This 15 year old laptop runs our keyboard sequencer.

   I’ve played in a lot of different types of live bands over the years. I’ve played solo with just my guitar, as a duo, as a trio all the way up to playing in a full on 40 piece Big Band. As you know, it’s great to have more musician’s to create more of a musical soundscape but it also comes with a lot more logistical problems.

   Right now I’m playing in a 4-piece band that has bass, drums, guitar and keyboards. We are able to cover a lot of music with this lineup. We also do a lot of songs that would take many times more musicians to pull off live by using a computer sequencer to play the extra parts on a synthesizer module. This gives us the ability to cover tunes that there would be no way to do live with just a 4-piece band. It solves a lot of the problems associated with using a lot of musicians in the band.

   We are able to play songs by Nine Inch Nails, Santana, Sting and many other artists that use large groups of musicians or layers of synthesizers to create their music. It really helps us to flesh out our live sound by using these sequenced backing tracks. Having this tool at our disposal has helped to set us apart from the local bands that don’t use a sequencer live.     

   There are the naysayers that believe that using backing tracks is cheating. I’m here to tell you that nothing could be farther from the truth. As a band we have to play much more accurately when we’re using the sequencer to enhance our live sound. We are held to a more rigid song structure but there is still plenty of room left for creativity when we play live. It takes a lot of skill as a musician to play your parts along with a backing track. By playing with an unchanging backing track you risk losing the song altogether. But it’s a risk we’re willing to take because the payoff in sound is so great.

   I think that anytime you can create more music using modern technology to do so, it’s a good thing. So don’t be afraid to get out there and experiment with some pre-recorded or computer sequenced backing tracks. It could take your band to the next level and get you some of those higher profile gigs that we’re all looking for!

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Using Backing Tracks In Your Live Band

Bill and Frank work out parts in the practice room.

  How many times have you spent a lot of time recording your new masterpiece only to come to the mixdown and finding that there are way too many low frequencies? It sucks when you get to mixdown and you have to filter out frequencies on the bass guitar just so it will have some presence in the mix. Having too many low frequencies in the mix is something that you will struggle with at your live shows as well. The biggest cause of too many low frequencies that I have found over the course of my live and recording career is the simple fact that the players in the band are playing in the same frequency range as each other at the same time. I’m not talking about lovely unison lines but when two or more instruments are playing different parts at the same time in the same frequency range.

   Let’s think about how the frequencies overlap each other for a minute. Let’s take the bass and guitar for example. The way a guitar is tuned overlaps the bass guitar all the way down to the E on the second string of the bass. So that’s almost two entire strings of overlap on the bass and the guitar. If you play your guitar tuned down to D then the overlap is even greater. This results in a lot of the same frequencies being doubled between the two instruments. That’s not necessarily a bad thing if you’re going for that low frequency heavy sound but you will lose a lot of definition between the bass and the guitar if you’re not aware of what each other is doing. Another thing to think about is the way keyboards fit in the mix. Keyboards can play frequencies below the bass and above the guitar but most of the time they’re playing right in the same range as the bass and guitar. Again, this can steal definition from the low frequencies. The drums have the most sonic frequency range of any instrument in the band but again the bass drum competes directly with the bass guitar. As you can see, it’s very easy for things in the low octave to get out of control.

   What can we do to help contain this low frequency soup that gets created by all the instruments playing in the same note range? The first and most important thing you can do is listen to each other. People get caught up in the “fixing the EQ” or “fixing compression” when really it’s most important to listen to how the instruments are working together. You may have a killer bass guitar part all worked out but if the keyboard player is holding down a low note in the exact same range as your bass, then your part is going to get lost. I’m not saying that the keyboard player should never play in the low range. It’s essential to have the keyboard player playing some low frequencies to give the song more depth than the bass alone can give it. I am saying that the keyboard player should be paying attention to what the bass player is playing and make sure the parts are complimentary. The same thing goes for the bass player. The bass player has to ask the question “what is best for the song here, the keyboard part or the bass part?”. Believe me it’s not as easy as it sounds once egos get involved along with differences in vision as to how the song should go. But the essential point is, if you want to have a great sound you have to compliment each others parts. A great player isn’t afraid to back off and let someone else take the spotlight for a minute. It should go both ways when players are competing in the same frequency range with each player giving up the room when the song calls for it.

