By Full Compass LiveSome of us have a lot of time on our hands these days, as we hunker down at home to follow the advice of epidemiologists who have spent their lives studying how viruses work. But remember that Isaac Newton (he wasn’t a “Sir” yet) came up with the theory of gravity, and continued work on the early calculus papers he wrote, while sitting out the plague at home. While our working at home may not produce the same kind of lofty results, it does give us time to think about how we can improve our business, and how we can hit the ground running when—not if—life returns to normal.
EZ Audio Everywhere
Whether you need music or audio for school and gym classes, Houses of Worship, aerobics, weddings, restaurants, karaoke, pre-show music, theatrical sound effects, or whatever, ditch the CDDefinition:
CD (Compact Disc): An optical-based, disc-shaped digital recording and playback medium. player, forget about your iPod (if you even remember it), turn off Spotify, and take advantage of the audio library on your smartphone. Stream audio to the Galaxy Audio JIB/BT4R monoDefinition:
Short for Monophonic. An audio program, recording, or hardware device/software routine that produces or processes a signal with only one channel. BluetoothDefinition:
A short distance (less than 33 feet) wireless data transfer standard. receiver, plug it into any convenient XLR input (like what you’d find in a mixerDefinition:
Combiner, controller, and router for multiple audio or video signals. or powered speaker), and you’re ready to go. Charge its internal, rechargeable batteryDefinition:
An assembly of series-wired cells that provides higher voltages than individual cells. from the micro USBDefinition:
(Universal Serial Bus) A standard, bi-directional serial connection between computers and peripheral devices. port (with either an AC adapterDefinition:
A power supply that allows using conventional alternating current as a power source instead of batteries. or computer USB output), or leave it plugged in for permanent installs.
Two-Way Rapid Transit
The VocoPro Transit RST-01 does Bluetooth streamingDefinition:
A method of sending a continuous flow of digital content over IP (Internet Protocol) networks, and often, tailors itself to the user's receiving capability. as a transmitterDefinition:
Any device that sends an electrical signal, typically radio waves or by wire. or receiver, in stereoDefinition:
A two channel signal simulating a sound space, typically played through two speakers.. Operating at 5.8 GHzDefinition:
Abbreviation for Gigahertz, which equals 1,000,000,000 cycles per second., you can either patch audio into its input and stream to a Bluetooth receiver, or stream Bluetooth to the Transit, and connect its audio output into a playback system. But the coolest feature here is that one Transit in transmit mode can send audio to another Transit in receive mode. So if you want to connect a non-Bluetooth audio source to a non-Bluetooth audio playback system, no problem—just tell two Transits to talk to each other. The Transit RST-01 has a rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery that gives about 8 hours of runtime, but the same mini USB input that’s used for charging can also accept power from a USB power supplyDefinition:
A device (internal or external to another device) that provides power for active circuitry. Can be AC, DC or battery-powered. (not included) for continuous operation.
Music Education and Live Performance—Wires Need Not Apply
There are tons of iOSDefinition:
Apple proprietary operating system, primarily for mobile devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Apple Watch). Current Apple TVs run on tvOS, which is similar to, and based on, iOS. and MacOS apps devoted to music education and training, as well as liveDefinition:
Live broadcast of an event or program without substantial delay or editing. performance. But hooking up a keyboard to control them can be a tangled mess of wires, adapters, and flimsy connectors. Here’s where Yamaha’s expertise in music education pays off: Their MD-BT01 is a wireless Bluetooth-to-MIDIDefinition:
(Musical Instrument Digital Interface) A hardware/software standard for communication of musical data digitally among electronic instruments, effects, and computers. However it is also used for to control lighting, pyrotechnics, theatrical displays, and mechanical devices. For example, the fountains at the Bellagio in Las Vegas is controlled by MIDI. Also called MIDI 1.0. adapter for use with keyboards and other controllers that have 5-pin DINDefinition:
DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung): A German national organization for standardization. MIDI connectors. Simply plug the keyboard into the MD-BT01’s DIN connectors, and you’re ready to send note dataDefinition:
Information used by a computer in order to arrive at a decision. Although this is a plural term, it's often treated in the singular. into any iOS/MacOS device running Bluetooth 4.0 or higher, with BLEDefinition:
BLE (Bluetooth Low-Energy): A variant of the Bluetooth specification often used for portable equipment and MIDI devices. See: Bluetooth. (MIDI over Bluetooth Low EnergyDefinition:
(BLE): Short range low power Bluetooth standard, used for low power miniature devices and trackers.) compatibility. The MD-BT01 is great for recording practice and study sessions, and because it works wirelessly, an iOS device’s ports are still available for charging or running from AC adapters—you needn’t worry about the batteries running out. The MD-BT01 is compatibleDefinition:
Capable of operating with a particular selection of hardware or software. with iOS 8 or later, and OS X Yosemite or later.
It’s Bluetooth Time: Rack It Up!
So...you know there’s a Bluetooth audio receiver in your future, but you don’t want to mess with adapters and little boxes—you want a permanent install for your university, restaurant, gym, House of Worship, or wherever you need to stream in audio. Technical Pro’s Bluedeck-2 is ideal: its sleek, 1U rackDefinition:
A frame for holding gear that meets an industry standard for enclosures. This specifies a 19 inch width, and a height that is some multiple of 1.75 inches. A rack frame can be open or enclosed, and has rails drilled with standardized screw holes for attaching rack equipment. design, exceptional range, low cost, and easy setup make it a no-brainer when you want any audio system to be Bluetooth-compatible. But it’s not just a bare-bones unit; it also has an aux input for wired connections, dual stereo RCADefinition:
(Radio Corporation of America) Known for the (RCA) phono plug and jack, among many other inventions. See: Phone Plug, Phono Jack. outs, bass/treble controls, and a headphone output. Hook this baby up, and you’ll be streaming audio from your laptop, smartphone, tablet, desktop, or other Bluetooth device in no time.
Speak to Me, O Bluetooth
Sometimes you need to stream audio to a playback system that’s not stationary, for example, to different desks in a classroom, or to a person’s office so that multiple people can hear a streamed telephone conversation (or other audio). For this, the Koss BTS1 has a lot of useful attributes. It’s compact and lightweight—plop it down anywhere, and run it for up to 5 hours using the internal rechargeable battery. It also has a “kickstand” so you can choose between omnidirectionalDefinition:
A pattern describing a microphone, radio antenna, or loudspeaker that radiates or picks up in all directions equally. or directional listening, and a 3.5 mm jackDefinition:
A connector, normally female, that works in conjunction wit a plug. Usually located in a piece of equipment, or as part of a cable. in case a wired connection is necessary. You can even daisy-chain units together with the included auxiliary cable for additional coverageDefinition:
In film making, additional footage shot from additional cameras that's useful for editing and backup.. When Bluetooth needs to speak to you...well, here’s the answer.
