Ricky LiveMartin Ricky Martin came to Australia recently, leaving jelly-kneed women (and certain men) piling up in drooling heaps in his wake. Rob ‘Cubby’ Colby is probably the best FOH engineer in the world to ensure 10,000 people a night got their hips swivelling. Christopher Holder experiences ‘la vida loca’.

ob ‘Cubby’ Colby is not a man who’s risen to the top of the live sound heap by big-noting himself. It’s harder to recall a more humble, unassuming guy. Not to say he hasn’t a lot to brag about. When you’ve got performing leviathans like Prince and Phil Collins/Genesis on your CV you know Cubby’s done a lot right to be so high up in anyone’s unofficial international front of house engineer ‘Top 10’. RWhen I discovered that Cubby was doing sound for Ricky Martin, I have to admit, it made me rethink my preconceptions of the latin teenie-crooner. This must be a serious tour! And it is. Ricky and his entourage are serious about the sound and giving their audience value for money. There’s no skimping on the gear and the musicians. If they can employ a musician to tickle a bell-tree or whack a wood block, they’ve done it – barely a sample to be found. While in Australia the production availed themselves of Jands Production Services and their brand new L-Acoustics V-DOSC system. I was able to catch up with Cubby for a chat about the improvements in live sound and the techniques that take advantage of those improvements. Cubby had a few things to get off his chest as well, which makes for some interesting reading! Christopher Holder: I was surprised to see that Ricky had brought the best part of the Rio Carnavale on the road. This is a full- Latin leviathan: The Ricky Martin rig weighed in at a hefty 36 tonnes. Note the two V-DOSC arrays. on ‘Mambo King’ ensemble isn’t it? Award nights, but did a big latin ensemble like this Cubby Colby: Initially I was very surprised as well. present you with a few surprises? Certainly the integrity of the music is all live. Admittedly CC: Latin music, as a rule, is very busy in terms of per- there’s a smattering of sampled drums, but even those are cussion, piano, brass, and has a solid drummer, and bass triggered live by the drummer, there’s no sequenced lines. The challenge is to keep everything in perspective. material. We’ve got three live horn players, percussionists, You have to ensure the drums don’t become predominant even a sitar player! and get in the way of all the percussion – you need lots of CH: So is there a click track? space left to flesh out that percussion. But what’s interest- CC: There is a click track but just to establish the meter ing about Ricky Martin is that his music borrows much of the tune, which the drummer follows and then the click from the latin influences but there’s a lot of conventional disappears. It’s certainly not triggering SMPTE timecode, rock’n’roll going on as well. For example, Livin’ La Vida and it’s not triggering anything video-wise. That’s all done Loca has a latin feel to it but it’s not straight out latin stuff, manually. whereas Maria Maria is more pure latin and requires a lot CH: I know you’ve done a number of Latin Billboard more attention to the percussion. For example, in Maria

Ricky Martin Staging at Colonial Stadium.

Edward Shirley Staging were contracted to the car park is built underneath the surface accordingly to its demands. We changed the provide the staging for the Colonial Stadium playing area where the concert was sitting.(It shape of the roof from the regular ESS 24m by show in Melbourne. Iain Barclay explains would not be cost effective to build a car 18m dimensions to 24m by 24m, a 33 percent some of the unusual demands of the park that is strong enough to hold up the increase – but still supported on only four concert: occasional Ricky Martin show when it is towers which enabled vastly improved sight “I think what soon became apparent was this perfectly fine the rest of the time.) By far the lines. was a very large scale show, definitely the most efficient way of solving the problem was “I should add that despite the extra materials biggest tour in the world at that time. The rig to get ESS in when they needed to back and extra workload we were able to meet the was huge, there was 36,156kg hanging from prop. We had to go in to the carpark and schedule. The stage was up and ready in two the roof of the stage, then added to that were erect eight blocks of scaffolds to relieve the 12 hour shifts and then cleared the morning moving set pieces weighing a good two excess stresses – basically we were keeping after by 11:30.” the stage from falling into the carpark! tonnes in total. This weight presented real Edward Shirley Staging Australia: (02) 9666 problems in itself. Colonial Stadium, as with “Also, given this was the first V-DOSC tour 9566 other world class venues such as the we’ve seen in Australia and the huge Ricky Amsterdam Arena, is structured such that Martin Rig we needed to tailor the staging

