Rational Acoustics will be hosting EAW Smaart training sessions in Morristown, New Jersey, this coming June 24-26, providing attendees with introductory as well as continued/advanced training in the use of Smaart software for sound system engineering, optimization and acoustical analysis.
All sessions will be led by a Rational Acoustics instructor with decades of pro audio expertise and superior teaching skills. Smaart Fundamentals and Applications will be covered the first two days, with the third day devoted to an Advanced User Seminar.
Day 1: Smaart Fundamentals – Tuesday, June 24
The fundamentals of setting up a Smaart measurement system, as well as basic measurement theory, Smaart basics and a tour of Smaart v.6 and v.5.
Day 2: Smaart Applications – Wednesday, June 25
Advanced measurement theory and applications of Smaart for loudspeaker and sound system alignment and response optimization. Also, in-class measurements and examples of real-world data will be used to emphasize and support the theoretical subject matter, with a strong accent on measurement interpretation. (Note: Students provide their own laptop and stereo interface for interactive measurement examples.)
Day 3: Smaart Advanced User Seminar – Thursday, June 26
A hands-on application workshop with participants setting up and tuning a…

The latest concert tour by Foreigner has officially launched, but despite his hectic schedule, veteran engineer Don “Dodger” Dodge took the time to share more of his thoughts on the EAW UMX.96, which he’s chosen again as his FOH console. (A UMX.96 will also be used with Bryan Adams and his band when they join the tour a bit later this year.)
Don’s comments:
“Things could not have gone better with the UMX.96 during the dozens of shows we did all over the world on the previous tour. I utilized the console in the scorching heat of North America sheds in the summer and the deep freeze of Eastern Europe in winter, but flawless performance remained a constant.”
“I had previously not been a fan of digital boards, but the UMX is so good that it erased that viewpoint. This console is not just competitive with others – it’s a clear winner.”
“It has an analog mix feel, while the intuitive, comprehensive digital design cuts my workload in half – no more tape layouts of input mods, labeling outboard racks of comps and gates, or routing of verbs and effects. And, every setting can be stored and…

Production Audio Services, EAW’s distributor serving Australia and New Zealand, will be hosting EAW Smaart School sessions in four locations throughout Australia in May, June and July 2008.
Smaart School provides introductory as well as continued/advanced training in the use of Smaart software for sound system engineering, optimization and acoustical analysis.
Sessions & Dates:
May 28-29, Melbourne
June 4-5, Brisbane
June 25-26, Sydney
July 8-9, Perth
For more information and to register, contact Production Audio Services by calling (03) 9264 8000 or via e-mail at info@productionaudio.com.au.

The ongoing “Somewhere Back in Time” world concert tour by Iron Maiden, featuring an all-EAW main loudspeaker line-up, has come to North America, with the major portion of this tour leg kicking off on May 21 in San Antonio. (Click here to view the latest itinerary.)
ML Group continues to serve as the sound company for the tour, with a very large EAW KF760 Series line array contingent – optimized with EAW UX8800 digital processing – being the primary components of the large-scale sound reinforcement system.
ML Group Managing Director Gary Marks is coordinating system issues with partner companies around the globe, such as Norwest Productions of Sydney, Australia and Brantley Sound Associates of Nashville. (Thanks to Norwest Productions for the photo that accompanies this report.)

Josh Evans, an ace in working with EAW Smaart and now a system designer based in the Middle East, is offering a stable of audio tutorial videos on a channel he’s set up on YouTube. The videos provide a load of useful information regarding subwoofer alignment and aux-fed sub techniques, as well as an ongoing series about lobes.
Click here to access the videos. Great job, Josh!

It was a full and very active two days last week (April 8-9) for the more than 20 attendees of the most recent Smaart School at the Holiday Inn Northshore in Skokie, Illinois, just north of Chicago. (The class and instructors are pictured above during a break.)
The educational sessions were led by Doug Fowler and Harry Brill, Jr., working with Audioseminars.com. Both of these veteran audio professionals are Smaart experts lauded for their teaching abilities. More Smaart School sessions are scheduled soon – click here to find out more. And thanks to Harry for the photo!

A new maintenance update of Smaart is now available for download here at EAW.com.
The maintenance update – Smaart 6.1 – offers a comprehensive list of user-visible (and some not-so-visible) changes, including:
- Named Pairs feature streamlines switching measurement inputs on multi-input devices, and provides a true Swap (invert) function for Frequency Response data
- Numerous user-driven usability tweaks to the legend dialog to make working with store traces faster/easier
- Horizontal Spectrograph option
- Continuous Impulse Response measurement
- ASCII-to-reference import feature
- Optimized painting and update scheduling for reduced CPU loading
- Improved compatibility with Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) and Windows Vista
- Improved overall stability
- And much, much more!
Click here to access the download of Smaart 6.1. And as always, visit the EAW Smaart Forum here at EAW.com to get further information from the Smaart users community.

You’re invited to participate in upcoming EAW Smaart School sessions in Montreal, March 5-7, 2008.
The intensive three-day training package will be presented at EAW Canadian market distributor SF Marketing’s Dorval, Quebec facilities as well as at Salle Claude-Champagne (l’Université de Montréal). (SF Marketing is the organizer of this educational event.)
Smaart Fundamentals and Applications will be covered the first two days, with the third day devoted to an Advanced User Seminar. Click here to find out more and to get cost/registration details.

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You’re invited to participate in upcoming EAW Smaart School sessions in Vancouver, February 6-8, 2008.
The intensive three-day training package, presented by veteran Smaart School instructor Arthur Skudra, will be conducted at the beautiful Chan Centre for the Performing Arts (CCPA), located at the University of British-Columbia (UBC).
Smaart Fundamentals and Applications will be covered the first two days, with the third day devoted to an Advanced User Seminar. Click here to find out more and to get cost/registration details.

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The online version of Harry Brill Jr’s excellent article regarding tips and tricks for EAW Smaart v.6, written exclusively for Mix magazine, has now been posted in the publication’s online edition.
In the article, Harry (shown at right handling Smaart duties at the recent ET Live) shares valuable information gained from his experiences with Smaart, including use of certain features that might not be readily apparent to some users. It’s a must-read for anyone seeking to get the most from Smaart v.6. Click here to go directly to the article.