Blackbird Studio C Tour with John McBride and Mark Rubel

Join John McBride and Mark Rubel on a tour through Blackbird Studio C -- George Massenburg's "perfect room". The diffusing effect of 138,646 pieces of wood, no two pieces being the same length, creates a listening experience unlike anything we’ve ever heard. If you got a chance to visit studio C, what song are you requesting?

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[reddevil_whiteghost]

Ive had the pleasure of spending some time in this room and this video brought back the memory of how the room sounds. John and Mark articulate the sonic feeling they get in the room...its real!

[TheStudioexpresso]

brilliant man George Massenburg! He produced Linda Ronstadt during my days at Ocean Way. Beautiful room C. Thanks for the great info and tour!

[universalmeditation]

I’m actually shocked you didn’t seal the deal with a BLUEHORN system by Meyer Sound.

[dstagl]

What are you favorite Atmos tracks to use for demonstrations in that room?

[mikere-rn]

I bet you and me and uncle Larry could make a good song

[RemyRAD]

Yes. I would also cry. If I heard that control room. As it's totally ridiculous. To have to have 14 speakers. That is just stupid.

Because if the speakers were wired for Absolute Positive Polarity. You would really only need, 2 speakers. For Totally Immersive Sound. Yes! This is true. But that is not what they are selling here. They are selling Overkill. Rich guy stuff. So they can out rich, each other. It's a status thing amongst rich guys. It serves no real purpose. It is 100%, Impractical. Except that Movie Theaters. And we don't have Movie Theaters like this in our living rooms. And nobody will. They will have 2 speakers. And they only need them wired, correctly. Not according to their instruction manuals. Which are backwards. They indicate the wiring, backwards.

As plus does not get, connected to plus. And minus to the minus. That is backwards. That's fine. For jumping your car battery. Not fine. For putting 2 batteries into a flashlight. Because then the DC current cannot flow. The flashlight will not light. Because the batteries are in Negative Absolute Polarity. And plus must connect to, minus and minus connects two, plus. That is proper, DC Theory 101. Plus, to, plus is not correct.

But this stupid mistake has been made. By stupid clueless engineers. That have Demanded. They don't want any out of phase anything in their signal chain! And well it is. Their, speakers are. Wired in Negative Absolute Polarity. And that's really not what they want! But everybody wants to be equally stupid to each other. And they are. They have succeeded. They are morons.

And so try this out for yourself. The fix is free. It's a game changer. You will hear the difference.
RemyRAD

[RemyRAD]

George needed to design the room this way. Because nobody including him. Realizes. That all the speakers in the room, are wired for, Negative Absolute Polarity. When they should be Positive Absolute Polarity. Which they think they are. But they are Not! And none of them including George. Has realized, this?

And so when your speakers are all wired for Negative Absolute Polarity. The speakers. Are not, protruding out toward you. They are doing the opposite. They are sucking inward. Because everybody has made a stupid beginner mistake. With their college degrees. It's absolutely Mindless! Because they all think they are right. They absolutely are not.

So while George may design control rooms. Along with a PhD helper. Who also thinks he knows what he's doing. And also doesn't realize. His speakers are sucking away from him. Not toward him. And so you need all of this heavy-duty acoustical gobbledygook. To correct for, Miswired Speakers. It's rather funny. Though it's not funny. I'm not laughing even though I am. It's pathetic.

And so they all spend gobs of money. Because they have it. And while it makes for superior monitoring in the room. It's no good. When your speakers are sucking away from you. In front of you. Your brain. Cannot process audio like that. It makes no sense in your brain. When the sound sources in front of you. Are sucking away from you. Your brain can make no sense of that sound. And they are all trying to make sense of that sound. With an overabundance of acoustical gobbledygook. That largely is, unnecessary.

