Hotel Soundsystems

[AdlerAugen]

...SUCK.

Let me explain the situation first. It was our school's banquet with the song contest as part of it. Our piano player tells me last minute that she won't have it ready in time. I'm a better piano player than her, but she tells me the day before and I still need to conduct my society and give them cues (trust me, they need them). Also since it is the day before, it's too late to get my piano part ready (it's a big long choir piece), but it is not too late to make a midi recording overlaid with a good VST Piano. So I end up putting that to CD for accompaniment.

The mixer I had to plug into (which I thought would be bigger, and have a CD player of its own attached) had four XLR inputs. Nothing else. My backup stereo player which I brought (I expected the hotel to nickel and dime us a little bit) had one headphone output, 1/8". I had no 1/8" to XLR, so I had to run it through my presonus preamp which I brought, and plug it in that way. Now there were two choir mics and one podium mic plugged in. I told my principle I had to unplug the podium to mic the guitar we had (the only live music, our salvation). He said no. So we're in a large banquet hall filled with people, with a junk CD recording of the piano, people singing who don't know music, and a guitarist that can't be heard.

Ok the CD starts playing, while EVERYONE is onstage, EVERYONE is looking at us, and static comes out. SH*t. I thought I had the levels right. So I have to runbackstage (since no one else there knows anything about soundsystems except one teacher) and fix it. Then it starts again. There are NO speakers for people onstage to hear. I may be conducting them, but since the majority don't know music, they don't know what I'm doing unless I say *this is for stop* *this is for go* and they most certainly don't understand the concept of rhythm. So they can't hear it, they don't understand the beat I'm giving them, and since the speakers are littered throughout the auditorium, and the choir mics ($25 third-hand sure knockoffs) don't pick us up at all, no one hears us, and they go all off beat.

End of story, fiasco, and the hours I spent slaving over that darn song went to waste as we ended in last place, for my senior year.

And the mixer in my bedroom probably outprices that POS thing by at least $125 (I've got an alesis multimix 8 USB which was about $150). That mixer had four inputs, one out, no EQ, no effects, no auxillary, no monitor outs, no tape deck outs, and only 5 volume knobs. Not even phantom power. They nickel and dimed us so bad, it's not even worth mentioning. This is one of the higher-class hotels, and it looks nice, but the sound system is so cheap, I could have bought it all with about $250 (not including the speakers, which were built in and I wouldn't want anyway).


</rant>

[thumpbass1]

I never ever trust hotels or convention rooms etc to have
any kind of P.A. system beyond some ancient 20 watt amp
with maybe one working xlr input that was installed back
in 195? whenever the place was built.
Sounds like you learned a hard lesson. It's frustrating to
play a place were you have p.a. issues.I've learned not
to even trust outdoor festival promoters and I'm not joking
when one promoter said they'd have a ton of p.a. and it
was one of those ultra crap 100 watt 4 channel two speaker
systems that the local Radio Shack owner lent them to use.
We were lucky that the our band p.a. hand come up with
us on our drummer's van.
You have my sympathy on your bad experience.

[invader3k]

Sorry you had such a bad experience. Sometimes venues just aren't well suited for certain performances. Also, doesn't sound like you had anyone else helping out, which makes things even worse.

Just chalk it up to experience and move on.

[Johnny Crab]

Yep.

We did a benefit gig/auction for children's hospital recently at an upscale hotel in Houston in a huge convention room. The BOSE stuff we use sounded OK. The place had wireless mike for their podium and walkaround. When folks were eating dinner and conversing that thing was distorting nicely just to be heard. Our table was near the receivers, mixer, and amp. Clarity was nowhere so our drummer & guitar player went over and pinched the treble & mids up quite a bit(everything was set "flat" at 12 o'clock as if never used). THEN you could tell what they were saying but it still was distorting quite nicely....

Some "sound" company/contractor got a lot of profit on that "system".

[lindseyp]

Originally Posted by AdlerAugen

...SUCK.

...End of story, fiasco, and the hours I spent slaving over that darn song went to waste as we ended in last place, for my senior year.

...This is one of the higher-class hotels, and it looks nice, but the sound system is so cheap, I could have bought it all with about $250 (not including the speakers, which were built in and I wouldn't want anyway).
</rant>

Dude, judging from your description -- I think you meant "principal," not "principle" -- I'd say you're way ahead of your high school class musically, to include the instructors and quite possibly any AV techs your school employs. That's a job just waiting for you, especially if you need to supplement some college money. Seems like you're well on your way to becoming a serious musical director or producer, maybe even an FOH specialist. Don't stop what you're doing; that hotel may higher you if you play your cards right. Major events in major hotels can turn some nice dollars.

[AdlerAugen]

Originally Posted by lindseyp

Dude, judging from your description -- I think you meant "principal," not "principle" -- I'd say you're way ahead of your high school class musically, to include the instructors and quite possibly any AV techs your school employs. That's a job just waiting for you, especially if you need to supplement some college money. Seems like you're well on your way to becoming a serious musical director or producer, maybe even an FOH specialist. Don't stop what you're doing; that hotel may higher you if you play your cards right. Major events in major hotels can turn some nice dollars.

Yea principal. Our main AV techs don't go to banquet (like my choir/ band director and his crew...he's got a whole recording studio in the band/choir room)...it's a waste of their time. We have one guy other that knows how to work a mixer...but that's about it. And I hope I'm way ahead musically since I've been doing piano for almost 10 years. and bass which is much more recent.