Topic: Preparing for upcoming show

[danlynch]

"Stacks" specifically refers to the stacks of speakers used as the main PA.  There are two stacks, each about 20 feet high, on either side of the stage.  If you're too close to the stage, all the sound is going to be over your head.  If you're in the spot in the front of the balcony, the sound is hitting you directly.

I went stealth at Webster because even though the band is taper friendly (they are on archive.org), the venue is often difficult with tapers. 

In terms of the balcony, there are seated risers near the back, but you would be in front of those.  If you were on the same location on the floor, you'd have the bar at your back.  That might be ok (I taped Flaming Lips from that spot), but you'll deal with a ton of nonsense on the floor--people yapping, moving around, and generally acting like asses.  There's a 30 second cell phone conversation on my Lips recording from that spot!

Good luck!

Thank you guys for the new tips!

danlynch: what exactly are stacks?  When you were at Webster Hall did you have to go stealth?  For clarification on the location you mentioned, it's on the balcony level, centered and behind the soundboard booth?  I remember there being a small platform where people used it as seating a little behind the soundboard booth.  Any idea how the sound would be if I were in the same location but on the ground floor rather than on the balcony?

[carbine000]

Can someone explain the difference between taping with mic-in or line-in on the minidisc? I have been using the mic in with no preamp with moderately successfull recordings. Nothing complete or shareable yet.

But,

What are the pro/cons to the mic in vs line in on the MD?

Do you need a preamp for line in?

[Church-Audio]

Can someone explain the difference between taping with mic-in or line-in on the minidisc? I have been using the mic in with no preamp with moderately successfull recordings. Nothing complete or shareable yet.

But,

What are the pro/cons to the mic in vs line in on the MD?

Do you need a preamp for line in?

Mic in for "MOST" MD'S will distort for a few reasons.. One generally speaking the mic input only provides 1.5-3v of plug in power. Second That most mic inputs have a fixed first stage sensitivity or gain. Then they go into a second stage that has a digital adjustable gain block to amplify the total input level of the mic.. The main problem with most mic inputs on most MD'S is that first stage often overloads with little to no way of being able to correct it. That's why some guys use attenuators to bring down the level of the mic before it hits that first stage. I think in most cases your better off going straight into the line input and bypassing the mic input altogether..


Do you need a preamp?

It depends on what kind of shows you want to record if its headbanging metal NO if its a wide variety of music... I would say yes.. A good preamp will do a few things for you

1- Provide proper power for your mics

2- -Provide proper gain structure to decrease your noise floor * not something you might need for headbanging metal * but something you might need for quality capture of sources that are not quite as loud..

3- A good preamp will and should add a nice sonic signature to the sound of the recording..

But the honest truth is in some situations you can get away with a simple battery box... That can be constructed for as little as $15 in parts.

[dimm0k]

"Stacks" specifically refers to the stacks of speakers used as the main PA.  There are two stacks, each about 20 feet high, on either side of the stage.  If you're too close to the stage, all the sound is going to be over your head.  If you're in the spot in the front of the balcony, the sound is hitting you directly.

If I am too close to the stage and the sound is going over my head, how would you describe that sound to be?  Would it make a difference if I were to point the mics up?