The sound adventures of Bart and Stacy. Husband and wife owners of the local sound & lighting company BC Productions based out of the Twin Cities in MN.
Our goal is to help those who are interested in the sound and lighting business at any level see how we all work.
In addition some other critical gear we use on a regular basis are: Apple Products: MacBook Pro and iPads Shure ULXD4Q with Shure Beta58 capsules and other Shure microphones. Sennheiser Microphones for instruments and drums NowSonic Stage Router Pro for wireless networking Apple iPads and MacBook Pro's Luminair light control with Enttec ODE interface Chauvet lighting products Blizzard lighting products Donner DMX 2.4GHz wireless dongles
Out of curiosity are the musicians using XVives U4 IEMs? We’ve had musicians experience similar issues when using xvives. We’ve seen very dodgy performance from them when multiple units are used at the same time. There are only so many channels… Also as others mentioned the volume knob location is problematic on those.
I’ve come to really enjoy using a Beta 91A inside the kick. As you say bad cables can give you grief but they seem to require less EQ to get what you need. Thanks for another great video. 🤘🖖👍
To our precious viewer...we sincerely wish you all the best in your fragile world....please check back with us when you want to see some people sweating and show how things things get done in this world...it's not all pretty...yes, we are going to get into it and it’s not rainbows and unicorns...this is hard work. Stacy can hold her own...guarantee you that.
I liked how you guys took turns sneaking up on each other. I'm glad that you both had a good gig besides the unknown location and the weather and the clients of the gig.
Bummer that the two bands couldn't share backline or drums! We just did a 3 band show and mandated the first two bands use the last band's kit but could bring their own snare and cymbals - reduced changeover time to 15 min. But here with such different bands and layouts not really possible... Gotta roll with the changes... If it's the hypercardioid mic I'm thinking of, it has great gain before feedback - but you have to be eating the mic constantly, vs. more forgiving other mics. Our female singer bought one of those, and had her return it after 1 show. SM58 worked way better... The AT PRO37 is inexpensive used, but does well as an OH or HH small condenser in case one of the Octava's ever goes down. Super small and affordable used.
I'm a sax player (obviously by my avatar). They are quite picky as to what bell mounted mics actually work well (especially lower priced ones). Myers Pickups bell mics are awesome, as are Audio Technica. Where they're placed on the bell, and what direction they face the sax, is huge too! Some sax players don't have a clue on that either. But they need to be pointed between the bell and stack keys. Clipping it on the side of the bell lip, not the front (side towards audience), usually works best. I use a Myers on my curved Soprano sax and my flute, but use a neck pickup micro mic, called an Intramic, made by Viga Musictools out of France, on Alto, Tenor, and Bari saxes. This setup has all the warmth of a bell mic, with all the feedback rejection of a Piezo!
Thanks again S&B for sharing - wonderful location, great weather and happy crowd. Bonus = parking spot. One thing that dawned on me (in this digital age) is the use of scenes for shows. As you have a handful of bands you mix for regularly, do you have preset scenes for each band which are used in repeated shows, even if there are small adjustments required because of local acoustics, etc? And if so, do you have one scene for "indoor" gigs and a second one for "outside" gigs to help with the setup of each show?
Modern sound systems are superior to the old point source systems of the past. I had one guy in a band tell me on an outdoor gig "that ain't enough PA for this gig!". In the end, we actually had to TURN DOWN the volume! I use LD Systems Maui44 and Turbosound IP3000 towers. Haven't used point source speakers for mains in over 15 years! And yes, I have the 901 boundry mic as well. Don't often use it but it works great if you don't have XLR issues!
Is the singer with issues sure that their in ears are fitted correctly?? Could be just slipping around in their ears while singing, which can sound like volume changing when it's really just the fit.
It’s always very interesting and instructive to see how The Sound Couple approaches a venue where they have not previously had the opportunity of providing production services. This video is no exception. From making arrangements to drive closer to the actual venue, to setting up equipment when the possibility looms that there might be rain, to determining how power will be provided, as is consistently the case, Bart and Stacy teach us a variety of helpful tips and techniques. Thanks to The Sound Couple for once again taking us along for the gig at this truly delightful venue. We appreciate the opportunity to learn from you both how to improve our own production capabilities.
