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[g'bye, Dick Rees]

Nice one!  Unfortunately, I suspect many won't get it. 

Another tech I met had this on the board tape on the rear of his console:

"How dare you question my artistic vision??!!??"

[Tim McCulloch]

Another tech I met had this on the board tape on the rear of his console:

"How dare you question my artistic vision??!!??"

My artistic vision requires bifocals...

[Douglas R. Allen]

There may be another side to this. Did the band have a sound person before you? Sometimes its MONEY that drives these things. Maybe the guitar player is being cut $30 dollars or so and wants to trash you so he can get his money back?
People do things to get what they want in weird ways sometimes.
Douglas R. Allen

[Alec Spence]

Was pleased to hear Jon Burton (FOH for The Prodigy, amongst others) at a "How to soundcheck" seminar for PLASA (UK) state that our job is 75% people skills, 25% technical (might have got the proportions slightly wrong).  Agrees with what I've always thought...

You can view him delivering this seminar here (not the same one I attended, but looks like the same content) - well worth a view...
http://youtu.be/kklGMpv0t0o

[John Halliburton]

Nice one!  Unfortunately, I suspect many won't get it. 

His comic foil and co-star, Margaret Dumont, rarely did.

It would have been the ultimate love/hate situation to be the butt of a Marx Bros. "skewering".  I would have gladly taken the plunge, if the opportunity existed.  You can watch their movies many times over and pick up something new each time.

Best regards,

John

[James Wright]

At a dance music event:

"Hey, I think your subs are out of phase. They sound like they are sucking, not blowing!"

[brian maddox]

i used to hate this part of mixing as i don't really take criticism all that well.  Over time i learned to deal with it using a simple process.

1.  Ask for specifics.  if none are given, then ignore it.  'it sounds bad' cannot be fixed if it sounds good to me.  Specifics will be considered.  That being said, if i flat out don't agree, i don't make the change.

2.  Ask where they are sitting and if possible go there and listen.  This makes them feel like you are taking them seriously, and will occasionally actually add insight into the situation that can help.  My most recent situation like this was a John Denver Tribute act in a fairly large theater.  When i went down front to where the patron was sitting it was obvious where the complaint was coming from.  The mix was fine.  The stage volume was just too high for the level i was running the system.  i went back and turned the rig up a few dB and the same guy that was ready to flay me was falling over himself with compliments at the end of the show.

3.  Be polite, but firm.  'The band/promoter/venue hired me to do this job and it sounds really good to me' said without sarcasm or attitude can work wonders sometimes. 

Above all else, avoid getting into a pissing contest over it.  There are times at the guerrilla club level where you might have to make a few enemies, but just about anywhere else you work the bridges you burn will not be worth it in the long run.  Sound guys with good attitudes get more, and better, gigs.  It's just a fact.

[Robert Piascik]

Another tech I met had this on the board tape on the rear of his console:

"How dare you question my artistic vision??!!??"

My motto:
"I can only make it louder, I can't make it better"

[bruce gering]

i distinctly remember mixing for a band at a local festival that was getting popular and I was eager to show how they would sound with my system and mix chops. Every other time I had heard them, the mix was a crappy muddy mid bass mish mosh blankets over the speakers kind of sound that was, IMNSHO, total crap. The type of music was modern heavy rock/ metal in the vein of STP, Godsmack, Limp Bizkit, etc.

When the band started up the mix was clear and coherent and it sounded like crap! WTF! After a song or 2 of desperately twisting knobs trying to pull them in, I gave up and decided to "muddy" it up, if nothing else because the talent level was pretty poor.

You know what? The less clear the mix became, the better it sounded. It really opened my eyes up to the fact that the "best" mix is the one that works for the act, not the other way around.

Some food for thought.

[Josh Millward]

2.  Old lady complains that the drums are too loud, is informed that there are no mics on the drums and says, "Well, put some mics on them and TURN THEM DOWN."

#2 my all-time favorite.

Yes! I'm going to put that right up there with the "big band" show I was doing in a small amphitheater type place. We had your basic 3x2 per side flown 850 rig and the only thing in the PA was the vocal mics. Sure enough, as soon as the music started a blue colored helmet-hair came charging up the steps to demand that I "turn it down!"

Also, my grandmother is a huge Hank Williams Jr. fan. She came to a show that I was working and to improve her situation a little bit I got her a chair and parked her at the FoH location in the 20,000 seat arena which was pretty much sold out. She clapped along and had a great time. Then, when the show was over one of the other bemused tech people that was observing from FoH asked her if she liked the show. She said, "Oh yes! This was a wonderful show, but I have all his records and none of them were that loud."

[ProSoundWeb Community]