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Rehearsal Rant
- Thread starter Jonathan C
- Start date
The gear can be unreliable, as you've experienced, but I think the biggest bummer for me is the room acoustics.
I played in a room last week that was small and square with a low ceiling and no acoustic treatment. I'll let you imagine how great that sounded
I played in a room last week that was small and square with a low ceiling and no acoustic treatment. I'll let you imagine how great that sounded
I agree that hat the owners should provide working equipment. I am pretty lucky, we practice in a studio that is owned by the son of a very famous rock star and writer. It’s a great space and we get full video and audio of every rehearsal, huge help. It helps that the dad uses the space for rehearsal as well. We could pay less and it could be closer to home, but there is always a trade off. As in most places, not top notch equipment, but it works.
And to gigs!
In a pub I ran years ago the owner was a big jazz fan and booked some of the premier jazz bands from Sydney.
The pub had a music theme with all manner of (generally unplayable) instruments screwed to the walls and hanging from the ceiling.
At one gig the keys player walked in and asked where the piano was. I pointed to the baby grand that was mounted on the wall. It had had borer all through the wood and was just a display piece. He'd heard there was a piano at the gig and didn't even bring his keyboard "just in case". Luckily for him the owner was a keyboard player so I grabbed his keyboard for the gig. I had no idea how to set the sounds on it and neither did the keyboard player so during the gig he'd try to change the settings and would get all manner of interesting (but definitely not jazz sounding) sounds coming through. He was such an entitled acting prick who would then get angry and yell at me to fix it. I eventually had enough of him and yelled back "I don't play keys, I don't know how to set it up, and if I did play keys I'd bring my own F*%$#%$ keyboard to EVERY GIG...... just in case!"
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
You can't expect perfection, but everything should work. If not, you shouldn't be charged full price.
My band has a private rehearsal room in a warehouse complex that has many rooms. We just leave gear there; I have bass gear that is dedicated for the practice space.
Pros:
No need to lug gear around to practice and home again
Not that expensive (when divided up between four people)
Can leave things in place and come back to them later
Pretty secure (have not had any problems so far)
Cons:
The sound is very loud. I don't mean from other bands practicing (though there is occasional ambient noise), but the actual acoustics of the room are noisy. I have to wear ear protection when I play in the rehearsal room, whereas I usually don't have to. If I don't stand in a sweet spot sometimes all I hear is a wall of noise rather than the sound of the instruments.
Pros:
No need to lug gear around to practice and home again
Not that expensive (when divided up between four people)
Can leave things in place and come back to them later
Pretty secure (have not had any problems so far)
Cons:
The sound is very loud. I don't mean from other bands practicing (though there is occasional ambient noise), but the actual acoustics of the room are noisy. I have to wear ear protection when I play in the rehearsal room, whereas I usually don't have to. If I don't stand in a sweet spot sometimes all I hear is a wall of noise rather than the sound of the instruments.
I alway take my own gear for situations just like this. But let me suggest this, if you are paying for rehearsal space that is supposedly providing gear as part of the deal, I’d ask for a discount off the rate.
For everyone who suggests asking for a discount for room rentals where the backline is subpar: document that on video and post it here when you've tried that. I mean, I'll believe you if you say you've had success with that but - no you haven't.
I'm a big fan of Next Phase Studios in Farmingdale. All the rooms have Ampeg SVT-3 heads and Ampeg 8X10 cabinets. The owner Mike is a great guy, I've known him for well over 20 years. He used to be an authorized amp repair tech for Ampeg, but doesn't work on gear anymore. Mike used to own Fastlane Studios on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn, but lost his longtime lease and relocated. He's done a ton of work at the new location.
I think this is very true. In Toronto it seems the Rehearsal Factory is on the verge of going under.
yeah well you're not the boss of me
If you're paying top dollars then you might well expect decent provided gear, but if you're only paying $20 per member then you shouldn't expect much at all other than a room where you can rehearse without upsetting the neighbours.
There are three ways to deal with this.
1. Always bring a preamp pedal to rehearsal, and use it to set your tone. Doing this allows you to forget about EQ on the provided amp. (Which, when you think about it, isn't smart anyway. All amps are different, so if you want a specific sound, you should pack it with you.) You'll still need a working power section and cab, though.
2. Bring a portable head. (These days, you don't even have to specify "portable head" - you'd have to specify the opposite.) You can bypass everything except the cab.
3. Bring a practice combo.
The situation might not be ideal, but the only issue that these practice rooms really need to address is a) working equipment that produces sound and b) having sound that is *technically* loud enough. The rest is on you and presumably your bandmates.
1. Always bring a preamp pedal to rehearsal, and use it to set your tone. Doing this allows you to forget about EQ on the provided amp. (Which, when you think about it, isn't smart anyway. All amps are different, so if you want a specific sound, you should pack it with you.) You'll still need a working power section and cab, though.
2. Bring a portable head. (These days, you don't even have to specify "portable head" - you'd have to specify the opposite.) You can bypass everything except the cab.
3. Bring a practice combo.
The situation might not be ideal, but the only issue that these practice rooms really need to address is a) working equipment that produces sound and b) having sound that is *technically* loud enough. The rest is on you and presumably your bandmates.
If you're paying for a service, you will want things running properly. As a former owner of a rehearsal space, if somebody pay me to use my place I'll be drowning in shame if something it's not working while I'm keeping the money.
Why was the gear broken? Do people treat the gear as some do a rental car, and dog it?
Maybe I've answered my own questions. (We're paying for use of the space, and not for the privilege of destroying the contents.)
Hey dude I’m in Long Island too. I have a monthly space myself, but rapture sound in Syosset is very good. Pretty current gear. I think the bass rig is Ashdown and black star for guitars if I remember correctly
I totally understand this way of thinking, but it does not work for me. If I don't like the way I sound, I am utterly uninspired, which makes it not enjoyable to play. There is no hiding that during a rehearsal. Maybe it's because I started life as a guitarist, I don't know.
If it were a live show, I would suck it up in the interest of "the show must go on", but I would never pay to rehearse in a place that makes me sound like
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