Is that my bass in the front of house?

Joined
Dec 24, 2011
Messages
21
Reaction score
0
Hi dudes and dudettes, any tips for ensuring what the sound man is putting out front of house is actually my beautiful £000's Warwick/Trace sound, full and piano string zingy rather than dub reggae (no offence intended!) other than a) plugging direct to the board and listening to the front of house (then it would be desk and front of house rather than my Trace rig) b) asking the sound man to come listen to my rig up close and personal and then replicate the sound (ooo hello, you're close) c) don't be so fussy and go with the flow (I didn't pick/fine tune all this gear just to sound like a kazoo in a drain pipe) d) come straight out with it- hey man, do you know what you're doing? (don't want my Warwick inserting into any of my orifices)??

ps I love sound men- awesome job. But are you getting my sound out there!? :?:
 

DiMarco

nutcase
Good Vibe Sponsor
Joined
Nov 19, 2009
Messages
6,979
Reaction score
4,738
Hi Adrian,

Soundmen often spend ages on getting the drums and guitars right. Then when they can hear the bass they go "OK that's settled then".

What you have to do soon as you walk in the joint, you go to the soundman and shake hands, introduce yourself. He now knows who you are and is sensitive to a little bit of attention just like anybody else.

Then while setting up your backline, ask the soundman if you can do a bass + drums only soundcheck once he is done miking and setting up the drum mix. It is of utmost importance that the drums + bass sound good together. Rely on your singer and/or guitarist to check that mix and help the soundman establish your sound. It is all about communication so don't be shy.

One other thing: If like me you use some bass effects, going dry into a D.I. is not going to satisfy your needs. A bass distortion or overdrive sounds horrible in most cases when connected directly through a D.I. box. I always bring my Tech21 VTbass pedal which emulates an Ampeg stack including cabinet. The soundman gets that signal from me instead of just the dry instrument. Sansamp is the way!

Cheers, Marco
 
Joined
Apr 21, 2013
Messages
232
Reaction score
2
Even if I don't use it for the whole night, I always do the sound check with my wireless so I can walk out to the front and hear what's happening.
 
Joined
Jun 2, 2012
Messages
103
Reaction score
1
What DiMarco said makes a lot of sense. Checking drums + bass only is a great idea.

Also, +1 for bringing a SansAmp. Most engineers have worked with them and know how to make your bass sound great when you use one of those for the direct signal.

I wouldn't recommend asking him if he knows what he's doing. That would be like the sound engineer asking you something like 'are you sure you know how to play bass?' ;-)
 

Florin

OG
Joined
Oct 28, 2006
Messages
17,893
Reaction score
2,096
Age
49
HI Adrian,

I usually boost A LOT the frequencies I really want to be heard in the mix
Let's say 2500 HZ at 9 o clock for that growl you like! The sound on my backline is often uncomfortable for my ears :)
 

DiMarco

nutcase
Good Vibe Sponsor
Joined
Nov 19, 2009
Messages
6,979
Reaction score
4,738
This is why I prefer really small venues, where the foh only amplifies the vocals.
 
Top Bottom