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Getting a Kick Out of Kickstarter

Kickstarter, the crowdfunding website, always makes for an browse, offering plenty of entertainment—and occasionally a glimpse of the future—as people raise money to bring their dream projects to life. Some efforts grab lots of attention (and cash), and others struggle to get enough donations to buy a cup of coffee, but they’re always interesting to check out. Here’s a few recent audio-related ones we stumbled across, ranging from studios to 3D microphones to unusual IEMs to a documentary we've mentioned before....

Kickstarter, the crowdfunding website, always makes for an interesting browse, offering plenty of entertainment—and occasionally a glimpse of the future—as people raise money to bring their dream projects to life. Some efforts grab lots of attention (and cash), and others struggle to get enough donations to buy a cup of coffee, but they’re always fascinating to check out. Here’s a few recent audio-related ones we stumbled across:

New Noise Group—Free Recording for Artists plus Music Education for Students: NNG is a registered non-profit in Los Angeles that is looking to raise $25,000 to “provide artists with free professional studio recording, mixing, and mastering services. By taking money out of the equation, the artist’s creative process is uninhibited to create their true vision of their record. In addition, we’ll open up this creative environment to students for hands-on learning as well as dedicated classes to learn everything about the recording process from pre-production all the way to mastering.”

Some of those classes would tentatively include: Introduction to Music Production; Recording for the Home Studio; Pro Tools 101; Logic 101; Reason 101; Microphones & Microphone Techniques; Critical Listening & Ear Training; Mixing Techniques; and Mastering Techniques. Classes would run between $20 and $50 per student per session. To find out more, visit http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/newnoise/free-recording-for-artists-plus-music-education-fo

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Brahma Affordable Ambisonics Microphone: This project, aiming to raise $25,000, is looking to create a high-quality electrets-based, phase-accurate, ambisonics microphone that captures the true 3-dimensional representation of an acoustical ambiance. The team behind it says, “We have designed and packaged the entire microphone system to be affordable, easy to set up and simple to use without sacrificing the quality of the recording.”

The mic is composed of four cardioid capsules mounted on a 3D-printed tetrahedron and then finished in stainless steel mesh and a two-piece ring. The mic is intended to work with a modified Zoom H2 or H2N by removing the supplied microphone capsules in the recorder and mounting a 5-pin Amphenol connector in its place, allowing the Zoom H2 or H2N to act as a four-channel recorder, but the mic can also be used with an adaptor on any phantom-equipped four-channel recorder. Learn more at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1569945514/brahma-affordable-ambisonics-microphone?ref=live

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Decibullz custom-remoldable earbuds: These are consumer earbuds, and while those usually don’t fall under the purview of PSN, the intriguing concept behind them might be something you’ll see in the pro IEM sector somewhere down the line.

The Kickstarter entry reads, “The Decibullz earphone mold is composed of a non-toxic and biodegradable thermoplastic that makes the molding process remarkably simple: The mold is heated in water, either by microwave or on the kitchen stove, and allowed to cool to slightly above room temperature. The user then presses the mold to his ear, molding it to an exact fit in about four minutes. Once the material has cured, the user has an amazingly comfortable earphone that will never fall out. If the fit isn’t perfect the first time, Decibullz can be remolded until you get the fit you want. It is the only custom earphone system in the world that is re-moldable.” Get more info at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1960846098/decibullz-easy-and-affordable-custom-molded-earpho

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The Wrecking Crew Documentary: We’ve talked about this one before, back when they were planning to do a Kickstarter campaign to raise the last $250,000 needed to finish off this classic movie (and we can actually say that, having seen it a few times at AES and NAMM). This one’s worth throwing your hard-earned bucks at, especially since rewards range from Hal Blaine autographed items to studio time at some of the renowned studios where The Wrecking Crew recorded. Over 1,000 people have backed this Kickstarter project so far, but they still need help and you can find out more at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wreckingcrew/the-wrecking-crew-doc-untold-story-of-rock-and-rol

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