33 Maria there’s a little bell sound that plays a syncopated really good go at their own proprietary sound systems: rhythm, that’s what the dance step is based on, so you’ve the Prism system, Clair’s S4 the P4, the EAW stuff, the got to keep things out of the way so it can be heard. If Meyer rigs, the EV X-Array – it’s all been very good. But those little latin punctuations get swamped, it would this has been the most impressive set up that I’ve walked become a straight 2/4 meter. up to and enjoyed mixing on. Even just for that vocal CH: Is there anything more to it technically than low/mid to midrange clarity that really comes to you – keeping your fingers on the faders? you don’t have to work hard at getting it there. And CC: Technically, it is about balancing. because there’s such an even coverage. You’ve got the two CH: But what about panning and effects, do you use columns giving 180 degree coverage, and it’s so seamless quite a bit of that to create more space in the mix? top to bottom. CC: Certainly. And this is something that the V-DOSC rig CH: Does that translate to being quite an easy system allows you to do more than in the past. For example, if I to consistently get sounding good in any shape room? had all the percussion laying on top of all the drums CC: When I set up a rig, I don’t do a lot of hunting and coming down the centre, along with the bass and all the pecking in the graphic stuff – with anybody’s PA I just try keys, well, I’d be up against it. So, if the keyboards are and get the most out of it, and get the funny room char- positioned stage right, then that’s where my panning’s acteristics out of the system if I have to. But the V-DOSC going to be – not full right, but more like 2 o’clock on the stuff is just instantaneous. You turn it on, (I have my own pan pot – that way you have a sense of hearing them in vocal mic I use and I have a couple of reference tracks I perspective. The same goes for the guitar players; I match listen to), and it’s just all there, right off the bat. their position on the stage. No instrumentalist is up the Compared to the American or the European V-DOSC middle unless they’re taking a solo. So you’re creating a shows, the Australian gigs just mean a different serial left, right and centre depth, with bass, kick drum, snare number on the back of the box. Similarly, I’ve heard them drum and Ricky’s vocal being right in front. with Crown amps, I’ve heard them with Crest, and the CH: I noticed the horns really have some width in the Camco amp, I’ve heard them with the L-Acoustics amp – mix, how do you achieve that? and they’ve all sounded very good. I’ve gone from indoor CC: I’ve always used a certain technique with live horns: I arenas of 20k, to big domes of 30k to outdoors that were pan them hard left, and feed an aux bus into anything 40k, and I’ve only needed to adding delays. between a 25ms and 40ms delay, which is panned hard CH: Do you hang additional arrays to use as your right. So you get a really wide horn sound. It’s not delayed delays or conventional stacks? enough to detract from hearing it properly, but enough to CC: For all of the inner coverage, the first 20k people I give this big sound, which makes such an impact when use the main arrays. Then mostly I’ve used another three you hear it. There are three horn guys up there trying to arrays to address the remainder of the audience. I’ll fly be heard over all this low end, low mid, and midrange the delay arrays inverted behind the FOH mix tower. information, and this technique does the trick! CH: Inverted? CH: What about the V-DOSC, is it the way of the CC: Yeah. You can take the V-DOSC fly bar and you invert future? it, so you get the opposite shaped arc to what you’d have CC: I think it is. I’m most impressed. Everyone has had a on the main arrays. That way you get a more even

Audio Pros unite! Cubby rails against lop-sided touring budgets.

“I’m so against all this ‘lights/video not the artist. So why did we spend so imagine what it would be like without versus audio’ lop-sided budget much time getting the music together the delays.’ Or there’s been other nightmare. I’m over it. Ricky Martin is, and going into production rehearsals? reviews: ‘My seat was actually behind Phil Collins is, any one I have anything It’s not to rehearse where the artist is the stage, and it was the best sound I’d to do with just won’t put up with the going to be standing on stage for the ever heard, even better than what I’ve sort of inequality we’re often seeing. No video guys to get it right. heard in front of the stage at a concert.’ one goes home humming the lights. “I’m not trying to be offensive to those “You have to go around and wave these They get excited about the music, first departments – I think all departments reviews in people’s faces, ‘see, it was and foremost. If the budget is lop sided make it be a good show – but at times worth every penny!’. You’ve got to use and the bean counters say, “we just I get so discouraged that the budgets those comments to your advantage; can’t afford that Cubby”, I’m not even have been so drastically different. If you you’ve got to let them know it’s worth it. going there. That’s not a place for me said you wanted to try something Unfortunately if the bean counters get to be, because I’m the mixer and I want special, or that you needed extra stuff away with it once, they’ll get away with the best sound I can manage to for a bigger venue: ‘No no, we’re it again – you have to set a precedent muster. Sure, I want it to be a good already over budget.’ There’s right up front. show for everybody involved, but I something really wrong there. Anyway, “Fortunately, the acts I’ve worked with don’t want it so that it’s absolutely lop- you throw your weight around, you get sided… it’s pathetic. ‘No were not in the last 20 years care so much about the extra delays, and the next morning the music, they understand the reasons going to carry PA because we’re you read in the papers: ‘thank carrying video.’ F#@k that, I’m not for why you want that extra equipment. goodness for the delays because my Others aren’t so lucky.” going there. And neither is the artist. So seat was so far up in the air I can’t who’s making that decision? I know it’s