Awesome video guys! Recently my friend bought a Presonus 32SC for bigger shows this summer and it’s great and I tried on mixing a band with it and it’s great and I’m going to pick up myself a 32sc soon and the routing for stage box is confusing for me a little bit so are you going to make a video on stage box routing soon!
The consoles are nice. For a lot of the setup and configuration, we prefer working with the software as it's more familiar and quicker for us than the console. We probably won't get a chance to do a specific video on routing (we have done some demonstrations within our videos) primarily because it's already covered pretty well in existing videos. The other important thing is to get hands on experience and experiment. There is a learning curve, but it does make sense once you get the hang of it. Troubleshooting routing issues brings you up another level. I feel that PreSonus has done a good job making sense of it, compared to some others I have worked with.
another great video. There are two pet peeves that I have as a sound person. 1 happened here. When a band member puts a mic up to an instrument or amp (in this case the little melodica the horn guy was playing.) To me, the band member is assuming it is not being heard out front. It is indirectly questioning the job youre doing. Im sure no harm was meant but its just one of those things. The other is when a lead singer asks after a song or two, "can you hear us out there? everything sound ok" its another way of questioning your skills. I dont know, maybe im reading into it too much. Love your videos. I know how hard they are to make while you are working the gig.
We typically provide the AC power and the quad boxes. That way they’re not inadvertently plugging into our mains or other power and have the dedicated “stage power” run!
@paulnicholson2255 my point is you should not talk bad about musicians that use iPads anything and everything that can enhance a person's work should be always welcomed
We obviously embrace technology that enables us to do our job better....my point with the iPads and singers is that we have also seen these tools being used as a "crutch" and a distraction to the music. With vocals being primary connection with the audience, it's the vocalists who are primarily tasked to make that happen...goes with territory. Now there are of course exceptions to all of this, but all singers should always strive to and take pride in memorizing lyrics and we stick by that fundamental rule of being a singer.
You have made several comments on this...so apparently this comment has struck a chord with you. I think you missed the point...it's about pushing yourself to continue to raise the bar and not use technology as a crutch....we have been doing this a long time, and I see more singers using these tools as a crutch....not all of them and not all of the time.
One thing i noticed about the wireless rack shown @ 16:05 is that the band really should invest into combiners for their IEM and a better antenna. Most bands (and i feel guilty too) just set up their wireless racks with the antennas that came in the package and hope for the best. A good frequency coordination before soundcheck is key to success. I invested in a simple 16 port switch and connected all of our wireless gear to it. (4x Shure QLXD4 and 6x Sennheiser EW IEM G4) for better coordination. Once they're in the network you can monitor the devices with their respective software (Shure = WirelessWorkBench, Sennheiser = Wireless Systems Manager) lets you coordinate frequencies and even plan ahead. (Some locations may have scans done in the past that you / bands can use to determine problematic frequencies, tv channels whatsoever). If that doesn't help, a combiner (for inears) and a splitter (for multiple wireless microphones) is a must. + a good antenna.
The issue with volume changes in the IEMs might be due to the volume knob on the pack getting moved. If I'm wearing a jacket or shirt that brushes against the volume knob, it can turn it up or down when I dance to the beat. It's very easy for fabric to move the knob. The first time it happened, I thought someone was messing with me, but it was just my shirt! It's really bad if I am wearing a jacket when I perform.
I was watching another sound channel and they mentioned the same thing. They had some rubber covers for Shure IEM packs that protects it from sweat and he said helps stiffen up the volume control.
QSC KLA's over QSC Subs. Two KLA's and two subs per side I use. Next I want Danley 🙂 I use an adapter to raise stack more up facing the crowd more. KLangler... check it out, might be handy for you guys also.
Your system has a great sounding range. From what i can hear thru the video you're not loosing much low end or highs when walking up on the grass. I'm really looking forward to buy the exact PA just based from your videos and insights. Thanks for sharing your work <3
We are truly happy with them...but in full transparency...I have mixed on numerous systems over the years but not on a lot of newer offerings and these are the first "modern" speakers we have owned. We are lucky today because there are a lot of good choices out there for "modern" speakers, but these really work for us and see no reason to change.
Also, your thoughts on placing the mains? Does it make a difference if the mains were placed in front of the pavilion columns rather than to the insides?