And who's going to clean that huge dust catcher? Can you imagine all of the dust that will settle on those things? It'll be a nightmare to clean! And everybody is going to be inhaling a lot of dust. All of those wooden dolls should have been covered up with black burlap. Though it is kind of cool to look at. It will disburse lots of dust. People with allergies will hate that control room. As I'm sure it will also include, plenty of fungus. This is not a practical, control room. Though I'm sure it sounds great. Provided. The speakers are wired correctly. But unfortunately they are not. They are all in Negative Absolute Polarity. And no one has realized that. No one knows really what the hell they are listening to? They only think they do. And it becomes the blind leading the blind. Because they've never checked the sound. The other way. Because they don't believe they are wrong. And they are unwilling to try it the other way. Because they would all look like dummies. Like idiots. Like, know nothings. Because they don't! This is a stupid beginner mistake made by, College Degrees. Ugh!

Yeah. I am what they call a Studio Fixer. I fix Monitoring Problems. That, Electrical Engineers and Acoustic Engineers. Cannot remedy. Cannot fix. Don't understand what's going on? They are clueless, educated, idiots. With college degrees. That means they are supposed to know something. Of which they don't. I have proven this. Time and time again. Through the Decades! Decades!

And these kinds of mistakes happen. Even by the most, Edgumacated. Especially by the Edgumacated. When they think they are right. And they will not try the other way. That is just plain stupid. As they would hear a significant difference that makes, sense to your brain. You can tell when you hear it. They have never heard it. They don't know what it, is? They are always in search of the holy Grail of Audio. And they never really find it. They don't know why? They think they should? They've got the right gear. They think they have everything connected correctly. But they don't. They've never figured it out. They are that kind of dumb. That kind of, stupid. And they refuse. To try it the other way. It's like a Cult. If everybody is wrong together? Then they are right! And that's a Cultish, culture. That's not what Audio Engineering, is all about. It's not about everybody getting it wrong. To make it right. As that is only a Cult. That functions like that. That doesn't function, correctly, at all. And they don't no Why? DUH! I know why. They don't.

Yes it is, their textbooks and mathematical formulas. That make them get this wrong. Because they cannot think the process through. Of, what is technically occurring and why? They are clueless. Like little puppy dogs. Playing puppy audio engineer. With their college degrees. They've gotten this, very wrong.

And so the fix is free. You merely reverse the connections. On both your left and right channel speakers. Plus becomes negative. Negative becomes plus on both speakers. Flip them both. And you will hear the difference.

For those of you. That have Active Powered Monitor Speakers. You will need to be proficient with both a Phillips head screwdriver and a soldering iron. You will first remove the tweeter then the woofer. From the box. You will use your soldering iron. To reverse the connections. On both the tweeter and the woofer. Then reinstall the speakers. And do not over torque them down. Only tighten them, snug. No death grip from the Hulk. As you can warp the frame of the speaker. So do not do that. Only snug. And take another listen.

I consider this to be the Biggest, audio faux pas, technical FUCK Up in Pro Audio History! As no one has gotten this right. Except for the JBL Speaker Co. of Los Angeles, California. They thought this process through correctly. And you will find there speakers. Are out of phase. To all other speaker manufacturers, speakers. And this is the reason why. They knew. Everybody's speakers. They are mimicking. The diaphragms of the microphones. And which way are those moving when the sound pressure wave blasts into them? They are depressed inward. Into the body of the microphone. Before they rebound outward to their resting position. Whoops! That's backwards!

And so? Absolute Polarity. Can only be established. At the output of the audio power amplifier. To the input of the speakers. You cannot just flip phase. At the input of the audio power amplifier. As that merely inverts the waveform. It does not change the Absolute Polarity. At the output. And that's what everybody gets wrong. Because phase and polarity are two different things. In the land of Pro Audio. And this is not taught! They think it's the same thing. It's not! Ugh!

And so once you here at the other way. You will know. You got it right. You'll hear it. It'll be obvious. And most of your lousy acoustics in your room. Will become far less noticeable now. Because the sound from the speakers is now propagating properly, outward, toward you. You will hear the difference. I guarantee it.

Now for some. They have grown accustomed to working on, Negative Absolute Polarity, Monitor Speakers. I don't know how they do it? I cannot work that way. It does not register in my brain correctly. I can't evaluate nothing that way. Though I've had to. Just like everybody else. But you can never be certain about anything? You just hope it's good. And for guys like George? It will be. He will make certain of that. So will others. But that's not the way, to work.

It's a free fix you control yourself. It takes all of 2 minutes to do. 10 with Powered Speakers.
RemyRAD