waynepunkdude Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 I know this may be a little sexist but it's from experience but I realised last night that every female sound engineer I have have worked with has been brilliant, they always seem to care about your sound instead of just getting the job done. The lady last night was called in last minute, she hadn't been to the venue in a year and was in bed with a fever when she got the call but still did a fantastic job and I can't help but feel that if it was a man that wouldn't have happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basshead56 Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 [quote name='waynepunkdude' post='668304' date='Nov 28 2009, 02:29 PM']I know this may be a little sexist but it's from experience but I realised last night that every female sound engineer I have have worked with has been brilliant, they always seem to care about your sound instead of just getting the job done. The lady last night was called in last minute, she hadn't been to the venue in a year and was in bed with a fever when she got the call but still did a fantastic job and I can't help but feel that if it was a man that wouldn't have happened.[/quote] snap! haven´t come across one who wasn´t amazing! Fantastic, simple as! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finbar Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 Haven't come across one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxrossell Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 I may have encountered the exception. Played a show in a club where new management had just taken over, we'd played there before and the previous soundguy was brilliant, but they'd sacked him and the manager's wife was standing in. It became clear a few minutes into soundcheck that she hadn't done it before and had a "how hard can it be" attitude towards it. She didn't want to mic the guitar cabs even though it was a pretty large venue (she didn't see the point of amplifying an amplifier), she had no idea what EQ was even for, and tried so hard to get the vocals far too loud in the mix that there was so much feedback we eventually had to do the show without monitors. The whole time she acted like it was our fault she couldn't get a good sound, and she wouldn't let us run the desk ourselves. And then at the end of the gig the manager came to give us a bollocking for sounding sh*t. My drummer said "we wouldn't have sounded sh*t if you had a real sound engineer", so the manager told us to pack up and f*ck off. Within two months the club had stopped hosting live music and was running pathetic themed DJ nights for soccer dickheads and hen nights, and within six months they'd shut down. I don't understand why some people go into running clubs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheButler Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 I've had crap both, can't say there is any correlation between gender and sound engineer goodness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LawrenceH Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 [quote name='TheButler' post='668323' date='Nov 28 2009, 02:49 PM']I've had crap both, can't say there is any correlation between gender and sound engineer goodness.[/quote] I've very rarely encountered them. Each time they've been very good. I assume this is because for women, they have to be pretty keen/competent to make it in a male-dominated arena. One could also argue that traditional 'female' skills, like good verbal communication and empathy, are pretty useful for the job in hand! Of course there'll always be men who're great at that and women who are lousy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alun Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 I've never really given it much thought, but the female sound engineer at Esquires in Bedford is brilliant - great sound and nothing was a problem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basshead56 Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 [quote name='TheButler' post='668323' date='Nov 28 2009, 02:49 PM']I've had crap both, can't say there is any correlation between gender and sound engineer goodness.[/quote] I agree with the above. Just in my experience, the few I have dealt with have been outstanding. But there are likely to be as many females in the population of bad sound engineers that threaten our sonic liberties that lurk out there. Well, actually a bit less than that, seeing as its still something of a male dominated/masculine profession (sorry, have a degree in Sociology and I may only be able to use it here, ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 I wouldn't be surprised if it was something to do with women working in male-dominated professions feeling they have to work that bit harder to get noticed. Which does happen, and is a shame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 [quote name='TheButler' post='668323' date='Nov 28 2009, 02:49 PM']I've had crap both, can't say there is any correlation between gender and sound engineer goodness.[/quote] plus the one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 I have had the same experience Wayne - ie, every lady sound engineer has been brill (eg, Dublin Castle) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat Burrito Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 The only lady sound engineer who springs to mind was the one at Honky Tonkin' Sunday in Camden who was excellent. We had one at a London venue back in the mid 90s who our drummer confused in soundcheck by speaking backwards into the mic and then shouting over to say she must have plugged it in backwards. Bless her, she checked! