Rehearsal layout

[xgsjx]

How do you get a good sound at rehearsal so that everyone hears everyone else?

placement of equipment is really what my question is here.

Just now in the rectangle room we use, we have the drummer on a riser with a largish PA sub & top plonked at either side facing the same way as the drummer. In front of the riser is a wedge monitor that does work, but can't be heard & then 2 mics that have the singer looking at the drummer.
Then on the opposite side is 2 guitar 1/2 stacks kinda angled towards the kick drum so they can bleed into the mics (why, I don't know).
The house bass combo (A lovely TNT150 that's seen better hammers) sits near the wall between the left pa cab & the guitar cab (pointing straight across the mics).

I think that for a "paid" rehearsal room/studio, it is poorly set up. Though I suppose it would be a good set up if we all just went through the PA.

So how do you guys & gals have your rehearsal space set?

[Cat Burrito]

I think it varies room to room. Also sometimes we arrange things for a live setting so we maybe don't hear things as well but it allows rehearsing for the harder pub gigs.

[nottswarwick]

Is always set up in live formation, to replicate the lack of eye contact that can be inherent in a live show.

I'd also say that a rehearsal room doesn't really need subs?! IMHO anyway it must all be too loud.

[RockfordStone]

we set our amps up next to the drums as if it were a live setting, but we face the drummer and play facing our amps at the other end of the room

[chris_b]

A lot of players still do the "standing in front of my gear" like a live show thing, which, as you're usually all in a circle, blasts the guy on the other side of the room, who has to turn up, which blasts you, etc. etc.

IMO, volume should be kept to a minimum in a rehearsal room. Anyone who confuses a rehearsal with a gig needs a kick up the bum. You're not there to pretend you're at the Albert Hall, you're only there to work out the numbers,

[nottswarwick]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1385294348' post='2286435']
A lot of players still do the "standing in front of my gear" like a live show thing, which, as you're usually all in a circle, blasts the guy on the other side of the room, who has to turn up, which blasts you, etc. etc.

IMO, volume should be kept to a minimum in a rehearsal room. Anyone who confuses a rehearsal with a gig needs a kick up the bum. You're not there to pretend you're at the Albert Hall, you're only there to work out the numbers,
[/quote]

This

[xgsjx]

The "amps in a circle" thing is just providing squeals & poor sound.

I've no idea why there's subs in the room. I've put my bass through it a couple of times to save me bringing my rig (when I've been pressed for time).
One of the guitarists often gets a bit loud, but he gets the hint when the band stops playing.
This week's rehearsal is mostly going to be about getting the levels right, so everyone's fetching their own amps (both guitarists have combos, so easy to put somewhere sensible).

[Lozz196]

[quote name='BurritoBass' timestamp='1385290776' post='2286387']
I think it varies room to room. Also sometimes we arrange things for a live setting so we maybe don't hear things as well but it allows rehearsing for the harder pub gigs.
[/quote]

Snap. In The Daves we do this. The only difference is that we face the drummer so that we can make faces at him when playing. No seriously, the way the rooms are set up is the pa speakers are on the only wall the drummer can set up so we face him purely to keep the mics facing away from the speakers so to eliminate feedback.

[wateroftyne]

Ideally, we set up in a circle and use floor monitors.

No need for a PA - we don't have one pointing at us at the gig, so why would we in rehearsal?

[Marvin]

My current band's rehearsal space is piss poor, but it's cheap

It's a long narrow room. The drummer is set up one end and the amps along one wall. The nature of the room doesn't allow for any other set up. Hence the sound is sh*t. Just have to work with what you've got.

[xgsjx]

As we're taking our own combos, I'll try sticking them all up beside the drummer.

Would stacking them in a vertical column work, or would it be better to stick a guitar amp either side of the drummer? I'm not worried about having "stereo" guitars.

[flyfisher]

Interesting topic. We don't bother too much with our sound during rehearsals and just plonk stuff wherever convenient and easy. We then concentrate on playing stuff correctly, which is enough of a challenge for us most of the time! But I confess that I sometimes think we should have an occasional rehearsal where we only concentrate on the technical set up, monitoring etc.

[discreet]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1385294348' post='2286435']
IMO, volume should be kept to a minimum in a rehearsal room.
[/quote]

This is the key. Placement of amps and position of personnel and drums isn't as important as not having it too bloody loud in what is usually a relatively small room - and avoiding the schoolboy error of 'volume wars'. If you can't hear someone else then you need to turn down.

You are there to listen to what everyone else is doing and figure out how you're going to address your next gig (or recording), not to find out how loud your new rig will go.

Of course it's very important that your drummer and particularly your guitarist (for some reason) fully understands this...

[Happy Jack]

All four bands in which I'm involved rehearse in my studio space at home (which a number of Basschatters have seen).

