Who Thinks Sound Checks Are a Waste of Time?

[plangentmusic]

Not sure about the forum, but this concerns playing live.

I'm not anti-sound check, but I believe in most clubs, they're pointless, and most soundmen are clueless --especially when it comes to the bass.

For one thing, amp volume is usually sufficient for most clubs, but the soundmen MUST have you go through the P.A. Of course, they check, and balance and EQ every instrument. But haven't they done that already a million times? How many time do you have to see what the appropriate volume and EQ is for the room? Besides, that all changes when the room gets full or the band plays more aggressively during a performance.

And don't you love it when they say "TURN DOWN -- I'll turn you up OUT HERE."

That's when I say, "Hey dude, it's your job to make ME sound good -- not my job to make YOUR job easier. I need to hear myself. "

Then they adjust, and adjust, and adjust and then say "There's a low end hum -- it must be the bass player."

The kicker is , the few times I played serious concert halls, the sound check took all of 1 minute for each instrument. That's because they know what they're doing.

I'm at the point where I make excises for not making a sound check that just forces me to hang around the club an extra 3 hours before I play. A good player knows when his balance is correct. It ain't quantum physics.

Anyone else?

[FunkMetalBass]

Originally Posted by plangentmusic

And don't you love it when they say "TURN DOWN -- I'll turn you up OUT HERE."

That's when I say, "Hey dude, it's your job to make ME sound good -- not my job to make YOUR job easier. I need to hear myself. "

This quote alone shows extreme ignorance on your part. If you're going through FOH, your amp is only a monitor. If it's too low to the ground, angle it up so that it's facing your ear and can turn it down. Maybe you and the band need to work on your EQing and stage volume so that each player can play at a reasonable volume and still hear themselves.

The soundman's job is to mix all of you and balance out a room. If every band sounded good without a FOH, then sure - he could set and forget with very mild master fader adjustments. However, ignorant knobs play all night long with atrocious volume (that bleeds into the FOH, destroying the sound guy's work), no knowledge of their overall mix, and then get pissed off at the sound guy when an hour and a few 20-foot patch cables would allow them to figure out how to sound good on stage.

[Din Of Win]

IME, the sound check is one of the MOST important parts of a set...

[nealw]

Sure, it's his job to make you sound good, but if he has to turn everything else up too loud for the room or for the PA to match your stage volume it won't sound good. Sometimes you really need to turn down and you can't always tell that from on stage. Plus, IME, if there's a low-end hum, it often is a ground loop between the the bass amp & the PA. Food for thought.

[Art Araya]

don't agree with this post at all bro - sorry. Sound checks are so important!

Of course the sound man needs to be competent, the band needs to be competent, and they need to be working together or else it can be a waste of time...

[Hugh9191]

With my limited experience as a soundman and someone who has been to a fair few gigs I can say that music sounds far better when it is everything is going through FOH and is leveled and EQd properly. Otherwise it often sounds a mess with something dominating and drowning stuff out and everything just competing in the mix.

It is far, far, far easier to get a good sound out of a band if you can control every instrument's level.

[interstatejoe]

I can't say I agree either. Perhaps a sound check with a someone who doesn't know what their doing is a waste of time. I always set up my gear which takes all of 2 mins and while the rest of the band waits for the drummer to do his thing I go buy the sound guy a beer. If Mr Soundman knows his stuff then we usually sound good.

[Sifl]

I don't mind sound checks. Usually though, we're the last band to play and most of the time we share gear so the levels don't change too much. The sound guy just adjusts on the fly. I like it better that way. Especially after waiting all night to play.

[bound'n'blocked]

I guess all the band members could just show up about 5 minutes before the gig, set up and plug in...IF they never wanted to play that club again....

BnB

[pacojas]

it's all about the mix,... period!!! i've heard really great bands sound like crap after missing a sound check. conversely,.. not so great bands have over-achieved due to great levels being set. in fact, our band loved the sound check so much, we wrote a song about it!
it's called,... Check1,2,3,...

[F-Clef-Jef]

Originally Posted by FunkMetalBass

This quote alone shows extreme ignorance on your part. If you're going through FOH, your amp is only a monitor. If it's too low to the ground, angle it up so that it's facing your ear and can turn it down. Maybe you and the band need to work on your EQing and stage volume so that each player can play at a reasonable volume and still hear themselves.

The soundman's job is to mix all of you and balance out a room. If every band sounded good without a FOH, then sure - he could set and forget with very mild master fader adjustments. However, ignorant knobs play all night long with atrocious volume (that bleeds into the FOH, destroying the sound guy's work), no knowledge of their overall mix, and then get pissed off at the sound guy when an hour and a few 20-foot patch cables would allow them to figure out how to sound good on stage.

^^^ THIS ^^^

[Rockman]

Also you either have a huuge rig or don't play very big clubs. Or you just play music in which the bass doesn't matter, I don't know. But every where I have played needed the PA

[cnltb]

Originally Posted by Din Of Win

IME, the sound check is one of the MOST important parts of a set...

I'd agree.
it is also a chance to get to know the soundguy which can really help.

[Rocky]

I don't mind sound checks, and It usually only takes a few minutes to do the actual check. I also find it is much better to try to comply with the sound mans request. Remember he can make you sound bad if you give him an attitude.

[coldfoot_luke]

Originally Posted by bound'n'blocked

I guess all the band members could just show up about 5 minutes before the gig, set up and plug in...IF they never wanted to play that club again....

BnB

+1

The band mix playing live is different from the mix in your practice space. The people on the floor don't hear what the band hears standing in front of their amps.

[lecture]
I'm somewhat disturbed by your condescending attitude- if you want to grow and continually improve as a musician, you need to recognize that you can learn from others, even non-bassists. If you walk around automatically assuming that all sound guys don't know what they're doing, you're going to alienate a lot people that have the potential to help out your band. Do you really want to be the guy that has a pretentious rock star attitude? The sound guy is your partner when you play live shows, it is your job to play good music, it is his job to make sure the mix sounds good and balanced. Communicate with him and tell him how the band wants to be mixed, help each other out.
[/lecture]

[Billnc]

When they say turn down, they are probably correct. Give them what they want so they can do their job. I never want to be the guy who's fader at the desk is turned off.

[73jbass]

Even if the soundman is good,if you don't give him something he can work with,there ain't much he can do.

[superbassman2000]

i would rather soundcheck than hear the soundguy say "we don't need to soundcheck, i'll just make adjustments as we go. I have had both situations, and I can tell you, the latter is terrible--you'll get a terribly inconsistent sound that upsets the audience in most occasions

[Rocky]

Originally Posted by coldfoot_luke

+1

The band mix playing live is different from the mix in your practice space. The people on the floor don't hear what the band hears standing in front of their amps.

[lecture]
I'm somewhat disturbed by your condescending attitude- if you want to grow and continually improve as a musician, you need to recognize that you can learn from others, even non-bassists. If you walk around automatically assuming that all sound guys don't know what they're doing, you're going to alienate a lot people that have the potential to help out your band. Do you really want to be the guy that has a pretentious rock star attitude? The sound guy is your partner when you play live shows, it is your job to play good music, it is his job to make sure the mix sounds good and balanced. Communicate with him and tell him how the band wants to be mixed, help each other out.
[/lecture]

Actually this is very true, and the reason pro bands have their own sound man considering them part of the band.

[peterwsmith]

I've played too many times without a sound check, and the end result has never been good. Don't think you're going to find too many who agree with you here.