Dropzone Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 Once again drums massively up in the mix then guitars and mostly no bass, can't believe bands like Killswitch Engage and Iron Maiden still allow mixes like this. It really kills the groove of the song. Weather was aweful. Had a great time. There should be an app for analysing a mix and proposing where the sound engineer is missing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 What do you do? I've been to a few gigs recently where I'm dying to go and speak to the sound engineer about the mix but I never do it - too worried about upsetting them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 The worst for me is where the singer is virtually inaudible and the sound-person does nothing about it. Sure, I`d like all instruments to be heard well, but if there`s one thing that needs to be heard properly it`s the vocals. Escapes me how someone on a sound-desk can`t tell that the singing is inaudible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joebethell Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 having been to a lot of festivals I find some are better than others but all suffer with sound. I find positioning within the crowd really makes a difference( not always possible to get to the front but)I find if you are further out than the second/outer speaker ring(bigger stages) the sound is worse than the innerring (usually has the sound tower within this first section) and smaller stages/crowds suffer less. I guess it's a dispersion thing the further out less bass to travel etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 outdoor sound is always going to be a compromise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LewisK1975 Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 [quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1465915413' post='3072056'] outdoor sound is always going to be a compromise [/quote] This is true, I am however surprised if Iron Maiden's mix was poor. They've been doing festivals / stadia for donkeys years with the same soundman, who AFAIK travels everywhere with them...weird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r16ktx Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 Surely it's really a function of the % of festival goers who are primarily there for a good bass guitar sound against the difficulty and cost of achieving that across large open space? Or maybe lower frequencies are more easily knocked out of the air by falling water... ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 I saw UB40 a few months ago - couldn't hear the horns, keys or vocals.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammers Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 The PA had been crackling on and off ever since it hammered down on Friday afternoon and probably wasn't 100%. The Mix was alright IMO, considering everything they had to deal with and I was half was up the hill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marillionred Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 Strange but true - A friend of mine who lives in Long Eaton (about 8 miles away from the Donington site) said she could hear the bass from the Black Sabbath set, while out walking the dog! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt_Arlita Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 I'm a sound engineer and attended this year- best mixes I heard were Kadavar and Electric Wizard on the Maverick Stage, Rival Sons, Monster Truck, Royal Republic and Sabbath on main and Billy Talent on second. Bass was audible in all of those in varying crowd positions. Several mixes not so good but you have to realise that when you are engineering a festival you are under immense time constraints if you're not the headliner. Twenty minutes (if that) for crew to get equipment on, patch it all in, to line check every instrument...then you're off, building the mix from the first song. Hats off to all the band's engineers last weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewJordan Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 I often tell the sound guy if I think a mix needs something. Doesn't often get a good responce though. The last thing I went to the sound guy spent most of the gig at the back of the room talking, away from the desk. I went and told him the lead guitar needed to go up(it was almost inaudible) he looked at me and said "I don't know which is the lead guitarist". It was quite obvious if he had been paying attention so I pointed him in the right direction. To his credit he did go and turn him up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrismanbass Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 [quote name='AndrewJordan' timestamp='1465927683' post='3072219'] I often tell the sound guy if I think a mix needs something. Doesn't often get a good responce though. [/quote] it depends massively on how it's said i've been on the opposite side of that conversation and my responses vary from "F**k of"f to "actually yeah i think you're probably right" this depends upon a number of factors, chief among which is how right think you are a very close second is how nice you are about it sound engineers are fickle creatures who respond kindly to gentle treatment and encouragement with beer with regards to festival sound those bands will have sound engineers that mix every single gig they do so i have no doubt that the gig sounded amazing in the sound tower. however a few things to bear in mind is that you have no time to soundcheck on a PA system that you're not familiar with most of you're mix is based on the feedback you're getting from a couple of nearfield monitors at the mix position and what you can hear where you are you're entirely at the mercy of the people who provide the PA and how well they have set it up mixes at the start of festival slots are basically educated guesswork on previous experience Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewJordan Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 [quote name='Chrismanbass' timestamp='1465929601' post='3072242'] it depends massively on how it's said i've been on the opposite side of that conversation and my responses vary from "F**k of"f to "actually yeah i think you're probably right" this depends upon a number of factors, chief among which is how right think you are a very close second is how nice you are about it sound engineers are fickle creatures who respond kindly to gentle treatment and encouragement with beer with regards to festival sound those bands will have sound engineers that mix every single gig they do so i have no doubt that the gig sounded amazing in the sound tower. however a few things to bear in mind is that you have no time to soundcheck on a PA system that you're not familiar with most of you're mix is based on the feedback you're getting from a couple of nearfield monitors at the mix position and what you can hear where you are you're entirely at the mercy of the people who provide the PA and how well they have set it up mixes at the start of festival slots are basically educated guesswork on previous experience [/quote] Oh, I agree with you entirely! I also work the desk for bands on occasions as well as being our bands PA guy. I usually try to be as diplomatic as possible but to be honest I have been shocked on many occasions by how arrogant some engineers can be. I know from experience behind the desk how some people can be a real pain in the arse coming and complaining that they can't hear this or that as much as they would like to so I really only comment when something is very wrong. It also bugs me how some engineers treat the bass. I have been told on more than one occasion that they only want the DI signal "I don't want any of that distortion in my PA" they then take all of the tone out of the signal leaving an indistinct sub to put under the guitars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 [quote name='Dropzone' timestamp='1465910024' post='3071992'] Once again drums massively up in the mix... [/quote] That's just almost every gig I go to these days... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammers Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 [quote name='Matt_Arlita' timestamp='1465927179' post='3072212'] I'm a sound engineer and attended this year- best mixes I heard were Kadavar and Electric Wizard on the Maverick Stage, Rival Sons, Monster Truck, Royal Republic and Sabbath on main and Billy Talent on second. Bass was audible in all of those in varying crowd positions. [/quote] Electric Wizard really?! Even when he wasn't playing as his amp went kaput? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt_Arlita Posted June 14, 2016 Share Posted June 14, 2016 [quote name='Sammers' timestamp='1465933507' post='3072288'] Electric Wizard really?! Even when he wasn't playing as his amp went kaput? [/quote] Hah, that was serious Spinal Tap as they swapped it for a DI and he only got to play the last note of the first song! It was great after that though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammers Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 [quote name='Matt_Arlita' timestamp='1465938088' post='3072345'] Hah, that was serious Spinal Tap as they swapped it for a DI and he only got to play the last note of the first song! It was great after that though. [/quote] Yeah, they got there in the end though! Shame the set was so short though - I caught their full set at Desertfest earlier in the year and it was probably the single most intense gig I've ever been to. It was like being punched in the face repeatably for 1 1/2 hours Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anDy LAKIN Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 [quote name='Marillionred' timestamp='1465921875' post='3072144'] Strange but true - A friend of mine who lives in Long Eaton (about 8 miles away from the Donington site) said she could hear the bass from the Black Sabbath set, while out walking the dog! [/quote] yep my sister can confirm that too as another long eatonian, sounded better on the sunday as thats the day we went Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dropzone Posted June 15, 2016 Author Share Posted June 15, 2016 For a festival of this size there should be someone wandering in the crowd offering the engineer an opinion, as he may be in a "sweet" spot where his mix is great. Some bands got it right so it was definitely possible. And the drums were so loud so not a question of volume. The sound guy could be a drummer or guitarist and doesn't actually listen for the groove of a mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LewisK1975 Posted June 28, 2016 Share Posted June 28, 2016 Caught the highlights on Sky Arts this weekend - mixes sounded fine on that, but I expect a lot of post-production has gone into it...... Really enjoyed Halestorm - they've been around a long time but I'd never heard them before, that girl got some pipes! Jane's addiction's Chris Chaney's sound was spot on too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dropzone Posted June 29, 2016 Author Share Posted June 29, 2016 There has been quite a lot of hate for Janes addication, however, I suppose it is because they are not "metal", I caught the start and tail end of their set and thought it sounded great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 [quote name='Dropzone' timestamp='1467190111' post='3081714'] There has been quite a lot of hate for Janes addication, however, I suppose it is because they are not "metal", I caught the start and tail end of their set and thought it sounded great. [/quote] They had a really small crowd, which was a crying shame as I thought they were amazing. I only have one album of theirs so not familiar with all the songs but they put on a great show, including dancers, and sounded awesome. Most of the crowd were setting up their deckchairs to sit and wait for Maiden straight after. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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