McCune Audio/Video/Lighting

Last updated
McCune Audio Video Lighting
TypeAudio/Video/Lighting Rental and Production
Industry Professional Audio
Founded1932
Headquarters
San Francisco, CA
,
United States
Key people
Harry McCune, Founder
Number of employees
200
Website www.mccune.com

McCune Audio Video Lighting (previously known as Harry McCune Sound Service, McCune Audio Visual and McCune Audio Visual Video) is an American company based in South San Francisco, California, with offices in Monterey and Anaheim. It is one of the oldest and largest audio visual rental and sound services in the U.S. McCune was founded in 1932 by Harry McCune Sr, McCune AVL provides audio, lighting and high-definition video services to events as varied as outdoor festivals such as the Monterey Jazz Festival, and the Bohemian Grove, and to arena conferences such as TED. [1]

Contents

In December 2017, Atlanta-based Shepard Exposition Services bought McCune. [2]

History

Harry McCune, Sr. was working days as an automotive mechanic. At night, McCune also liked working on radio equipment, and small audio sound systems. McCune built a small amplified sound system, and he founded McCune Sound Service in 1932. [3] He built several small sound systems before he completed one large enough to handle a large dance band. McCune would rent out his sound system, and personally operate the equipment for $1.00 an evening, on a Friday night. McCune would then give the equipment rental for free on the next Saturday night. Harry McCune began renting sound systems more often to various big bands in the 1930s and 1940s, and with his son, Harry McCune, Jr. (1930–1996), he would help radio engineers broadcast the concerts live over AM radio from ballrooms in San Francisco.

In the 1940s, McCune Sound operated out of 10 Brady Street in San Francisco, which was centrally located near the Civic Center. In 1963, McCune adopted the name "Channel X" for its video production services. [4] In the 1960s, McCune operated from 960 Folsom Street in the South of Market (SOMA) area. In 1969, the company moved to 951 Howard Street, and built an audio and video recording studio within the structure. [5] McCune later expanded to both sides of Howard Street. Still expanding, the company moved to a single large building on 2200 Army Street, later named Cesar Chavez Street, before moving to their current location at 101 Utah Avenue in South San Francisco.

McCune Sound has been credited with creating and improving some of the vital concepts of the modern day live concert performance, and was one of the first sound companies to provide road touring sound systems, beginning in 1965 with Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass and progressing to diverse acts as Andy Williams, Dionne Warwick, the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Steely Dan, John Davidson, Crystal Gayle, and many others. [6] Sound mixer Mort Feld said in 1969 that if all the touring acts brought their McCune equipment back at the same time, there would not be room enough in the shop. [7] One of the first times that a stage monitor was used for a live concert, the monitor was provided by McCune Sound. The concert was by Judy Garland, at the San Francisco Civic Auditorium. The concert rehearsal was not going well, and Harry McCune Jr. came up with the idea of pointing a stage speaker at Garland. McCune ran to his truck, and drove to the McCune office. McCune grabbed a loudspeaker, brought it back to the concert rehearsal, and then placed the speaker on the corner of the stage. He then took an audio feed off the main system, turned up the mixer, and Miss Garland was pleased with the added monitor sound. [8] In the late 1960s the music scene was flourishing in San Francisco, and so was sound design itself. The Monterey Pop Festival and before that, the Beatles' last live concert performance, held at San Francisco's Candlestick Park, had sound systems provided by McCune Sound. [9] During the Beatles' Candlestick concert the sound system could not be heard well over the screaming of the Beatles fans. Mort Feld of McCune Sound mixed the Candlestick Park house sound for the Beatles concert that day. [10] In the late 1960s, engineer Dan Healy drew from McCune equipment to amplify the Grateful Dead; Healy said he sometimes blew up electrical circuits trying to get the audio louder. [11] Starting in 1968, McCune Sound was included on band riders as one of the qualified sound companies for concerts. Other qualified sound companies included Swanson sound from Oakland, Clair Brothers from Lititz PA, Hanley sound from Boston and Kirnan sound from New York. [12]

McCune thrived in the concert market during the early 1970s and 1980s, and even branched out into stage theatre, supplying equipment for East Coast companies like ProMix and Masque Sound, at the same time creating the famed "wall of sound" for the Grateful Dead, and creating touring systems for Jefferson Airplane, CCR and others.

