Tools of Radio Production

7/28/2019 Tools of Radio Production

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Production StudioAudio Production Console

CD Player, Recordable CDs

and turntables



A studio is a primarily requirement of abroadcasting house, where alltransmissions are made and programs

are recorded in a very orderly manner.

It is a room-like structure which makes itdiverse is the special treatment given toits walls which are covered with a varietyof substances to ensure that no soundpasses through them.(*Sound-proof)



To make sure that no sound is produced,special leather covering, or a carpet is

put on it and the doors are so tightly

closed.

Studios are fitted with proper

microphones, recording system, lightsand booths for producers to control

recordings or transmissions.





1) News StudioThe simplest of all studios at a radio station.It is small in size, with a table fitted, a

microphone along with a chair, a table lamp if lights otherwise are not enough.

Radio news are read by one person, contrary

to TV news which are some time read by morethan two people in a single bulletin. Since nobackground effects are required at a newsstudio, no other equipment is placed there.



2) Studios for Talk Shows/ Discussions

It has been a practice by differentbroadcasting houses to invite people from

different walks of life, their representatives,

city mayors, ministers and others toparticipate in talks & discussions.

A studio is not very large in size, its interior

also look different. There is a rather longtable, which could help about half a dozen

people to sit around.



The arrangement of microphone also in a

manner that all of them could easily get

their voice recorded without creeping up to

the mike and special arrangement are madeto beat the extra noise with the help of

different soundproofing systems.

There is always a different position given to

the anchor-person so that he/she could

easily address others and indeed, control

them if one of them does not come to terms.



3) Drama Studio

At a radio station studios meant to record

dramas usually have a standing

arrangement for the performers.

The performers keep standing as they

deliver dialogues by holding scripts in their

hands, and keep moving away a step or two,

to create an impression that they are coming

in or going out of the scene.



Mike is usually placed in the center of half circle. But table and chair are placed within

the studio at some distance for people who

have to give background effects, by playingon the table itself or putting their equipment

for playing musical notes for sound effects.

More lights are needed compared to otherstudios so that performers could easily read

their script and receive cues from the

director.





4) Music Studios

These facilities are tailor-made. Size of thestudio can vary according to the need.

It is rather difficult for the directors to

handle a music studio as it needs a propercabling.

Eg; Without proper cabling andarrangement, when music instruments andduet to be recorded at the same time, themike problem may occur and not get itseffects recorded properly.



It becomes a very delicate job for thedirector and assistant directors to

manage matters in a smooth way. That is

why most radio stations employ directors who have a cut for such a job.



Three Stages of Multitrack Recording

Recording (Tracking)

Overdubbing

Mixdown



Signal path (signal chain)

Vertical signal flow through input strip

Strips are modular



Preamp (boost signals 30 to 60 dB)

Mic and line levels

Auxiliary Send Section

Equalization

Insert Point (direct send/return) (direct

or insert)

Dynamics(compression/limiting/expansion)



“Horizontal” signal flow from input

Can be fed to a mono or stereo output

bus

Used for any purpose

• Effects send

• Headphone cue

• Broadcast feed• Alternate mixes

• Alternate speaker outputs



Used to adjust frequencies (bring out or

cut, to compensate for recording

discrepancies, or to create a certain

timbre)

Usually, 3 to 4 continuously variable,

overlapping frequency bands

Adjustable Bandwidth (Q)Boost or cut control (+/- 18 dB)



Useful for inline, external signal

processing.

Unbalanced, stereo TRS jacks

• Mono send to first click: signal to direct out,

without interrupting channel signal flow

• Mono send all in: signal to direct out,

interrupting signal flow

• Stereo TRS all in: send/return loop



Dynamics

Inline Dynamics processing is commonon higher-end analog consoles, and mostdigital consoles.

Monitoring A listening mix for the control room,

separate (indendent) from what’s going

to the record medium.Inline, separate section, or direct

insertion monitoring



Some higher-end consoles incorporate a

small fader section above the main input

strip fader.

SSL XL 9000



Typical of older British consoles. Alsoused by Mackie and Tascam analogs tosome degree.

