Audio Engineering Society
Chicago
Meeting Review, February 28, 2006
|
2/28/06
Meeting Highlights First to present was Michael Santucci, an audiologist whose practice includes a large
client base in the music community. Michael is the founder and president of Sensaphonics Hearing Conservation, Inc., a Chicago-based
company specializing in custom-fitted earphones and earplugs. He is also vice
chairman of the AES Technical Committee on Hearing and Hearing Loss
Prevention. Santucci presented on the topic of hearing safety,
noting danger to hearing health presented by onstage monitoring, which is of
obvious concern to musicians and sound engineers. He contrasted the use of
floor wedge speakers with personal, or in-ear
monitors (IEMs). The primary advantage of IEM
systems revolves around the ability to control sound levels, especially when
an isolating earphone is employed.�
Isolating designs (as opposed to earbuds)
can reduce ambient noise by as much as -26 dB across all frequencies.� This allows users to hear desired sounds
(the monitor mix) more easily, greatly reducing the need for high monitor
volumes. Santucci cautioned that the use of IEMs in and of themselves do not reduce the risk of
hearing damage. In fact, left to their own devices, most musicians will
listen at their accustomed volume level out of habit, despite the isolation
factor. It was stressed that musicians and engineers should see their audiologist annually to monitor
their hearing, and that listening levels and exposure times should be
monitored.� Finally, the efficacy of IEMs was shown through several case studies of musicians Santucci has treated over the years, showing the stability
of their hearing after adoption and proper use of in-ear monitors. The second speaker was Ian Kuhn, who spoke
on the topic of "Mixing for IEMS." Ian has been monitor engineer
for the Dave Matthews Band for the past eight years.� During that time, Ian has helped the band
members make the transition from floor wedges to IEMs.
He described his experiences in detail, including technical and creative
differences between floor wedges and IEMs. Ian
detailed the slow adoption of IEMs over time, the
issues he faced in keeping the band happy, and how various problems were
addressed.� Issues arising from
isolation were addressed through audience mics and
a communications system among band members. This section drew a long
question-and-answer discussion from the members. The evening's final speaker was Bob Schulein of RBS Consultants, who presented on the topic
of controlled addition of ambience into the IEM mix.� Schulein is a
past president of the AES and currently serves as the chairman of the AES
Technical Committee on Hearing and Hearing Loss Prevention. Controlled
ambience was shown as a solution to most performance issues in IEM use.
Psychological considerations and problems of localization are addressed
through the use of special microphones embedded within customized earpieces.
The signal from these mics is passed to a
body-pack, where it is added to the monitor mix at the desired level and sent
to the ears with zero latency, allowing the user to hear as much or as little
ambient signal as desired. Schulein's design
addresses issues of ambient level, the need for limiting, and of course
appropriate dynamic range and frequency response, all of which have been
barriers to previous attempts to design an ambient IEM system. The evening concluded with a demonstration
of the Sensaphonics 3D Active Ambient IEM System in
surround sound, using universal-fit earphones. The majority of attendees
stayed late to experience the prototype ambient IEM system, which Sensaphonics will bring to market later this spring. All
three presenters stayed to answer questions and entertain discussion with the
membership. |
