Tech Focus: Training, Part 2 — Manufacturers Offer Online and Onsite Audio Learning

A surprisingly comprehensive pro-audio curriculum is usually at no cost

One consistently available source of training for broadcast-sports audio has been manufacturers of the equipment used to capture, process, mix, and transport it. Of course, most of the training modules focus on the manufacturers’ own products and are part of marketing strategies. However, the variety of the content across key verticals of broadcast sound, combined with the depth and detail that many achieve, means that sufficiently ambitious learners can put together some surprisingly comprehensive curricula. Here are some of the offerings available online and elsewhere from broadcast-audio–equipment manufacturers.

Click here for Tech Focus: Training, Part 1 — The Search Continues for Solutions to the Dearth of Next-Gen Broadcast-Audio Techs.

Audio-Technica’s series of basic how-tos on its YouTube channel includes how to select and apply lavalier microphones, use of boom-pole and wireless mics, and microphone placement inside cars.

Training on Brio digital audio consoles is part of Calrec’s series of free, online, certificated courses.

Calrec’s Sound Institute is a series of free, online, certificated training courses and documents covering two of its most widely used digital audio consoles — Brio and Type R — along with a series of comprehensive IP training sessions. Its seven-part IP course covers what broadcast needs to know about IP: how it works and the effect it is having on our industry, including multicast, PTP, and network design. Calrec has added Dolby Atmos training on immersive mixing, as well as an eight-part IP primer and a whitepaper on how to build resilience into IP networks. Calrec continues to add educational material to the Sound Institute and plans to focus on its Argo platform this year. In addition to online training, the company delivers to customers and partners custom training that caters to the requirements of their system. In-person training is focused on operational, technical, frontline maintenance, and advanced master classes, from one or two days to a week long, either at Calrec’s head office or onsite.

Clear-Com offers regular staff-led training webinars and onsite training for specific products and installations. A variety of online resources are available for free on the website: among them a webinar recording library and a Tech Blog discussing user-submitted questions and topics, technical guides, and a comprehensive Intercom Design Guide ebook detailing how to conceive, plan, and ultimately implement an intercom system with effective workflows.

Dolby continues its offerings and resources to educate the broadcast and live-production industry about how to deploy and create in Dolby Atmos. Remote mixer training is based on a Calrec Artemis with the Calrec Impulse Core, which enables native immersive Dolby Atmos mixing and monitoring. Live-mixers can sign up to be trained on both the legacy (non-native) setup and approach and the Impulse’s more comprehensive native Dolby Atmos setup. In addition, Dolby offers training through its online learning platform, live and on-demand webinars, training tutorials, and master classes through the Dolby Institute.

Lawo provides a line of tiered online tutorials (Foundational, Advanced, Master Class) covering its entire product portfolio. At the end of each series, students take a test to obtain a certificate of completion issued by the Lawo Academy. Certificates enable to student to move on to the next tier. The online approach with labs for the Foundational and Advanced tiers was chosen to enable self-paced learning by busy professionals. The Master Class tier is based on in-person training with live equipment for small groups at Lawo’s HQ in Rastatt, Germany. In addition to freemium Academy content, occasional Lawo Lounge webinars provide product tips, application insights, new products, customer interviews, interactive Q&As, and more.

Riedel Communications offers “Riedel Tuesday” designed to engage users of its products within a specific geographic area. The event features instruction from a professional freelance Riedel user or one of the company’s system engineers. Generally adhering to a schedule of the second or third Tuesday of each month at Riedel’s U.S. headquarters in Santa Clarita, CA, the program has evolved to accommodate requests from user groups or potential users on any day of the week and in any city. The aim is to keep class sizes relatively small, averaging 10-14 participants or fewer. Riedel provides additional options, such as online and in-person courses, the Academy To Go videos, “Andy Explains” training videos, and sessions at specific events, including road shows. To host or join a training session, click here.

The Shure Audio Institute (SAI) is a global educational and training platform providing access to practical knowledge and skills on general audio topics and the company’s products. The content is delivered via webinars, in-person workshops, and online, self-paced courses through its learning portal. Additionally, educational booklets are provided on many audio subjects. The company’s official YouTube channel also offers tutorials that educate viewers on microphone techniques, audio-system installation, troubleshooting, and more. All training is free, encouraging individuals to deepen their understanding of audio and Shure products. Additionally, SAI provides certification programs and AVIXA Renewable Units to help professionals maintain industry credentials.

Solid State Logic training and education programs can take place onsite, at the SSL HQ studio facility, or over the internet via System T remote-production workflows.

Solid State Logic (SSL) offers a variety of training and education programs. Dedicated operational training and maintenance courses can take place onsite via the user’s own console, at the SSL HQ studio facility, or over the internet leveraging System T’s remote-production workflows. In addition, frequent webinars provide System T and Network I/O training covering the wide feature set that the product ranges encompass: NGA/immersive workflows, remote production, and advanced AoIP implementation — featuring Dante, AES67, and ST 2110 — with routing management directly from the console. System T software is available as standard PC application Tempest Control App (TCA), running offline for show configuration and training or remotely connected to an active console to provide online training or show assistance on a LAN or over the public internet using a VPN.

Wheatstone’s VoxPro Academy is an online series of video tutorials around the company’s record/editing system, used by sportscasters to record and edit simultaneously.