It can't be understated how much this humble man contributed to live audio engineering. He basically invented the concept of large concert PA systems as we know it today. He's also still playing the large Wurlitzer organ at the Fox Theater in St Louis at age 82.
I attended a very interesting and enjoyable seminar Bob gave at one of my courses in the early`80s. I still have a copy of Practical Guide For Concert Sound that we were given that day:) A wonderful and knowledgeable person he is.
I met Bob at Fiddlers Music in Detroit 1979ish doing a seminar with the rig he brought with him and will never forget how humble he was or how good it sounded
Bob Heil is in a category of his own and he is quite modest about it all. He is in love with amateur radio, too, which is what got him started with electronics. By the way, Joe Walsh (the rocker, not the politician) is a "ham" radio aficionado and started with that when he was kid in New York City! He's still a devoted ham, in fact, with call sign WB6ACU. Bob's is K9EID. Thanks for this wonderful video!
I have 3 Heil Fin mics, and the Heil Heritage mic. I sang live with it this morning. I really like Bob's mics. Mics are personal to the performer, but Heil's mics are a great option to try.
This is well done, yet, I guess I wanted someone to whine more about an aspect of this; to wit: I can’t think of any other examples of something as important as sound reinforcement, continue to be recognized largely as a footnote, included in event-planning phases only as an afterthought, and one of those paradoxical axioms of engineering wherein overall success and effectiveness can be accurately measured by its transparency… in other words, the only time it will get any attention is when it fails. In many instances, it holds the distinction of being the very last thing considered, if considered at all. The manifestation of this is regularly seen when directors, almost at the last minute, will be seen asking the janitor, or the security guard “could we maybe get some mics (or speakers, because they often say one, when they mean the other) - set up for dress rehearsal or at least opening night?” Or, a large conference room, the dreaded ‘cafetorium’, or “fellowship hall”- where the general contractor will spec-in some additional ceiling speakers, just like the ones in the hallway, lobby, foyer and restrooms; along with some combination mixer/amp, bolted to a wall of an adjacent closet where the folding chairs and tables are kept, all mounted within a lockable steel cabinet designed to house a security system panel, and/or the main control box for the telephone system. The mixer/amp might boast as many as FOUR discreet channels, which have cabled to mic input wall plugs spaced around the room. All this just because he doesn’t want to hear about it later when “There’s no mic! You didn’t put in a mic?!?” One of the best t-shirts I’ve seen said: “I am the sound engineer. I solve problems you don’t know you have, using things you can’t understand. “