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 Had one at Ginglik. She was a bit rubbish really and a little rude - but no worse than the knob-wielding knob-twiddlers at every other gig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 can only remember one, a few years ago (6) at the Garage in that London. Not particularly friendly but she did us proud soundwise - we sounded great - so can't complain. I remember they had some signs around the band areas along the lines of 'we don't care if you're David Bowie, our job is to get the bands on then off and we're not gonna take crap from you or your sh1tty little band'. Anyone else remember that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemmywinks Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 [quote name='BurritoBass' post='668373' date='Nov 28 2009, 03:41 PM']We had one at a London venue back in the mid 90s who our drummer confused in soundcheck by speaking backwards into the mic and then shouting over to say she must have plugged it in backwards. Bless her, she checked![/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 [quote name='MacDaddy' post='668538' date='Nov 28 2009, 05:51 PM']I remember they had some signs around the band areas along the lines of 'we don't care if you're David Bowie, our job is to get the bands on then off and we're not gonna take crap from you or your sh1tty little band'. Anyone else remember that?[/quote] I can't stand sh*t like that. How can an attitude problem be official policy? I bet if it was David Bowie they would spend all their time kissing arse and wishing they knew what they were doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budget bassist Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 (edited) [quote name='TheButler' post='668323' date='Nov 28 2009, 02:49 PM']I've had crap both, can't say there is any correlation between gender and sound engineer goodness.[/quote] same, there are some girls on my music tech course that are alright, some that are absolutely useless. None that struck me as particularly outstanding though. Edited November 28, 2009 by budget bassist Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budget bassist Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 [quote name='BurritoBass' post='668373' date='Nov 28 2009, 03:41 PM']We had one at a London venue back in the mid 90s who our drummer confused in soundcheck by speaking backwards into the mic and then shouting over to say she must have plugged it in backwards. Bless her, she checked![/quote] that's brilliant! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu-khag Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 Always been very happy with the female sound engineers... One thing Ive noticed is that with every female engineer Ive encountered Ive never met one who seems jaded or really cynical about the whole live music thing... male ones on the other hand! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted November 29, 2009 Share Posted November 29, 2009 I have to say, the worst sound engineer I've ever had the pleasure of working with was a woman. Not that that has anything to do with her doing a rubbish job mind, her "stuff it" attitude and general ineptitude around the desk was responsible for the sonic calamity that resulted... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironside1966 Posted November 29, 2009 Share Posted November 29, 2009 [quote name='The Funk' post='668526' date='Nov 28 2009, 05:43 PM']Had one at Ginglik. She was a bit rubbish really and a little rude - but no worse than the knob-wielding knob-twiddlers at every other gig.[/quote] I have said this many of time as a rule you get what you pay for, a lot of venues will not pay as people will work for peanuts or free. If your experience of engineers is predominantly bad then maybe you need to play better venues or pay more for a PA or it might time to look inwards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickH Posted November 29, 2009 Share Posted November 29, 2009 When I was running my live PA company, I trained up my (now ex-) GF in how to do it, for when I had to go to the bar / toilet etc. She was pretty good towards the end. Had an ear for metal herself though, so she wanted to treat every band like a metal band and mix accordingly! Although I guess we all put our own stamp on the music, but hear it as nice n balanced and neutral... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Low End Bee Posted November 29, 2009 Share Posted November 29, 2009 [quote name='waynepunkdude' post='668304' date='Nov 28 2009, 02:29 PM']I know this may be a little sexist but it's from experience but I realised last night that every female sound engineer I have have worked with has been brilliant, they always seem to care about your sound instead of just getting the job done. The lady last night was called in last minute, she hadn't been to the venue in a year and was in bed with a fever when she got the call but still did a fantastic job and I can't help but feel that if it was a man that wouldn't have happened.[/quote] She was lovely :wub: and very good at her job too. I'm noticing that the better ones are normally the younger ones these days. The people in their 20s who've done our sound have been top notch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted November 29, 2009 Share Posted November 29, 2009 [quote name='ironside1966' post='669268' date='Nov 29 2009, 05:35 PM']If your experience of engineers is predominantly bad then maybe you need to play better venues or pay more for a PA or it might time to look inwards[/quote] I don't gig anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironside1966 Posted November 29, 2009 Share Posted November 29, 2009 [quote name='The Funk' post='669320' date='Nov 29 2009, 06:37 PM']I don't gig anymore.[/quote] Shame, your band sounded good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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