34 coverage across the outer audience – you don’t need to hit the people so much right under the delay arrays because they’re already getting quite a lot from the FOH arrays. So we put 10 foot high scaffold behind the mix position and we put two arrays up on the sides and point them to the corners, and put a third one in the middle, all at different delay times. It’s all mono back there, but the audience are getting their stereo effects from the main PA. Then we’ll place probably four subs on the ground underneath the delays, it’s great. CH: Traditionally, those people covered by delay towers aren’t getting the full whack are they? AW4416 and the full range of CC: That’s right and we like to get those back corners rocking. The Yamaha Digital Products are delays aren’t there as a subtlety thing, for getting the voice there – we available at these Premium can get the whole music mix right to the back of the audience, so why Yamaha Dealers not do it? Ricky likes his audience up and dancing. The Sydney audience was great because it’s a vocal audience. As soon as he appears at the opening of the show, they stretch their vocal chords, it’s ACT exciting. And I’ve got plenty of horse power to get over that roar if I want to, but I don’t. I don’t drown the audience out, I let them be the Pro Audio 02 6249 7766 level arbiter – they’re the rev limiter on the PA system if you like. Better Music 02 6282 3199 CH: You mentioned the clarity of the V-DOSC earlier, does that allow you to think more creatively? CC: If you start having fun with a new PA it does get your creative NSW juices flowing. For example, currently I’m doing something with an 11 Sound on Stage 02 9281 0077 second reverb. At the end of a drum break I create my own reverse Sound Devices 02 9283 2077 reverb on the snare. I can bring that in and out when I want to make it seem like it moves over the audience’s head. Using the autopanner on Turramurra 02 9449 8487 the percussion pads makes it sound like it’s almost moving back and Hutchings 02 9387 5011 forth. For instance, on the Cure tour (using a Britannia Row-supplied Turbosound rig) we had a breaking glass effect, and some nights it would be magical. The autopanner captured the glass and it almost VIC sounded like it landed at your feet. That sort of effect isn’t possible Soundcorp 03 9488 1555 without good stereo imaging. CH: Is a system like the V-DOSC a bit disarming to those new to it, Warehouse Sound 03 9417 4866 or can you just rock up and get the most from it. Manny’s Fitzroy 03 9416 1564 CC: I think it is going to allow more comfort to anyone walking up it with no prior line array experience. It’s a really natural sounding vocal, which Manny’s Prahran 03 9529 7241 is half the struggle. People who have been mixing a while have no trouble getting a fairly decent drum sound and keyboards sound etc., but it’s SA always been the vocal intelligibility that’s been lacking in the perfor- mance. “It was great, it sounded really good, but if only the voice could Derringers 08 8371 1884 have been just a little bit louder it would have been perfect.” This sound system aids in that area. And, if you have enough time during production WA rehearsals, you can be more creative with stereo effects, and you can minimise things that are distracting to the mix. Which, again, is largely Music Park 08 9470 1020 down to not having to fight to get the vocal up over everything else. I can tell you, I’ve used several different vocal mics with Ricky and QLD getting that killer vocal sound isn’t so much down to the mic – it’s Musiclab 07 3252 2188 been about acoustically fighting the properties of the boxes. Tradition- ally they’ve had too much coming off the back, too much coming off Brisbane Sound 07 3257 1040 the sides. I’d say one of the greatest things about this PA is how little Buzz Music Cairns 07 4051 9666 level is coming off the back of the box. In-ear guys just love those quiet stages. CH: With cleaner stages offering more FOH options, do you see the type of equipment changing in the live arena. Will your outboard racks begin to resemble a recording studio’s racks a bit more? CC: I don’t necessarily think so. Reliability is paramount in touring and reliability is going to be the over-riding factor. A system like V-DOSC

