Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1434375
28 W I N T E R 2 0 2 2 I C A S Q U A R T E R L Y optic. I did that by installing network switches in the mix cart and the remote receiver cart that simply convert using SFP's. I use single mode fiber which gives me a theoretical range of up to 20 km. For those wondering about latency, the loss is approximately 200 microseconds per kilometer. On this property, it would be near impossible to ever be more than 400 microseconds from anywhere to anywhere. Suffice to say that in any real word application that a location sound mixer would encounter, it is real time. I left TPS at the beginning of 2021, but in the time that I was there, I both mixed and oversaw the mixing of nearly a half- dozen shows running simultaneously and concurrently, with as many as three separate sound teams (including my own) and a sound crew of 20 or more techs. It was the most stressful, challenging, satisfying, and rewarding time in my entire sound career to date. At one point, we used Dante and fiber to engineer and implement a massive remote station for one of the DP's. The challenge was to create a station where the DP could watch, listen, and communicate with two completely separate film crews on two separate stages, in real time, with full audio and video, full duplex comms, and all on separate, discrete feeds. My Current Rigs My current build has me working on set as a production mixer for various projects from a truck that I bought from the legendary Jim Hawkins. Jim is known for his lifetime of work in TV and film, but also for his studio work at Capricorn Records in Macon, GA, and his own studio in Athens, GA. It would be no stretch to say that Jim was a significant part of the creation of what is known as Southern Rock. I have a full control room setup with an Allen and Heath SQ7 feeding a pair of PIX 970 recorders with a Dante over fiber network. For less accessible locations, I have two mix carts built with Midas M32R consoles and PIX recorders that match the network, so I can be plug-and-play in mere moments. For bag work, I have a Sound Devices 688 with several channels of Lectrosonics wireless to handle insert car or micro locations. To Remote or Not to Remote After all of this, the question remains: Should YOU remote your gear—and why or why not? I cannot answer that question for you. There are several advantages to my remote capabilities. I have a very controlled listening environment. The truck is very quiet and I can listen on a pair of Genelec monitors or headphones, as the situation dictates. I am socially distant and I am out of the weather. A potential downside is that I am away from the 'vibe' of the set and sometimes miss out on that. There is the additional aspect that most sets are not accustomed to a mixer working from a truck or trailer and the logistical challenges that come along with that. An amusing sidenote is that on my current show, the line producer finally saw my truck near set and came over to chat. "Oh, that is what you were talking about," he said. "You are truck-based." "Yes sir," I replied, "COVID safe and out of the rain." To which he replied, "You and Mark Ulano..." I freely admit that I can't even hold a candle to Brother Ulano and his glorious career, but it did make me feel good to be compared in the same sentence with him. On a more serious note, remoting the receiver rack and using available technology to do it, whether using Ethernet or fiber, is something that I believe is going to become more and more common. The larger demands on PSM's to have the ability to send audio to a galaxy of destinations, the larger track counts we are constantly being asked to provide, the evermore crowded RF airspace, and the apparent permanence of social distancing is going to require that each of us look hard at how we service our producers. While it is very true that we are in a product creation and delivery business, we are absolutely in a service business. I believe that it is incumbent upon us to each stretch our comfort zones and be proactively seeking solutions to problems that are just over the horizon. COVID popped up as the planet's largest surprise, and being able to adapt is critical to success. My commitment to being up to speed with the latest tech and how it may or may not be able to make my service catalog broader is what I think was a big component to me getting back to work early—and staying working throughout the current pandemic. Your mileage may vary, but I think it's a good idea to take the test drive. Clockwise from left: Posing with an early iteration of the "Millennium Falcon" rig at Tyler Perry Studios in 2020; fiber coming in and out and converting to Dante inside the Digital Diesel; the "Millennium Falcon" rig, 2020.