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[Chris Buford]

Zack Slater wrote on Wed, 04 November 2009 17:38

I ment to ask about bringing a small rack as well.  I was thinking something small, maybe just an M One and a 4 ch. comp.  As far as mics I was thinking probably just a vocal mic and all the drum  mics with LP Claws, because I hate mic stands hah.  I'd leave the guitar mics and bass DI to the sound company because everyone has two 57s right?  Also, the band is a "pop punk" band so the inputs are just drums, bass, guitars, vocals and samples so its nothing crazy.

I wonder if I can get my band of guys in their late thirties to start writing "pop punk" songs!

As everyone has said, if you've got it, bring it. I'll only add that if you can bring more or all of it, do it.

We finally purchased the last 5 mic stands we needed, and now I can say we are totally self contained minus 2 wedge mixes and the PA.

If you provide all mics and DIs and stands for the vocals, OH's etc (and use claws and zbars as you said), its very easy to tell any house crew/hands that everything is yours and can go offstage in one direction. It's very nice to get offstage and out of the way of the headliner, then you can spent time offstage packing up mics and gear.

What's your monitoring situation? You planning on going to IEM's at anytime? Either way, it sounds like you could almost go as far as picking up some subsnakes of your own to make wiring the stage that much easier.  

[David Morison]

Chris Buford wrote on Fri, 06 November 2009 01:47

I wonder if I can get my band of guys in their late thirties to start writing "pop punk" songs!

Too late, Green Day already have that covered...

D.

[Eric John]

Good Luck with the gig!

A few things that I don't think have been mentioned... If you bring your own mics, be sure to have the proper proprietary clips as the house guy may not. Keep in mind if wedges are being used, a basic cardioid mic will be a lot less trouble to ring out than some whacked out uni-bi-hypertastic-super condenser mic.

Here's a few "etiquette" items...

Sound check any "walk on" music
Ask the house guy if there's a time frame for sound check
have a stage plot/input list available (email to house ahead of time if possible)
Don't wear credentials from last years "1 big show" (it's really not that impressive)
Make sure neon signs wont interfere with wireless gear (they're not usually on during sound check)

relax, enjoy...

E

[Jason Tubbs]

Eric John wrote on Fri, 06 November 2009 10:27

...a basic cardioid mic will be a lot less trouble to ring out than some whacked out uni-bi-hypertastic-super condenser mic.

Bullshit.

jt

[Andy Peters]

Jason Tubbs wrote on Fri, 06 November 2009 10:06

Eric John wrote on Fri, 06 November 2009 10:27 ...a basic cardioid mic will be a lot less trouble to ring out than some whacked out uni-bi-hypertastic-super condenser mic. Bullshit. jt

What he said.

-a

[Charlie Zureki]

Jason Tubbs wrote on Fri, 06 November 2009 11:06

Eric John wrote on Fri, 06 November 2009 10:27 ...a basic cardioid mic will be a lot less trouble to ring out than some whacked out uni-bi-hypertastic-super condenser mic. Bullshit. jt

 +2

  Eric, what is your specific reasoning behind this statement?

 If you mean ring out... as in reducing the chance for feedback... generally the Hyper or Super Cardioid Microphones will be less prone to feed back than a standard Cardioid ......  there are factors such as placement/axis, resonance, etc....

 Cheers,
 Hammer

[Eric John]

I have had all kinds of trouble when an artist brings some super trick omni/bi directional mic and wants tons of stage volume. I've played with box location, etc. Maybe I just suck...

[Andy Peters]

Eric John wrote on Sat, 07 November 2009 14:05

I have had all kinds of trouble when an artist brings some super trick omni/bi directional mic and wants tons of stage volume. I've played with box location, etc. Maybe I just suck...

There's a significant difference between an omni or a Figure-8 (goddamn ribbon mics) and a hypercardioid.

The latter is quite easy to deal with.

The former is a disaster in the making. I know there are some live guys who put the Royer ribbons on guitar amps, but the signal out of a close-miked guitar cabinet at reasonable stage volumes is obviously pretty strong, so that's good, and second that cabinet isn't generally near a monitor wedge that will also pick up that mic, so that's the double bonus that makes it work. A ribbon mic on vibes or Hope Sandoval's lead vocal? The only reasonable solution to that is the garrote with a rusty guitar string.

Pretty much all of the mics in my kit are hypercardioid, with the exceptions of a pair of SM81s and some EV 308s.

-a

[Jake Scudder]

Andy Peters wrote on Sat, 07 November 2009 17:09

Eric John wrote on Sat, 07 November 2009 14:05 I have had all kinds of trouble when an artist brings some super trick omni/bi directional mic and wants tons of stage volume. I've played with box location, etc. Maybe I just suck... There's a significant difference between an omni or a Figure-8 (goddamn ribbon mics) and a hypercardioid. The latter is quite easy to deal with. The former is a disaster in the making. I know there are some live guys who put the Royer ribbons on guitar amps, but the signal out of a close-miked guitar cabinet at reasonable stage volumes is obviously pretty strong, so that's good, and second that cabinet isn't generally near a monitor wedge that will also pick up that mic, so that's the double bonus that makes it work. A ribbon mic on vibes or Hope Sandoval's lead vocal? The only reasonable solution to that is the garrote with a rusty guitar string. Pretty much all of the mics in my kit are hypercardioid, with the exceptions of a pair of SM81s and some EV 308s. -a

Of course it's all a matter of application and perspective.  I call dozens of open omnis another day at the office.

In addition to headworn lavs we have many omnidirectional mics in orchestra pits.  All of the same holds true from Andy's post.  Right now I've got 7 DPA 4006s on brass so not much gain is needed and the only foldback these are routed to is either far away on stage or routed to Aviom and cans.  The other omni I have is a DPA 4066 lav, worn by the percussion player to pickup hand percussion and toys regardless of where he needs to be to play them.  

Lower SPL instruments like reeds get cardiods or hypercardiods for maximum isolation and gain.

[Dave Neale]

Can't stress enough the importance of a proper advance call and email. With the band I'm touring with now I carry mics, a console, a stage loom and iems, and I do multiple advance calls to make sure everyone is on the same page. We're always the headliner though, so I'm more or less calling the shots.

I'm home  now and got a reminder of how annoying no advance can be when the opening band showed up with their own mics, no stands, Pods that needed DI's and iems for a stage I'd already plotted festival style and rung out with house mics and FOH driven wedges!

I was acomodating, but knowing what they were bringing would have really simplified my night. And kept me from exhibiting the grumpy sound guy stereotype...