makes everything you’ve used in the past just work better. For example, Yamaha Music Australia PO Box 268 South Melbourne Vic 3205 Toll Free: 1800 331 130 36 or visit us at www.yamaha.com.au Email: [email protected] ABN 84 004 259 527 for a while there, when I It’s more expensive to rent, but I’m not going to working was using other systems with any acts that don’t realise the importance of those in Asia, I was doubting added benefits. my kick drum mic. I CH: So you see the console as being an area of real was changing mics development in the future? around, thinking it’d CC: Absolutely. Automation has been a great improve- gone bad – maybe my ment in the past and I can only see that going further. For input’s gone down example, I couldn’t live without my Midi control – stuff because it’s been hitting comes on when it’s supposed and stuff goes off when it’s kick drum for the last supposed to. I’m not one for big flying fader moves but I 11 months, maybe the use fader automation to embellish and hone what I’ve got, op amps are just a bit to ensure I’ve got those moves for next time. That tired of 40Hz pumping marriage between console and outboard really started away. But it wasn’t any with the Midas XL3. I remember being on a Phil Collins of that. As soon as I got tour years ago when I first enjoyed the benefits. Having back onto the V-DOSC the moving faders, having the setup, and the position, so system it was like ahhh, at the beginning of songs things are there dynamically no problem. and can be recalled. I want to continue down those lines So, I think people will even further. continue to use the CH: People want that big live experience but they also same bits and pieces. I want to relive the music they’re hearing on their hi-fi as think what eventually well. That’s got to be a consideration. will happen is we’re CC: And now it’s easier to get to the point where you’re Ricky Martin’s FOH engineer, Rob ‘Cubby’ Colby. going to have more nearer the album production in live sound reinforcement. consoles where the guts of it will be on stage and the You need tools to aid you in that, and that’s going to be desk will be a control surface – a digital controlled through automation. With automation you can punch analogue board. through and load cue scenes. You’ll still be mixing, but if I personally own an Amek RN Recall [the model with you want dramatic effects to happen you can load them Rupert Neve-designed modules], and I’m really happy as a scene, and pop it in. You might be changing the with it. But I’ve worked on the Harrison/Showco Show- routing to effects, going into different boxes momentari- Console about six times at different awards shows, and ly, and then instantly changing back. Mixes are it’s fantastic. It’s user friendly, sounds great, all the on- becoming more dramatic, and I envisage that only board processing is great, 80 inputs on a small frame… happening more. AT L-ACOUSTICS’ Technical Support Manager, Paul Bauman, gives Christopher Holder some V-DOSC nitty gritty.

Christopher Holder: Last issue we told readers small point sources and look at all the possible of the system and SPL distribution to the how a line source array works [‘Line Arrays path lengths from the exit of the compression audience geometry, then we’re talking about Explained’ AudioTechnology Issue 11], but I’d driver to the rectangular exit of the DOSC lens, Wavefront Sculpture Technology (WST). like to get some more nitty gritty V-DOSC detail you’ll find they’re all the same length. So the CH: One outstanding feature of V-DOSC is the from you Paul. First up, how does the DOSC lens is like a time alignment plug or an acoustic stereo imaging and coverage. Even if you’re waveguide actually work? transformer – it’s effectively transforming a well out of the arrays 90 degree horizontal Paul Bauman: As your readers will be aware circle into a rectangle. This lens’ shape looks a coverage you can be enjoying good stereo from reading that article, to get speakers to little like an axe or tomahawk head, but it’s imaging. How do you explain that? couple, the components need to be located actually a unique geometrical shape – it’s the only shape that’ll do that transformation and PB: First up, the coplanar symmetry of the with a separation of less than half the wave- design of each V-DOSC element accounts for length at the highest frequency of their that’s why it can be patented. So if you look at conventional horns – a conical or a constant why you get an even and phase coherent operating bandwidth. This is fairly easy to signal across the whole horizontal coverage of accomplish at mid and low frequencies but directivity horn – just from a simple path length analysis you can see there’s curvature associ- the array. Any line array which doesn’t have because it’s physically impossible to get the that symmetry won’t enjoy that sort of unifor- acoustic centres of two HF drivers that close ated with the wavefront radiated by the horn [not all the path lengths are the same from the mity. Secondly, the 90 degree horizontal together, L-ACOUSTICS designed an acoustic coverage is defined by the –6dB point, and lens which produces a flat radiating ribbon of driver to the exit of the horn]. And that’s at one frequency alone. Since individual polar that coverage is very stable from 630Hz to sound, allowing the high end to couple 18kHz. In fact, if you looked at the polar properly. We use a conventional HF driver, but patterns of conventional horns vary with frequency, the curvature of the wavefront is patterns of a V-DOSC element you’d find that attached it to a waveguide that manipulates each frequency plot would virtually overlay the path lengths of the sound produced by the also changing with frequency. So a vertical column of those horns is not going to couple in each other. So if we take an average of the HF driver, so they all arrive at the exit point individual polar plots (which we call an iso- simultaneously. the same way as our DOSC waveguide. That’s why we say a line array could be anything con- contour or constant SPL contour) we can look CH: Hmmm. Keep going, I may get this in a figured in a vertical column, but a line ‘source’ at the coverage of two left/right arrays, and get minute! array is something that’s coupling properly in an idea of the stereo imaging from the overlap PB: Think about it like this: if you theoretically the high end and approximating a line source. between them. We can play around with the divide the circular opening of the V-DOSC Once we start talking about variable curvature pan of the two arrays to get a bigger or smaller compression driver into a series of infinitely line source arrays and matching the coverage stereo zone. But bear in mind, we’re talking

