Signal To Noise Podcast

In Episode 336, Sean, Andy and Steph Farina get together again to pick up where their last conversation left off (here), diving deeper into the art and methodology of troubleshooting audio systems. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Steph is a Chicago-based theatrical sound designer, mixer, and educator who heads the sound design program at DePaul University and teaches a dedicated troubleshooting course there. The trio covers systematic troubleshooting methods — working input to output, swapping known-good for suspect components, and changing one thing at a time — before taking a deep dive into...

In Episode 335, Sean and Andy are joined by Steph Farina, a Chicago-based musical theater sound designer, mixer, and educator who heads the sound design program at DePaul University. The conversation covers Steph’s journey from intern at the Goodman Theatre to in-demand regional designer, the art of transitioning from mixer to designer, and her collaborative approach to communicating with mixers without overprescribing. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

The trio dives deep into theater sound system tuning, exploring tricks for naturally sourcing vocals from the performer, delay setting techniques using re...

In Episode 335, Andy welcomes Russ Long, a Nashville-based recording and live sound engineer with a wide-ranging career working with artists including Sixpence None the Richer, Dolly Parton, Wilco, Amy Grant, Miley Cyrus, and more, as well as Grammy and CMA Awards broadcasts, films, and much more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Russ is also currently part of the field marketing and R&D team for Yamaha Pro Audio and can regularly be found showing folks the “ins and outs” of the company’s large-format consoles at the Rock Nashville facili...

By popular demand, in Episode 333 we’re bringing back a cleaned up and remastered version of a past episode, originally released as Episode 323, where Sean and Andy huddled up with Joe Allan Muharsky for a wide-ranging conversation about the state of AI in the audio field–where it is and where it’s going, what it’s good at and what it’s not, and more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Joe is a software engineer, AI practitioner, and generalist with 30 years of technical experience spanning Microsoft, Google, and a suite of...

In Episode 332, it’s time for a further dive into the freelance life and how to make yourself as valuable as possible in the live audio industry. Sean and Andy talk about some of the big mistakes folks at any point in their career when “batting out of their league,” how to balance that with growing your skills and abilities, and more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Episode Links:
Episode 332 Transcript

Connect with the community on the Signal To Noise Facebook Group and Discord Server...

Inspired by a couple trips Andy took recently that included visits with some past guests, and the folks over at Twenty Thousand Hertz doing a similar video episode, Episode 331 revisits a unique conversation from a few years back that a lot of newer listeners may have missed, based on recent discussions on the Signal to Noise Discord server. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

So, after a quick catchup with Sean and Andy, here’s a newly re-mastered listen to Andy’s chat with four members of the Carolina Crown drum...

It’s time for a summer check-in, as Sean and Andy catch up on festival season and take a look at what’s new in live audio technology, from Sennheiser HD 480 PRO headphones to L-Acoustics Source Intelligence, Alpha Labs De-Feedback for Mac to AuviTran’s HY AVB/Milan card, and more! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Episode Links:
Attend Andy’s “DM7 for Theatre” Workshop On Saturday, July 25 In Person In Chicago Or Online
Studio Technologies Model 762 Stereo Level Control
Sennheiser HD 480 PRO Closed Back Headpho...

Veteran audio professional Michael Curtis joins the show in Episode 329 to catch up on what he’s been up to lately as well as when his YouTube educational channel will return and his new journey into audio plugin development. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Michael talks about the process of building his soon-to-be-released Live Stream Leveler plugin/stand-alone app designed for front of house mixers in applications such as corporate events, houses of worship and more who are tasked with managing a feed to a live stream of an ev...

If you’ve been around the live sound industry for more than a few years, you’ve almost certainly heard of legendary sound company Showco. And if you’ve been active at all on LinkedIn or other social media lately, you’ve very likely seen a lot of activity from the Showco Archive Project. This online catalog of all sorts of amazing bits of Showco history caught our eyes, and we knew we had to get the rest of the story! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

This week, Sean and Andy...

In Episode 327, the hosts welcome Brian Frost, a Salt Lake City-based/nationally working sound engineer specializing in executive keynotes, product launches, press events, and conferences, to discuss front of house vs streaming mixes, why corporate events today end up needing so many mixes to run smoothly, and much more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

A recent contributor to Live Sound International magazine/ProSoundWeb, Brian has been sharing some killer insights into the world of high-end corporate audio on his blog and the magazine lately, and, along with Sean and...

