RHCP New Orleans

Re: RHCP New Orleans

I saw The Who at Jazz Fest last year and while it did sound good, it didn't sound quite as good as RHCP. It was JBL VTX last year and appeared to be Clair this year. The FOH console is probably the difference in this case, I know I can tell a huge difference when my rig is driven with an M7 or A&H vs an H3K.
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

I saw The Who at Jazz Fest last year and while it did sound good, it didn't sound quite as good as RHCP. It was JBL VTX last year and appeared to be Clair this year. The FOH console is probably the difference in this case, I know I can tell a huge difference when my rig is driven with an M7 or A&H vs an H3K.

NOLA Jazz Festival has been Clair for many, many years.



Evan
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

I saw The Who at Jazz Fest last year and while it did sound good, it didn't sound quite as good as RHCP. It was JBL VTX last year and appeared to be Clair this year. The FOH console is probably the difference in this case, I know I can tell a huge difference when my rig is driven with an M7 or A&H vs an H3K.
Console ? really ?
If both rigs were in decent shape, I'd be looking at mixer-dude long before blaming the board.
I've seen turds on Midas, and gold on Mackie.
Just sayin.....
Chris.
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

"It's possible to hear a difference between consoles."
Agreed, 100%.
When they are used on the same day, on the same rig.
Not months apart, on 2 different rigs.

To me, it's the fader jockey that makes the most difference. not the tools. Providing of course, that the tools are all working.
Chris.
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

I said it sounded different and not quite as good to my ears. I'm not bashing The Who's sound...they did a great job...and they're my favorite band. What I'm saying is that the RHCP sound is exceptional and I credit it to not only a great FOH guy, but also to what is IMO the greatest console in the world. I caught part of the opening act for the Chili Pepper's which I'm fairly confident was mixed on a digital console...it sounded great, BUUUUTTT, it doesnt' have "that sound" and you know that this is a real phenomenon. I had a BE on my rig a few weeks ago (young guy 20's) and he specs the H3K for his artist....says analog can't be matched.
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

I said it sounded different and not quite as good to my ears. I'm not bashing The Who's sound...they did a great job...and they're my favorite band. What I'm saying is that the RHCP sound is exceptional and I credit it to not only a great FOH guy, but also to what is IMO the greatest console in the world. I caught part of the opening act for the Chili Pepper's which I'm fairly confident was mixed on a digital console...it sounded great, BUUUUTTT, it doesnt' have "that sound" and you know that this is a real phenomenon. I had a BE on my rig a few weeks ago (young guy 20's) and he specs the H3K for his artist....says analog can't be matched.

We've had zero requests for analog. I've had BEs refuse analog. 10 years ago it was different.
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

I've tried digital, own one. They suck. I theorize that manufacturers love them because it's much less hardware at near the same price point :)

Firmware and software development isn't free, and while the manufacturing cost for a console may be less for digital than for analog, the R+D cost (which needs to be recouped) certainly isn't. And I'm not convinced that the manufacturing cost is significantly higher for an analog console than for digital console, as much of the cost is in the user interface (knobs, switches, etc.), connectors, and mechanical parts.
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

Someone is financially invested in analog.

We kept our analog FOH rigs until about 3 years ago and then sadly parted out the processing and FX, then sold the consoles. We still have a couple of "club rig" analog setups but they don't go out more than a couple times a year, mostly with my boss doing favors for local musicians he's known forever.

The digital uprising is nearly complete. I welcome our robot overlords. 8)~:cool:~:cool:
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

For touring I can see digital being handy, but for what I do (mixing local, regional, and occasionally national acts from absolute scratch) it is not efficient not to have everything right in front of me at once. It takes at least twice as long to soundcheck a band on my M7 or other digital console as it does on my analog consoles. Some headliner acts I've had in the last year or so don't even soundcheck until right before they play. Also, my M7 locked up on us in the middle of a show last year, had to have the band stop playing and everything.

I'm not opposed to technology, I love my powered TVI Line Arrays with built-in digital DSP's. We've not had one single failure since new on those boxes.
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

It takes at least twice as long to soundcheck a band on my M7 or other digital console as it does on my analog consoles. Some headliner acts I've had in the last year or so don't even soundcheck until right before they play.

Is it possible that that is a "you" problem and not a problem with digital consoles?
 
Re: RHCP New Orleans

Is it possible that that is a "you" problem and not a problem with digital consoles?

As an old guy with lots of analog muscle memory who spends ALL his time on a digital desk i have to say i see both sides of this.

I was an early adopter of digital and definitely prefer it for all the reasons that i should. However, even after over a decade mixing on digital systems i can still throw and go a mix more quickly on an analog system. Is that because of my coming up on analog or is it a function of the obviously different workflows required by both technologies? I honestly think it's both.

I think there are speed advantages to both systems. Digital certainly requires much less running back and forth over an 8 foot work surface. But analog offers a HUGE amount of instant feedback with just a quick visual sweep of the desk that a digital system just can't provide. I also think that the simple fact that the analog system offers far LESS options actually tends to increase the speed of the workflow. There's just less choices to make and less things to futz with.

All that being said am i going back to analog? nope. But if my ONLY criteria for console choice was how fast can you turn the mess coming from the stage into something that sounds like music, i'd probably prefer an analog system. Until i got the rough mix dialed in. Then i'd be looking for all my dynamics and plugins. :)