Maybe it comes up frequently because it's the #1 problem bass players have with their live sound?
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Soundman insist on me going direct
- Thread starter badstonebass
- Start date
+1. Contact him ahead of time (NOT on the day as you walk on stage) and try to work it out. If you are a decent local draw, they should have asked for your stage plot ahead of time anyway. If you're just a baby band, well, you get the DI.
This is also why I play a tube amp and bring a mic. Mind you, I've not played this big an event yet.
I'm with the OP: I rarely use clean bass tone. The regular soundman for my hard rock band mics my speaker cab and I love him for it.
That said, the last thing I want to do is piss off the soundman. Musicians can be jerks, and so can soundmen (perhaps in reaction to each other)... but even outside of all that, it's perfectly appropriate for a soundman to prefer pre-everything DI for bass. So, I roll with it. Fortunately I've worked with some talented soundmen who have made my bass sound awesome with pre-everything DI. I've also worked with soundmen who were not so talented, so it wouldn't have mattered what signal I sent them.
With guitarists soundmen have no choice, but with bassists they do. And I get it: mics are more trouble than DI, they can be kicked out of place, pick up stage rumble, etc. So while I occasionally request a mic, I usually just roll with DI. I have to add that some soundmen are cool with post-EQ DI from my rack preamp, but if it's pre-EQ DI, so be it.
I am so thankful I have never had to deal with this. I am prepared with a DI box in my bag but....just sounds so much better thru my cab.
Your reaction comes across as a bit whiney. The SE has to make sure ALL the bands sound halfway decent.
Why not just suck it up and let the man do his job? Save the diva attitude for when you're in a world famous band headlining your own tour.
Why not just suck it up and let the man do his job? Save the diva attitude for when you're in a world famous band headlining your own tour.
I suppose I'm lucky in this regard. I've never had a sound guy hover over me to watch if I plugged straight into his DI from the bass. They would usually set the DI on the stage where I'm setting up and say, "This is yours." and move on to setting up the rest of the stage. I will ask if I can take the XLR and plug it into the head, but if they are difficult and say no, I just run into the DI from my pedal board & then into the amp. FWIW, I have a very simple pedal board with just a tuner, compressor, and preamp.
Wow...go to bed and get an earful. You guys are WAY off bass...
I said "festival" for SIMPLICITY reasons. This is a private event where we are the headlining band for about 3000 people. There are other bands during the day but they are spaced. This isn't some battle of the bands with 10 minute changes for 20 bands.
I am not some punk kid with a crazy ass pedal board. I have a Sansamp - QSC - 4x10 cab rig. Not asking for MICS. Not asking for effects. All I am asking is that he plugs into MY DI not his IMP. It's not like I have a crap piece of gear that I want to use.
I have played 1000's of gigs with this rig with probably 100 sound companies. Everywhere from 5000 seaters to bars. NOBODY ever has refused to use the Sansamp...except him. In fact most go SANSAMP!? Thank God!
I am about as far away from being a DIVA as you could be.
I said "festival" for SIMPLICITY reasons. This is a private event where we are the headlining band for about 3000 people. There are other bands during the day but they are spaced. This isn't some battle of the bands with 10 minute changes for 20 bands.
I am not some punk kid with a crazy ass pedal board. I have a Sansamp - QSC - 4x10 cab rig. Not asking for MICS. Not asking for effects. All I am asking is that he plugs into MY DI not his IMP. It's not like I have a crap piece of gear that I want to use.
I have played 1000's of gigs with this rig with probably 100 sound companies. Everywhere from 5000 seaters to bars. NOBODY ever has refused to use the Sansamp...except him. In fact most go SANSAMP!? Thank God!
I am about as far away from being a DIVA as you could be.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
That's what happens when you don't put everything in the OP. If that is the situation, then the guy should be willing to talk. Dealing with idiots is part of the business.
Wow...go to bed and get an earful. You guys are WAY off bass...
I said "festival" for SIMPLICITY reasons. This is a private event where we are the headlining band for about 3000 people. There are other bands during the day but they are spaced. This isn't some battle of the bands with 10 minute changes for 20 bands.
I am not some punk kid with a crazy ass pedal board. I have a Sansamp - QSC - 4x10 cab rig. Not asking for MICS. Not asking for effects. All I am asking is that he plugs into MY DI not his IMP. It's not like I have a crap piece of gear that I want to use.
I have played 1000's of gigs with this rig with probably 100 sound companies. Everywhere from 5000 seaters to bars. NOBODY ever has refused to use the Sansamp...except him. In fact most go SANSAMP!? Thank God!
I am about as far away from being a DIVA as you could be.
I would say this exact thing to him.
I don fool wit his stuff. Ever. Agreed. I re arrange mine. Puttin my drive ahead of my D.I., for instance. I been a sound guy forEVer, an even if the soundguy is an absolute jerk? I don mess with him. I jus don show him my pedal. I don give him more to think about. I don mess with his mix. I compliment him. I tip. They usually respect me. My rig, tone an attitude usually win the day. I communicate. Thoroughly. But if I don get the respect I deserve? I don't disrespect back. Two wrongs never make it better. I don do anythin that will ruin his mix. I just take control of my sound. I don't turn up. I don't act pissy or self important. An I never give him a reason to ruin my BAND'S sound. Cuz they sure will. I understand the pain on both sides. Intimately. An try to make us all happy. If I gotta sneak my drive ahead of my D.I.? Well, it jus one less thing the soundguy has to think about.
