U'd have thought after years of touring getting the sound right wouldn't be an issue?!

Wats up in europe this year, every gig seems 2 have a sound issue!

There were sound issues at the start of Hop Farm then Prince was sound checking himself in Belguim, issues in Rotterdam now Cologne... Not Ireland we don't need bad press in Ireland!

Who's the sound man? Is he really willing 2 do the work??

[Edited 7/28/11 16:50pm]

[Edited 7/28/11 16:51pm]

does prince even have a soundman?

[Edited 7/28/11 16:55pm]

Who cares?? Someone needs 2 b sacked!!

I'm glad I went to the Hop Farm gig because the sound was great there! It helped it being in a field though (no stadium echoes)

Usually when he has a bad sound day, the next performance he goes all out, so I'm jealous of the people who have tix for Malahide.

lezama said:

Usually when he has a bad sound day, the next performance he goes all out, so I'm jealous of the people who have tix for Malahide.

im jealous of the people who went to THIS one! I've never been to a prince concert

Sack Prince.

P is an idiot and at least has issues here.

He did not handle the sound mix issue with least amount of delay.

He did not communicate. He did not start fixing it A.S.A.P.

He did not make a professional impression.

Despite te sound check that lasted for too long./.

Also the arena itself had not changed in 13 years. Stairs (!!) to go down to the innenraum.

Who designs that in this age of time?

The floor is at streat level, even....

It's ridiculous for an artist like Prince to blame the problems on the sound man all the time!

Just get rid off him, problem solved!

But then he would need somebody else to blame...

I'm beginning to think the problem is not the sound man but Prince himself. It's impossible to believe the sound problems occur in every damn city. Why do other artists don't have those type of problems?

In my opionin Prince needs a rehab, something is bothering him in the second leg of the World Tour that he doesn't wanna play, and if he doesn't cause he can't change arrangements i.e. his entourage..or setlists or whatever...he will continue to be pissed off...and quite frankly I'd be too in his position...I'm getting worried about him! He's not happy at all!

Is Andy to blame?

I have heard it from a reliable source that evidently Prince does not have a regular sound (crew-director-engineer) with him on tour, thus he has to rely on locals in each city in which to set up the PA system.

While that is certainly probably more cost effective (cheaper) for his payroll, it is definitely not going to benefit him and his reputation for giving great concerts overall in the future.

IF he were smart, he would spend the little bit of extra cash needed to get an regular and ongoing sound engineer crew with the tour to fix this issue before he has another disaster like last night.

jmfd said:

I have heard it from a reliable source that evidently Prince does not have a regular sound (crew-director-engineer) with him on tour, thus he has to rely on locals in each city in which to set up the PA system.

While that is certainly probably more cost effective (cheaper) for his payroll, it is definitely not going to benefit him and his reputation for giving great concerts overall in the future.

IF he were smart, he would spend the little bit of extra cash needed to get an regular and ongoing sound engineer crew with the tour to fix this issue before he has another disaster like last night.

Certainly with the prices being charged.

^ yeah, he can certainly afford it, even with a steady girlfriend, and two ex-wives.

Not sure why money has been a main focus of his for a good number of years now. It seemed to start in the late 80s when he fired a lot of the old more reliable professionals he had working for him. But lately his emphasis on saving a buck $ (doing things on the cheap) has intensified over these last couple of years.

It's such a shame, someone with his talent and history should want to also take care as to not put his reputation as a kick arse performer at jeopardy by touring on the cheap.

Prince, bring back Cubby Colby!

[Edited 7/29/11 12:48pm]

I was fortunate enough to go to 11 of the shows that prince did in Los Angeles & IMO it took about 3 weeks for them to get the sound right in the Forum... The sound was tight by the middle of the run, but there was no definition or separation in the overall mix at the first few shows I attended... It seemed like they just made everything louder to compensate....

Sounded amazing by the end of the run though...

I attended the recent shows in NJ, NY, and NC.
The sound at the shows in NJ and NY was too loud, but was wonderful in NC.

[Edited 7/29/11 14:17pm]

jmfd said:

I have heard it from a reliable source that evidently Prince does not have a regular sound (crew-director-engineer) with him on tour, thus he has to rely on locals in each city in which to set up the PA system.

While that is certainly probably more cost effective (cheaper) for his payroll, it is definitely not going to benefit him and his reputation for giving great concerts overall in the future.

IF he were smart, he would spend the little bit of extra cash needed to get an regular and ongoing sound engineer crew with the tour to fix this issue before he has another disaster like last night.

