Hi, I am currently working at a production and someone decided it was a good idea to have a live band. The band has been unreasonably loud and the band director is unwilling to try to make them quieter. Due to this issue I have to set the actors mic's (Shure xls-1s with countryman e2 lavaliers) very high to be heard over the band and the quality is just terrible. In addition we are having to use way too many mics and running them all at the same time also seems to be a problem. I have tried boosting the amp so i can lower the main mix and gains on the board but it still isn't enough. I keep putting various sound dampeners around the band but they just aren't cutting it.
Microphones Any advice about a live band being too loud?
- Thread starterfeltbox
- Start date
If it's too loud, your too old!
Seriously though, have someone higher up than you talk to the band director. Simple as that. Theater is a collaboration and all departments need to work together towards what is best for the show. If the mics sound like crap, no one is going to care how great the band was.
That said, How big is the band? What instruments are in it? How big is your room? The more details we have the better options we can come up with.
Seriously though, have someone higher up than you talk to the band director. Simple as that. Theater is a collaboration and all departments need to work together towards what is best for the show. If the mics sound like crap, no one is going to care how great the band was.
That said, How big is the band? What instruments are in it? How big is your room? The more details we have the better options we can come up with.
The band is our high school band, it has 2 electric guitars, an electric bass, 2 keyboardists and a piano, and a handful of clarinets and flutes, and a sax. Also, it's not that i find it too loud it's that the sound system can't maintain quality at levels that can be heard over the band. the room is pretty large, it's a school cafeteria. As for climbing the chain of command, i've spoken to the director who said she can't even get the band to cooperate. we are running 10 of the Shure mics with the lavaliers, 2 mackie hand mics, a wireless guitar adapter and a laptop. the mics are about 20-30 feet from the receivers which are run through Shure power and antenna distributors. just to add to , the situation, i being a teenager, have little leverage but i am the only one with any experience. thanks for you help so far.
MarshallPope
Well-Known Member
Threaten moving the band to a different room and micing them in?
Sound can't travel in a vacuum.
So build an air-tight enclosure around the band and install a pump to suck the air out. After a few minutes the band volume will be attenuated. A few minutes later they might stop playing altogether and you can shut off the pump to cut down on the background noise.
So build an air-tight enclosure around the band and install a pump to suck the air out. After a few minutes the band volume will be attenuated. A few minutes later they might stop playing altogether and you can shut off the pump to cut down on the background noise.
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Sound can't travel in a vacuum.
So build an air-tight enclosure around the band and install a pump to suck the air out. After a few minutes the band volume will be attenuated. A few minutes later they might stop playing altogether and you can shut off the pump to cut down on the background noise.
it might be a little out of budget but i wish...
carproelsofly
Active Member
Can the band members hear each other? Sometimes some well-placed monitors will cure a volume problem.
Can the band hear the actors? Again, monitors.
Are the band's amplifiers pointed at themselves, or at the audience? If at the audience (or stage), turn 'em around. You could also try putting them on chairs or stage cubes to get the most direct sound pointed directly at the band members - then they will have a more clear idea of how loud they are.
Is it possible to build a structure around the band? If so, make it thick and padded, with something reflective on the band side to drive their own sound back at them but attenuate it in the rest of the room. Even a short pony wall can make a big difference.
Explain to the director/music director that in the current situation the mics are picking up more band than vocal, due to the relative levels on stage - you're not able to isolate the vocals in the mics - so turning up the mics is probably just making everything worse.
HTH,
Jen
Can the band hear the actors? Again, monitors.
Are the band's amplifiers pointed at themselves, or at the audience? If at the audience (or stage), turn 'em around. You could also try putting them on chairs or stage cubes to get the most direct sound pointed directly at the band members - then they will have a more clear idea of how loud they are.
Is it possible to build a structure around the band? If so, make it thick and padded, with something reflective on the band side to drive their own sound back at them but attenuate it in the rest of the room. Even a short pony wall can make a big difference.
Explain to the director/music director that in the current situation the mics are picking up more band than vocal, due to the relative levels on stage - you're not able to isolate the vocals in the mics - so turning up the mics is probably just making everything worse.
HTH,
Jen
TimmyP1955
Well-Known Member
A drum shield(or several), might help as well, but probably not a lot if it is a very live room.
The band members may at this point turn blue and collapse on the ground. This is most likely a ploy to garner attention to their off-task behavior and you should ignore them.Sound can't travel in a vacuum.
So build an air-tight enclosure around the band and install a pump to suck the air out. After a few minutes the band volume will be attenuated. A few minutes later they might stop playing altogether and you can shut off the pump to cut down on the background noise.
Incidentally, you might want to lawyer up.
Likely too late to train the current guitarist and bassist to turn down, hopefully they are seniors and wont be back next fall. the director has to get the newbies to keep their amps turned down. Our director here has a small monitor system connected to a small mixer near his reach, if the musician cannot/will not control his amp as directed then he must use the system that the director has control of. the system is rarely used but just having it there with the implied threat keeps most guitarists from cranking their amp.
techieman33
Well-Known Member
Why would I need a lawyer? The internet said it would work, and we all know the internet never lies.
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