#a/v

[borealisinmay-blog]

[eskilddood]

old tech!!!

Bought another VCR (Sony SLV-SX710)

and this cheap-ass little guy (EWETRONICS A/S Model 703)

[opendirectories]

[techav]

It's been quite some time since I last wrote anything about A/V, despite it being my url and the reason I created this blog in the first place. But I find myself back in that world full-time these days, and the news this week is just disturbing enough to make it past the filter.

As reported by Commercial Integrator, Acuity Brands is set to purchase A/V manufacturer QSC for over $1B.

QSC has been well known for decades in the live events and performance venue A/V verticals, and over the past 15 years has made quite a name for themselves with a solid DSP-turned-control-system platform, Q-Sys.

Acuity is mostly known for lighting and lighting controls. Their proprietary nLight system has been the go-to for renovations and new construction at the last three higher education institutions I worked for.

My work in A/V and my work in IT management has often required working with building trades outside of those two. I've built A/V systems that interfaced with lighting systems. I've helped bring building automation systems online and tied them together. If it has wires, at some point I've probably been responsible for maintaining it and keeping it communicating with something else.

I have used and reverse-engineered proprietary systems. I worked with commercial products with hard-coded back-door passwords. I've supported devices where UI/UX clearly didn't even reach the level of an afterthought. I've installed devices that couldn't actually do even half of what they were advertised to do. I've integrated devices that transmitted passwords cleartext over the network.

And then I met Acuity.

I have had the misfortune of working with a few different lighting control systems that fall under the umbrella of Acuity Brands and I don't feel it's hyperbole when I say, each was worse than the last. Every technological sin imaginable I have met in the unholy abominations that Acuity Brands produces. (And if by chance you're reading this and work in some capacity with Facilities IT, for the love of god get those devices off your network)

I actually liked QSC. They made some decent products. I have CX-series amplifiers that survived decades of abuse and are still in service. Their Q-Sys platform was a joy to use in a segment that was always overly-complicated.

I did have some concerns about the direction of QSC after seeing they were outsourcing engineering and development jobs. But based on my experience with other products from Acuity Brands, I no longer have any faith in the future output of QSC. I expect we will see the brand languish from here, culminating in a scandalous CVE disclosure rivalling that from AMX in 2017.

[bluekazenateartblog]

A gift for my buddy @yaroshienva

With these two....this is moments before chaos, its better to run lol

Art/Blue(c) @bluekazenateartblog @bluekazenatemain

AV(c) @yaroshienva

DO NOT USE, EDIT OR REPOST MY WORK

[anonymousweekly]

Me normally vs me when I see you

[slasheru]

are there analog horror classes at a/v program? or is it not considered as actual movies because... well, they're not actual movies. but it still includes a lot of filming and picturing and stuff

For SURE. I like to think they treat it like filming a biopic, but there's ALSO a super strong culture of making your own horror movies (fiction based) at Slasher U (the casting choices at hand are perfect AND competitive).... although there's an EQUALLY strong "documentary" culture that's pretty much just IRL horror films, lol.

[justablanketdragon]

Happy pride to all trans cables out there.

[mintbecrazy]

@voparwave69

I plugged 3 consoles into one A/V port for maximum gaming.

[cemeterygrace]

reminders:

if you or someone you know might need it in the next few years, purchase plan b. the shelf life of plan b is 4 years, and we might not be able to access it as easily as we can now in the days ahead.

if you are larger/plus size: go online and purchase ella instead of plan b. plan b is less effective if you aren’t under 160 pounds.

if you can, purchase books that project 2025 is looking to ban.

mass deportations are starting. if you see ice vehicles or agents, yell ice raid and la migra as loud as you can.

if someone asks who you voted for, keep your mouth shut. they’re fishing for traitors.

if anyone, anyone at all asks about your neighbors or their legal status in the us, you know nothing. don’t be the reason that their family is separated.

if anyone asks about your religion or lack thereof, keep it vague. this administration will look for any excuse to persecute you.

your friends are trans or queer? for the next four years they’re not. don’t expose anyone’s status as a trans or queer person to anyone else, even if you think you can trust them.

did someone you know get an abortion? no, they didn’t. they were never pregnant.

in short, don’t be a snitch, and keep to yourself these next four years. we’ll make it through this even if it seems hopeless at times.

we can survive this. we’ve survived before, and we’ll survive again.

[borealisinmay-blog]

Update on the painting!

[eskilddood]

Nordmende Multi-Rekorder 430a

An extremely 70's West German cassette recorder with all the features you need. Came with a bag and microphone (and microphone stand!) and an earbud with vintage earwax. Cleaned it and it looks surprisingly great, sounds terrible though, not that I expected the internal speaker on a tape player this old would be hifi. It reeks of cigarettes, which isn't surprising either.

This is a friend. It has a soul. It has lived its life someplace else, and now it lives here.

[izzy-mccalla]

rip mythbusters you would've loved destroying cybertrucks

[zanubya]

dont delete your zero note post. i will be there in 15 hours.