bassjim Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 This weekend just gone I had three gigs back to back. Gig 1 = shitish room. bass sound doable but not great. Couldnt get my mojo going but rose above it and stayed profesh. Gig 2 = Excellent room. Great bass sound. Great band sound. Great levels. Great playing all round but private party so typically wasted on most of the people there but still left gig in high spirits. Gig 3= probably worst sound ever due to the corner of the room creating a wierd bass trap. In fact so bad that I actually could not distinguish an G from an A ect. I could have twangy like a guitar or mushy bass or turn it off. Third of the first set in I just had enough. Twiddling like mad using every trick I could think of. Yes it was ok out front but it was so bad that I had a full on diva fit and stopped the gig. Rearranged the back line. Swapped places with the guitarist and half an hour later carried on where we left off. Although still not the greatest sound but at least doable. Ended up enjoying what started out to be a miserable experience. The guy that runs the bar told me afterwards that he was glad I did what I did because it made it sound so much better overall and his punters are all asking for us back. He had seen us before so at least he knew what we were capable of so probably made him more understandable. Any one else lost the will to live in these circumstances and thrown professional attitude out the window and had a full on bitch fit out of sheer frustration when playing in a room that makes you all sound like some 16 year old amature band on their first outing? I appoligised to all band members during impromtu break by the way and resetup telling them I couldn't carry on but they were ok with it. They could tell by my face and shrugs I was reaching a breaking point. Guitarist went in the sh*tty corner as he thought I was over reacting and although he too sounded ok where I was now standing had a bad experience. But all the same ...Diva fit eh?....never done that before Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Have a Snickers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 ..and relax Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stylon Pilson Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 When you're feeling under pressure, do something different. Roll up your sleeves, or eat an orange. S.P. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Maybe roll up an orange and eat your sleeves Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hubrad Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 One band I play in occasionally gets too too loud, and a couple of times now I've been faced with a) turn up further and compete, thereby making the noise even worse, or b)turn the bass completely off and mime for the audience's sake. B wins each time, as it also removes a bit of sound pressure, but it's usually about 3 songs before the buggers notice! Maybe next time it happens, I'll be armed with an orange. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Or some sleeves Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hubrad Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 [quote name='fleabag' timestamp='1472654787' post='3122967'] Or some sleeves [/quote] Sleeves are de rigeur, dear boy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassjim Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 i'll take a bag of oranges around with me in future Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Make that a bag of sleeves. They're de rigeur you know ! Quite right hubrad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Wishbone Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 [quote name='Stylon Pilson' timestamp='1472652491' post='3122947'] When you're feeling under pressure, do something different. Roll up your sleeves, or eat an orange. S.P. [/quote] I've swallowed the Little Book Of Calm!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Jazz woodbines [i]*cough*[/i] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassjim Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Yes.......snickers....oranges...jazz fags.....these are all solutions to before and during but has any one actually had a melt due to bad acoustics and if so how did it go/turn out in the end. More spinal tap the better but sensible solutions and outcomes equally welcome Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 A few of our drummers spontanelously combusted, but i think thats normal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I swapped the bass and guitar over in the interval on one gig. I was in the corner and it sounded terrible. The guitarist was fine, which was fortunate. I came back to that gig a couple of years later and went into the corner again. This time the sound was fine. The difference. . . . Bergantino cabs. They seem to attenuate the bass response and always worked well on difficult or boomy stages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EBS_freak Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Can't tell the difference between a G and A? You need one of those tuners that tell you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deepbass5 Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 hubrad touched on it - volume. There is a point a which a room will bite back and all band members need to recognise that point and turn down. I have done a few gigs with that pissed off look on my face, not good for the punters to remember you by. two different occasions come to mind, a masonic dinner in an oak paneled room, I had read up on acoustics due to owning the PA and one suggestion was reducing the number of sources of prorogation, = to place both PA speakers together on one side of the stage - crazy - No. it worked a treat and after that my guitarist was open to any silly trick i came up with as long as he didn't have to turn down. So bass and guitar swapping sides is a good move 50/50 chance of shifting troublesome frequencies somewhere else. 2nd occasion was college dinner dance in Oxford, we had to play dinner music painfully quiet for an hour - we sounded great, after dinner tables were moved and we launched into our pop set - it was bloody awful. The hard stone surfaces were not able to handle it it it it it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 [quote name='bassjim' timestamp='1472643831' post='3122835']But all the same ...Diva fit eh?....never done that before [/quote] You lose points for not having, or at least hiring for one night, a sound-man to specifically rant at first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 [quote name='bassjim' timestamp='1472643831' post='3122835'] This weekend just gone I had three gigs back to back. Gig 1 = shitish room. bass sound doable but not great. Couldnt get my mojo going but rose above it and stayed profesh. Gig 2 = Excellent room. Great bass sound. Great band sound. Great levels. Great playing all round but private party so typically wasted on most of the people there but still left gig in high spirits. Gig 3= probably worst sound ever due to the corner of the room creating a wierd bass trap. In fact so bad that I actually could not distinguish an G from an A ect. I could have twangy like a guitar or mushy bass or turn it off.[/quote] You had 3 paying gigs in one weekend, that's fantastic! I personally love 3 gig weekends, we had one a few weeks ago. There are guys here on bass chat that won't see 3 gigs over the next 6 months. Blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 No, never done that... but I'm used to be pissed off about gigs which is why I try and pick them as carefully as poss.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 [quote name='deepbass5' timestamp='1472668950' post='3123157'] The hard stone surfaces were not able to handle it it it it it [/quote] Is there an echo in here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kev b Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I've had this happen a number of times and usually just put up with it because I couldn't work out the cause, once or twice I've moved my cabinet onto a table/stand or tilted it back which helped. Having a proper sound check is invaluable, the same song each time so you can get an idea of the room acoustics, don't play too loud either, good luck with that though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kev b Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 (edited) double post Edited August 31, 2016 by kev b Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
essexbasscat Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Sound checks are fine, until the set actually begins and the drummer plays harder and the guitarist turns up the volume. Then the problems start Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 [quote name='hubrad' timestamp='1472654723' post='3122966'] One band I play in occasionally gets too too loud, and a couple of times now I've been faced with a) turn up further and compete, thereby making the noise even worse, or b)turn the bass completely off and mime for the audience's sake. B wins each time, as it also removes a bit of sound pressure, but it's usually about 3 songs before the buggers notice! Maybe next time it happens, I'll be armed with an orange. [/quote] I like your style Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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