Employees John Meyer and Bob Cavin created an active speaker system in 1971 known as the JM-3, named for John Meyer. [8] This sound equipment was a three-way loudspeaker, tri-amped system that enclosed the power amplifiers and all of the integrated electronics associated with the loudspeakers in an external equipment rack with few or no controls, the settings having all been calibrated at the audio shop. The fully horn-loaded system was used on CCR's final tour. [13] The amplifier enclosure also included preset crossover filters, limiters and equalization. The outside of the amplifier rack was simple: a two-circuit AC power cable connection, XLR connectors for input audio signal, and two 4-pin female twist-lock NEMA L14-30 connectors for carrying the amplified 3-way audio signal to two JM-3 loudspeakers. [14]

Bob Cavin was a pioneer in designing and building consoles, and systems designed and fabricated at McCune were being used on Broadway, with touring acts and at Las Vegas show rooms. Taking these McCune sound systems out to Broadway was Abe Jacob, who was an early and influential sound designer. Jacob got his start at McCune touring with Peter, Paul and Mary and several other acts. Abe moved to New York and worked on Jesus Christ Superstar , Evita , A Chorus Line , Beatlemania and many other shows using McCune equipment. [15] [16]

A blank McCune name badge from the 1980s. This placard style staff badge was worn by the McCune audio visual technicians and staff at the many in house hotel and convention center accounts where McCune provided contacted audio visual services. McCune namebadge.jpg
A blank McCune name badge from the 1980s. This placard style staff badge was worn by the McCune audio visual technicians and staff at the many in house hotel and convention center accounts where McCune provided contacted audio visual services.

Harry McCune Jr. had little desire to grow the speaker manufacturing process beyond the needs of his immediate clientele, which he believed the mass production of his speakers to sell might detract from his core sound rental business. Several McCune employees saw the future of stage and concert audio, and John Meyer later left McCune to form Meyer Sound Laboratories, while Ken Deloria and Bob Cavin formed Apogee Sound. [17]

Former employees

Notable events

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Audio feedback</span> Howling caused by a circular path in an audio system

Audio feedback is a positive feedback situation that may occur when an acoustic path exists between an audio input and an audio output. In this example, a signal received by the microphone is amplified and passed out of the loudspeaker. The sound from the loudspeaker can then be received by the microphone again, amplified further, and then passed out through the loudspeaker again. The frequency of the resulting howl is determined by resonance frequencies in the microphone, amplifier, and loudspeaker, the acoustics of the room, the directional pick-up and emission patterns of the microphone and loudspeaker, and the distance between them. The principles of audio feedback were first discovered by Danish scientist Søren Absalon Larsen, hence it is also known as the Larsen effect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monterey International Pop Festival</span> Three-day concert in California in 1967

The Monterey International Pop Festival was a three-day music festival held June 16 to 18, 1967, at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California. The festival is remembered for the first major American appearances by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, the Who and Ravi Shankar, the first large-scale public performance of Janis Joplin and the introduction of Otis Redding to a mass American audience.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Public address system</span> Electronic system for amplifying sound

A public address system is an electronic system comprising microphones, amplifiers, loudspeakers, and related equipment. It increases the apparent volume (loudness) of a human voice, musical instrument, or other acoustic sound source or recorded sound or music. PA systems are used in any public venue that requires that an announcer, performer, etc. be sufficiently audible at a distance or over a large area. Typical applications include sports stadiums, public transportation vehicles and facilities, and live or recorded music venues and events. A PA system may include multiple microphones or other sound sources, a mixing console to combine and modify multiple sources, and multiple amplifiers and loudspeakers for louder volume or wider distribution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sound reinforcement system</span> Amplified sound system for public events

A sound reinforcement system is the combination of microphones, signal processors, amplifiers, and loudspeakers in enclosures all controlled by a mixing console that makes live or pre-recorded sounds louder and may also distribute those sounds to a larger or more distant audience. In many situations, a sound reinforcement system is also used to enhance or alter the sound of the sources on the stage, typically by using electronic effects, such as reverb, as opposed to simply amplifying the sources unaltered.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Powered speakers</span> Loudspeaker that have built-in amplifiers

Powered speakers, also known as self-powered speakers and active speakers, are loudspeakers that have built-in amplifiers. Powered speakers are used in a range of settings, including in sound reinforcement systems, both for the main speakers facing the audience and the monitor speakers facing the performers; by DJs performing at dance events and raves; in private homes as part of hi-fi or home cinema audio systems and as computer speakers. They can be connected directly to a mixing console or other low-level audio signal source without the need for an external amplifier. Some active speakers designed for sound reinforcement system use have an onboard mixing console and microphone preamplifier, which enables microphones to be connected directly to the speaker.

