Achieving Recorded Sound In A Live Environment

BulbousMoses · #1 01-26-2011, 07:46 AM

Just wondering if it's actually possible to get the same sound you hear on a recording in a live environment. It occured to me that a lot of us hear a track or have a favorite artist whose music we listen to on CD or MP3 etc. In other words, their "produced" sound. Then we try to duplicate that sound in a live setting. But is it really possible to do this? The live environment is very different from the studio and there are so many variables in different live settings that I almost wonder if it's somewhat of a waste of time to try to get the studio sound...any thoughts?

DWBass · #2 01-26-2011, 08:02 AM

Yeah, if everyone is patched into the PA, a feed can certainly be sent to a recording device. Most pro recordings are done in multitrack setups but a decent stereo recording can be had. Soundman has to know what he's doing though. You can't fix levels on a non multitrack recording.

BulbousMoses · #3 01-26-2011, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DWBass

Yeah, if everyone is patched into the PA, a feed can certainly be sent to a recording device. Most pro recordings are done in multitrack setups but a decent stereo recording can be had. Soundman has to know what he's doing though. You can't fix levels on a non multitrack recording.

No, I think I phrased my question wrong. I'm not talking about recording my live sound. I'm asking if it's possible to duplicate a recorded sound in a live environment.

joshwilkesbooth · #4 01-26-2011, 08:16 AM

Yeah. All you need is super fantastic gear and perfect playing technique.

BulbousMoses · #5 01-26-2011, 08:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshwilkesbooth

Yeah. All you need is super fantastic gear and perfect playing technique.

But even then, wouldn't environmental factors affect the sound to the extent that it would be quite a different sound? I mean, XYZ bar doesn't have the same acoustic/sound properties as Abbey Road Studio 2 does so you'll only hope to get close and even then, only if you have the super fantastic gear and perfect technique.

Fuzzbass · #6 01-26-2011, 08:29 AM

In the studio, instruments are isolated and the studio is acoustically damped. Playing live, there's all kinds of bleed-through and unless you're very lucky the acoustic environment is likely poor.

Also, studio gear is probably better quality than the average live system.

So... just do your best to replicate your recorded sound. But what really matters live is how well you sit in the mix... tonal nuances will likely be lost.

BulbousMoses · #7 01-26-2011, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fuzzbass

In the studio, instruments are isolated and the studio is acoustically damped. Playing live, there's all kinds of bleed-through and unless you're very lucky the acoustic environment is likely poor.

Also, studio gear is probably better quality than the average live system.

So... just do your best to replicate your recorded sound. But what really matters live is how well you sit in the mix... tonal nuances will likely be lost.

That's what I was looking for. No sense chasing something that's virtually impossible to achieve. Ok, now I can relax a bit

FunkMetalBass · #8 01-26-2011, 08:55 AM

Few bands ever pull it off decently, and even then, there are still minor differences.

5string5fingers · #9 01-26-2011, 08:58 AM

I remember hearing someone say once if a band sounds like the recording live, to just go home. You can listen to that in your car.

kevteop · #10 01-26-2011, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fuzzbass

In the studio, instruments are isolated and the studio is acoustically damped. Playing live, there's all kinds of bleed-through and unless you're very lucky the acoustic environment is likely poor.

Plus even if you did have the gear and expertise to get a record-quality sound front of house, you'd need to be in a venue big enough that nobody could hear the backline, not to mention having a stage big enough to get decent isolation on the mics. Even then you'd need a weird stage set-up.

Definitely not an ideal worth pursuing, unless you're U2.

**Coolhandjjl** · #11 01-26-2011, 09:13 AM

Listening to my JBL's and Cerwin Vega's in my living room with their 20~20Khz response is really sweet. Full deep bass, crystal clear highs, etc. But live, you have wind noise, dropped mics, yanked cords, strings banging on pickups, etc., etc. Plus, deep 20hz response at concert volumes can be nauseating.

rockstarbassist · #12 01-26-2011, 10:59 AM

Hardly anyone can pull it off, even big boys like Muse, Tool, etc.. It's better to get a workable tone live that's actually IN the mix. :thu:

Bassamatic · #13 01-26-2011, 11:26 AM

We have had a couple of live recordings that were not too bad, but certainly not studio quality.
1. Outdoors so there was no acoustics problems
2. Good mics and recorder. My little Zoom H2 does a pretty good job and you can connect external mics.
3. Decent sound and mix to begin with

Munjibunga · #14 01-26-2011, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joshwilkesbooth

Yeah. All you need is super fantastic gear and perfect playing technique.

... and an excellent sound man. The answer is probably no, but why do you want to anyway? The point of going to a live performance is not to listen to the recording, but to experience the music with all the environmental factors. The crowd noise alone will make any differences less evident. I've never been to a concert at which the band sounded just like the recording.

rockstarbassist · #15 01-26-2011, 12:12 PM

I'd also add, that you could get close to "studio quality sound" if you have a top-notch IEM system, with a top-notch monitor mix engineer to boot.
However for the average guy in the crowd, nope.

pgolliher · #16 01-26-2011, 12:23 PM

There are lots of factors that make this difficult, but at the very least you need a great soundman and low stage volume.(no guitar players constantly turning up!) Drum isolation or electronic drums would probably help. Personally, I like the sound of a live band even if it is different from the recordings, a good mix is a good mix.

projectMalamute · #17 01-26-2011, 12:49 PM

I like how live bands sound.

I think most 'well produced' records sound pretty stupid. Generally the more produced, the more stupid sounding.

Some of the best sounding shows I've seen have had little to no PA support, just the band right there with no intermediary to screw things up. Maybe a couple speaker boxes for the vocals. All sorts of different kinds of bands can sound very good all by themselves before you start 'producing', from the BSO at Symphony Hall in Boston to the Jesus Lizard at the Heidelberg in Ann Arbor.

I'm still waiting for a recording that sounds as good as the real thing.

If you need all sorts of technical gimmicks and massive amounts of intervention from a sound guy you are simply not a very good sounding band. I'd work on that. Practice together as a band until you really sound, right there in the room, better than a recording. It is absolutely doable.

rockstarbassist · #18 01-26-2011, 01:09 PM

Amazing. Solving FOH/soudguy issues just takes "practice". Those old farts and their "EQ"...

projectMalamute · #19 01-26-2011, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rockstarbassist

Amazing. Solving FOH/soudguy issues just takes "practice". Those old farts and their "EQ"...

This is 100% true.

99% of the problems involved in getting a band to sound good in the FOH can be solved by getting the band to actually sound good.

A band incapable of just turning on the amps and creating a good ensemble sound by themselves will never be better than mediocre, no matter how many IEM's and plexiglass shields they have.

Jimbob Jones · #20 01-26-2011, 01:20 PM

Pink Floyd tried to get very close to studio sound on their 'The Wall' tour. Onstage everybody wore Beyer DT100 earphones (yep, the really, really chunky ones) and AFAIK there were no big amps on stage, just a couple of 'studio' amps out the back which were fed back into said earphones. There was an awful lot of acoustic treatment on and around the stage.

There's some quite good info on that tour about if you go for a dig...it definitely makes interesting reading!