A friend and I went to a concert recently to hear a very popular band. But it was so loud that it was impossible to make out individual voices or instruments. We put cotton in our ears, which seemed to help. On the break, we went to talk to the sound guys and discovered that they all had ear plugs in their ears!!! Hello? Get a clue! How can you get a good sense of the proper volume level for your audience with plugs in your ears? Was the problem that the sound system was bad or was it dufus/already deaf sound people? Donna Ramos, New Hampshire
Paul H. Overson: This really brings up a dilemma. Was it the sound person(s), the artist or the management? What is too loud? I recently heard a sound guy say that he hated hearing people talk during the concert. He told me that he would just overpower all audience talking.
Is the protocol for a rock concert the same as for a ballet or a symphony? Should talking not be allowed? When do volume levels build excitement and when do they impact comfort levels of the audience?
Venues today are starting to impose dB limits and enforce them with fines and/or a total shutdown of the event. Is the problem with our industry for not policing itself, or are we powerless to overcome the artist/management because they pay us?
What do you think, Brian?
Brian Cassell: : Dilemma really seems to be the right word here, Paul. Personally, I never wear earplugs when I mix FOH (mixing in monitor world is another story as I use personal monitors whenever the artist does). I figure that if I can be comfortable with the sound level in the room, most others can too. Fortunately, I've never been forced by an artist or management to push the sound beyond what I thought was reasonable.
On the other side of things, I have occasionally been asked to turn things down when the sound was traveling further than expected. And when that happens, a polite "no problem, officer" usually helps the situation as long as you promptly pull the mix buss back a bit and don't try and creep it back up. I mean, let's assess the differences here: On my belt, I carry a multi-tool, a knife, a flashlight and a two-way radio; Sergeant Turnitdown and Deputy Itstooloud each have most of this plus a Glock and some handcuffs. I think we'll comply.
Joking aside, the reality is that we as an industry need to seriously police ourselves before someone steps in to do it for us. If we don't, our jobs are going to get real difficult real fast as we become the middlemen between the artist's already excessive stage volume and the venue manager's insistence on maintaining some arbitrary volume in the house. Things would be so much simpler if we put the reigns on the dB levels ourselves. For the health of our own ears, as well as for the concertgoers, it's the right thing to do. So we must ask ourselves, how do we accomplish this?
Paul H. Overson: : I have had many occasions when the level was dictated by the management/artist. I was told in no uncertain terms what the level should be and then they turned it up. I was so loud that I put in earplugs just so I could mix. I tried to point out that the audience was wincing and covering their ears as well. I didn't do me any good.
What were my options? I tried to get the guitar player to turn down his stack (that worked only once). I had the monitor engineer (who worked for me) turn down the monitors, and that helped. The monitor engineer put guitar amps on cases so that the sound was directly hitting the ears of the players and the players voluntarily turned down the volume. I have put drums in a cage and that really helped with the extra loud drummer. These are all tricks, and sometimes they work and sometimes they don't.
I have also had engineers try to overcome a bad room with excessive volume, but the results have not been great. It really comes down to who has the most power (financial or executive), and that says it all.
Brian, what are your thoughts on this?
Brian Cassell: : Gosh, Paul, I have to say that I'm glad I've never been in quite that situation. Sounds like the kind of client that I wouldn't want to do repeat work for. And that's saying something when it's a struggle for a small company to keep the gear out of the shop and in the venue where it can make money.
Unfortunately, money really does talk. And maybe in this case, it's speaking a little too loudly. Not only do we need to protect the hearing of those in the room, but we need to protect our own reputations as audio providers. On top of that, as businessmen, we have to consider the liability side. I'd hate to see my company's name on the list of persons named in a liability lawsuit for hearing damage.
Mark Amundson recently addressed some contract issues in his Theory & Practice column. Maybe we should add a clause to our contracts, allowing us to set limits of reasonable and safe acoustical levels for the performance. It might not fly with a touring act, but it could be a sign of "sound company, beware!" if a client feels the need to strike that line from the contract.
