Review: 2Q Intelligent Talkback Remote by Marc Alan Goodman

November 2nd, 2011 by Marc Alan Goodman

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Communication is vital in any recording studio, but the separation between the musicians and engineer will strain the conversation without a proper workaround.

Artists often come into the studio ready to bare their souls which can lead to extremely personal, and productive interactions during a session. However, in most studios there is more than a figurative wall between the musicians and the engineer.

Since that wall went up engineers have been looking for ways to get around it, to enable an ongoing dialog so the musician does not feel like they’re trapped alone in a fishbowl.

2Q: "The Intelligent Talkback Remote"

The obvious solution has been the talkback button – simply, a microphone in the control room which allows the engineers, producers, or whoever is isolated from the musician to share their input. Originally the talkback mic was just left on all the time, but in order to prevent feedback through the studio’s monitors it has over time been connected to a simple momentary switch. This switch is the only thing preventing clear communication between the two rooms, and it always seems to do a good job of it.

Our control room – at Strange Weather – has become crowded with gear over the past few years, and as a result it’s difficult for anyone other than the engineer to sit at the desk itself. When another band member, producer, or anyone else in the room wants to be able to speak with a musician in isolation they have to get right into the engineer’s space. To top it off, when conversations get excited people often forget to press the button and end up talking to themselves.

The 2Q Wireless Talkback Remote system – developed by Techshop NY – is not a new idea. I’ve worked in a number of SSL rooms over the years where the house tech had rigged up a similar wireless talkback system using garage door openers. However they were always directional, never seemed to work right, ran on batteries which died quickly and you had to be able to build it yourself.

The 2Q solves all of those problems.

The package includes two remote controls, a receiver, and a wall wart power supply. At our request it came wired up to interface with our API 1608, so all we had to do was plug in the 5-pin XLR to the remote port on the desk and plug in the attached wall wart. The remote controls could then activate the talkback microphone from anywhere in the room.

First things first, as soon as we had it plugged in I moved from the desk to the couch while the musician was warming up. We were tracking some preliminaries for the new Alfonso Velez album, and the drummer wanted an opportunity to get used to the kit and move things around.

Normally I would sit at the desk so I could quickly answer any questions he may have or make any adjustments to the cue mix. However this time I got my head out of the computer monitor and was able to respond in a timely manner by using the remote.

Once we got going I gave the remotes to the bass player, who was in the control room, and the drummer who was in the live room. Alfonso had a scratch vocal mic set up so it was easy for him to communicate, but not so easy for other people to reply. Now, when the bassist had something to say to the drummer he didn’t need to lean over and get my attention at the desk, he could simply push a button. The drummer, on the other hand, didn’t need the button to talk, but whenever he felt like something was going on in the control room that he couldn’t hear all he had to do was press the button and he was part of the conversation.

The 2Q system is made by Mike Donahower out of Tech Shop NY.

After the session we spent a bunch of time trying to trick the 2Q. We put the remotes under pillows, we brought them down the hall, and no matter what we did they worked flawlessly.

The 2Q is a simple solution for a simple problem, and it does a fantastic job of it. It may not be in the signal chain, but it’s amazing how much improving communication can improve both people’s moods and their performances. I’d been considering building my own system for the same purpose, and now that I have it running I can’t believe I put it off for so long.

– Marc Alan Goodman, Strange Weather Brooklyn

The 2Q Wireless Talkback Remote ($270) is available through Redco Distribution or directly from Tech Shop NY via http://www.twocue.com.

Marc Alan Goodman is a producer/engineer who’s worked with artists such as Jolie Holland, Marc Ribot Shudder to Think, Dub Trio, Normal Love, Alfonso Velez, Angel Deradoorian and Pink Skull.