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Joined 2 years ago
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Cake day: February 9th, 2024

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  • Absolutely nothing wrong with supplementing or replacing drums with samples! I have a friend who’s a very accomplished engineer and musician, and they do it for pretty much every project.

    Weird microphone tricks (e.g. a 57 on a kick drum) are just stopgap solutions when there are no other options, kinda like replacing a bad kick drum sound — the most important part is to trust your ears and have fun!


  • Slightly off center and almost touching the grill is pretty standard placement for micing a cabinet, I think! I usually try to make a tangent line between the 57’s capsule and the cone of the speaker.

    I’m right there with you about the B52 on a kick drum — that’s definitely my preference too unless the kick drum doesn’t have a port, in which case I usually go for a D112.

    One could mic an entire band using just 58s and 57s, if push came to shove. Live sound can be a weird thing lol


  • Two or three inches up from the bottom-center of a non-ported kick drum works in a pinch, but never tried it with a ported head.

    I believe I’ve seen a bass cab mic’ed similarly as well, though I for sure saw a Beta 58 (not a 52) used for this purpose quite a few times by pointing the center of the capsule directly at the bottom-center edge of the speaker ---- looks like partially mic’ing the wood, but I remember it worked really well!



  • I thought the same and then got a recent-ish car that had an “automatic” setting to dim or engage the high beams. It’s terrible. Taking tight corners on a dark rural road, they dim because the sensor detects the car’s own headlight reflection off of the trees, defeating the purpose.

    So, I think a bunch of dipshit city folk leave the high beams on (in the city where they aren’t fucking necessary) and let the “automatic” setting handle it, poorly.

    I learned how to drive in a rural area where using the brights is normal when you get out of town, with the caveat that you have to pay attention and switch back when cresting a hill or coming around a corner.

    Edit: “creating” -> “cresting”





  • Good idea on just homebrewing a baffle!

    I normally just ask them nicely to turn down, if they can do so without sacrificing tone, and otherwise encourage them to point their amp towards the curtains.

    I’ve definitely seen some folks prop their amps to angle them toward their heads from time to time — I’ll start working that suggestion in for sure, since every little bit of db decrease will help in that small room.

    I also want to get a set of ClearSonics or similar for cymbal wash. May not be able to use them all the time (stage real estate is at a premium), but they would be nice to have.



  • At my home venue, I have no protection. If you fuck with me—particularly within the first twoish songs of a set—my usual response is to look them dead in the eye and say, “Where do you work? I’m going to come to your job and help you on Monday.” And that usually scares them off.

    Sometimes, I feel bad about it and will find and apologize to that person later, explaining why I reacted like that.

    My favorite is when it’s a local/college-age band and parents are around. Or spouses of older band members. “No, I can’t get her vocal any louder because she’s whispering six inches from the microphone and Jimi Hendrix up there is blasting his amp at 11.”

    All this said, it’s a common misconception that “asshole” is the default mode of operation for a sound engineer. It’s just that the job is fucking stressful, and if you catch us at the height of that stress, we will react poorly. I’ve definitely come across a few grumps, but most folks are nice on average — kinda have to be so that people will want to work with you. Most of us just want to work with the team to make a good show happen.

    To your original point, it’s 100% true that the better the artist, the better/easier the mix. Can only polish a turd so much before it crumbles.





  • I’m a skinny American, and it’s very difficult to find clothes that fit me right—always has been.

    Tried on a pair of slim cut jeans the other day in a box store, and the thigh fit like a pair of pantaloons. This is partly due to the trend toward baggier fits (kill me), and even one of my go-to brands sits a little more loosely than I’d like, at the moment.

    On one hand, I can still walk into the store I shopped at in high school, pick up my size and cut of pant, and walk out without trying them on, knowing that they will work. On the other hand, I’d like to walk into a store for adults and be able to find my size in a cut that fits.

    I knew two years ago when I saw that rich white lady wearing what looked like Jncos for rich white ladies that I was about to get fucked by the resurgence of late 90s fashion styles. Baggy doesn’t look good on someone who looks like they were built out of toothpicks.

    All this to say: chin up! Your time is coming!