Digital Mixers (via the fader flip)Independent level, pan, effects, and

headphone control.Often have direct inputs to the monitor

section, and can be used at mixdown toincrease the number of effects returnsand electronic instrument inputs.



Most often used when separate or inline

monitoring is not available.

Use direct send/receives for sending

signal to record device, then output of

record device back to mixer for

monitoring.

Record level set by preamp gain trim.



Channel strip fader, determining strip’s

bus output level.

Pan Pot

Solo and Mute buttons



Conceptually, a horizontal signal path.

Multiple entrance and exit points, and

ways to duplicate signals

Aux sends, monitor sends, channel sends,

and main outputs are all types of signals

that can be inserted to a bus.





Master Stereo

Master Bus faders (group)

Bus faders can be used to change overall

levels while maintaining relative levels.



LED, Peak, VU, Overload on input

Standard: RMS/root-mean-squared. (Not

peak and overload)

Analog: aim for near zero levels, but

slightly above may not be a problem.

Digital: anything over zero results in

unpleasant distortion.



Contains accessible jacks that

correspond to the various inputs and

outputs of every access point within a

mixer or console.

Often contain input and output points of

studio effects, monitoring devices, and

connections between differentproduction rooms.



TRS balanced 1/4”

RCA

TT or mini (telephone-type)

Rear connections can be any of above, or

hand-wired connections (punch

connectors or soldered)



Open: without plugs inserted, each I/Oconnection entering or leaving the bay isindependent of other connections.

Half-normalled: without plugs inserted, eachI/0 connection entering the panel in the rearis electrically connected to the point belowit. When a jack is inserted to the top jack,the I/O rear connection is still intact,

allowing you to tap into the signal. Jacks intobottom connection break I/O connection.

Normalled: same I/O as half. Rear I/Obroken when a jack is plugged into either

top or bottom.



Analog signal converted to digital at

mixer inputs, or prior to inputs

All internal signal routing done in digital

domain.

Centralized channel strip/control panel

• Fader, pan, mute, solo for each input

• One EQ and Dynamics section for wholeconsole.



CD Player (Compact -Disk Player)

A device that plays audio CDs. The term mayrefer to any of three categories:

(1) a component in a stereo system that containsthe drive and electronics to decode the digitalaudio,

(2) a handheld, portable device that requires only

headphones for use,(3) a self-contained unit that includes amplifier andspeakers (the "boom box"). CD players read CD-DA music tracks, but may also decode MP3 filesand other compressed audio formats.



Recordable CDs & Turntable

A simple way to convert * vinyl recordcollections to digital media, the CD recorder

turntable has become a popular solution. (*flat

disks made from a petroleum-based plastic)

Combining a turntable, speakers, analog-to-

digital (ADA) audio converter, and CD recorder

all into one unit, the CD recorder turntable is a

user-friendly, all-in-one approach to transferring

the music on phonograph records to CDs or

other digital audio media formats.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-vinyl.htm

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-vinyl.htm





Some models also include a USB port for connectionto a personal computer, plus a cassette tape playerallowing the user to convert recordings on audiocassettes to digital media. Other common featuresinclude an AM/FM tuner, headphone jack, and

auxiliary input and output jacks for connection toexternal audio equipment.

Converting a vinyl record to a CD using a CDrecorder turntable is quite simple. The user places ablank recordable CD (CD-R) or rewritable blank CD(CD-RW) in the CD drive, and then puts a record onthe turntable. With most models, recording begins when the turntable is activated

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-cassette-tape.htm

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-vinyl-records.htm

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-vinyl-records.htm

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-cassette-tape.htm



Built-in software helps the CD recorder turntableto detect the individual song tracks on long-playing (LP) recordings. Manual overrides areusually available to help the user set thebeginning and ending points of individual songs

when automated track definition does not work well due to low sound levels.

Most of these devices also permit creating adigital file of each track that can be then played

with a digital audio player or edited using digitalaudioediting software. Options usually includeconversion to MP3, WAV, and other digital audioformats.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-editing-software.htm





Documents

Tools of Radio Production