Mobile Electronics Australia

Scott Buwalda, IASCA World Champion and Hybrid Audio Technologies Founder, in conjunction with Mobile Electronics Australia is seeking expressions of interest in a one day only workshop "Sound Quality Fundamentals & Advanced Techniques". To be held on the 3rd January 2012, the one day workshop offers an intensive look at sound quality and how it applies to a vehicle and draws upon Scott's wealth of information. This is an opportunity not to be missed so you must express your interest now.

For those that don't know, Scott has achieved the highest ever score achieved in IASCA competition, worldwide, as well as since launching one of the worlds most successful brands of car audio speakers in sound quality competition, Hybrid Audio Technologies. Scott has a wealth of information to share, and has conducted many of these workshops around the world with great success.

Scott's award winning car, Black Betty was also featured on MEA last year.

Due to logistics and time constraints we will not be able to offer this in other locations so if you are from another state it would be worthwhile to grab a cheap flight and come along.

The outline of the course is as follows:

First session (1.5 - 2 hours)

• Seminar introduction
• Audience introductions
• Review of course objectives
• Sound: "Fundamentals" Discussion - an introductory discussion of sound that will be used later on to reference and tie everything together. This is, in essence, the practical theories of sound and is important in understanding how we hear, and therefore how to properly set up a sound system.
• Sound & Phasing: Discussion of phase.
• Sound Pressure Level: Discussion of measurement, where human hearing can readily detect differences, power, compression, distance, etc.
• The Human Auditory System: Discussion of the human ear as a transducer, frequency spectrum of human hearing, dynamic range, hearing threshold, automatic gain control, temporal synchronization, accuracy.
• Ear Structure – Outer Ear: Signal processing and directional cues.
• Ear Structure – Middle Ear: Conversion of acoustic energy into electrochemical impulses and impedance transformation.
• Ear Structure – Inner Ear: Pressure waves and wave propagation, the basilar membrane, corti and stereocilia, basilar membrane frequency tuning, discussion of cochlea acting as a "spectrum analyzer", etc.
• How We Perceive Sound: Localization, arrival time, amplitude, acoustic shadow, acoustic precedence effect, etc.

Second session (About 1 hour)

• Application: This is the transition from theory into application. Discussion of arrival times, sound frequencies, localization (including the lack of the ability to localize low frequency information), wavelength as it applies to inside a car, pure tones and non-pure tones, sensitivity to various frequencies, etc.

LUNCH (provided)

Third Session (About 5 - 6 hours with a break half-way through)

This is the application of the morning sessions

• Imaging
• Staging
• Tonal Accuracy
• Awesome Sound Quality
• Bass in Front or Bass in Back?
• Electrical Verses Mechanical
• Electrical Problems
• Mechanical Problems
• Problems and Solutions
• Phasing
• Level Setting
• Crossovers
• Equalization
• Power Supply

• Q&A (we will stay until every question has been addressed and hopefully answered)

The conference is very interactive. The first session is technical and Scott speaking almost exclusively. The second and third sessions will be application, hands-on training, listening evaluations, and attendees are encouraged to participate. A few small laboratory exercises will also be performed, which is fun for everyone to get involved with.

The tentative cost at this stage is $250.00 per head for the entire day, with lunch provided. Numbers will be limited, so expressions of interest are necessary now. A 50% deposit will be required by ~ July / August this year, with the balance payable within (7) days of the conference itself.

If we receive enough interest, then this will go ahead and we will provide more information, details and specifics and start accepting deposits. If for any reason the conference does not go ahead, all monies paid will be returned.

Genuine Expressions of Interest should be posted to the official discussion thread.