Members acousticvoodoo Posted August 3, 2005 Members Share Posted August 3, 2005 Some people have a full time soundman / engineer that travels with them from show to show and runs their sound. Others use a "house-guy", or sometimes just do their thing with no soundguy. So... How about YOUR band. - Have a formal soundguy?- Does he come to rehearsals too?- Do you consider him: "part of the band"?- How do you compensate him? michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Outkaster Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 Yes and he get's paid as a band member but has to show up to some rehersals to know the show. He knows everyone's rig and stage plot and can engineer any system rented or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators MrKnobs Posted August 4, 2005 Moderators Share Posted August 4, 2005 I was a touring soundman for quite a few years. The soundman is never a part of the band, no matter how often the band tells him that, or wants it to be so. It's two different worlds. The soundman rarely gets the girl, hardly gets noticed unless he makes a big mistake, has to listen to inbred hickabilly club managers bitching about the volume, has to listen to guitar players' hot but IQ challenged girlfriends insist their guy's guitar should be twice as loud as the rest of the band, invariably gets replaced when the band "makes it big," gets thrown out of the nicer clubs for wearing a ball cap (even if the musicians are wearing socks on their dicks), gets to talk to every drunk in the audience who thinks he's a soundguy, has to continually relocate beer bottles placed on the console or FX rack, gets no cut of the record sales, gets no consideration for any gear he brings to the show, is expected to fix broken gear for free, and sometimes is even mistaken for a roadie and asked to load the truck while the musicians head for the after-gig parties. On the plus side, any soundman who is good makes much more than the musicians do at a show (until you hit the big time, but by then you're making so much you don't complain), doesn't have to attend rehearsals or learn songs off a record, can pretty much work anytime he or she wants, and doesn't have to lift anything before or after the show, just show up and turn knobs. I eventually quit running sound for a living, despite making great pay, because I wanted to play. I was working for some of the best players in Country music, and I found myself hoping an amp would blow up so I wouldn't be so bored. Like Satan, I had to make the choice of serving in Heaven (mixing country stars in a 10,000 seat arena) vs. reigning in Hell (playing out with my own band to small audiences for chump change). I had to go with the fiery pit. Sure, it's hot down here, but it's where I belong. Terry D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members superiorparts Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 we have a full time sound for our band. he gets paid just like every member in the band. our sound man is a member of our band. he partakes in anything the band does including jager shots, hotel room parties, and a lot of other stuff i wont mention. he is also a friend of all the band members. myself and the sound man owns all the pa and we also do big sound jobs together when our band is not playing. he is the reason we sound as good as we do. he has ran sound for the last 25 years and has ran sound on a production crew for artist as big as lynard skynard. he is also featured on page 96(i believe this is right) in the latest monitor magazine that peavey puts out. he is an electronics technician for the biggest music store in the state and also has worked with peavey in designing effects. he can also repair anything that breaks in our pa rig from power amps to mixing boards to your car stereo if he has too. he is a great guy. he also has a haunted house every halloween and has hand built every electronical prop. his website is called "the cauldron of invention". we are very fortunate to have him. not every band can have a sound man who is a part of the family. he is as vital as any member of our band. check out david shaw at www.monkeyboneband.com if your sound man sucks, your band sucks. no matter how good you are. kevin james www.monkeyboneband.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members KHAN Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 Originally posted by MrKnobs gets thrown out of the nicer clubs for wearing a ball cap (even if the musicians are wearing socks on their dicks) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members squealie Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 We consider our sound man as part of the band. All of what Knobs said is true though. If by some ridiculous stretch, we make anything out of our band, we hope to include him as a tour manager/ FOH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members CAC Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 Our sound man is an integral part of our band. He's also married to our lead singer, so he's kind of stuck with us! Seriously though, having your own guy at every gig has made a hige difference for us in a positive way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wheresgrant3 Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 Originally posted by superiorparts member of our band. check out david shaw at www.monkeyboneband.comwww.monkeyboneband.com He even looks fun to party with!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wheresgrant3 Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 We run our own full range PA, Lights and sound. Our soundguy is our manager as well. He handles all of our bookings. (and as a result our guarantee pay has increased 100% in less than a year!). We pay out 7 equal ways. 5 equal shares for band members, 1 to our manager/soundguy, and one share split between two guys who roadie for us. Double that on holidays (New Year's, night before Thanksgiving) Having 8 guys is wonderful for setup/teardown. We can arrive, load in and sound check (with backline fully mic'd) in less than an hour. Tear down and load out has been as quick as 30 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Base Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 Yes, and he definitely is a real part of the band since he is also the frontman, sings and plays guitar!!! He has been a soundman for many years and did the job for some of my bandmates former bands so when the position became available we dragged him in (he played in bands years ago and wanted back in). This probably means he won't be able to do as thorough a job on sound as he would if he wasn't a participating member, but it's better than not having one, it means we have a $h!t-load of gear at our disposal (his van is an aladdin's cave of pa, amps and lighting equipment) and, tho he'll probably get a bigger share should we ever actually get paid for performing, we'll still be saving money on hiring him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fastplant Posted August 4, 2005 Members Share Posted August 4, 2005 Our last sound guy did every one of our shows. He did other bands on our off nights. But he was dedicated to us. I felt really bad when we had to tell him we were ending the band. He was like a member. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members splatbass Posted August 6, 2005 Members Share Posted August 6, 2005 I'm the sound man in my band (and bass player). I don't have a clue what I'm doing.