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Upcoming NFL gig + Hitting stride

PopaWoody

PopaWoody

The major rager
May 28, 2009
683
56
Tampa, FL
#1
I'm actual a tad nervous....we were hired to play as entertainment at the Buccaneers NFL home opener and three more home games this season. This gig is putting us into some uncharted territory. It's good visibility for the band, decent money, and playing from 1 to 4pm is a breeze.

My only nervousness comes from having to run our PA, outside the stadium, under a concrete overhang/veranda.

Never tried that one before...

There is a stage of some sort, and I imagine the acoustics are going to be a little different than I am used when running in our typical small/medium club setting.

Anyone on here have any experience in this scenario?

I actual hired a roadie to schlep the gear from trailer to stage. So i can dial in the PA. I run an iPad controlled Mackie DL1608 mixer and have some decent PA gear. 2x18's Powered EV's + EV tops w/4 channel monitoring.

It's a good gig for our cover band, a lot of our peers that we associate with are giving us props and a quite a few people are making the 20 mile hike to support us, not the football team.;)

The gig includes stadium access for the game if we wanted to load out and watch the game. We finish the last set 30 mins prior to kickoff. Our ID's say "Valid on field till kickoff and at halftime."

Just have to say that we have come a long way since Robin and I started this project 3 years ago. Never ran a mix for a live band before, but when I heard my girl nail a few songs vocally, things took on a life of their own.

Peace
 
#2
I honestly don't have much advice to give in the scenario. That being said I wouldn't worry to much. I'm sure others have there input. Personally I feel setting stuff up for different shows like that is more of a gut feeling than anything. Everywhere you play you set up differently. I learned a long time ago to give my monitors front of house. I don't set monitors up to hear more bass or drums. That way I can hear what is coming out the front and adjust. That way I know what the people are hearing. That's just my opinion though and I'm no expert. You didn't tell us what amps you are playing or if you run in direct or anything. That being said congradulations and don't worry to much. If they agreed to have you play you must have some talent and people will reconize that.
 
#3
outdoors is different sonicly as is when concrete or any reflective surface is involved a band i was in use to play every year outside of the AZ Diamondbacks stadium for an annual event and while it wasnt bad it was different sound wise. allow yourself a good bit more mix time to find what youre happy with...bring a wireless or get a coupler or 2 and make a really long cord so you can get out front of the stage and hear whats happening for your rig and the entire mix. if you are using reverbs you might need to remove or reduce them or move to delays instead.

be prepared with extension cords and power strips...rubber mats/carpet if you have them to place the amps and you on...carpet for drummer

bring tape...group together and tape down cords out of the way or where youll be standing/playing and in the general area...safety/trip hazzard/liability issue
dont want to loose the gig cause someone not paying attention
 
#5
Hi,

Just tell your guitar player to turn down and you'll be fine. Seriously. ;)

Playing outside is more forgiving than a small to medium sized room. But don't think that just because you're outside that everything can be louder. Be prepared to EQ appropriately. Depending on how close the hard surfaces are you may need to roll off the lows and/or boost the highs a bit to keep things from getting muddy.

Make sure you can hear everything on stage the way you want to, as in sound check with monitors only. Then turn on the mains, walk out front and make sure it sounds the same.

(Please forgive my profound glimpse into the obvious.) :p

You know what it's supposed to sound like. Use your ears and you'll be great. Break a leg!


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 
#7
I have run this PA for a couple years now, and have done some outside gigs. It has plenty of head room and the last outdoor gig I did, I could clearly hear the vocals a 1/4 mile away when I went on a store run (I left my drummer on the controls as he is also quite competent and dialing in a mix)

The only part that worries me is the monstrous concrete structure behind us.
We are literally playing under a concrete over hang with our backs to the stadium structure. Rolling off lows is a no brainer and the reverb/delay settings are going to be interesting to say the least.

Thanks for the words of advice, It is certainly appreciated.
 
#8
Well at least with your mixer you can go out front with the I pad to get a basic mix. How far in front of the back wall will you be? If you can get your PA stacks far enough forward so it isn't bouncing off the ceiling it will help a lot.
 
#9
Hi,

PopaWoody said:
We are literally playing under a concrete over hang with our backs to the stadium structure.
Click to expand...

In this case it seems to me that stage volume will be your biggest worry.

This past summer concert season we played under a couple of big gazebos with a hard roof. The sound was reflected right back down on top of us and it sounded like mush on "stage". I had to forego "my tone" on stage and cut the lows on my amp quite a bit just so I could hear my notes. Since my bass was in a DI box and I wasn't playing loud, I didn't really affect the overall sound of the band as heard by the crowd. The PA itself was out front and the sound company did a good job but it was still a bit of a struggle trying to keep the guitar and drums from getting too loud and harshing the band's mellow.

With your experience, I'm sure you'll do great. Trust your ears. :bassist:


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 
#13
Update:

We played the gig and it went well. Rolling off the low frequencies helped us a lot. Our backs were not to the structure, however we were under a 30-40 foot concrete overhang and had to point our speakers down the side of the stadium.

I had to drop all the reverb and delays and run dry, it still sounded like we were in a cathedral, but without any nasty overtones. All in all it went extremely well.

Jane (the agent that booked us) gave us the thumbs up when making her rounds. She would not let us hang any banners, put out a tip jar and if anyone wanted to book us she insisted it be done through her. Since technically this is her gig I get that.

Bonus was the 4 official Nike jerseys courtesy of The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the free buffet food and sodas when we stopped. The rain held out until we were loading the last couple pieces of gear into the trailer.

We cleared the stadium, went home and immediately hit chill mode. Then at 9:00 pm we get a call from Jane. Staffers at the stadium have Eric's guitars. Apparently in the rush to beat the impending storm, he forget his two axes. We texted him and got the "Holy crap" response. He'll be picking them up today from One Buc Place, luckily he's not going to be buying new guitars.
 
#14
Living in Tampa, I was waiting for the update on this one. :)

I'm glad to hear the weather didn't interfere other than in your haste to leave.

I didn't get to this game, but if you play again and I'm there, I'll be sure to wander over.

-Mike
 

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