In Episode 326, guest co-host Aram Piligian returns to join Andy for the second half of their conversation with Chris Lapp, developer of the new Open Fabric Studio AV network management software and senior specialist solutions engineer at Cisco and ask all about “anything and everything” AV networking. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Chris Lapp leads the design and delivery of mission-critical media and data center infrastructure at the intersection of broadcast, IP networking, and AI. With a background that spans live production, large-scale data center architectures, and modern software-defined syst...

In Episode 325, guest co-host Aram Piligian joins Andy to sit down with Chris Lapp, developer of the new Open Fabric Studio AV network management software and senior specialist solutions engineer at Cisco and ask all about anything and everything AV networking! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

This is the first of a two-part conversation where everything from switch configurations, the differences between Dante, AES67, and AVB/Milan, managed versus unmanaged switches, whether or not to use DHCP, and more was on the table.

Chris Lapp leads the...

In Episode 324, the hosts talk with Matt Dale and Donny Kuser of SoundBase, a software platform that’s become a valuable asset in the world of wireless coordination over the past few years, to learn all about what it can do and where it’s going, including tools for intercom system design, stage plots and input lists, and much more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Donny and Matt share the history of where SoundBase started, how it differs from other tools commonly used for coordinating wireless systems, some new feat...

In Episode 323, Sean and Andy huddle up with Joe Allan Muharsky for a wide-ranging conversation about the state of AI in the audio field — where it is and where it’s going, what it’s good at and what it’s not. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Joe is a software engineer, AI practitioner, and generalist with 30 years of technical experience spanning Microsoft, Google, and a suite of small-to-medium sized companies building line-of-business applications. He’s also the creator of the TODD Framework — a proprietary meta-framework for AI-assisted development built on the...

Episode 322 shares a look at the history and evolution of sound design for theatre, from Broadway to Cirque du Soleil, from the folks at the Twenty Thousand Hertz podcast. This early episode features two of the biggest names in Broadway sound, Abe “The Godfather of Sound Design” Jacobs, whose career ranged from mixing the Mamas and the Papas and Jimi Hendrix to designing such iconic Broadway shows as Jesus Christ Superstar, Hair, Evita, A Chorus Line, and so many more, joined by Jonathan Deans, designer of countless Cirque du Soleil Vegas spectaculars including Mystere, Love, Ka, and many others, as w...

In Episode 321, Sean and Andy wrap up a last handful (for now!) of listener questions, touching on routines for decompressing after a show and re-entering “civilian” life, balancing long work days and/or travel with coming home, talk a little bit about day rates, and then dig into one of Sean’s long-standing business book recommendations, Will Guidara’s Unreasonable Hospitality, and how both business owners and freelancers can take the lessons from that book to heart in the live audio and event world to build better relationships with clients and customers!

Episode Links:
Unreason...

In Episode 320, Sean and Andy talk with Sage Tichenor, best known as front of house engineer for violinist and songwriter Lindsey Stirling, for a wide-ranging chat about all things live audio. Sage talks about migrating and selecting a console platform for her shows, what it’s like mixing a NAMM showcase for a manufacturer, working with a wide range of artists from bluegrass to pop-classical/EDM crossover, and more. Plus plugins, snare sounds that don’t suck, and more…nothing’s off the table!

Sage is a freelance touring FOH engineer and classically trained flautist. In December 2018, she grad...

The hosts sync up again with Tal Kocen and Dave Friesema of Dark Matter Audio Labs in Episode 319 to see what they’ve been up to as they start off their second year as Dark Matter with a bang — albeit a safe and quiet one, thanks to their new hearing protection offerings. Hearing protection and safety is a subject we come back to semi-regularly on Signal to Noise because it’s so important, so we’re excited to see another great option, and hear about what makes these different.

The gang didn’t stop at earplugs, though–they also le...

In Episode 318, audio engineering veterans Robert Scovill and Geoff McKinnon of EAW join the hosts to . discuss the evolution of adaptive sound systems, the unique aspects of EAW loudspeakers like Anya, and the real-world applications of adaptive technology in live sound. The conversation also touches on the challenges and misconceptions surrounding adaptive audio and the importance of technology training and education in the industry.

McKinnon is the senior director of engineering at EAW. With 10 patents spanning acoustics and system design, he has been a primary driver behind the company’s ADAPTive line and the new NTX and NT...

In Episode 317, Sean and Andy go back to the mailbox for more listener questions, picking up where they left off in Episode 309. This time, the focus is on the business side of freelancing — rates, non-competes/NDAs, W2 vs 1099 work, unions, taxes… Plus some thoughts on choosing which compromises to make when time is short on a load-in, and much more! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Episode Links:
Episode 309 – Listener Q&A, Part 1
Episode 317 Transcript

NOTE: Mike Green, the artist who performs “Break Free” that opens...