   The same thing goes for every other player in the band. The drummer needs to listen and decide if the double-bass drum 1/8th notes are stomping out the killer guitar part that’s being played. The players need to take time to coordinate such bass heavy happenings. One thing that sounds great is when everyone plays those double bass 1/8th notes together. As I said before, it all comes down to being aware of what each other are playing. Be prepared to make compromises because that’s what it takes to really control all the things happening down in the low frequency range.

   The second thing you need to be aware of is the need for proper EQ’ing. I’ve already written a couple of articles about about getting proper EQ on your guitar as well as an article detailing how to watch for and mix key EQ frequencies. Those are good basic things to be in control of when you’re initially setting up your instruments. On bass frequencies the biggest problems usually happen between the bass drum and the bass guitar down in the 150HZ and below range. On the mixer it’s a good idea to put a bass frequency cut from 150HZ down on the bass guitar and letting the kick drum dwell in that range. Another device you can employ is a multi-band compressor that will let you tame down specific frequencies that are popping out of the mix. A multi-band compressor is one of the handiest tools I’ve found for controlling bass frequencies.

Tube-Tech SMC 2B Stereo Multi-Band CompressorThe rackmount Tube-Tech SMC 2B Stereo Multiband Compressor is an all tube-based compressor that adds the warmth of vintage quality masters to your mix. If you’ve heard records by Beck, Offspring, Rufus Wainright, and All American Rejects, you’ll find a Tube-Tech SMC 2B Multi-band compressor in the hands of Joe Chiccarelli strapped across the stereo bus.Tube-Tech SCM 2B Stereo Multi-band Compressor, First Take: Multi-bandband compression and variable crossover points let you craft your overall mix Three independent stereo optocompressors Flat frequency response across all three bands Balanced I/O and floating transformersVariable Crossover the Tube-Tech SCM 2B’s variable crossover points ensure precise control with all three bands of optocompression. Independent band specific Threshold, Ratio, Attack, Release & Gain parameters make the SMC 2B as flexible as it is accurate. For example, a stereo compressor can squash and muddy the midrangeof rock records. With the SMC 2B, you can add just the slightest compression to the midrange where the guitars live to keep them vibrant and lively. The adjustable crossover points allows you to set the low-frequency range so that the bass on dance tracks won’t get over-compressed.

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Creating Sonic Space Between Instruments Before Mixdown

Yamaha SPX2000 Digital Effects Processor

   One of the tricks of the trade when it comes to mixing down recordings is synchronizing the delay settings with the beat of the song. It gives your recorded tracks a very smooth and even feel when the delays are hitting on the beat or on divisions of the beat. These days, so many live bands are using sequenced tracks or recorded backing tracks that it’s an essential skill as a live musician to be able to set your delay effects to hit with the beat of the song that you’re playing. With all of the excellent digital delays and digitally controlled analog delays it’s easier than ever to get your delay effect units set to the beat of the song you’re playing.

   In the old days of analog delays the best you could do is use your ear to set the delay to the beat of the song. It was a good skill to have and not extremely difficult. The biggest problem that we used to face in a live music setting was changing that delay with every song to match the beat. In the studio it wasn’t so bad as we had time to fiddle with delay settings for each project. With digital delays, it’s so much easier to set a delay on the beat of the song that you’re playing. A lot of the new digital delays have a Tap button that will let you tap on the beat to set the delay in synch with the song you’re playing. But even the Tap button has it’s limitations as it still depends on human input.

   There are two simple delay formulas that you can use to calculate delay settings for type of note duration that you’re after. The first thing you need to do is determine the Beats Per Minute of the song. If you have sequenced a song you can simply look at the BPM setting of the sequence and use that for the delay formula. If you are working on a live recording simply count beats for six seconds and multiply the number by ten and you’ll know your BPM. Now, let’s say you want to set up a 1/4 note delay on a song that is 120 Beats Per Minute. For the first formula you simply take the decimal equivalent of the note fraction (1/4 note = .25) and multilpy it by 240,000 then divide by the BPM and that will give you the resulting delay setting in Milliseconds. The formula looks like this:

Note Fraction x 240,000 ÷ BPM = Delay Time (in Milliseconds)

