Beta Sight: Aviom Pro16 Series

Mark Ulano—whose production sound mixer credits include such feature
films as Titanic, Rocky Balboa, and Iron Man—uses an Aviom Pro16 digital snake for its convenience and reliability on the set and in the field.

I have been quite fortunate in my career, having had the opportunity to work as the production sound mixer for films such as Titanic, Austin Powers, Kill Bill: Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, Wedding Crashers, Rocky Balboa, Iron Man, Disturbia, and the newest installation of the Terminator films — Terminator Salvation — which is set to be released May 2009. I've been able to use a wide range of equipment to complete these projects.

While the tools have transitioned from all analog to a mix of analog and digital, the essential setup for production sound on a movie set or location hasn't changed much; neither have the demands or the challenges. So when a new piece of gear comes along that can change the way I do my job and offers several advantages to boot, it's always good news and worth looking at more closely. To this end, it was just about three years ago when I first discovered Aviom and its digital-snake system. I was working in Philadelphia on the set of Rocky Balboa when I first experienced the full potential of Aviom's Pro16 gear. I've used it on every production since.

In the past, I would position myself in close to the set with my main cart, having all the wireless receivers close to the actors and myself. Occasionally, I would use a conventional analog snake for isolation and to protect the gear and myself from the elements.

In this type of situation, the analog snake becomes a critical link and presents many limitations. The first of these is the time it takes to run the snake between the cart and the console. If you need to pack up and go to an adjacent set or new location, the analog snake is cumbersome to move and takes time to plug and unplug. When you're in the middle of a major production, this can be quite costly, so any way to save time is welcomed.

The analog snake is also fragile and proprietary. A movie set is host to a blizzard of activity such as heavy vehicles and equipment constantly being moved about. Needless to say, there are times when the snake is in harm's way and may end up getting damaged or destroyed. When this happens, the very expensive movie-making machine can grind to a halt. Analog snakes are generally built to order and specification of the individual buyer and, except in their most generic form, are not off-the-shelf items. A simple 12×4 snake can cost more than $7 per foot, not including the fan or stage box sections.

Enter the Aviom digital-snake system. For Iron Man, I set up a 16×16 Aviom system consisting of AN-16/i-M mic-input module and an AN-16/o output module for return that offers high-quality mic preamplifiers, with 24-bit A/D converters that convert 16 mic or line-level analog audio channels into full-bandwidth digital audio transmitted via Aviom's A-Net protocol. These modules are used to send the actors' wireless mics and boom mics to the recording truck from the FOH cart placed near the set. I then bring the signals into my Yamaha 01V96 digital mixer through a pair of matching Aviom AN-16/i input and AN-16/o output modules. Aviom modules are used to carry signals in both directions for everything from primary sources for the record chain to IFB/PL, my monitor mix, music playback — you name it, the works. The sound quality of this system is pristine and accurate, and it reliably works right out of the box. Can it get any better than this?

Aviom AN-16/i-M mic-input module

While all this sounds like a digital version of the traditional setup, the big difference is that the Aviom is connected through a simple Cat-5 cable. The concept is so elegantly simple and powerful that it makes me wonder how I ever lived without it. I have been experimenting with different mixes of equipment to help streamline the process ever since I began this work, more than 30 years ago. These experiments include moving into 100-percent wireless systems, nonlinear recording devices, and now digital consoles. The weak link has always been the interconnects or snake. No longer. With the Aviom gear, I am able to physically free myself from the hardware interface that I had to deal with before.

In the past, I had to run out a thick snake from the truck to the wireless cart. This was very bulky and slow, especially with scene changes. Now, with the Aviom system, I simply run one Siamese Cat-5e wire and I am done, offering me a much faster setup with considerably less bulk. For Rocky Balboa, we were in the middle of shooting a scene when someone ran over the Cat-5 and partially cut it. The system still performed flawlessly even though the connection was only through a few strands of wire. I can't tell you how impressed I was. When the scene was completed, all we had to do was replace the single Cat-5 cable. The time savings of running one Cat-5 cable and only plugging in one connector on each side of the chain is huge.

Another advantage is that I can carry a ready supply of Cat-5e cable. This saves an abundance of space and weight, so it makes system redundancy easy. Additionally, if for some reason we need more cable, we can easily go to a local Home Depot or Radio Shack and get a 1000ft. spool for a hundred bucks. This simply can't happen with regular audio cable. The outlets available for Cat-5 cable are vast and worldwide.

Since I first discovered the Aviom digital-snake system, the advantages have been enormous, and it's significantly enhanced my production experience. I have the entire system physically integrated within my console. The Aviom digital snake allows me to have the recording systems and console farther away from the remote cart so they can be protected from extreme weather conditions. Because of the plug-and-play, modular nature of the system, I can run multiple sets simultaneously and enjoy the dramatically reduced costs of maintaining a Cat-5 cable versus an analog snake. Although they're ultimately similar in their end result, traditional snakes on every level are tremendously more cumbersome, less robust, and significantly more expensive. Now, all we do is turn on the Aviom gear, plug in the Cat-5, and turn on the radio receivers, and we're ready to go. I can see the director smiling already.

Mark Ulano has worked in the sound department on feature films since 1975.