Hi, I am one half of a 'high-tech/ acoustic' duo. We play our backing tracks from an ipod straight into the P.A.

We did a gig last night, so we luckily used the bar's own P.A system and the owner was controlling the faders all night. We're now looking to do many more gigs with our own P.A and our own mixer. The problem is that some of the tracks are louder than others (as expected). In practice this is okay but when you have a room full of drunk people talking it can be difficult hearing the quiet ones (We did cock up one the tracks because of this ).

One solution I came up with was by mastering all the tracks within a DAW. Great, but then I don't want to be doing this for 300 songs... So, I was thinking does the solution of using a compressor/ limiter as outboard gear a good option to push the quiet tracks and limit to the loud ones? I've never done anything like this before so I'm not sure if this will have a detrimental affect to the backing tracks?

I've seen this compressor and it looks ideal.

Does this sound like a good idea?

Hope you guys can help! Thanks

Not really, I'm afraid, for various reasons. Everyone using backing tracks has this issue. The short-term solution is a hand on the fader - you quickly get to know which tracks will need adjusting. Re-record the worst ones. You'll also probably make up composite tracks as you learn what sequences of songs "get the crowd going". It's an ongoing process.

BTW - monitors first. Then, if there;s a spare speaker, point it at the audience. You can't perform if you can't hear what you're doing.

Just a side note to this one.... Not everyone using backing tracks has this issue, we make our own backing tracks so they are all recorded at the same level.

Our two guitars, vocals and backing track are through the desk and just adjusted for volume on the night depending where we are playing.

Dave

There might be utilities like iVolume or MP3Gain that could get them in the right direction.

http://www.mani.de/en/ivolume/index.html
http://mp3gain.sourceforge.net/

There's no substitute for adjusting the levels manually while listening to the tracks through your own PA. While you may not want to change all the levels, it might be worth picking out the loudest or quietest tracks and adjusting those in your DAW.

James.

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JRP Music - Audio Mastering and Restoration.
http://www.jrpmusic.net

Thanks for all your help!

Theres a lot of good options mentioned here. I guess we'll have to invest in a montior... and listen out for the changes in volume and adjust the mixer which should be close by my side.

We didn't actually make the backing tracks ourselves, they were bought online but have had the occasional re-record the bad sounding instruments and we also recorded some of the intro so we can have a good cue for us to come in.

Thanks again!

Quote bequick_x:

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I guess we'll have to invest in a montior...

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I used to work with an act, dropping into pubs and clubs to do a 45 minute late-night cabaret spot. Lots of different sound systems. Some operated competently, some not. Setup in darkness with the disco blaring and rarely more than a quick "One, two" as a sound check. But they were all capable of supplying one microphone and making it work.

So the strategy was this. I carried a keyboard, sometimes a drum machine, a mic and a small combo amp with inputs for all these and reverb for the mic channel. This was our mixer and our stage monitor. Line Out went to a DI box which took the place of the house mic.

Worked very well. We could hear what we were doing. We didn't have someone who didn't know the act trying to "mix" it. After the first number the DJ could "set it and forget it" and take a break. Everyone was happy. In smaller venues the combo could be all the PA we needed.

Quote BJG145:

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utilities like iVolume or MP3Gain
http://www.mani.de/en/ivolume/index.html
http://mp3gain.sourceforge.net/

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i thought this program would solve all my issues but unfort it didnt work as well as i wished!

i did this!!

I setup all my reg PA and used this as my "monitor" as i recorded all my tracks from the pc to minidisc.....
i could change the gain on the input of the minidisc as i listen to the track and sussed out the level , once i was happy that the level were right i recorded it,

Then i connected the minidisc back into my PC (digitally) and recorded them all again as new files.

Lenghty process i know esp with over 150 tracks BUT all of them were leveled perfectly.

AND i have a backup off all my files on minidisc - which was a life saver when my laptop wouldnt start 2 months ago!!

Quote James Perrett:

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There's no substitute for adjusting the levels manually while listening to the tracks through your own PA. While you may not want to change all the levels, it might be worth picking out the loudest or quietest tracks and adjusting those in your DAW.

James.

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Just a thought, would it be feasible to route the backing track through a volume foot pedal set to full on mostly, but if the track appears too loud just ease the pedal back a little. Would maybe be a 'hands free' solution for a guitarist/singer who doesn;'t have opportunity for tweaking faders in a live situation.

The best solution as others have said, is to go through the tracks and check the volume and adjust it in advance. You could do a batch at a time over a period of days/weeks, then it would be a matter of checking any new additions as you add them in future, to make sure the volume's right before they become part of the repertoire.

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Quote:

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I love the sound of a valve amp - I've never yet found a distortion pedal that equals my gain channels without costing more than the amp. And I've never had a customer come to the studio who disagreed (once they'd tried real amps instead). My favourite gear is: any guitar plugged straight into the amp. My second favourite gear is: any guitar plugged into a wah-wah and into the amp.

Is it just me?

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I actually thought of this myself as well... The only thing I could think of though was that i) Is either a mono or stereo volume pedal (Im assuming a guitar one) sound quality good?). ii) I'd rather have a small mixer, so if needed I can tweak the Eq as some tracks will have more bass than others... etc

This is still something that is bugging me... When I have a bit more cash I'm going to try out some small mixers at my local music shop with an Ipod. Then I can it have next to me when we perform. I was think of something like the Peavey PV8 or something familiar...

Quote GlynB:

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The best solution as others have said, is to go through the tracks and check the volume and adjust it in advance. You could do a batch at a time over a period of days/weeks, then it would be a matter of checking any new additions as you add them in future, to make sure the volume's right before they become part of the repertoire.

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If you do these in batches, it might be an idea to use a loudness plugin on your workstation master channel to give you a reference you can make a record of. Remember that some tracks are meant to be louder than others -ie upbeat vs ballads or acoustic songs; you may have to revisit some to tweak after you've found the loudness "balance" to the other material isn't quite right for your set.

I use a plug designed to give EBU R128 loudness values (short-term values and song-averaged), so it takes consideration of frequency sensitivity whereas an RMS value might not. There's a loudness history graph that builds as the song plays, so you can judge relative "loudnesses" on verses, choruses or whatever. If you know that a song has a raucous chorus, you can allow that a slightly higher level and use say the verse as a comparison.

Ultimately it will be your ears in the venue that will tell you if a song is loud or quiet in comparison to the rest of your set, but that feedback in conjunction with the loudness figures will help you tune in to optimal relative levels.

I use the Toneboosters EBU Loudness plug (along with Fabfilter Pro-L to manage peak and RMS levels, and limiting duties).



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planet nine
lincoln, uk.

I've just spent the last two weeks mixing my backing tracks through my PA. It was a lengthy process but if you want a good sound then you have to work for it.

We tried playing without a monitor... in rowdy pubs you can't hear anything and mess up your performance. Essential kit in my opinion.

The hardest part is room acoustics are different everywhere you play and, other than lengthy sound checks, you just can't compensate for it.

The good point is most people are rat arsed and don't care as long as you're singing something they know!

Quote _ Six _:

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The good point is most people are rat arsed and don't care as long as you're singing something they know!

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Sad, but true.

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