What I'm describing here is only related to my experience of sound at large venues and outdoor festivals. It's not that it spoils the event but for me it is extremely frustrating. But I imagine others here have experienced similar thoughts.
I have over the years played at and attended many large festivals with large stages and large concerts indoors in big arena's in the USA, Europe including the world renown Symphony hall in Birmingham which is claimed to be one of the best sounding indoor venues in the world. ( and that still has the problem... .as I hear it).
Anyway, my observation is that all of the large concerts I've attended, bar an isolated few, the sound coming off the bass guitar is always lacking in definition and clarity? Why is this? Regardless of genre of the bands I've seen there is always masses of bottom end but nothing on the top to give clarity to the notes being played by the bass player. Other instruments always have a better sound.
I have this weekend been to another music festival and it was exactly the same. There was no clear definition of the notes played even though most of the bands were either acoustic folk, light rock, popular music and reggae ( DreadZone). I was watching the bass players playing some interesting lines and what I heard was the notes he was playing but very woolly and no clear articulation of the notes being played. I can hear everything else fine even when the keyboards were playing the bass lines the sound of that had better clarity than the bass guitar. It just seems to me that regardless of the bass, the engineer is looking for is making the bottom end heavy and ignoring the other end of the sound spectrum which would give the overall sound of the band more definition.
Now I've heard many engineers over the years talk about adding a little bit of higher frequency content to the bass drum to lift it and give it some definition but why don't they do this for the bass? The bass player could have been playing a ?30 bargain basement bass and it would have sounded the same as the guy who had a sadowsky.
I know from experience that reggae bands want a heavy deep bass line but I don't see why a little bit of crisp edge to the tone would ruin the sound. I'm not expecting it to sound thin just heavy but with a little lift to aid in the clarity. The only bass players I've heard live in large venues or festivals where their sound was both deep and clear so that every note is distinguished from the next are Stanley Clarke and John Entwhistle. Yes I know they are alembic players but I saw third world with a Ken Smith 5 and that sounded dreadful and also Herbie Hancock's bass player had a Fodera which was better sounding but still not clear enough.
Most times the bass sounds like they are playing the same NOTES as the bass drum. I am working on bass with a vocalist in her new band at the moment and they are planning to do some festival gigs and touring in the near future subject to things working out well with her recording deal. I'm really looking forward to getting on a big stage again and use my alembic bass but what I dread is that the sound will end up like the rest all mushy.
I know there are a good few pro's here and recording and sound engineers. Any advice?
I plan to use my Elan for touring and that has a good bright and heavy sound. I do use different sounds on it for different tracks and I just wonder if the FOH engineer be able to counter all the eq settings that I make so that I am unable to get the tonal variation I want at the ears of the listener.
Jazzyvee
