Keeping Murphy at Bay

Mar 13, 2008 5:21 PM, By Karen Stackpole

           

THREE PRO ENGINEERS OFFER ADVICE ON HOW TO KEEP YOUR LIVE SOUND UNDER CONTROL

Andy Lipnick, who mixes for both live sound and broadcast, stresses that the more control a band has over their dynamics and volume, the better they will sound out front.

Photo: Pat Codoceo

Get Your Mojo Workin'

Make sure that your equipment works and that your bag of tricks includes several spare cables, connectors, batteries, strings, fuses, and so on, in case of an emergency. Once again, a checklist is your friend. It will ensure not only that you arrive with adequate gear to dodge the wily Murphy, but also that you leave with everything you brought. Haven't you ever departed from a late-night show, only to realize halfway home that you left your tuner on the windowsill or your stick bag behind the stage? I once found a guy's sax on the sidewalk as his car's taillights disappeared around the bend. (Luckily one of his bandmates was still around.)

Each instrument in a band typically presents its own set of problems for sound engineers. Here's an individual breakdown.

Guitar. "For God's sake, get a tuner!" implores Karr. Not only will this save time spent tuning between songs-you'll also sound better. Heller points out that most guitarists tend to want more level in the mix, and complain about not being able to hear themselves. If you have this experience, even with your amp cranked up full blast, Heller recommends elevating the amp and moving it closer, or putting it right next to you, tipped up toward your head. You could also try getting an extralong instrument cable and stepping off the stage into the house to hear how you sound from the audience's perspective. This can be a real ear-opener.

Bass. Some bass players go for a really low, boomy sound, but that can work against a good mix and muddy up the overall sound. Keep track of your stage volume. Lipnick notes that a lot of times the bass is too loud, and he ends up taking it out of the P.A. because there's enough coming off the stage. Sometimes I'll roll off all the low end on the bass because that's the loudest part," he says, "then I'll add in some upper-register stuff and put that in the P.A. to give it more punch." Work on your tone and think of how your instrument will come through in the mix. Does it have enough definition and body?

Keyboards. Bring all the cables you'll require and a few extras. It's helpful if you bring an amp to use as a personal monitor for your sound. If you play electric piano, Lipnick advises to keep in mind how your instrument will sit in the mix when you work on your sound: "Electric piano players who try to get an acoustic piano sound out of their keyboard in a band setting will find that it doesn't necessarily work in the mix. The low end will sound muddy and the highs will sound plinky. Go see bands with similar instrumentation playing in a good setting with a really good sound system, and listen critically to what's happening in the mix. Is there really low end on that electric piano? Maybe not."

Drums. Make sure you have a well-tuned kit with good heads. "If the instrument sounds good, you can put any mic on it and it'll sound good," says Heller, who's a drummer himself. "If the heads are ringing, that's fine. You might as well leave some of those overtones open instead of taping the hell out of the kit, because that may actually help your sound cut through in a case where it might get buried." It's important that drummers grasp the concept of dynamics. If you're creaming the kit, you may be tromping on everything. Try to blend into the mix.

Vocals. Work on your microphone technique and be aware of the relationship between feedback and mic position. Whatever you do, don't cover up the head of the mic, and don't point it at the monitors! Karr, whose modus operandi is to ring out a system based on the frequency-response characteristics of certain microphones, stresses that if you're bringing your own mic you should notify the engineer before you get to the show (or upon arrival) so he or she can work it into the system. Understand that your favorite studio condenser mic may not be ideal for a live show-its greater sensitivity can make it more prone to feedback than a dynamic mic.

Unusual instruments. If you have a few odd instruments in your setup-such as cello, oud, sarod, or clarinet-and you're playing on a bill with a bunch of rock bands, go up to the engineer and explain your setup and the dynamics of your instrument. A lot of engineers who primarily mix for rock bands may not have dealt with exotic instruments, and they may appreciate your guidance. Karr recommends that you familiarize yourself with the trouble spots on your instrument (for example, the cello often has feedback in the bass frequencies).

It's Fine to Turn Down

You don't have to play at deafening levels to rock the house. Achieving acoustic balance onstage can immensely improve the quality of your sound-as heard from both the audience and the stage-and makes the sound engineer's job easier. Heller's high school band director drilled into his head that when you're playing you should hear everyone else's parts; if you can't hear somebody, play down until you can. "If you establish that as the stage balance, then everything falls into place, allowing dynamics to really happen-allowing the music to breathe," says Heller.

If someone turns up the volume to hear himself or herself, it has a cumulative effect-everybody else turns up, and you reach what Karr calls the point of diminishing returns. "The best advice for bands is to try to be as dynamic as possible," he says. "When someone's taking a solo, everyone else should come down and the soloist should come up." Lipnick stresses the importance of understanding that the more control that band members have over dynamics and the better they manage their volume, the better they'll sound out front.