From rockkey@sbcglobal.net Sun Nov 12 07:27:50 2006
Subject:Re: OT: Setting volumes in a band

Great topic,

I shared this thread with my band and the guitarist
wrote back:

"Turn everything louder than everthing else...."


-Ian Gillian-
(I do use -29dB ear plugs)
Wish me luck!

Rock

--- Bruce Wahler wrote:

> Hi All,
>
> >Put your amplifier up on a stand right behind your
> head. Not on the floor
> >shooting underneath you. Have the guitar and bass
> do the same. If the
> >drummer plays too loud, build some sound deadening
> panels to put around him
> >as mentioned earlier. Make sure the guitar player
> is disciplined enough not
> >to turn up loud just to get his tone, same for the
> bass player.
>
> Moe has excellent suggestions. I have my keyboard
> monitor sitting on top of my lowboy Leslie, which
> puts it right about at ear level, and only 2-3 feet
> from my ears. In this situation -- which rarely
> happens on stage -- I can turn the volume down from
> 12:00 to 9:30 or 10:00 and still get plenty of "me"
> in the mix.
>
> Also, if you can't get the guitar or bass amps off
> the floor, then have the guitarist/bassist stand
> *directly* across the room from his/her instrument
> amp. Our bass player was obnoxiously loud due to
> his standing off to the side from his rig. We
> turned the rig about 45 degrees in his direction,
> and it's made all the difference in the world. I
> remember reading that the Doobie Bros. used to place
> all of their stage amps next to the monitors, facing
> towards the individual players. Makes sense to me!
>
> And finally, make a rule that if ANYONE in the band
> thinks the sound level is too loud, then everyone
> immediately turns down -- and not just a token
> adjustment, more like 20-25%. (Believe it or not, a
> good drummer can "turn down," too. Ours does.)
> Sometimes, the combined sound level can make it
> difficult to hear individual sounds in the mix.
> This approach has an added benefit in that listening
> to the band at lower volumes helps to hear missed
> licks, bad harmonies, etc. that get lost when a nice
> thick coat of "loud" is applied to everything.
>
> Regards,
>
> -BW
>
> --
> Bruce Wahler
> Online Music Sales
> AshbySolutions.com™
> http://music.ashbysolutions.com
> 978.386.7389 voice/fax
> bruce@ashbysolutions.com
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
> removed]
>