Live Sound - Getting the balance right

[rocklander]

Reminds me, I could use a long black.

[Terexgeek]

Reminds me, I could use a long black.

Perhaps I'll just have a Black Russian instead...

[rocklander]

making it tough for me huh?

[Terexgeek]

I was expecting a barrage of "Naked Gun" quotations, I certainly never expected the last word

[Lawrence]

I was expecting a barrage of "Naked Gun" quotations, I certainly never expected the last word

I would have said something but Im a little hoarse

[Terexgeek]

Thanks for being so Neeeigh-bourly!

[rocklander]

are you sure that's not just a load of ass?

[Capt. Black]

he's trying to make a foal of you...

[rocklander]

if you ask a foal how old it is, is that what the call foliage?

[Bozie]

Ahem....

I have some thoughts on this:

The attitude of the musicians is really the most critical element. Everyone needs to be striving for the best unified sound. If one guy in the band is on an ego trip he can really mess up the FOH and stage sound by invading their sonic space and playing all over their parts.

I know a guitarist who has to be the loudest thing on stage, to the point where I have trouble mixing the keys/vocal/bass in the FOH and the monitors because of the volume coming from the guitar amp! It takes repeated requests to get him down to a useable level, I dont need to use the 57 in front of the amp, but the mix is seldom balanced, just bearable
And what about keys players that insist on producing every freq known to man in every bar of every song? I have stood on stage at times and wondered just what i was doing there, I didnt have space to play.

The more musicians you have the less everyone plays, or you'll get a sonic mess. People have got to listen to each other, play the lead fills in the vocalists gaps, not play all over the end of the turnarounds just cause they are there, back off if its not your solo, listen to the dynamics of the song and go with it... basic stuff.

Also, many of the cheaper amps tend to sound great on their own, but just dont work with a band where you have a bass player and dont need all that bottom end. If the guitar sounds too good to be true on its own, it may not sit in the mix well at all, younger guitarists are a bit surprised at how a guitar/amp in a pro mix sounds when everything else is stripped away.

I think that if all that stuff is sorted, you have a foundation for a good FOH mix. A sound technician cannot make up for any of these fundamental pricipals that should guide bands in shaping their sound in rehearsal, and if it is not sorted at rehearsal it won't come right at the venue.