First example for a 1/4 note delay at 120 BPM: (.25 x 240,000 ÷ 120 = 500 ms)

For a 1/8 note delay at 133 BPM: (.125 x 240,000 ÷ 133 = 225 ms)

Remember! To figure your decimal value for the note duration divide the top number by the bottom. For example 1\4 note = 1÷4 = .25

   The other way to set a delay up so that  it lines up on the beat is to use this formula. This delay formula is a little more complicated but it may make more sense to you:

BPM÷60 = Beats Per Second then divide 1 by BPS (1÷BPS=1/4 note Delay Time)

So first you need to determine your Beats Per Minute. If you have sequenced a song you can simply look at the BPM setting of the sequence and use that for the delay formula. If you are working on a live recording simply count beats for six seconds and multiply the number by ten and you’ll know your BPM. After you have your BPM just divide it by 60 to figure our your Beats Per Second. Once you know your BPS you simply divide BPS by 1  by can then set your delays accordingly. Here are a couple examples:

60 BPM ÷ 60 Seconds = 1 Beat Per Second. [1÷1BPS=1] For a delay that happens on each 1/4 note set your delay to 1 second. For a hit on each 1/8 note set it to 500 milliseconds. For 1/16 note set it to 250ms.

120 BPM ÷ 60 Sec. = 2 BPS. [1÷2BPS=.5] For 1/4 note delay set your delay to 2 seconds. 1/8 note = 1 second delay, 1/16 note = 500ms.

135 BPM ÷ 60 Sec. = 2.25 BPS [1÷2.25=.444] So 1/4 note = 444 ms, 1/8 note = 222 ms, 1/16 note =  111 ms.

   So there you have it. I have used both delay formulas to figure out delay settings. For some reason I seem to understand the second one better even though it does seem more complicated. But they’ll both get you the settings that you’re after.

Yamaha SPX2000 Digital Effects Processor The Yamaha SPX2000 Digital Effects Processor is a truly superior rack unit incorporating their most advanced technology with the emphasis on tonal quality and usable effects, including Rev-X reverb algorithm and 96kHz audio DSP. Dream studio reverb and early reflection effects with micro-parameter controls; versatile high-quality delays and echoes; sophisticated pitch shift with sound mixing, feedback, and synch to tempo; a broad palette of mod effects including stunning rotary; a powerful filter section that's MIDI controllable; a full assortment of very musical and useable distortions; lots of combination effects; and a heady phrase sampler make it a studio workhorse and a magician onstage. MIDI I/O/T, USB, word clock, AES/EBU XLR I/O, left and right 1/4" and XLR ins and outs with choice of -10dBu or +4dBu make it easy to integrate into any system.

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Set Delays On The Beat With The Delay Effect Formula

Acid Pro 6 Power! The Official Guide

   If you’ve been reading Live Musician Central for very long I’m sure you know I absolutely love Sony Acid Pro 6 Professional Music Workstation software. It’s extremely powerful and can be the heart of your own home recording studio. Sony Acid Pro 6 is a very capable and deep program which is easy to learn but can be a challenge to master. Today I want to turn you on to an excellent guide written by D. Erik Franks called “ACID Pro 6 Power!: The Official Guide“.

   Acid Pro 6 Power is a deep, detailed look at the capabilities of Sony Acid Pro 6. The users manual that comes with Sony Acid Pro 6 will tell you the basic features of Acid but it doesn’t take you very deep into how to get the full benefit of those features. That’s where “Acid Pro 6 Power!” comes in handy to fill all those missing details. There is something for every skill level in “Acid Pro 6 Power!” and it can take your music productions to the very highest quality possible with Sony Acid. The first few chapters discuss the user interface and program workflow. The book then moves into music theory concepts which will get you into serious music composition and song creation. The book will also take you into the highly technical aspects of using Sony Acid Pro 6. Simply having the book on hand as a reference guide is worth the price of the book.

   It comes with a companion DVD that includes some fully functioning, time-limited demos of several Sony music production programs. What I like the most on the DVD is you get over 500 sample loops to use in your own productions. You can never have too many loops and having loops that work perfectly in Acid is a real plus. ”Acid Pro 6 Power!: The Official Guide“ is only $23.75 and it’s truly worth every penny.

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Master Sony Acid Pro 6 With Power!: The Official Guide