The one thing that I hate most about preparing a room before doing a concert is setting up the PA to provide optimum sound quality. Trying to not only find a sweet spot, the perfect location that has maximum sound quality (think of the seat that the sound technician running the PA/sound board is sitting) but extending a spot like that to many locations in the hall or room. It is almost impossible to do this if you, the performer, are doubling as the sound guy and in a huge rush to start a show. But what if you had lots of time on your hands?

The only answer that I have run into to date is something called ARC(Advanced Room Correction system). The company that makes it is called IK Multimedia. But will it work when you gigging at a show in a fairly big room, that is the question.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grU81hWU_wE&playnext=1&list=PLE5957135774D2090

ARC is made for artists with home studio’s, working in usually a spare room that more that is not exactly acoustically friendly.

I wonder if you could bring this type of setup into a venue that you would play in and obtain the same results? Sure it would involve a lot of preparation time before a show, no act has enough time to set up their equipment and do a quality sound check before the show let alone a test setup for extend the sound sweat spot!

First off you get the ARC to start measuring the dimensions of the room that you’ll be playing in. You take this high quality mic they call the Measuring Microphone that comes with it out of the box. You then have to plug it into your computer/notebook, turn on the software. The software will direct you to sections of the room to begin taking sample sounds/readings that come from your PA speakers. The software does some adjusting and out of your speakers come the perfect sound?

It sounds a little daunting at first thought, the set up that is, but if it works out ok then what the heck right? I don’t think that I would pick up something like this unless someone has a decent comment about it. So has anyone out there used the ARC system while performing live?

Keep on Jammin’