The way to deal with this is to have him give you a technical explanation as to why you can't put your preamp in front of the DI. Keep it friendly and respectful but if he doesn't have a good technical reason for it politely smile and tell him, "Ok, well I think I'm going to go with my preamp today." Take the choice out of his hands. If he has no good technical reason he won't be able to say no especially if you do it front of other people. Don't argue with incompetent bullies, out them and sidestep them.
Um, bullS#i7 my good man
There are about 1/2 Million products, from PODS, to Recto Recording Preamps to H&K Red Boxes designed to take a DI signal off an electric guitar. But it is expected that guitarists change sounds, from clean to dirty, add effects, vary volume levels, etc. Sadly, a lot of modern music does not require the same from us low-enders. Those of us that DO play with sounds resent the second class citizen treatment. I mean, your username is FUZZbass. Hows your Big Muff sound through a DI? My Bluebeard sounds like ass Almost every gig I ever played I was run through my M-80 DI (for some distortion and EQ) or straight out of my amp. Most sound guys were totally OK with that, but there was one particular venue I used to play at often that they insisted on using these old generic junker DI boxes because they were literally TAPED down to the stage.
After asking politely twice, I just said "OK, that's fine" and ran through them, because TBH unless you're playing a lot of up-front bass leads (maybe you are, NO clue what type of music you play) most audiences hear "the bass" and can't tell any difference in tone. It was a private battle of wills, and in the end, I didn't want to piss off the one guy in the room with access to the volume slider who could cut me off.
After asking politely twice, I just said "OK, that's fine" and ran through them, because TBH unless you're playing a lot of up-front bass leads (maybe you are, NO clue what type of music you play) most audiences hear "the bass" and can't tell any difference in tone. It was a private battle of wills, and in the end, I didn't want to piss off the one guy in the room with access to the volume slider who could cut me off.
O.P. - Honestly, you are sooooo bitter and twisted up about this...
I recently played a show, walked up on stage to the S.E. and asked if he wanted to take his bass signal off my VT-RM. He did, sounded brilliant (so I'm told, no wireless, I'm tethered...) finished the set, packed up my poopie and got cornered by the bass player of the previous band who wanted to know how much I bribed the S.E. to use my VT-RM instead of his D.I.
My answer:
"Nothing, I don't have an argument with the guy every time we play, and I didn't tell him he didn't know what the **** he was doing the last time we played."
Given you're so bitter and twisted, think back, have you had an all-out argument with this guy? Have you been insulting? You recognize him, good bet he recognizes you, and if you've been a total **** to him in the past, why should you expect anything different from him now? If that's the case, and for some reason, I think it might be, the best thing you could do is not argue with him at this show, take his D.I. graceflully, apologize for your ****-wit attitude in the past and try again in three or four shows, or have one of the other band members ask at that time.
I recently played a show, walked up on stage to the S.E. and asked if he wanted to take his bass signal off my VT-RM. He did, sounded brilliant (so I'm told, no wireless, I'm tethered...) finished the set, packed up my poopie and got cornered by the bass player of the previous band who wanted to know how much I bribed the S.E. to use my VT-RM instead of his D.I.
My answer:
"Nothing, I don't have an argument with the guy every time we play, and I didn't tell him he didn't know what the **** he was doing the last time we played."
Given you're so bitter and twisted, think back, have you had an all-out argument with this guy? Have you been insulting? You recognize him, good bet he recognizes you, and if you've been a total **** to him in the past, why should you expect anything different from him now? If that's the case, and for some reason, I think it might be, the best thing you could do is not argue with him at this show, take his D.I. graceflully, apologize for your ****-wit attitude in the past and try again in three or four shows, or have one of the other band members ask at that time.
Mmmm, actually if you A/B a beat to death IMP 2 with a REDDI or even a JDI or XLR out of an Aguilar head there aren't many listeners who won't notice a very drastic difference in tone quality. A lot of people have this mistaken idea that no one can tell the difference when really they can even if they aren't sophisticated enough to verbalize it. Bottom line is if it sounds better it's worth the effort.
Nope we never had any issues. Known him forever and he has ran our FOH from time to time when our regular SE is busy. In fact the reason this guy has the gig is we recommended his SC to the client. I have neglected to make any waves as he is "colleague" in the local music industry. As far as he is concerned we are long lost buddies. That is the real problem. I don't want to make it an issue between us for the future. I am about the easiest going guy you would ever meet. I can't ever remember having an issue like this in 30+ years of playing.
Wow some peoples reading comprehension is bad!
While annoying it is sometimes nessisary for a bassist to go direct. HOWEVER This guy has NO problem going direct. He just wants his effects in the signal.
How would you feel if a sound man told you that you couldn't use your pedal boasrd?
While annoying it is sometimes nessisary for a bassist to go direct. HOWEVER This guy has NO problem going direct. He just wants his effects in the signal.
How would you feel if a sound man told you that you couldn't use your pedal boasrd?
