About
Currently working for Norwest Productions, previously worked as the head technician at Jands Pty. Ltd. for about 10 years, doing mainly audio and RF repairs. I specialise in Crown amplifiers, and Shure Radio mics and IEM systems, and am currently the only factory qualified Shure technician in Australia. The majority of repair work for radio mics and in-ear gear comes across my desk, and 100% of the warranty work. There are not too many faults I have not experienced working with this gear.
Being asked to come on-site by a lot of the large production companies to diagnose issues with their radio setup was what started the ball rolling. Starting with the Sydney 2000 Olympics ceremonies, then Athens, Commonwealth games, etc. My area of expertise has definitely pointed itself to the large arena type event, the event where the setup starts months before the show, and the show lasts for one night. But it's these jobs that present the most challenges; large audiences, Television coverage (quite often live worldwide), and only one chance to get it right. Radio being what it is, there are a lot of possibilities for things to go wrong, and everything must be done while battling environmental interference and radio interference, right from setup up till minutes before the show, as broadcasters and others start powering up and using their own RF devices.
Many procedures have evolved, and a lot of custom built equipment has been built over the years to make the radio systems more reliable, and gain greater coverage than would be possible from of the shelf equipment, from custom transmitters, to RF amplifiers and antennas. Most of this equipment has been developed for Norwest Productions, based in Sydney, and is the owner of the majority of this gear.
Having a reasonable background in RF and audio has created a combination that works well with the remainder of the audio team, especially knowing what is required and what will and wont work before system designs are made, and cabling is run.