In Episode 316, it’s time for a post-NAMM recap of all the cool people, places, and things Sean and Andy got to catch up with and check out at the 2026 NAMM Show at the Anaheim Convention Center. Loudspeakers big and small, useful gadgets, new mixers, earplugs, new IEM models… there was something for everybody this year, and we’re here to tell you all about it! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Episode Links:
TT+ AUDIO GTX 7C
Dark Matter Audio Labs DMA7 BA 7
Violet Audio...

In Episode 315, Sean and Andy get the lowdown on a relatively new live audio tool that took both NAMM and the online live audio community by storm over the last year as they talk with Devin Sheets, founder and owner of Alpha Labs, to learn all about De-Feedback. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

A much-talked-about plugin in live audio of 2025, there are lots of myths and misunderstandings, rave reviews and reticence about this new tool for fighting feedback, handling overly reverberant rooms, and dealing with noise in live reinforcement...

In Episode 314, Jessica Isenhour, AKA the one and only “AV Barbie,” joins the show to talk all things event production, social media networking in the event industry, helping younger technicians grow in the industry, and more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Jessica is a freelance audio visual technician for corporate and live events and mentor to the next generation of AV leaders. As co-owner of the Growth and Development Network, she’s passionate about entrepreneurial initiatives, including mentorship gatherings, resume review sessions, and one-on-one meetings that help empower young techni...

It’s NAMM Show season, with Sean and Andy kicking it off with a bang in Episode 313 by getting the scoop on everything NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) from CEO and president John Mlynczak. He provides a crash course on NAMM, what he’s looking forward to at the show in Anaheim this year, the NAMM Foundation educational program, and more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Prior to NAMM, John served as president of Music Education & Technology at Hal Leonard, where he oversaw worldwide education market strategy. He also...

Sean and Andy start off 2026 with a bang, as live sound “renaissance man” Danny Abelson joins the show to discuss a wide range of bold positions, from how to prepare for a career in live audio to whether or not the quality of sound at shows today has kept up with the quality of the gear available to us to use at them. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

With a 50-plus-year career that started as a teenager working in New York City in the middle of “anything and everything” in the l...

New York-based mixer and sound designer Jason Crystal joins the show in Episode 311 for a tour through his wide-ranging career, spanning from Broadway — where his resume includes working as the associate sound designer and audio supervisor for every production of Hamilton around the world, as well as sound designing the Broadway and touring productions of Suffs — to mixing front of house for major broadcast events such as the Tony Awards and the Saturday Night Live 50th Anniversary Homecoming Concert at Radio City Music Hall. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Whet...

In Episode 310, the hosts welcome guest Tyler “Ty the Sound Guy” Davis, an experienced audio engineer with two decades in the industry. Born and raised in LA, Tyler started his audio journey two decades ago playing in bands, doing sound at DIY shows, recording bands in his garage, and mostly failing miserably at all the above! Through sheer unwillingness to accept that he wasn’t very good, he honed his skillset to come to the place where, 20 years later, he’s failing much less miserably! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

After...

In Episode 309, the hosts turn over the reigns for a round of listener questions. They reached out to the Signal to Noise Community on Facebook and Discord to invite listeners to submit questions that they’re afraid to ask, or were afraid to ask when they were starting out in their career, and this week the hosts set out to answer the first handful of them. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

No topic was off-limits, from technical to interpersonal… Questions include strategies for overcoming introversion to excel in networking and...

This week, the hosts turn over the feed to feature a new episode from our sister podcast, Live Sound Bootcamp, to welcome them back after a very long hiatus! In this episode, Ryan John and guest host Aram Piligian answer a question about how best to go about capturing and mixing orchestral instruments in classical environments, and also in the context of adding strings to pop and rock acts. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

There’s some incredible advice and experience to be found in this episode, and we do...

Dave Hatmaker joins Sean and Andy in Episode 307 for a wide-ranging conversation about working in theme parks, helping test and develop new audio products, and some hard-hitting practical tips and tricks for mixing corporate events.

Dave has mixed astronauts to vice presidents, and almost everything in between. He’s also been a sound designer for the Walt Disney Company, helping to create many memorable in-park entertainment shows, spectaculars and guest experiences, including Beauty and the Beast (before going to Broadway), Spirit of Pocahontas, and Hunchback of Notre Dame: Festival of Fools.