38 about the –6dB contours, so even if I’m over to one side a vertical line of subs, they’ll be omnidirectional horizontally, actually on axis to one of the arrays (and I’m not inside the but vertically they’ll give some pattern control – which can be overlap stereo zone), I’m still getting energy from the other a good thing if you want a long throw section in outdoor situ- array at a reduced level. And, because you’ve got two ations. extremely coherent sources, you’ve got a good chance of On the other hand if you have a horizontal line array of subs getting decent stereo imaging. In fact, most people say the on the floor, horizontally it’ll start to narrow while vertically it is impression is of sitting in front of nearfield monitors. omni. This is a better thing indoors, to get energy up to the I think the final factor is due to the very well-controlled vertical back of the venue, meanwhile electronic arc processing can directivity of V-DOSC, which means you can ensure you’re then help to open up the horizontal buildup of the central lobe. not shooting energy into the roof or against the walls. This It’s been a very active R&D area for us and we’ve developed reduces unnecessary reverberation in the room and thus some software tools and new theories on sub array modelling. extends the critical distance, which increases intelligibility and CH: Any other innovations on the horizon? For example, a V- gives more people stereo over greater distances. DOSC element is really quite heavy, any plans for using other Another trick we do to provide even more of the audience with materials? a stereo image is to introduce off-stage fill arrays. With four PB: Well, there’s two ways to have panel damping – stiffness arrays we can cross pan left and right, so you have stereo or mass. As far as damping properties go, Baltic birch is a imaging for more of the audience while also increasing the reference in this industry, that’s what we use and you can’t overall horizontal coverage of the entire system. make that wood any lighter. We’ve already reduced system CH: When I first saw and heard a VDOSC system it occurred size by at least half versus most conventional systems in to me that with all this amazing innovation and engineering it terms of cabinet count so you’re already saving substantially seemed a little shabby using conventional ground-stacked on trucking. Years ago, L-ACOUSTICS was one of the first in subs. this industry to introduce a subwoofer utilising honeycomb PB: Getting the subs right is one of my pet projects, and, in a sandwich construction and carbon fibre technology, but at big way, is the missing piece of the puzzle. V-DOSC has got that time the impact resistance was not sufficient. Of course the mids and highs very right. So that means if the subs are we’ll consider new generation materials but it is also important not being married to the lows of the V-DOSC (in terms of pro- to keep in mind that V-DOSC is a constantly evolving product cessing or in terms of your sub arraying techniques), it will and system – whether it is amplification, processing, con- perhaps tend to stand out more than with a conventional struction quality, variety of presets, technical support, training, system. But in our training sessions we spend a lot of time on modeling tools or rigging. We rely on real world experience sub woofer arraying techniques. More and more people are and feedback from our V-DOSC Network Partners and flying the subs, which I think is a very good solution – flying Certified V-DOSC Engineers. In addition, L-ACOUSTICS subs beside V-DOSC, or even on either side of the array to maintains a dry hire system out of our factory in France and maintain the coplanar symmetry. actively participates in the network rental business, so we have direct feedback from the field as to what does and CH: How does flying them in that manner maintain the doesn’t work, what holds up, etc. As for other innovations, of coplanar symmetry? course we have numerous irons in the fire that I’m excited PB: If we fly the subs close enough to the array, i.e. within half about and would love to fill you in on, but you seem like a nice a wavelength over their operating bandwidth, they’ll couple bloke and I’d hate to have to kill you afterwards! properly to the low end of the V-DOSC, and act as an CH: Most kind. extension of the system to improve the low end impact. Obviously a sub in isolation is basically omnidirectional. But anytime something is stacked big in one direction you introduce pattern control in that dimension. So, in the case of