At one gig with bad sound I offered to help the engineer fix it. Not well received!
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Too much bass
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At one gig with bad sound I offered to help the engineer fix it. Not well received!
Yes, what sounds good on stage does not always sound good FOH. Once we have sound checked, which involves the guitarist and drummer singing lead on one song each, I put away one cord and the joiner. Ironically I never get to sing lead at a sound check although I do sing lead on a few songs.
I would guess about 5 or 6 years ago, I would have our ask our guitarist who has an encyclopedic memory for such things for the exact date.
They were excellent, bonkers Swedish prog at it's best.
This one time at sound camp...
I had our "certified" sound guy complain once about noise in one of the studios.
He had a mic channel open, with mic levels pushed to max and the headphone monitor turned up all the way.
And yes there was some hiss and yes, room noise.
So I took the mic off and put on a tone generator and had the sound guy adjust for 0VU on the console and a comfortable listening level in his headphones. Then I removed the tone and put the mic back in. I asked him how it sounded. He said fine. Then he said, but here is the problem. He then cranked everything to max again.
I had our "certified" sound guy complain once about noise in one of the studios.
He had a mic channel open, with mic levels pushed to max and the headphone monitor turned up all the way.
And yes there was some hiss and yes, room noise.
So I took the mic off and put on a tone generator and had the sound guy adjust for 0VU on the console and a comfortable listening level in his headphones. Then I removed the tone and put the mic back in. I asked him how it sounded. He said fine. Then he said, but here is the problem. He then cranked everything to max again.
When I did more sound engineering the biggest complaint I got was it wasn't loud enough. I felt that was because I was trying to ensure a good stage mix wasn't being overwhelmed by FOH, everything could be heard (as near to hifi as possible) and, given the often underpowered kit we had, that things weren't being run into clipping.
I get hooked up from a friend of mine who has all these tickets to shows that come through town. So usually me and my wife go a bring along another couple. They are always great sets with perks (parking pass, VIP lounge etc.) but my wife always gets annoyed by me constantly bitching about the sound. I saw Maiden back around 10 or 2011 and I could see Steve Harris's hands galloping away but couldn't for the life of me point out his sound in the mix.
Is there anyone here that was at this show below? I know I know everybody is probably burned out on this song but listen to how good it sounds. In today's world this show I'm guessing it would not sound like this. Around the 3:45 mark Leon is doing some cool things that you can actually hear.
Is there anyone here that was at this show below? I know I know everybody is probably burned out on this song but listen to how good it sounds. In today's world this show I'm guessing it would not sound like this. Around the 3:45 mark Leon is doing some cool things that you can actually hear.
Also thanks for all the responses and participation. I'm not the only one that feels this way. Also reassures me that I'm not becoming some old grumpy crab. Maybe I'm just a live sound snob
I will be returning to this same venue to see The Doobies and maybe KISS. So I'll have to wait and see if anything changes.
I will be returning to this same venue to see The Doobies and maybe KISS. So I'll have to wait and see if anything changes.
I'll bet you dollars to donuts that the will Doobies sound mint. Kiss, on the other hand, try to cover up their shortcoming with decibels. Although, the last time I was them it was with Ace and Criss so they'll probably sound a little better now.Also thanks for all the responses and participation. I'm not the only one that feels this way. Also reassures me that I'm not becoming some old grumpy crab. Maybe I'm just a live sound snob
I will be returning to this same venue to see The Doobies and maybe KISS. So I'll have to wait and see if anything changes.
My mostly-just-for-fun band did a rare public gig at a local restaurant bar recently. We brought our own (smallish) P.A. and mixed from the stage (during sound-check, with the help of some listener-friends).
The single most common remark we heard afterwards, from many different people, was how great it was to be able to hear all of the instruments, including the bass, so clearly. They seemed utterly amazed by this, as if this were an entirely new experience for them. I suppose some of this might have had to do with the band itself: For example, we have three guitarists who all live by a less-is-more philosophy and stay out of each other's way, and I tend to play melodic lines with a clear, mid-rangey tone. But honestly I think it was mostly due to the fact that crappy mixes have become so common that these folks had rarely heard a good one before. We're no sound wizards by any means; we just tried to make it sound the way we would want to hear it ourselves.
BTW, the other most common remark -- other than compliments about how great we were
-- was that the volume was perfect: loud enough to dig the music, but low enough to be able to talk to the person next you when you wanted to. Again, it seems like they found this remarkable because it was so rare in their experience.
The single most common remark we heard afterwards, from many different people, was how great it was to be able to hear all of the instruments, including the bass, so clearly. They seemed utterly amazed by this, as if this were an entirely new experience for them. I suppose some of this might have had to do with the band itself: For example, we have three guitarists who all live by a less-is-more philosophy and stay out of each other's way, and I tend to play melodic lines with a clear, mid-rangey tone. But honestly I think it was mostly due to the fact that crappy mixes have become so common that these folks had rarely heard a good one before. We're no sound wizards by any means; we just tried to make it sound the way we would want to hear it ourselves.
BTW, the other most common remark -- other than compliments about how great we were
-- was that the volume was perfect: loud enough to dig the music, but low enough to be able to talk to the person next you when you wanted to. Again, it seems like they found this remarkable because it was so rare in their experience.
It is a generational thing. The younger sound guys grew up listen to crap, I mean rap in there cars with the sub in the trunk and think it should sound that way.
My mostly-just-for-fun band did a rare public gig at a local restaurant bar recently. We brought our own (smallish) P.A. and mixed from the stage (during sound-check, with the help of some listener-friends).
The single most common remark we heard afterwards, from many different people, was how great it was to be able to hear all of the instruments, including the bass, so clearly. They seemed utterly amazed by this, as if this were an entirely new experience for them. I suppose some of this might have had to do with the band itself: For example, we have three guitarists who all live by a less-is-more philosophy and stay out of each other's way, and I tend to play melodic lines with a clear, mid-rangey tone. But honestly I think it was mostly due to the fact that crappy mixes have become so common that these folks had rarely heard a good one before. We're no sound wizards by any means; we just tried to make it sound the way we would want to hear it ourselves.
BTW, the other most common remark -- other than compliments about how great we were
+1
It's not rocket surgery in modestly sized venues unless they have bare brick stages or massize 10x10 foot ornamental mirrors at one end (had both...)
There is a particular sub bass sound used in some 'modern' music that us almost a sine wave, hard to pitch, and get lost in the kick, so maybe you are right. Sadly no longer is the youth of today issued with a copy of Dark Side of the Moon when they turn 18 so they don't know what proper music is like...
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Funny thing is that when I first got back into music after a 20+ year layoff I thought I'd be much more valuable doing sound than playing bass - turns out that the $$$ just aren't there for either and the respect is much greater for playing so here I am LOL.
