The ABTT Silver Award Courses are SCQF Level 8 qualifications which are recognised throughout the Industry. This is a practical course which intertwines theory and practice to ensure your day-to-day skills are validated while helping you specialise and refine your skill set for certain roles.

What is the Silver Award for Sound Technicians?

The Silver Award is a five day course which gives candidates more in-depth knowledge and understanding of best practice in the subject. It allows candidates to specialise further and validate experience in a specific area whilst progressing on from the Bronze Award.

Who can do the course?

Candidates wanting to pursue the Silver Award for Sound Technicians should have gained the knowledge and skills covered by the Bronze Award prior to considering undertaking this course.

How is the course structured?

The course is split in to six sections, these include:

1. Electronics Fundamentals Part One

2. Electronics Fundamentals – Part Two

3. Sound Communications

4. Sound Essentials

5. Advanced Sound

6. Electrical Equipment Testing (EET/PAT Testing)

The training is followed by the Silver Award Test.

What is covered in the course?

Courses 1 and 2: Electronics Fundamentals teach basic electronic theory and soldering skills, passive-basic semiconductor components, simple circuits, common power components and fuses. Kirchoff’s Laws, AC/DC, power, energy, resistor networks, capacitor networks, inductors, transformers, switches and electronic switches, potential divider circuits, passive filters, impedance, diodes & LEDs, AC rectification, fuses, MCBs, RCDs. Sensors, actuators and Boolean logic are also included.

Course 3: Sound Communications covers communication systems in theatre required to run smooth shows. Wired headsets systems, show relay and paging, cue lights, CCTV, analogue, digital wireless talkback systems, and how to interface several systems together.

Course 4: Sound Essentials covers important theoretical knowledge you need to understand, such as
fundamentals of sound, making the right connections, gain structure, signal to noise ratio, loudspeaker impedance, microphone types & digital theory.

Course 5: Advanced Sound covers theoretical and practical skills including sound wave theory, digital theory, MIDI, harmonic series, acoustics, reverberation time, Has effect, drawing sound system plans, computerised playback system and the knowledge to design sound systems for musical theatre.

Course 6: Electrical Equipment Testing (EET/PAT Testing) will set out systems to organise In-Service Inspection & Testing of Electrical Equipment (EET/PAT testing) of theatre electrical equipment and how to comply with the Electricity at Work Regulations for inspection & testing. The course includes visual inspection and electrical testing; testing periods; record keeping; system of inspection and testing; selection of suitable testing instruments, inspection requirements and the need to ‘risk assess’ the requirement for inspections and test.