Musician Forum - Band Discussion Board - BandMix

Hey all,
I'm playing / singing an Art and Wine festival in 2 weeks, and I've never played on an outdoor stage before. I've heard there's a huge difference in terms of sound projection, etc.

What was your first experience playing outdoors like? Anything I should know, like don't look up if you hear a seagul?

kthxbye

sound check/sound check=sound check.

No acoustics in most outdoor setups, as there isn't anything to bounce the sound off of.

Can make for a very hollow, empty sound.

My tip is - don't do it. But if you have to, bring the loudest gear you have, and try to get a good monitor mix. If there is any kind of pavilion or shelter use it.

jimmydanger wrote:My tip is - don't do it. But if you have to, bring the loudest gear you have, and try to get a good monitor mix. If there is any kind of pavilion or shelter use it.

Thanks. Unfortunately, the venue is outside so about the only thing I have control over is what amp I bring, and all I have is a 50watt 2x12 combo. I think there will be 3 stages set up, small, medium and large , I'll be on the medium stage, and I have no idea whether there will be anything behind the drummer to help direct sound forward. There will be beer though - so maybe that's the break I need

this is what one of the "stages" looked like last year.
http://lafayettechamber.org/about/photo ... -festival/

I love to play outdoors. Less feedback issues, more volume, fresh air and sunshine.
If you watched any of our July 4th videos you may notice the 42" tall tables I constructed to put the mains up on because most of the audience were up hill at a pretty steep angle.
Look at the projection angles of the speakers your using and line them up to overlap some at the center of the crowd mass / area.

Don't get too carried away if you have lots of stage room.
It's OK to spread out a little but you want your monitors / amps to do pretty much the same job as they would indoors without a huge increase in gain or volume at the board.

Hell yes ... I'll play outside in a New York second.

We do a lot of outdoor gigs. Very different animals. You don't have to play loud but do need to hear each other well. An outdoor stage often feels pretty naked the first time so a dry run in someone's backyard is a good idea to work out the kinks.

Our basics:
* Plan for weather and lots of it. Hot, cold, rain, wind, sun, and hail.
* Make sure we have a covered stage area, enough sound, enough lighting, enough electrical power available.
* Stand close to the drummer and point amps toward the middle of the stage.
* Mic the guitar and Keys amps and put a little in the monitors for cues.
* Make sure everyone has a good monitor mix.
* Wear shoes and ground all equipment BZZZZZZZZZZAAAAAP!

This thread had some pretty good info as well:
http://forum.bandmix.com/viewtopic.php? ... sc&start=0

Some good points made here by TheJohnny7Band

We have run into issues with weather, and not enough free roaming amperes to get the job done.
One show in particular we waited nearly three hours for an emergency crew to change out a blown transformer . At another we had a brown out.
I always carry some really big contractors bags as well as some painters plastic drop cloth. Just in case of sudden rain where we can't move our equipment to safety fast enough.
It's probably saved me a couple grand in equipment already.
And we have only been playing for a few years.
I purchased a large rolling tool chest for storing and transporting cables mics and Hot spots.

Damn handy man ... real damn handy.

sanshouheil wrote:Some good points made here by TheJohnny7Band

We have run into issues with weather, and not enough free roaming amperes to get the job done.
One show in particular we waited nearly three hours for an emergency crew to change out a blown transformer . At another we had a brown out.
I always carry some really big contractors bags as well as some painters plastic drop cloth. Just in case of sudden rain where we can't move our equipment to safety fast enough.
It's probably saved me a couple grand in equipment already.
And we have only been playing for a few years.
I purchased a large rolling tool chest for storing and transporting cables mics and Hot spots.

Damn handy man ... real damn handy.

I hadn't thought of the rain factor! good point

Monitors. Have them and get the mix you want.
Be LOUD!
If it's hot, let your guitar or bass adjust to air temperature before you tune up.
If theres any chance of storm winds, stage canopies are BAD. (Unless you like giant kites)

Outdoor 'stages' can be bouncy or unstable.

gtZip wrote:Monitors. Have them and get the mix you want.
Be LOUD!
If it's hot, let your guitar or bass adjust to air temperature before you tune up.
If theres any chance of storm winds, stage canopies are BAD. (Unless you like giant kites)

Outdoor 'stages' can be bouncy or unstable.

hah - kites. wouldn't that just be a hoot.

Thanks everyone for the insights!

Chris

Well - I play this Saturday. I'm pretty stoked.

I gotta say, it's one thing learning the guitar parts - that's pretty straight forward, but I'm also singing 4 of the songs from our set list. So, memorizing the lyrics, now there's a challenge!

Break some legs!

And some video would be killer too.

Take a FAN, TOWEL and TARPS!

J-HALEY wrote:Take a FAN, TOWEL and TARPS!

Mosquito repellent and sunscreen.