Meagher Electronics was a Monterey, California, company which was founded in 1947 by Jim Meagher. It included a recording studio which recorded early demos for Joan Baez, her sister, Mimi Farina and her sister's husband, Richard Farina. The company also repaired all sorts of home entertainment equipment, focusing on professional and semi professional sound equipment and high end home systems. It had a huge, high warehouse space in which literally hundreds of old wooden console radios and phonographs dating back to the 1920s were stacked to the rafters. Meagher used to explain that these had been left by customers who chose not to pick them up instead of paying the repair estimate charges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Professional audio</span> Activity and category of studio-grade audio equipment

Professional audio, abbreviated as pro audio, refers to both an activity and a category of high-quality, studio-grade audio equipment. Typically it encompasses sound recording, sound reinforcement system setup and audio mixing, and studio music production by trained sound engineers, audio engineers, record producers, and audio technicians who work in live event support and recording using mixing consoles, recording equipment and sound reinforcement systems. Professional audio is differentiated from consumer- or home-oriented audio, which are typically geared toward listening in a non-commercial environment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Live sound mixing</span> Blending of multiple sound sources for a live event

Live sound mixing is the blending of multiple sound sources by an audio engineer using a mixing console or software. Sounds that are mixed include those from instruments and voices which are picked up by microphones and pre-recorded material, such as songs on CD or a digital audio player. Individual sources are typically equalised to adjust the bass and treble response and routed to effect processors to ultimately be amplified and reproduced via a loudspeaker system. The live sound engineer listens and balances the various audio sources in a way that best suits the needs of the event.

Meyer Sound Laboratories is an American company based in Berkeley, California that manufactures self-powered loudspeakers, multichannel audio show control systems, electroacoustic architecture, and audio analysis tools for the professional sound reinforcement, fixed installation, and sound recording industries.

ADRaudio is a manufacturer of high-end concert loudspeaker systems based in Novo Mesto, Slovenia. They offer a wide range of self-powered products with internal all-analog processing, as well as rackmount signal processors for system integration.

Wally Heider was an American recording engineer and recording studio owner who refined and advanced the art of studio and remote recording and was instrumental in recording the San Francisco Sound in the late 1960s and early 1970s, recording notable acts including Jefferson Airplane, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Van Morrison, the Grateful Dead, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Santana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Meyer (audio engineer)</span>

John Meyer is a pioneer in the sound reinforcement industry. In 1979 he founded Meyer Sound Laboratories with his wife, Helen Meyer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Live event support</span> All activities required for live performances

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stage monitor system</span> Sound reinforcement for performers

A stage monitor system is a set of performer-facing loudspeakers called monitor speakers, stage monitors, floor monitors, wedges, or foldbacks on stage during live music performances in which a sound reinforcement system is used to amplify a performance for the audience. The monitor system allows musicians to hear themselves and fellow band members clearly.

A coaxial loudspeaker is a loudspeaker system in which the individual driver units radiate sound from the same point or axis. Two general types exist: one is a compact design using two or three speaker drivers, usually in car audio, and the other is a two-way high-power design for professional audio, also known as single-source or dual-concentric loudspeakers. The design is favored for its compactness and behavior as an audio point source.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smaart</span> Audio measurement software

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Dugan (audio engineer)</span> First sound designer; inventor of the automixer

Dan Dugan is an American audio engineer, inventor, and nature sounds recordist. He was the first person in regional theatre to be called a sound designer, and he developed the first effective automatic microphone mixer: the automixer. Dugan's sound design work was acknowledged in 2003 with a Distinguished Career Award by the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, and in 2020 with an Emmy Award for technology relevant to remote working. In 2021 he was awarded Fellowship in the Audio Engineering Society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Professional audio store</span> Retail business

