Disaster in the barroom

Were you trying to run sound for the gig, or recording the gig, or both?

Running sound in a bar can be a little tough for the inexperienced. What sounds okay to the mixing position before the dance floor fills up, becomes a completely different animal once folks get out on the floor, and block the sound. If the stage isn't elevated, then the amps get blocked. The sound man starts turning things up thru the PA so he can hear it, and it all goes to hell. 

If one of the instruments isn't mic'd properly, then the soundman asks the player to turn up or down, then the stage dynamics get screwy. The player can't hear himself, or he gets louder and the other players start to crank up their amps so they can hear themselves. Now the singer can't hear himself thru the monitors, so he starts telling the soundman to crank up his monitor, and you start getting feedback through his mic. Now you've got the whirling dervish of volume wars.

Getting a proper soundcheck is really important in these situations. This way, all levels get set for the stage (monitors), and the PA. Once everyone is happy and there are no feedback issues, all the sound man should need to do is adjust the mains when the crowd fills up. Everyone onstage should leave the volume settings alone for the first hour. If its a loud band, hearing fatigue may set in after that, but they should have the discipline to leave their amp settings alone.

As for recording a gig, get everything mic'd with a good signal on individual tracks and mix it later. Trying to record a gig and mix the recording live is impossible in my experience.

Randy