You wouldn't think about using a camera without any type of viewfinder, so why would you want to boom a shot without headphones? The boom operator must be able to monitor not only the audio that his/her microphone is picking up, but also all of the audio from any open mics in play during the shot.

It has been said that if you were to ask 300 professional sound mixers to describe their idea of a perfect soundcart, you would get at least 500 different answers!

Sometimes you just really have to wonder what the heck those minds at Avid were thinking? I have recently tried upgrading to Media Composer 6 and learned that it is incompatible with any current or previous installations of Pinnacle Liquid, Pinnacle Studio, or Avid Studio. But there is an easy solution.