- SAN FRANCISCO, CA--Supporting the axiom that creativity is one part inspiration, 99 parts perspiration, 129th AES Convention Committee Product Design Track Chair Bob Moses has assembled nearly two dozen Workshops, Tutorials and Master Classes into the first dedicated Product Design Track. Set for SF’s Moscone Center November 4 – 7, the AES Convention is a magnet for audio professionals from every quarter of the industry: broadcast, live sound, game audio, recording, mixing, mastering and education.
- “Robust turn-out at previous workshops illustrates that product development sessions are of perpetual interest to Convention attendees,” said AES Executive Director Roger Furness. “The plethora of new tools, applications and needs has now inspired us to go one step further and create a special Product Design track. Our Committee Co-Chairs, Valerie Tyler, Jim McTigue and I were convinced that Bob Moses is well qualified to spearhead this useful new focus.”
- A product design consultant and THAT Corporation IC program manager, Moses serves on the AES Board of Governors and is a former president. “We received an abundance of timely Workshop, Tutorial and Master Class proposals,” Moses said. “I combed through this material to build a program with more than 20 events focused on audio product development. These presentations provide a broad representation of the issues involved in developing meaningful audio tools for the rapidly changing audio field.”
- Presentations featured in the Product Design Track include:
- GROUNDING & SHIELDING – CIRCUITS & INTERFERENCE – A two-part Master Class ,Ralph Morrison: Based on his classic book of the same title, now in its fifth edition, the first session will include a discussion of shielding as applied to analog circuits and radiating structures. The second session will examine the role of digital logic and processers in the audio world
- iPHONE SOUND DESIGN – LESSONS LEARNED – Tutorial, Jeff Essex: Considerations for creating iPhone audio, strategies and tools for improving audio performance. Topics include: Audio architecture overview; Designing the speaker as well as the headphones; Comparing frequency characteristics of: iTouch, iPad, iPhone 3x, and iPhone4. Plus, A case study: iRingPro /Using GarageBand to create ringtones.
- AES 42 & DIGITAL MICROPHONES – Workshop, Helmut Wittek:
- Not yet widely used, due in part to a lack of knowledge and practice with digital microphones, the advantages and disadvantages of the AES42 interface for digital microphones must be communicated in a neutral way on the basis of the actual engineering needs regardless of commercial interests.
- DSP – Why So Hard? – Tutorial, Peter Eastty: If you’ve ever wondered why audio DSP programming is so hard when the algorithms are so simple, this is the place for you.
- LICENSING 3RD PARTY TECHNOLOGY, HOW TO MAKE IT WORK FOR YOU – Workshop, Bob Moses: The classic dilemma, an undersized development team is tasked with a fast-tracked design/build product that satisfies a laundry list of market requirements. Leveraging 3rd party technologies can be a critical asset. Discussion will address challenges and benefits of 3rd party integration.
- DESIGNING MICROPHONE PREAMPLIFIERS – Tutorial, Gary Hebert: Mic preamps are fundamental pro audio system elements which can define the signature sounds of equipment or studios. New innovations for developing small, green, cost-effective, high-performance, sweet sounding mic preamps will be examined.
- AN OVERVIEW OF AUDIO SYSTEM GROUNDING AND INTERFACING – Tutorial, Bill Whitlock: Manufacturers often pretend problems don’t exist, but this tutorial replaces hype and myth with insight and knowledge. Simple, no-test- troubleshooting methods can pinpoint the location and cause of system noise. Some widely used "cures" are both illegal and deadly.
- Additional Product Design Track presentations include:
- IS YOUR EQUIPMENT DESIGN A NOISE PROBLEM WAITING TO HAPPEN? – Master Class, Bill Whitlock
- ANALYSIS & MODELING OF THE DBX 902 DE-ESSER – Tutorial, Aaron Wishnick
- SEMANTIC AUDIO SUCCESS / COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS OF SEMANTIC AUDIO ANALYSIS – Tutorial, Jay LeBoeuf
- DO-IT-YOURSELF SEMANTIC AUDIO – Tutorial, Joern Loviscach
- NETWORKING FOR AUDIO APPLICATIONS – Tutorial, Kevin Gross
- IEEE 802.1 AUDIO/VIDEO BRIDGING (AVB) - Workshop, Lee Minich
- HEADPHONES, HEADSETS & EARPHONES – ELECTROACOUSTIC DESIGN & VERIFICATION – Workshop, Christopher J. Struck
- HIGH RESOLUTION COMPUTER AUDIO - Tutorial, Keith O. Johnson
- PROGRESS IN COMPUTER-BASED PLAYBACK OF HIGH RESOLUTION AUDIO – Workshop, Vicki R. Melchior
- THE PRODUCT DESIGNERS BALL - A celebration of audio product design with music, food, and drink.
- “The Convention Committee was universally behind this dedicated track,” co-chair Jim McTigue reports. “The challenges of audio design in the 21st century require a community ready to meet, debate and share the wisdom of the past and the promise of the future.”
