i find that attitude distasteful and it shows a lack of regard for your audience, to be honest. when the lowest common denominator is your yardstick, you will attract the lowest common denominator to your shows.
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dear sound guy, thanks. (di box content)
- Thread starter akaTRENT
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- Feb 8, 2005
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- Endorsing Artist: Bag End - Dean Markley - Thunderfunk
Well you're certainly free to do what you want but I have no interest in what most people drunk or not think. I prefer to hold myself and the people I work with to a higher standard. The fact that in so doing it will be lost on the vast majority of humanity is completely besides the point. If that were my criteria, I wouldn't need to know most of music theory beyond root/5 and I'd never need to practice either. That certainly has its' appeal but I personally want to aim higher.
I've looked through all 10 pages of this thread and I found one thing conspicuous in its absence. The OP never said that he went out front to listen to how he sounded in the mix.
People, what's the bottom line here after all???
People, what's the bottom line here after all???
the thing is the soundman bummed him out and made him put on a bad show, it wasn't what it sounded like in the house that was the problem.
That's the point I was trying to make... shouldn't your main concerned be how you sound?
Maybe the OP was right and the sound man was making him sound like s***, but give the guy the benefit of the doubt and step out front to see if you're guess is right. There's an outside chance you'll find out the sound man knows what he's doing.
Maybe the OP was right and the sound man was making him sound like s***, but give the guy the benefit of the doubt and step out front to see if you're guess is right. There's an outside chance you'll find out the sound man knows what he's doing.
- Feb 8, 2005
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- Endorsing Artist: Bag End - Dean Markley - Thunderfunk
There's a good chance of that. Unfortunately what there's an even better chance of is that the soundman will superimpose his idea of what things (like bass) should sound like regardless of whether or not it is what you or the band want.
There seems to be this collective notion that there is a "correct" way to get the "correct" mix and that there is the "right" way bass "should" sound. Thus if the sound man knows what he is doing it will by definiton be "right".
I've seen situations where like many suggest, the FOH sound is great. I've also seen many where it's horribly inappropriate for what the music calls for. Reggae and salsa gigs where the bass is thin and twangy in the house, because that's what the soundman thinks sounds cool. Gigs where the bass is inaudible because the soundman thinks (this actually happened) that the bass is really just for the band and doesn't really need to be in the mix much....guy loves his metal....drums sounded great tho and I bet 99.9% of the people at the gig would never notice that either.
The point being that the soundman is not a producer. It is not his function to determine what the band should sound like. His idea of what he thinks sounds cool is trumped by the band's desires. If a guitarist needs a certain combination of gear (including a cabinet) to get the sound he and the band want, then it is the function of the soundman to take that end product and make whatever mods needed to make it work in the house.
There is not somehow a separate set of rules for bassists whereby they are not allowed the same courtesy; that only happens because we allow it to happen and are given bogus excuses like "it needs to be DI in case your rig goes down".
I'm curious , if you do a "smaller time" gig , in less then ideal conditions , with the local soundman , how do you personaly deal with this ?
Do you go in front to have a listen when the show has started ?
Do you do the mix yourself to be sure the bass sound is gonna be to your liking?
Personaly , what I do ; I play bass , and I let the soundman do his job.
What I've learned over the year is that it is very very rarely constructive to "confront" soundmans with the way a mix should be.
If you want to be sure to always sound the same , have the same tone , always play with the same band , in the same room , with the same PA and the same soundman. If only one of those condition changes , your tone is gonna change. That's life.....
Am I the only getting sick of this topic? If everyone else's mix sucks to you then bring your own PA and run your own sound. If you are using someone else's PA because you can't afford your own then stfu and just play! Chances are the reason why the soundman is hired to sit behind the desk instead of you is because he knows more than you.
Yes, I am a soundman but first and foremost I am a bassist. Based on the topics discussed on this forum I am ashamed to say that I am a bassist. Bassists are the whiniest and bitchiest little girls in the music industry!
Yes, I am a soundman but first and foremost I am a bassist. Based on the topics discussed on this forum I am ashamed to say that I am a bassist. Bassists are the whiniest and bitchiest little girls in the music industry!
Another option is to tell the bar you're going to bring your own soundman (if you have a buddy that can do the job). If the bar says no and you're that worried about your sound then go find another bar to play in.
- Feb 8, 2005
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- Endorsing Artist: Bag End - Dean Markley - Thunderfunk
Sorry , but room acoustics will make you tone change , a different PA will too. Whatever instrument you play.
Haven't you ever had to cut/boost certain frequncies in certain rooms on your monitor?
Different band mates and a different soundman , and you will have a different mix , on the same PA/room.
The room affects bass more than higher frequencies because the rooms size is closer to the bass wave lengths. The wavelength of your low E (in air) is about 30 ft. The wave length of a guitar note in the middle of it's range (say three octaves up from your low E) is about 3 feet.
is that any reason to tell a kid not to use his amp? is that any reason that the kid can't mic his amp? no it isn't.
btw, tomis, don't ever try to run sound for my band. you wouldn't last the soundcheck with that kind of attitude. as a soundman, you are lucky these bands want to come into your venue to play so you have a job. without them, there's no point for you to even exist. so show some respect.
Abolutely not.I never said that.
I was answering Markus about his statement about the soundman not being the producer. My point being that if you want the same tone all the time , and you don't want any soundman to change your tone (EQ) because of room acoustics, bad PA , etc..... Always play in the same condition.
Or else , you'll always have to deal with this situation.
EDIT ; And by the way , I'M not AGAINST mike , i just prefer DI a whole lot more for any instrument.
There is a big difference between telling the kid not to use his amp and not miking the kid's amp. As I read the original post, the sound guy told the kid he would blend his amp and the DI, and then once the kid got onstage, took a DI without putting a mic on the amp. It is entirely possible that the soundguy knows his own room and knows that the SVT is going to carry the room on its own, without needing a mic. For all we know, he may have room the DI as a precaution, but had the bass muted in the house the whole night.
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