A professional audio store is a retail business that sells, and in many cases rents, sound reinforcement system equipment and PA system components used in music concerts, live shows, dance parties and speaking events. This equipment typically includes microphones, power amplifiers, electronic effects units, speaker enclosures, monitor speakers, subwoofers and audio consoles (mixers). Some professional audio stores also sell sound recording equipment, DJ equipment, lighting equipment used in nightclubs and concerts and video equipment used in events, such as video projectors and screens. Some professional audio stores rent "backline" equipment used in rock and pop shows, such as stage pianos and bass amplifiers. While professional audio stores typically focus on selling new merchandise, some stores also sell used equipment, which is often the equipment that the company has previously rented out for shows and events.

Abe John Jacob is an American sound designer and audio engineer. Called the "Godfather of Sound", Jacob greatly influenced the design of sound reinforcement in modern musical theatre, and was one of the first persons credited in the role of sound designer on Broadway, with a sound designer credit in Playbill in 1971.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Cavin</span> American audio engineer (born 1940)

Robert Vernon Cavin is an American audio engineer who built the first monitor mixing console, the first multi-angle monitor loudspeaker, and the first integrated processing/amplifier package for a 3-way loudspeaker. He was chief engineer of McCune Sound in San Francisco in the 1970s, and also vice president in the 1980s. In 1992 he accepted the chief engineer position at Apogee Sound where he designed the DA Series Class-H digitally controlled amplifier, winning the 1994 TCI Product of the Year Award. In 2000 he joined Furman Sound, and designed an interface system for Smaart users, and a new power conditioning system. Cavin's electronic designs were nominated five times for TEC Awards, in 1994, 1995, 1997, 1999 and 2001.

References

  1. ↑ "McCune Audio Video Lighting Switches to Sennheiser wireless (Lighting and Sound America Online)". Archived from the original on October 2, 2011.
  2. ↑ "Shepard Announces Acquisition of McCUNE Audio-Video-Lighting". www.shepardav.com. Archived from the original on 2017-12-06.
  3. ↑ Schopf, Fiona Jane (2019-01-24). Music on Stage Volume III. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN   978-1-5275-2695-2.
  4. ↑ "Bay Region Business". 20. San Francisco Chamber of Commerce. 1963: 49.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. ↑ "Journal of the SMPTE". 78. Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers. 1969: 490.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  6. ↑ "AES In Memoriam Harry McCune" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 26, 2012.
  7. ↑ Staff (November 29, 1969). "McCune Sound Turned on by Rock" (PDF). Billboard. p. 49.
  8. 1 2 "Mix Magazine, McCune Sound profile". Archived from the original on July 18, 2008.
  9. ↑ TED2014 Speaks Up With DPA Microphones
  10. ↑ Mort Feld was the main sound mixer for this concert, in addition to mixing the Monterey Pop Festivals. Mr. Feld later became the General Manager at McCune, and spearheaded McCune's drive into the hotel and convention center, providing staff, and rentals in the audio visual market. McCune formally provided the in house audio visual staff at many large hotels and convention centers throughout California, including the Moscone Center in San Francisco, The Disneyland Hotel, The Queen Mary, The Ritz Carlton in Laguna Beach, and the Doubletree Hotel in Orange, California. Audio Necessity Mothers Invention Archived 2011-06-04 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ↑ McNally, Dennis (2003). A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead. Random House. p. 155. ISBN   0-7679-1186-5.
  12. ↑ Clair Brochure: Over 40 Years Of Audio Excellence
  13. ↑ "Transcript PSW LIVE CHAT with John Meyer".
  14. ↑ "Necessity Mothers Invention". Archived from the original on 2011-06-04. Retrieved 2011-07-01. Necessity Mothers Invention
  15. ↑ "Meyer Sound History". Archived from the original on 2016-12-24. Retrieved 2011-07-01.
  16. ↑ Stevens, Gary; George, Alan (1995). The longest line: Broadway's most singular sensation, A Chorus Line. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 75. ISBN   1-55783-221-8.
  17. ↑ "Show Business San Francisco Sound". Archived from the original on 2012-03-22. Retrieved 2011-07-01.
  18. ↑ Hammar, Peter (1994). "Charles P. Ginsburg". Memorial Tributes. National Academy of Engineering. 7: 85. ISBN   0-309-05146-0.
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