Macs played key role at 2008 Grammys

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Macs played key role at 2008 Grammys

Feb
19

By: switchtoamac at: 5:03 PM on February 19, 2008 | Comments (0)

I recently came across an article that I wanted to share as it highlights the level at which creative professionals rely on the Macintosh. The February 11, 2008 article titled 'APPLE MACS RULE BACKSTAGE AT GRAMMYS' posted at DigitalArts was authored by Jim Dalrymple. He provides some key insights into the level Macs had at the 2008 Grammys.

It starts off by mentioning that there was a high concentration of Macs backstage and the importance of Macs to the event:

"It takes a lot to put on a production on the scale of Sunday night's Grammy Awards. To present the annual music industry honors to the attendees at Los Angeles' Staples Center and to home viewers on CBS, show organizers use more than 450 microphones, 155 tons of lighting, 13,000 amps of power, 19 video screens, 94 speaker cabinets – and an endless amount of Macs."

"You may have assumed that Macs played a large role in putting on what has become the largest audio production on television. But until you sit in on a rehearsal for the telecast, as audio engineers are hard at work mixing the 35 songs that will be performed during Sunday's ceremony, and see how extensively Macs are involved in the process, it's hard to fathom just how central the Mac has become to the Grammys."

At the rehearsal prior to the event Macs also played a key role but at only a fraction of what they were used at the live event:

"During Thursday's rehearsal, it was easy to lose count of the number of Macs in the production truck. But there are 14 Macs on board, according to Joel Singer, audio engineer in charge for XM Production/Effanel. That includes MacBook Pros, Mac Pros, G5s, and a G4 capturing video from the stage. Singer said that the Grammy production team has always used Macs to produce the show's audio, and it will continue to do so."

"This pair of Macs are just a drop in the bucket when it comes to the Mac hardware responsible for putting on Sunday's Grammy ceremony."

Dalrymple goes on to quote Singer who states that Windows isn't used:

"Windows frightens me to death," said Singer. "I know it, and I know it well - that's why we chose the Mac instead of Vista or XP."

You can read the article here

Switch To A Mac Commentary
The article provides real-world insight into how Macs are used by creative professionals in real-time live production events. It further demonstrates the Apple Macintosh footprint in the video and audio industry.