Getting Your Sound in an Odd Room

[mdbeh]

This was touched on in another thread, but I thought I'd make it it's own topic:

How do you guys go about getting sounds in makeshift environments?

I guess if you're in a truck, you can have the acoustics set, but what if you're setup in the wings of a stage, a storage room, etc.?

Do you use headphones a lot? Does anyone bring portable acoustic treatment?

[mdbeh]

Bump.

Anyone?

[Remoteness]

I'm kind of busy at the moment...

I promise I will reply very soon.

Anyone else out there have some thoughts?

I'll be back ASAP.

[mdbeh]

Cool. No rush, just wanted to make sure it hadn't gotten lost.

[fifthcircle]

I use headphones a lot... The pair I use are probably not the best, but I know them well and I know how my mixes translate to speakers. When in doubt, I multitrack and make sure things are right in post.

When I do get to bring speakers, I use a set of Genelec 1031A's as nearfields. If it is important, I may hang a few moving blankets to control things a bit, but often I don't get that luxury. I'm usually either not in a completly isolated acoustic environment or I'm stuffed in a closet somewhere.

--Ben

[Remoteness]

When there's nowhere decent to set up an isolated CRM, I insist on the FOH position. If you install time delayed nearfield speakers at your mix position, it's the only logical place to be! Seriously friends, it really works. And much better then the side of the stage. Man, that never works. You end up watching meters all night, blowing your ears out on the cans, not really knowing what you got. If you have a chance to playback the sound check, it could work, but forget about any aural changes midstream into the concert... And EQ'ing on cans off stage... Yeah right. IMO, that's a losing proposition almost every time.

When mixing at FOH, I like to keep my speakers just above the room tone. Not loud enough to disturb anyone around you, but good enough get a decent idea of what you're tracking. I've even done live TV music mixes next to FOH with good results.

Setting up in an untreated semi trailer may work if you're not dealing with serious isolation issues. If the trailer is far enough from the stage, PA system and/or other loud sound sources, it can work (fairly) well but you got to use portable acoustic treatment. It's not perfect, but much better then doing nothing. Same thing goes with setting up in an auxiliary room somewhere.

We usually start off with hanging sound blankets at least 3 inches off the room walls. We may add Sonex foam panels where necessary. Then we may bring in our Studio Tube Traps and arrange them around the CRM area as per our needs.

If more isolation is necessary, Taytrix Inc. makes these wonderful portable gobos that are fully modular and stackable. This gobo system is called Stackit. They're the only stackable gobo system I am aware of. They can be set up in various combinations to suit your needs.

Setting up all this sh*t is not as easy as it sounds. Providing acoustic treatment with your recording service can cost your client as much as or even more then bringing in a recording truck in the first place. Many times, it's just better to bring in a truck when the numbers get up there. Sometimes, it's not about the economics when you have no other choice but to do it as a flypack.

Does any of this make sense to you?

[mdbeh]

Originally posted by Remoteness
Does any of this make sense to you?

Definitely.

Thanks,

[gregrw]

I liken it to what it must have been like to shoot a movie in the days before there was video. The crew set up, did the shoot, broke down the gear, and then developed the film. You couldn't rewind the tape a watch to make sure that the acting was OK, the lenses were OK, no mics showed up on film, etc. You trusted that everything was in working order, that everyting was set up and connected right, and that the actors did a good job.

It's kinda like that when you can't hear what you're recording. Just trust that you've used the right mics and pres, that signal is getting to tape (well, you can usually see that), that the mics are properly positioned, and all that. You know how to do the job, just have confidence. (And that was a major hurdle for me...even now I still get kinda paranoid at a live gig...)

-GRW

[mdbeh]

Huh. So you're not even checking with headphones? That seems like making life way harder than it has to be.

Placement "by eye" is a place to start, but I've found it to be seriously unreliable for final sounds. Like on guitars--same cab, same mic, same placement, different day, and it can sound completely different.

[gregrw]

I always give a listen with the cans (Prob. should have said.) The problem is I can't always hear them over the sound of the P.A. I also use the P.A. itself. If it sounds fine in the house, then I can be pretty sure that the sound being recorded is at least acceptable. Remember, on my live gigs, I'm doing the recording, FOH and monitors all at once (though I often have help,) and the sound going to the P.A. has already passed through the recorders.

On-site is a whole 'nother ballgame. There's no P.A., so I can actually check what I'm hearing through a few cans and monitors.

-GRW

[mdbeh]

I've got a pair of Etymotic in-ears that knock off about 20 dB. It's not enough for real isolation, but it helps when you're moving a mic around in front of a guitar cab, for instance.

[Fuzzy Logic]

mdbeh,

Where did you get your Etymotic in-ears?

[mdbeh]

http://headphone.com/layout.php?topi...tID=0020100000