Live Audio Engineering

Posts relating to live audio & music production.

Ground Loop Hum (and How to Safely Get Rid Of It).

Ground loop hum is a noise you hear from musical equipment. It is annoying and can be fixed safely

Did you get a loud hum coming through the PA system at your last show? Or is there a persistent ‘zzzz’ sound in your rehearsal room, especially when plugging in certain bits of equipment? If so, you are experiencing ‘earth loop’ or ‘ground loop’ hum. All musicians recognise this sound (especially guitarists) and the way … Read more

23 Things I Learnt At ILMC 28

23 things Andy Reynolds learnt at ILMC 28

The International Live Music Conference (ILMC) takes place every year in London, and attracts booking agents, concert promoters, artist managers, tech companies and suppliers from all over the world for three days of panels, workshops and networking events. Incorporated into the ILMC is the ILMC Production Meeting (IPM), a one-day conference, where specific concert production … Read more

Tour managers and live sound engineers – questions and answers for students.

A student recently asked me answer some questions about concert tour management and live sound engineering to help her with a college project. I get a lot of these requests and am always happy to offer answers and advice (time permitting) and have even posted an FAQ to help with this type of research. However … Read more

The Etiquette of Sound Checks

Playing a show will usually involve some kind of sound check. This check will take place before the public arrive and involves setting up your equipment, having the sound engineers place appropriate microphones and DI boxes, cabling everything into the mixing console and playing a  couple of songs in order that the front-of-house engineer can … Read more

How much do musicians and their road crew earn?

If you are curious as to how much money you could be earning from your music, producing other people’s music or working as part of the road crew you should check out the new study from Berklee College of Music, Music Careers in Dollars and Cents. Originally released in 2010, this revised study by the … Read more

The band road crew dilemma – work for less or lose the work?

A quick tip based on recent experience – do not be afraid to stick to your guns when setting a price for touring crew work.

If a potential client (artist manager, booking agent or musical director) says he cannot afford your price, you should not drop your daily rate just to get the tour. Dropping your price can make you appear desperate in the eyes of your client and also sets a precedent when trying to negotiate a contract in the future.

For example, say you are a FOH engineer and your rate is $250 a day. You are offered a 32 date tour andthe  bands management inform you they can pay no more than $175 a day. If you say ‘yes’ to this offer they will then  know that they can reasonably expect you to drop your price whenever they ask you in the future. That is not good for you. However, if you say ‘no’ you run the risk of losing 32 days of paid work. What should you do?

Read moreThe band road crew dilemma – work for less or lose the work?

Do you have a tattoo? Then you can become a roadie!

This article comes from the Guardian newspaper. It is a concise and irreverent description of the ‘rock’n’roll’ jobs in the live music business. I’m not sure if I amused or annoyed at the suggestion all touring road crew are tattoo covered, drug-taking baby sitters. There have been quite a few pieces written about ‘roadies’ and … Read more

error: I would prefer if you did not try to do that.