The Sound engineer´s name is John, he was mixing all the shows in Europe so far. He is capable of getting the sound right as I experienced during the NSJ in Rotterdam. Pretty decent sound.... not the easiest job i suppose if your´re getting screamed at with orders to change certain aspects of the sound..from Prince who´s ON stage and cannot judge how it does sound outside in he arena...

tumbao said:

jmfd said:

I have heard it from a reliable source that evidently Prince does not have a regular sound (crew-director-engineer) with him on tour, thus he has to rely on locals in each city in which to set up the PA system.

While that is certainly probably more cost effective (cheaper) for his payroll, it is definitely not going to benefit him and his reputation for giving great concerts overall in the future.

IF he were smart, he would spend the little bit of extra cash needed to get an regular and ongoing sound engineer crew with the tour to fix this issue before he has another disaster like last night.

The Sound engineer´s name is John, he was mixing all the shows in Europe so far. He is capable of getting the sound right as I experienced during the NSJ in Rotterdam. Pretty decent sound.... not the easiest job i suppose if your´re getting screamed at with orders to change certain aspects of the sound..from Prince who´s ON stage and cannot judge how it does sound outside in he arena...

At last...a sensible post!!!

tumbao said:

jmfd said:

I have heard it from a reliable source that evidently Prince does not have a regular sound (crew-director-engineer) with him on tour, thus he has to rely on locals in each city in which to set up the PA system.

While that is certainly probably more cost effective (cheaper) for his payroll, it is definitely not going to benefit him and his reputation for giving great concerts overall in the future.

IF he were smart, he would spend the little bit of extra cash needed to get an regular and ongoing sound engineer crew with the tour to fix this issue before he has another disaster like last night.

The Sound engineer´s name is John, he was mixing all the shows in Europe so far. He is capable of getting the sound right as I experienced during the NSJ in Rotterdam. Pretty decent sound.... not the easiest job i suppose if your´re getting screamed at with orders to change certain aspects of the sound..from Prince who´s ON stage and cannot judge how it does sound outside in he arena...

R U John??

Livin2BFunky said:

tumbao said:

The Sound engineer´s name is John, he was mixing all the shows in Europe so far. He is capable of getting the sound right as I experienced during the NSJ in Rotterdam. Pretty decent sound.... not the easiest job i suppose if your´re getting screamed at with orders to change certain aspects of the sound..from Prince who´s ON stage and cannot judge how it does sound outside in he arena...

R U John??

No, I´m not...

Unfortunately I missed most of the gigs around where I live due to other engagements. I was only able to attend the gig in Rotterdam on the 26th.

And where I was standing the sound was pretty bad, especially during the first two songs. During the second song (Purple Rain) it was very apparent that both P's vocals and guitar were WAY loud (thought I didn't have an SPL meter handy I'm pretty sure it was way over the legal limit). A few songs later it got better but it remained screamy loud for the whole gig. Now, loudness is relative where people experience a certain sound level differently depending on their ears, mood and position. But when it get so loud it affects the sound quality (distortion) you can safely say it's TOO loud. (I well aware of the phrase 'If it's too loud, you're too old').

A bad sound check can be the cause of the sound level going out of control but also insecurities/inexperience by the (Front Of House) sound mixer or even technical dificulties. Hard to say which it was here.

Over the years Prince's live sound has gone up and down quite a bit in my experience. One of the better sounding recent tours was the ONA tour, I think. With very crisp and clear vocals and a tight sound (helped by a very tight band). The O2 gigs in London I attended were another matter where the sound was very muddy. The gigs in Werchter and Antwerp last year were pretty clean (but esp. Werchter may have been a bit quiet for some).

Apparently P doesn't rely on one (FOH) mixer for all his gigs, where many bands do, which could be an explanation for the sound being so fickle. Having someone who knows the music and knows what you want, especially in the case of Prince who knows damn well how he wants it to sound, would certainly be a plus. It's always frustrating to hear an engineer mess up an otherwise great performance. Though most people may not notice it until it gets as bad as it did lately.

If he ever considers hiring someone to do ALL his gigs, I'm available through PM...

Livin2BFunky said:

Who cares?? Someone needs 2 b sacked!!

they were apparently. several of them on the day of the malahide gig...

Rorywan said:

Livin2BFunky said:

Who cares?? Someone needs 2 b sacked!!

they were apparently. several of them on the day of the malahide gig...

That's funk 2 my ears!!