In addition, he’s work...

In Episode 306: it’s time for something a bit different, as Andy introduces Sean and the listeners to another of his favorite sound-related podcasts, Twenty Thousand Hertz, produced by the sound design team at Defacto Sound. Twenty Thousand Hertz is focused on all things related to sound, from the sound design and scores of TV shows like Bluey to the sound design of all the alerts and notifications on an iPhone to dives into Broadway and arena touring, and so much more. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

In this ep...

In Episode 305, Andy and Sean present an end of summer wrap-up, touching on a wide variety of subjects as concert season for a lot of small to mid-size sound companies wind down and corporate season picks up! Andy shares some big news on his new “day gig,” having left the freelance life to work full time doing tech support for a major manufacturer, and he also talks about visiting with Tal from Dark Matter and hearing their DMA-8 in-ear monitors for the first time. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Mean...

Daniel and Andreas Sennheiser, the third-generation CEOs of Sennheiser Electronics, join the show in Episode 304 to celebrate and look back on Sennheiser’s 80th anniversary.

In a wide-ranging conversation, they talk about the history of Sennheiser, and how it’s remained a family-run company through all of its 80-year history, the hits (and even a couple misses!) of those first eight decades, and what to look forward to in the next few years.

They share how the company got started, discuss their work on the cutting edge of wireless technology with the new Spectera wireless syst...

In Episode 303, Sean and Andy are joined by Robert Kuijpers, coming to us straight from the Netherlands to share stories and tips from his extensive experience in the “guerrilla audio” world of fast-moving music festivals.

Robert has been immersed in the live music industry since age 10, starting playing guitar and working in a guitar local shop where he developed a passion for electronics and signal flow. Over the years, he played in various bands while honing his technical skills to make himself sound better, which led naturally into live sound work.

A chance encounter with the...

In Episode 302, Andy and Sean welcome back Sam Kusnetz from Figure 53 to discuss new features in QLab 5.5 software for designing and playing back sound, video, light, and show control cues, particularly the introduction of object-based audio. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

The conversation covers the evolution of audio mixing in live events, the importance of user feedback, and the philosophy behind Figure 53’s approach to software updates. They also talk about the upcoming QCLass workshop in Baltimore this September that will provide an opportunity for users to enhance their sk...

Gabe Correa, audio and network project manager at Clair Global, joins the show in Episode 301 to talk about special events on a gigantic scale. Gabe is a Brazilian-born audio and fiber project manager who’s led major live and broadcast productions in 30-plus countries across six continents, such as handling technical operations for the FIFA Club World Cup, Formula 1 and Formula-E, YouTube Brandcast, Capitol Concerts in D.C., Fortnite Times Square, and international tours with Andrea Bocelli. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Gabe’s resume also includes three Olympic Game...

In Episode 300, the hosts take listeners on a trip over to the Signal to Noise Discord Server and dig into a grab bag of tips and tricks from the “Info and Wisdom Nuggets” thread. It’s a lighting round of great advice for anybody in the live audio field, from mixing to troubleshooting to career advice — there’s something useful for everybody! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

There’s way more in the thread than could possibly fit in one episode, so if you’re not already on the server, come j...

In Episode 299, the hosts are joined by Jim Reed, RCF USA’s Manager of Installed Sound and System Design, for a wide-ranging conversation that includes pivoting from a career as a musician and front-of-house engineer to a job on the manufacturer side in live venue installations, as well as sharing advice for production folks who get asked to help consult on installations, and those who might be looking to make a shift away from freelance/touring work as life and priorities change. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Jim also sh...

It’s time for an InfoComm debrief, as returning guest Elliott Carroll joins Andy and Sean to compare notes on what he and Andy saw during their recent trip to Orlando for this year’s InfoComm trade show. This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

As Andy puts it, it was the year of big wireless in small packages — so much of the show was about putting eyes and ears on the latest offerings from Shure, Sennheiser, and Sound Devices, but there was also a lot to check out in terms of spa...

In Episode 297, it’s all about safe listening levels, hearing protection and more, as Sean and Andy talk to three of the folks behind the Healthy Ears, Limited Annoyance Initiative (HELA) about all things loud (but not too loud)! This episode is sponsored by Allen & Heath and RCF.

Returning guest Laura Sinnott, AuD is joined by Jon Burton and Jos Mulder to explain where HELA came from, its purpose, and much more. From World Health Organization standards for live event audio to which generic fit earplugs to recommend to friends, there’s a ton...