That's a good question....we see it more and more. I think that part of it is that a lot of musicians are playing a lot of different gigs with multiple bands and rehearsals are mostly a thing of the past. In addition, gone are the days of listening to the songs and writing down the lyrics on sheets of paper (and hoping you are getting most of the words right!). Now it's a two second copy/paste and there's the lyrics on the iPad...so the motivation to memorize lyrics has just become less of a priority. I recall a singer who joined the band and on her first gig, she had every song memorized...I told her how impressed I was that she did that and her response was...I am going to be the singer in this band and that's my job....I will never forget that and still much respect to her this day.
@@thepeacedrummer Can't remember if we purchased a GoPro 11 or 12, but we ended up returning it. The camera would overheat after recording approximately 10 minutes of footage. Not acceptable in our opinion and looks like there are a lot of people complaining about this with the newer models....it's shocking they can sell them like this.
Hi Bart i need to know how are the equipment in the rack connected with each other. Other words i need to know the schematic of how the equipment are connected together
Sorry...the schematic is all in my head! At a high level, our goal is to leave as much plugged in as possible and to provide us the most common needs when needed (like charging cables, USB). Patching cables takes time and mistakes can happen, so we try to eliminate those variable as much as possible. This is likely rooted back to the analog days when patching/interfacing is what you had to do....Now with digital, there are a lot of opportunities to eliminate or lesson the amount of "patching" that needs to occur, so we run with it!
Nicely done! I did see another tip where they clamped a foil heat blanket under their pop-up to keep it even cooler - definitely taking that idea. What iPhone app are you using that's showing peak and average? We had a gig where we had to be at 85 at 100' (! yes, we weren't told until band started playing). would be helpful to show average vs. peak...
I used to do sooo many gigs like this....hotels with never ending pushes. I live in a very rural area now, we dont have hotels out here! I do completely different types of gigs out here, far less music...which I am fine with. I do church stuff, school stuff, conferences, rodeos, auctions, parades, expos, etc... and a little music. But Im home for dinner a lot more often these days, compared to the days of doing mostly corporate party bands. I will be 53 next month, I have been doing sound for a living, for 35 years. About a year ago I began selling off some of my bigger stuff, and have begun replacing it with some smaller lighter stuff. Most of the gigs I do now, I do by myself...so its getting to that time in life where I cant just schlep all the big heavy stuff, all the time, as well as I used to. But honestly, the smaller stuff is making as much or more money than the bigger stuff. The non music related gigs pay a little better, and are typically less stressful...and they dont go until the wee hours of the morning!
Glad to hear it! Not going to the wee hours is definitely a plus and a game changer at this age in life! Most of the time we just shake our heads at some of the load ins at the newer places - the design doesn't match for convenience and sound experience! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for informative content. The "school of hard knocks" visual experience and expertise is invaluable. One novice question though... why didn't you leave the sub on the ground as the stage is quite high and all...... thanks and keep it up.
Great video Bart and Stacy! I would really like to know what kind of stage that was and if it was good in your opinion. I am in the market for a trailer stage.
I wish we could tell you what kind of stage we had! It worked out very well for this event. Interestingly enough, we were looking back through some pictures of past gigs and realized it was provided for another show. Not sure if it's a custom build or manufactured. Will let you know if we come across it again!
I agree. If I were them, I'd put up the full videos as usual, but ALSO put up a shorter one. Then they could get 2 videos out of each gig for the price of 1!
We like them too! Especially for repeat venues. We are surprised though that video metrics tell a different story....our longer format videos perform much better. We are not sure why, but we will continue with the Quick Fix's when it makes sense!
@@thesoundcouple Perhaps it's as simple the title JUST being "Quick Fix #(x)" nobody knows what that means with no context, I can tell you my thought was "oh is this going to be like a tips and tricks video or?" I don't mean to tell you your business, I just want to see you guys have success because you deserve it, keep up the great work!
@@djjazzyjeff1232 Good points....we will think about this a bit. Our goal with these was to keep videos coming with specific topics, especially for repeating venues and keep them shorter. I think we accommodating the regular viewers to keep topic's fresh with familiar bands/venues. We are trying to maintain that balance of new vs. old viewers.