Instruments + electronic drumkit are routed through the PA which is a deliberately-weedy 100W amp and incapable of going ear-splitting.

Vocals are UNamplified, no mics at all.

That automatically and unavoidably sets the volume levels (low) and balance (simple) in the room.

Everyone can hear everything, no one needs earplugs.

As chris_b says, only an idiot confuses a rehearsal with a gig.

[KevB]

Done it various ways, the circle or semi circle with the drummer at the 'open end' works well as long as you can keep the volume down. Depends on what aspect you are rehearsing. If it is more musical side of things that are being worked on that's fine but if it's the 'show' side of things and you need to practice certain moves then presumably the 'as on stage' set up would be better. I usually find on the whole there is a tendancy for people to play far too loudly at these things. My current band leader seems to have a phobia of rehearsing so we hardly ever do.

[cheddatom]

I play drums in a few different bands, and we always keep it quiet except for my rock band where I absolutely smash them, because this way everyone has more fun. There's nothing wrong with rehearsing loud as long as you have ear protection!

[Monckyman]

Set up as at a gig.

[flyfisher]

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1385384621' post='2287532']
I play drums in a few different bands, and we always keep it quiet except for my rock band where I absolutely smash them, because this way everyone has more fun. There's nothing wrong with rehearsing loud as long as you have ear protection!
[/quote]

I've never quite understood the appeal of turning up so loud that you have to then wear ear protection, which reduces the effective volume anyway. It's like replacing domestic light bulbs with 500W halogens and then wearing sunglasses.

[cheddatom]

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1385389624' post='2287606']
I've never quite understood the appeal of turning up so loud that you have to then wear ear protection, which reduces the effective volume anyway. It's like replacing domestic light bulbs with 500W halogens and then wearing sunglasses.
[/quote]

The drummer gets to hit them harder, which means he's more excited, which I guess makes everyone else more excited. All I know is, practise is a lot more fun, and feels "heavier" when we're all turned up.

Also, to be fair, the snare drum sounds a sh*t load better when it's hit harder.

[Phil Starr]

In a circle, the rehearsal is the time to listen to what each other are doing and thinking. We tend to concentrate on arrangement issues, you kind of assume everyone knows the songs before you start, though that isn't always as true as it should be. You need the eye contact and to be able to talk. Every now and again we have either a 'dress rehearsal' where we set up as at the gig or a technical rehearsal where I get a chance to tweek the PA but you need a bigger space for this than our usual practice room.

[flyfisher]

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1385390605' post='2287621']
The drummer gets to hit them harder, which means he's more excited, which I guess makes everyone else more excited. All I know is, practise is a lot more fun, and feels "heavier" when we're all turned up.

Also, to be fair, the snare drum sounds a sh*t load better when it's hit harder.
[/quote]

That makes a lot of sense and makes me think we need a more exciting drummer . . .

[chris_b]

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1385390605' post='2287621']
The drummer gets to hit them harder, which means he's more excited, which I guess makes everyone else more excited. All I know is, practise is a lot more fun, and feels "heavier" when we're all turned up.

Also, to be fair, the snare drum sounds a sh*t load better when it's hit harder.
[/quote]

Sorry but I'm going to disagree.... loudness doesn't equal excitement; never has.

Have fun playing loud if you want, but loud is just loud.

[cheddatom]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1385392025' post='2287648']
Sorry but I'm going to disagree.... loudness doesn't equal excitement; never has.

Have fun playing loud if you want, but loud is just loud.
[/quote]

that's not what I'm saying. Loudness doesn't equal excitement, but when it comes to drums, excitement equals loudness. I guess for some drummers excitement would equal speeding up, or playing loads of flashy fills or something, but I get excited by big heavy half time riffs, and I like to play them so hard that my hands are sore for days.

[JamesBass]

Firstly in a rehearsal, you practice quietly, this is a rehearsal not a gig. Secondly as a bass player I'm most happy and most frustrated when next to the drummer, I want to hear him, he's helping me keep in time and vice versa.

I like to set up in a live formation as it were when it's closer to a gig, if you're not gigging much then you can be a bit more spread out and relaxed.

[32Hz]

We discovered Jamhub a couple of years ago. We each have our own powered floor monitor (not headphones) and can each dial up the desired mix of 7 feeds. I am the only player who has own rig - just to reinforce the low end which our small monitors can't handle. The volume starting point is always the drummer, ours is quite loud and will not moderate, but works off click for 50% of time. Drummer uses in ear (straight out of jamhub) as does our sole singer. We use it on stage too coupled to a DI array which can be snaked straight to the desk. It's quite expensive, but we had tried all the ideas talked about in this thread and nothing worked for us. Jamhub really is a great rehearsal solution.