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DAT recording from a soundboard
i’ve been shooting some bands live shows and i usually shoot with 3-4 cameras and use a DAT deck connected to the soundboard for recording my audio. i’ve never had any problems and the sound quality has been perfect…given that the soundguy gets a good mix. the few venues i shoot at have full soundsystems where the entire band is mic-ed up… vocals, guitars, bass drum, snare, toms, cymbals, etc. like it would normally be for a concert.
i have a shoot coming up at a new place that the soundguy told me that only the vocals, bassdrum and snare are gonna be mic-ed up and everything else will be ran through the guitar/bass amps.
i wanted to know if this is going to cause any problems for me as far as getting the full sound of the band, or will the other mics pick up things like the toms and cymbals?
and if so…whats the best way to remedy this or do i postpone the shoot until this particular band plays at another venue where everything is mic-ed
thanks
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3 Replies
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[mode_media] “i wanted to know if this is going to cause any problems for me as far as getting the full sound of the band, or will the other mics pick up things like the toms and cymbals?
and if so…whats the best way to remedy this or do i postpone the shoot until this particular band plays at another venue where everything is mic-ed”
Yes, it WILL be a big problem.
If you can wait until you can get a proper full mix, do so.
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If you added a sound recordist to your team they would have some methods of getting room sound.
This approach depends a lot on the layout of the venue, and where you’re allowed to put your own mics (if the best placement of mics would be to put a 12′ stand in the middle of the dance floor it probably wouldn’t be safe for dancers).
Sometimes, mics can be rigged from the ceiling or otherwise.
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I purchased a multitrack hard-disk recorder for just this purpose. The model I have is capable of recording four tracks at once. I take the board mix into channel 1 and 2, and use a stereo mic (in M/S config) to capture the stage volume from downstage center and go to tracks 3 and 4. If the sound mix is mono, that gives you and extra track to capture audience or whatever.
Usually, board mixes tend to be kick drum, snare and vocal heavy, with guitars, bass, and cymbals mixed lower. The reason is that the latter instruments have the most stage volume and don’t require as much help from the PA. The stereo mic will capture those instruments and can be mixed back in with the board mix. Room ambience will have more effect than with simple close-miking techniques and a good stereo mic or pair is essential.
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