Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2017 6:18:09 GMT -6
How do you deal with those know-it-all engineers that just "make suggestions" about your work?
Example 1:
I recently did a FOH/monitors/multitrack and TV mix gig with lots of bands involved.
TV mix was just a headphones mix for camera guys and producer in a van so it was not being recorded but that TV audio engineer were always giving silly directions like:
- vocal 2dB up, 10 seconds later...
- vocal 2dB down, sorry
- 2dB at 3kHz on ribbon mic guitar amp
- just raise 2 milimeters on vocals
- try to make bass more rounded, it'd fit better in the song
- and so on...
At a certain point I decided to just say "ok" to his directions but not following them because he was just driving me nuts. At the end of the concert he told me "hey, now it sounds great, thanks for following my directions". Everybody else laugh because they knew I was not following him.
I must say he was listening this mix on cans in a TV van with 6 people on intercoms, speakers and screaming and neither producer nor camera guys complained about my mix. They even were very happy with my mix.
Example 2:
Today got into the studio and was introduced a new engineer who just started working here.
I opened an opera project I've been working on for the last two weeks. Just played some audio to get an idea and started to "make suggestions" like:
- don't you know you can EQ reverb return?
- you should take care of microdynamics, I can show you how
- that violin needs some body
- voices don't sound good, you should boost some 200Hz and cut 3kHz, half a dB should work
- blah blah blah...
__________________________
I've been working on live sound, studio and broadcast for almost 20 years and I've learned lots of thing but one of the most important for me is:
"Don't step on everyone else's job".
I wouldn't tell a light guy "hey those lights should be green"
If I'm not doing sound in a gig I won't tell the sound guy how to do his job. I'd make a suggestion ONLY if get asked and this ONLY happen if we are friends.
I have my opinions and preferences about how should a record/gig/movie sound but I won't tell the guy who is getting paid for that.
__________________________
So how do you deal with know-it-all people?
Example 1:
I recently did a FOH/monitors/multitrack and TV mix gig with lots of bands involved.
TV mix was just a headphones mix for camera guys and producer in a van so it was not being recorded but that TV audio engineer were always giving silly directions like:
- vocal 2dB up, 10 seconds later...
- vocal 2dB down, sorry
- 2dB at 3kHz on ribbon mic guitar amp
- just raise 2 milimeters on vocals
- try to make bass more rounded, it'd fit better in the song
- and so on...
At a certain point I decided to just say "ok" to his directions but not following them because he was just driving me nuts. At the end of the concert he told me "hey, now it sounds great, thanks for following my directions". Everybody else laugh because they knew I was not following him.
I must say he was listening this mix on cans in a TV van with 6 people on intercoms, speakers and screaming and neither producer nor camera guys complained about my mix. They even were very happy with my mix.
Example 2:
Today got into the studio and was introduced a new engineer who just started working here.
I opened an opera project I've been working on for the last two weeks. Just played some audio to get an idea and started to "make suggestions" like:
- don't you know you can EQ reverb return?
- you should take care of microdynamics, I can show you how
- that violin needs some body
- voices don't sound good, you should boost some 200Hz and cut 3kHz, half a dB should work
- blah blah blah...
__________________________
I've been working on live sound, studio and broadcast for almost 20 years and I've learned lots of thing but one of the most important for me is:
"Don't step on everyone else's job".
I wouldn't tell a light guy "hey those lights should be green"
If I'm not doing sound in a gig I won't tell the sound guy how to do his job. I'd make a suggestion ONLY if get asked and this ONLY happen if we are friends.
I have my opinions and preferences about how should a record/gig/movie sound but I won't tell the guy who is getting paid for that.
__________________________
So how do you deal with know-it-all people?