VAUGHN SKOW's blog

Sound Hearing

My next few weekly blogs will concentrate on what speaker specs really mean to us guitar players in the “real world”.  I wanted to jump right in to a discussion of efficiency, frequency range, and so on – but I realized that I was getting a little ahead of myself.

When I teach introductory audio engineering classes, I always start with a day or so on what sound actually is and how the human ear “hears” it.  Since this is so basic to anything and everything audio, I decided it was prudent here as well.  I’d like to point out that the human ear is in fact an electro/acoustic transducer, just like a microphone or speaker is; I’ll get to that in a moment.  Let’s start with what “sound” is.

SoundChecks

Today’s blog is for the benefit of all the “entertainers” out there, specifically singer/songwriter types – but if you ever take to the stage in any capacity, this is for you too!  There’s an old saying that goes like this: “A bad sound-check means a good show … and a good sound check means a bad show”.  As a veteran of thousands of shows, I think I might amend that to read “Little to no sound-check at all often means a great show … and a long painful sound-check usually means a sucky show.  Do I sound plum loco to you?  Maybe I have some explaining to do…

A Journey Begins

Hi, and welcome! This is huge. Right here and now, we are about to embark on a journey together - a journey through time, space, and really great guitar tones - plus whatever else tickles my fancy. You never know where I may lead you, so it’s vital that you have complete trust in me (okay, not really, but I do have a bit of an ego). To learn all the details of my illustrious and sorted past, click on “about me”; if you prefer an abbreviated history, it goes like this: I’ve been a Nashville based recording engineer, producer, and guitarist for the past 25 years (and growing). I’ve also spent time as a DJ, a live sound engineer and worked extensively in sound for picture. I have all kinds of neat little statuettes and plaques honoring my achievements. And finally, I taught audio and acoustics at Volunteer State College in Gallatin, TN from 1998 to 2007. Oh, and of course I’m a bonafied guitar tone geek with a really bad amp/speaker fetish.