Topic: Recording Instrumental bands up front

[u2_fly_2]

Hello everybody...I have a question for all the tapers out there...when I record instrumental bands I tend to stand just up front infront of the stage because I don´t need the PA speakers to capture the non-vocals...is this a good approach or should I still aim for the sweet spot back in the venue?

I have this example where I stood just in front of the stage (1m from the band) in the middle...so I captured the guitars on the left/right of the microphones...

Here´s the up front recording for you to stream:
https://soundcloud.com/icitwebzine2-26843178/01-elefanten

Let me hear your opionions on the quality of the recording as well as improvements(?) 

[if_then_else]

Sounds good to me. Personally, I would change the balance in post-production. I find the "highs" of the drum kit a bit too distracting compared to the rest of the instruments.
Download link with the original opus file from Soundcloud and a "quick and dirty" EQ'ed version below. Should be good for 7 days.

https://we.tl/t-0wkvH9diAy?utm_campaign=TRN_TDL_05&utm_source=sendgrid&utm_medium=email&trk=TRN_TDL_05

[u2_fly_2]

Sounds good to me. Personally, I would change the balance in post-production. I find the "highs" of the drum kit a bit too distracting compared to the rest of the instruments.
Download link with the original opus file from Soundcloud and a "quick and dirty" EQ'ed version below. Should be good for 7 days.

https://we.tl/t-0wkvH9diAy?utm_campaign=TRN_TDL_05&utm_source=sendgrid&utm_medium=email&trk=TRN_TDL_05

Thank you for the input! :-)

[Gutbucket]

I'll try to give a listen to your original and if_then_else's EQ'd version over the next few days.

Hello everybody...I have a question for all the tapers out there...when I record instrumental bands I tend to stand just up front infront of the stage because I don´t need the PA speakers to capture the non-vocals...is this a good approach or should I still aim for the sweet spot back in the venue?

That depends.  As always partly on what is pragmatic, but assuming you are able to record from wherever you like, it will depends somewhat on the sound you are after, how much effort you want to put into getting it right, and the degree of risk you're willing to accept.

Safe bet will be from the sweet spot out in the room.  That's the position the sound guy is supporting with the PA mix, where everything will generally be well represented, where the stereo balance should be good, and where the dynamics will most easily managed.

But recording at the stage-lip or on-stage can make for a more compelling recording that is more involving, up-close and personal, with intense dynamics and a wide, enveloping playback image.  I love recording instrumental bands from the stage-lip or onstage when I can.  Doing so takes a bit more care however.  Best if you can listen during soundcheck, walking back and forth across the front of the stage, putting your head where the mics will be in search of the spot with the best instrumental balance - drums clear and distinct but yet dominating everything else, no instrument missing or under-represented, good overall stereo balance.

Sometimes you'll be picking up certain instruments only from monitor bleed (keyboards maybe, weak acoustic instruments that are close mic'd or DI'd) and from the reverberant sound of the PA energizing the room.  That can work fine, but is something that can really only be confirmed by listening.  When the balance is good, it can be magical.  You'll pickup more of the real sound of the instruments unmolested by amplification and limiting through the PA.  Especially the drum kit, which will sound far more live and real, but will also tend to have much more extreme dynamic peaks - so  when up close, back off on recording levels to accommodate the much higher peaks.  I like to position the recording gear so as to have a direct line of sight to the snare, since that tends to be the most important rhythmic anchor of the kit and by extension, the ensemble.

Other nice thing about recording from the stage-lip or on-stage is that the audience will be positioned behind your mics, and the closest audience will be the more enthusiastic and musically engaged folks, not a bunch of distracted talkers like farther back in the room.  That makes the audience part of the recording easier to balance and more of a positive attribute than a negative one.

[Gutbucket]

Long running TS thread about on-stage taping- https://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=1625.msg9876#msg9876

[u2_fly_2]

I'll try to give a listen to your original and if_then_else's EQ'd version over the next few days.

Hello everybody...I have a question for all the tapers out there...when I record instrumental bands I tend to stand just up front infront of the stage because I don´t need the PA speakers to capture the non-vocals...is this a good approach or should I still aim for the sweet spot back in the venue?

That depends.  As always partly on what is pragmatic, but assuming you are able to record from wherever you like, it will depends somewhat on the sound you are after, how much effort you want to put into getting it right, and the degree of risk you're willing to accept.

Safe bet will be from the sweet spot out in the room.  That's the position the sound guy is supporting with the PA mix, where everything will generally be well represented, where the stereo balance should be good, and where the dynamics will most easily managed.

But recording at the stage-lip or on-stage can make for a more compelling recording that is more involving, up-close and personal, with intense dynamics and a wide, enveloping playback image.  I love recording instrumental bands from the stage-lip or onstage when I can.  Doing so takes a bit more care however.  Best if you can listen during soundcheck, walking back and forth across the front of the stage, putting your head where the mics will be in search of the spot with the best instrumental balance - drums clear and distinct but yet dominating everything else, no instrument missing or under-represented, good overall stereo balance.

Sometimes you'll be picking up certain instruments only from monitor bleed (keyboards maybe, weak acoustic instruments that are close mic'd or DI'd) and from the reverberant sound of the PA energizing the room.  That can work fine, but is something that can really only be confirmed by listening.  When the balance is good, it can be magical.  You'll pickup more of the real sound of the instruments unmolested by amplification and limiting through the PA.  Especially the drum kit, which will sound far more live and real, but will also tend to have much more extreme dynamic peaks - so  when up close, back off on recording levels to accommodate the much higher peaks.  I like to position the recording gear so as to have a direct line of sight to the snare, since that tends to be the most important rhythmic anchor of the kit and by extension, the ensemble.

Other nice thing about recording from the stage-lip or on-stage is that the audience will be positioned behind your mics, and the closest audience will be the more enthusiastic and musically engaged folks, not a bunch of distracted talkers like farther back in the room.  That makes the audience part of the recording easier to balance and more of a positive attribute than a negative one.

Thank you for the input! :-)