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members moody Posted August 7, 2005 Members Share Posted August 7, 2005 We have a regular sound guy who does 95% of our shows. He is paid better than us most of the time and we have provided him with most of his work for the last year. That being said. He is not a member of our band. If he gets a booking from someone else first he takes it and we find someone else (doesn't often happen - we book way ahead). I'm getting to the point of wanting to run the sound myself as I think I have a better rig and could get as good or better a result than what he does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members KeysBear Posted August 7, 2005 Members Share Posted August 7, 2005 I've been in bands that had a regular sound man but my current one doesn't. To me the sound isn't much different either way. I'd rather have my channel on all the time than be playing a sax lead into a mic that's muted while the sound man is not paying attention because he's talking to some girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Carbophos Posted August 7, 2005 Members Share Posted August 7, 2005 I just keep in touch with a couple of guys, who proved to be good soundmen. Usualy at least one of them is available when it's needed. But they work with many local bands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cherri Posted August 8, 2005 Members Share Posted August 8, 2005 We have two steady sound techs, who are certainly part of the band. They take turns covering the sound, so that neither of them has to sacrifice their social life every weekend. We have two other people who know our music and our gear and can fill in as needed. Splatbass - my hubby was in the same boat for a long time. Trying to play bass and tweak volumes and work the EQ ....... He's the expert on equipment and sound, and we all answer to him when it comes to setting up and making it all go. House sound is okay, but I appreciate working with techs who already know our material, know the equipment, and most importantly .... pay attention all the time! Out sound techs are invaluable. Roadie, beverage fetcher, security guard, merchandise sales, ... they do it all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brian Krashpad Posted August 8, 2005 Members Share Posted August 8, 2005 Is our what part of our band? Piss-ant punk rock bands don't have sound persons. Nor does my side piss-ant roots rock band. We either use a house person or DIY if there is no house person. In the latter instance I usually end up running sound by default. In those instances though we keep things very rudimentary. PA generally for vox only, maybe mic a kick or something. A couple mains and if we're lucky a singers' front monitor and a monitor for the drummer to hear the vox. BK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted August 8, 2005 CMS Author Share Posted August 8, 2005 Well, it's my band and my system, I guess....since I started this mess I guess I have the take the blame, er responsibility for it. I rent the system on the side, and since there hasn't been a singer long enough to bother booking a gig, I can't comment on who's going to ride faders at that point. Most likely I'll be stuck doing it from the stage until/unless/if we get good enough to draw someone interested who also has some skill at running things. For small-time operations such as mine and countless bar bands, it's a no-win until you start making enough money to give a decent share to all, including the sound man. After all, how many of us suckers can there be....willing to buy, maintain, and then run $10,000+ in PA (assuming you're building a business, not just content with speakers on sticks) for $100-200 a night? Playing in the band for $100 a night isn't bad....you only schlep an instrument and an amp, and get at least a modicum of the available glory. At 2am you load out for 15 minutes and head home....but the sound guy's probably got another hour if it's a decent sized rig, plus he's got to do something with the rig at the other end of the trip unless he's invested another $4K in a trailer, van, truck etc. And chances are he was the first guy at the venue so he's got the longest day of anyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Carbophos Posted August 8, 2005 Members Share Posted August 8, 2005 Funny enough, but economic disadvantage may be an advantage. In Moscow most bands can't afford own PA and even more or less good backline (and a vechile), so ALL the clubs has their own PA, monitoring, combos and drumkits (though drummers bring their own snare, pedals, cymbals and sometimes hardware). Of cousre all this gear is beat up and stuff, but at least it's the same every night and every accomplished sound guy in this circut knows all the club gear. So having own/hired soundman is ususal for established bands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members elsongs Posted August 8, 2005 Members Share Posted August 8, 2005 I've considered our soundman to be part of the "support crew" of the band. But recently he became one of our backup singers, so now he IS part of the band. I joke to people he's the only member who "climbed the corporate ladder" to get into the band. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brian Krashpad Posted August 9, 2005 Members Share Posted August 9, 2005 Originally posted by Carbophos Funny enough, but economic disadvantage may be an advantage. In Moscow most bands can't afford own PA and even more or less good backline (and a vechile), so ALL the clubs has their own PA, monitoring, combos and drumkits (though drummers bring their own snare, pedals, cymbals and sometimes hardware). Of cousre all this gear is beat up and stuff, but at least it's the same every night and every accomplished sound guy in this circut knows all the club gear. So having own/hired soundman is ususal for established bands. Zdastri tovarich! Forgive my "Russki!" BK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GOSG Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 Originally posted by squealie We consider our sound man as part of the band.All of what Knobs said is true though.If by some ridiculous stretch, we make anything out of our band, we hope to include him as a tour manager/ FOH. Thanks Squealie, I've enjoyed being on the team...IMO the best bands/soundpeople understand that it is a team effort and the end result reflects the effort. I've worked in both situations, many times I'm hearing the band for the first time at showtime and I enjoy the challenge to achieve the best mix given those limitations. However I prefer to have a constructive relationship with a group, both parties can learn from each other...if everyone knows HOW to listen. BTW: A terrible soundman can destroy a great band's show, but the world's best soundperson can't make a "bad" band sound good... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BndGrl Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 Originally posted by GOSG but the world's best soundperson can't make a "bad" band sound good... I've not yet heard you do a "bad" band but you still get my vote for 'THE BEST" Of course maybe that's the reason I've never heard you do a bad band, you made 'em sound good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members KeysBear Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 I have to admit that many times a pro sound man has helped to give our performances that magical feel. Too bad we can't afford to cart a pro around for the regular gigs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators MrKnobs Posted August 10, 2005 Moderators Share Posted August 10, 2005 Originally posted by squealie All of what Knobs said is true though. If by some ridiculous stretch, we make anything out of our band, we hope to include him as a tour manager/ FOH. You want ME to be your tour manager? Why, thanks! But that'll cost ya! Terry D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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