What’s keeping you up?

So I get ragged a bit about how excited I get about label makers. I guess I’ve just paid the consequences of things not being labeled and some of those insistences were costly. But the right label that looks nice can make a simple project look really professional.

It’s sound guy 101 as a matter of fact or production 101. Yet, it surprises me at how many times I witness things in production unlabeled.

My current tools of the trade are these models. If you are serious about doing it right, then multiple machines will be necessary:).

Brother P-touch 2700
Cream of the crop portable/hand held.
Back-lit display, USB port for Mac or PC control (absolute must for video patch bays), up to 1″ tape, a lot of color options, and it looks cool:). The p-touch editor software gives you complete design freedom with logos and fonts. $100 unit / $19 per cartridge.

Rhino 6000
This beast has all of the same features as the Brother but adds some key features for installation. This machine is best for wrapping cables.  You can select the type of wire you are labeling and it knows how big to make your wrap. Plus you can serialize your printouts to keep those repetitive jobs consistent and efficient. This model has limited tape options but adds self laminating and heat shrink tubing you can print right onto. It has limited fonts and the software is OK, but really adds nothing that you can’t do straight from the machine.

One feature that is kind of cool is that it has filing on it. You can save and recall any design you have previously saved. $300 unit / $27 per cartridge. (pricey I know but it’s the real deal)

I also have several other machines around.  I have a small p-touch at my desk for file folders and stuff in the office.  I also have a Brother 1500PC at our tape station.  This model is computer controlled only but we have a template file on the Mac sitting right next to it and it’s really easy to put a label on the tape as it comes out of the deck!

So I’m a lable nut.  But I like things when they are done neatly and these tools make that possible.

I’m pretty sure if you think about all your dealings with most sound people, the general consensus will be negative. I’ve heard so many musicians tell their stories of these guys who claim to be “Stewards of the Human Ear.” Just think of being a sound guy and dealing with sound guys. My thoughts of most sound guys are probably worse than yours.

If you think back to all the sound guys in your past, get a visual of these individuals. In the midst of their job, their facial expressions are usually one of frustration and irritation. They probably look mean. They play the martyr in the whole production, having to deal with not so ideal situations…oh and musicians. Their job is just full of compromises they had to make.

I was just mixing the other day and I kind of had this epiphany. When you are mixing, you are constantly looking for what is the problem. You ask yourself “What’s not right?” and try to fix it. If something is right….you move on and look for problems…always focusing on the negative. In the course of one sound check you are making hundreds, if not thousands of criticisms and reacting. Once your problem is fixed you move on to the next, and next, and so on.

As I scanned the console and listened intently, I realized I had a scowl on my face. Probably like one of the sound guys you imagined earlier.

My problem is, I often times try to deal with other areas of my work in the same fashion, even people. I am always focusing on what is the problem and never enjoying the good parts. I’m afraid if I don’t change my view. I will become a mean person, one that people try to avoid.

For those of you who are around me, I’m sorry. I’m a victim of the Sound Man’s curse.