musical instrument ,computer sound card etc...how to generate a certain sound.

midi files are;
stored as .mid,
small file size
they're able to be opened and edited as well as played back by most media players.
they're mainly used for karaoke industry,old video games,old mobile phones

midi code,message format;
there are two types of message bytes: the statues byte and the data byte.
Status bytes always start with 1 and data bytes with 0. that leaves only 7 bits per byte to represent the message (128 possible values).

Midi messages begin with the statue byte where 3 bits (sss) are used to denote the type of message, and 4 bts (nnnn) to denote the channel number to to which the message apply (Max. 16 channels).

Midi Connections
The midi Keyboard has a mdi out go to the Usb into the computer to be input into the computer, the computer can also input to the keyboard by putting the midi out lead into the in midi port.

using the thru port you can setup up a daisy chain distribution and link them all together.

You can edit midi notes in the midi manger (List editor in cubase).

Channel Messages:
Midi channe umber (n) are referred as 1 to 16, while in reality they are represented by binary values 0 to 15 or hex 0- F

MIDI Controllers:
A midi controller can be anything that can manipulate a midi input, eg a MIDI keyboard, MIDI keyboards have various ways of manipulating the sound they input via master volume, mic gain, instrument gain,  mono button, and a pitch bend wheel also a modulation wheel.

MIDI manger:
Cubase has a MIDI manger called List editor which allows you to input and edit MIDI notes.


How to use Groove agent & media bay to create the drum track: (Samples)
To create a Groove agent and use media bay first you have to create a instrument track
by dragging and dropping sounds from media bay into the groove agent to then map that sound to that note.



What is a sample?:
A sample is a short sound file that can be assigned to the sampler to allow it to play it.

How to assign a sample?:
Drag the sample from media bay, the sound bank we use, and drop it onto the groove agent key we want to use.

Groups in Groove Agent:
You can have up to 8 groups in groove agent allowing for 128 different samples.

To Pitch bend in cubase:
To pitch bend in cubase you have to click the drop down arrow to open the menu with the ability to manipulate the volume, and then click the R to read the volume and then create two pivot points in order to bend the pitch

Hardware Samplers:
Hardware samples are things like the mellotron that paul McCartney used in the 1960's and the novation launch pad.


Exporting:
In order to export the piece click the File,Export,Audio Mixdown.


Then title the piece take of post processing and export the piece.

Unit 2: Communication skills for creative media production

Album: Hunky Dory
Producer(s): David Bowie & Ken Scott
Artist: David Bowie
Year/Date: 1971
Genre(s): Rock Music, Glam Rock, Pop Music, Am Rock, Folk Music, Pop Music, Pop Rock, Folk Rock [5]

Why was it revolutionary?
David Bowie's Forth and most critically acclaimed album at the time released a new style of Bowie the world was not use too featuring singles like Changes and Life on Mars? it was set to revolutionise the music world. Bowie's sense of vision is clearly portrayed in this album showing his prodigal style this album, this album mainly revolutionised music through its way of blending all of its different genres into one album and making it sound unique. This album made David Bowie one of the 70's most influential musician, coming off the back of the 1969's number 5 chart single Space oddity, and with The Man Who Sold The World not being able to live up to its success Bowie needed a new style to prove his story about Major Tom was not a one hit wonder, he needed to try something new, so after claiming to be gay and drawing in the publicity he released Hunky Dory with the  starting track of the album ' Changes ' cements the idea of this album being his transition into the proper appearance of 'Camp David', However with family the family inspired song 'Krooks', which was a song to his newborn son Duncan James, this proved to be one of David Bowie's more human and grounded album, which managed to inspire a generation of musicians and also emerged the new style of David Bowie.[1]

How was it created?
Hunky Dory was created with a RCA Victor label and produced by David Bowie and Ken Scott and Art Direction by Terry Pastor and George Underwood in the Trident Studio, London, England.

Album: Abbey road
Producer(s): George Martin
Artist: The Beatles
Year/Date: 1969
Genre(s): Rock [4]

Why was it revolutionary?
Abbey Road was a revolutionary album in the world of music as it made the Beatles and also cemented their classic style of  rock in history via songs like 'something' and 'come together'.


How was it created?
In some tracks of Abbey Road, Ringo use to use tea towels and other objects to dampen the sound of the snare drum this became a sonic staple for the band[2] On twist and shout there is also an echo effect of the main vocals also for the entire album the vocals only come out of the right side of the stereo and the bass and the reverb/echo of the vocals on the left of stereo.


Album: Dookie
Producer(s): Rob Cavallo, Green Day
Artist: Green day
Year/Date: 1994
Genre(s): Punk Rock, Pop Rock, Alternative Rock [3]

Why was it revolutionary?
Dookie was revolutionary as it was Green Days first big album and set the stage for their future by showing their full punk rock side in their single  'Basket Case'

How was it created?
Green day use a lot power chords in their pieces, which they are often criticised for, as it makes a lot of their songs sound similar. Billy Joe's picking style he often attack the strings when playing the guitar and which gives the very brutal sounding guitar to most greenday songs.

References:

[1]Robert Dimery, 2013. 1001: Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Edition. Cassell Illustrated.

[2]Ian Vargo. 2016. 5 Production Secrets of The Beatles. [ONLINE] Available at:https://theproaudiofiles.com/beatles-production-techniques/. [Accessed 03 October 2016]. 

[3]Wikipedia. 2016. Dookie - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dookie. [Accessed 06 October 2016].

[4] Wikipedia. 2016. Abbey Road - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbey_Road. [Accessed 06 October 2016].

[5]  Wikipedia. 2016. Hunky Dory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunky_Dory. [Accessed 06 October 2016].