January 2010
This calls for a celebration!
Looks like Australia is just about back to full speed after a very festive season. The roads are getting busy again...so it's the perfect time to take a little break.
Australia Day means different things to different people. For us, it means we're closed Tuesday January 26th, and we'll be doing what we do every Australia Day! Whatever it is you get up to, may yours be a great one.
For the record, we will be open Monday 25th Jan, just in case you need some last minute supplies for Australia Day - but we're fully expecting a quiet day out there, because it's hardly Australian to show up for work on a Monday if Tuesday is a public holiday. Really.
Read full postPlease help us get un-busted
Sheesh! We try to do the right thing, but we're in trouble. Seems that the YouTube music-bots have found a copyright infringement on our channel (link opens a new window).
Now, we haven't deliberately done so. What Happened: We ensure our APRA (new window) fees are paid anually - how else could we demonstrate speakers and sound-to-light activated lighting fixtures? Anyway, we have filmed some of our in-store lighting demos, and it seems we've infringed a music copyright on one of them by uploading to our YouTube channel.
As you can well imagine, we have absolutely no problem with payment for musical performance or reproduction. In fact, the more the better we say! Factory Sound is predominently a trade store, so most of our customers are making their living by being involved in the music and entertainment industry - either writing and/or performing it, recording it, lighting it up or getting it packed into trucks.
New music will fix our little problem: So we're calling on your help to come up with a musical solution to 3 of our lighting videos. As we have mentioned, the lights are best (read: most easily) demonstrated in their sound-to-light pre-programmed show modes, so we always choose music with a specific BPM count to best demo what the light is capable of. Check the 3 videos out (below), pick one you'd like to have a crack at, work out it's BPM, and send us back a file of the relevant length and tempo.
The Competition & Prizes: None of the clips are very long (0:41, 0:54 & 1:01), so we don't need a rock-0pera. If you submit an orignal snippet of music (ie, one you have written) that the producers of Factory Sound TV deem to be 'best or most appropriate' for the relevant YouTube clip, you will receive a one-off thank-you payment/prize of $200 (in the form of a Factory Sound Gift Voucher), and immortality as you join the Factory Sound Hall of Fame. We will credit you on the relevant video clip, and also pop a link to your own website if you wish. We are NOT looking for anything that infringes someone elses copyright. Also note, you MUST be an existing Factory Sound customer to enter. If you are not currently on our database, you'll need to sit this one out.
If you need more info, get in touch and we'll get you sorted. 1 entry per clip, per entrant (enter for each of the 3 clips if you wish). No entries will be accepted after 5:00pm (Melbourne time) Monday 15th February 2010.
There are 3 x $200 gift voucher prizes, so here are the 3 clips to choose from (currently playing music via our in-store demo CD, that we'll likely be pinged for by the YouTube Music-bots at any time soon):
1: LED Jive Effect light demo, 2: iRock 575 Light Demo, and 3: ParBar LED Parcan Show
Read full postNo confusion with this diffusion
If you've got lots of love in your studio, but it's hard to catch because the love is bouncing uncontrollably off the walls, then start taming the love with these diffusion panels. Not just the domain of the base-jumping Lego man, these panels can help you mix with greater accuracy by getting rid of nasty slap back echo.
When high frequency room reflections arrive at your listening position simultaneously the effect can blunt the stereo image. Your mix appears ill-defined, murky and you must make drastic EQ adjustments to hear any difference at all.
Solution: scatter that sound. In doing so your surface reflections arrive more randomly and therefore do not confuse your brain. Enter the diffusion panel; a wall (usually the one at the opposite end of the room to your speakers) properly diffused will make your room sound like you are wearing your headphones - from a spatial perspective, that is.
We've got a nice big bunch, but surely they won't last too long at this price. Vital statistics (all measurements in mm): each panel is 600 x 600, the base is 20 high. From top of base to top of tallest peak is 150. Dimension of all towers vary, but 40 x 45 is a good average. Available in any colour that suits your studio (DIY paintjob required), or just use them white, as is to save time and get on with making the magic.
What's this crazy hybrid Utralite Mk3 all about?
This one snuck in without so much as a whimper, but now it seems the stirring lion is about to roar. In case you've not kept up with the story so far, MOTU first made the UltraLite quite some time ago with huge success. The original UltraLite was even more portable than their already popular Traveler, and proved to be great for any studio-on-the-go application (and just as good staying put). With some upgrades, MOTU realeased the next generation UltraLite, and of course called it UltraLite Mk3. Even though that makes about as much sense as a Chewbacca defence, what about this latest development...MOTU have just realease the 'world first hybrid audio interface'. It doesn't run on both petrol and electricity, but you can connect via either Firewire or USB2.
It's still called UltraLite Mk3. It's still the same price. We'll have boatloads more in stock come Monday. They're proving to be quite popular. Again.
Read full postGoldmember 'phones bring the bling to your set
If you've been keeping up with our AudioTechnica journey, you'll remember Horibe* most recently from our trip to Integrate09. Aside from being a thoroughly good bloke (and a knowledgable one at that), he also has an impressive memory for all things 'Austin Powers'.
So, we were talking recently and the topic of our very own Dean came up. Horibe quickly said (in his best Goldmember impersonation) "Can I paint his yoo-hoo gold? It's kind of my thing, you know". After a slightly longer than awkward pause while we sipped an Asahi, we suggested that perhaps making a limited release pair of ATH-PRO700 GOLD headphones might be a little less painful AND way more people would get to see an AudioTechnica logo. "Oh yesh. Yesh yesh yesh yesh. This is a keeper" was the excited reply. I'm sure you'll agree that when he's wearing the 'goldmember' headphones, Dean looks "very toit. Yesh, toit like a toiger. Yesh Yesh Yesh"
*Horibe is real, the headphones are real, Dean is real, but most of the above is completely fabricated without permission from Dean, Horibe or even Mike Meyers. See an episode of FactorySoundTV featuring Horibe here. Get the headphones in store. They are seriously a limited edition, and we've only got 10 pair in stock. Recommended Retail Price is $349, but ring us or come in and we'll give you the full Factory Sound love when it comes to pricing.
Yesh, Yesh, YESH (i'll have what he's having)
Read full postPuppy dog Neumann TLM102: far from ruff!
So...we've written about this before, but now we've got a good amount of our orders filled, it's time to fly the tiny flag again. TLM102 is junior by size, but still a genuine Neumann, made by the same Germans, in the same quality that we've all come to expect from the studio world's most recognisable and desirable microphone brand. Enough said. Come in and have a listen.
You'll be amazed how something so small can be so good...
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