2. music
  3. 1375317476

LOUSY SOUND AT LIVE CONCERTS

I went to a concert at Bank America Pavillion in Boston last night. I saw Tedeschi and Trucks, and The Black Crows. A terrific concert; The Tedeschi and Trucks Band was especially terrific.

Unfortunately, these bands sound better in my living room than at this beautiful, outdoor venue.

Many venues have extremely poor acoustics and/or poor sound systems. The music is often terribly distorted, details and nuances of the instrumentals and voices are lost. The sound presents as a congealed distorted mess. The art of these incredibly talented musicians cannot be fully appreciated without clear sound. Listening to music in these crappy venues is like looking at masterpiece paintings in dimly lit museums with dirty glasses. The colors, details and brush strokes are indistinct. The artistic genius cannot be fully appreciated. The Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA., Fenway Park and The Boston Garden are just as bad as The Bank Of America Pavillion, if not worse.

I am frustrated with these venues that cannot provide great sound to accompany the great music. What is the sense of attending live concerts if the sound quality sucks. Does anyone else share my frustration?
matjet

Showing 2 responses by pops

pops
2,272 posts
 
As we all know most large venue shows are extravaganzas...not just music, like a broadway play on PED!...LOL!...and by the time you blow through the first 3 songs or so your ears are shot! If you have been around long enough you have dozens of stories just like the ones in this thread...

One of the last big shows I went to was a Springsteen show...not particularly a fan...boss my ass! Anyway, took a large group of clients to Fed X field in DC - all the way up in the skybox no less, thought that might make the decibel level a little less painful....wrong! The only song I really heard and totally enjoyed was his opening number, a tribute to Johnny Cash who had just passed, "I walk the line." Just Bruce and an acoustic guitar - awesome - after that it was what I call "noise bedlam!" Drink up!

Small clubs however can be special and I have seen many acts, both acoustic and electric, you simply cannot reproduce that timbre and live tone in your home. But you can produce engrossing and engaging sound that provides total enjoyment and I get that its not quite like live instruments, but I'm not trying to pull off an illusion that it is! Just want to be take on a magical mystery tour! LOL!
pops
2,272 posts
 
Mapman I saw the Stones that way in Philly at RFK before they tore it down and it was like we were the only people there...amazing. Keith sang "slipping away" my wife's fav and she thought it was a personal tribute!
More to discover