I had a wonderful opportunity to host the live web broadcast and record Michael Tiernan's "L.A. Can Wait" CD Release Party. To accommodate this live webcast, I took the direct outs from the board (instead of a submix) and did all the mixing live from within Digital Performer and sent it through to uStream.tv.
Why not take the mix directly from the house board, you ask? The reason—though not plainly obvious—is pretty simple: Typically a live FOH engineer (who happened to be the very talented Jon Edwards for this event) will take all the elements from the stage (acoustic and amplified sounds) and mix it best for the audience sitting directly in front of the stage. This mix tends to favor vocals and acoustic instruments that need to be more present (acoustic guitar, violin, percussion) over the naturally loud sound sources like drums, bass and guitar amplifiers. Though this approach is perfect for a stage mix it doesn't translate well to a web broadcast mainly because the internet audience will be missing out from a lot of the live & amplified sound sources (i.e. loud guitar amps & drums) that the FOH engineer may not be including through the stage mix.
So the set up for this web broadcast included 24 direct outs from the stage board. The audio was mixed on the fly in Digital Performer and sent through Soundflower as the output source (SoundFlower enables me to monitor the mix while being an available input source for Ustream.tv). Here's a look at the mix:
Clocking 2 hours and 45 minutes of audio (I pushed record when the opening act, Lee Coulter, took the stage), this project weighs in at about 21 GB of data. I'll be remixing and marrying that audio with the video to create some nice footage from the party.
Movin' to Groovin'
The future space for the new Live Audio Lab project studio. Estimated date of completion is between November '10 and January '11.
Great news! The Live Audio Lab has relocated to beautiful Temecula. The move to our new home has been a double-edged sword for Lab operations. For one, I will have a more spacious and acoustically tempered working area for mixing live recordings.
Though I am extremely excited about this opportunity, unfortunately, the space won't be completed for some time (estimating anywhere between November 2011 through January 2012) which means that in the interim, I won't be offering my "Recording & Mixdown" package until the home studio is finished.
I'm still able to offer the basic recording and smaller packages if you are interested in mixing the files yourself.
Until then, stay tuned!
What is the Live Audio Lab?
The Live Audio Lab has one mission: to provide local bands with the opportunity to preserve their performances live and on location throughout Southern California.
The Lab can be at your next gig and capture up to 34 channels of unadulterated live audio. We can also mix the tracks down to re-create the best possible representation of your performance. Additionally, we're able to capture your performance visually with stunning digital photos. Check out our Pricing page for current packages and options.
The Lab has tracked some great bands, including: Brehon Law with Matt Hensley of Flogging Molly, Cape May, the Clay Colton Band, Sean & Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek, the San Diego Mandolin Orchestra, the Wayne Johnson Trio and others. The Lab has been to many great venues, including: Belly Up Tavern, Canes, Winston's Beach Club, the Beauty Bar, Tom Giblin's Irish Pub in Carlsbad, R. O'Sullivan's Irish Pub of Escondido, J.J. Lander's Irish Pub in Fallbrook and the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, California.
Interested in recording, mixing and releasing your next live gig? Contact the Lab!
New Packages for Solo, Duet and Open Mic Artists
Not everyone has a giant band with giant sound and a giant stage to play on, and not everyone finds it economically efficient to drop a couple hundred hard-earned dollars to have a live recording made of your upcoming coffee shop show or next open mic appearance.
Well, I've got good news for all you lone rebels! I'm pleased to announce two new packages with the solo, duo and open miker in mind. The first package, "Café Latte Recording," is especially just for solo and duo acts who get the job done with limited instrumentation. For $25, get a live recording of your show (5 channels, up to three hours) an instant mix when you're finished and all the individual tracks burned to DVD to mix at home to your heart's content.
And for those emerging artists who take the plunge 5- or 10-minutes at a time at one of our many open mic venues (you know who you are), I present you with the "Open Mic Recording" package. For $10, you can record your set (3 channels up to 15-minutes) and get an instant mix for your friends, family or for practice until the next time you take on the stage.
Sound like a good deal? Free free to contact me before your next show, or check out our Pricing page to learn more about these and other packages.
Off the Shelf: S.M.A.R.T. Guides
I'm on my second of Bill Gibson's S.M.A.R.T. guides and I find that, as the more I read through them, the more I appreciate how the information is organized: straightforward, logical and digestible (without being watered-down).
The first guide I picked up, "Mixing and Mastering," helped clarify my own approach to mixing and defined a lot of unknown elements I hadn't considered before. The same is ringing true with the newest book I purchased,"Mixers, Signal Processors, Microphones, and More." So far, it's reinforced a lot of what I already knew about the subject matter and expanded my knowledge without a lot of interfering fluff to filter out.
Featured Albums
Here are the latest albums that feature live music recorded by the Lab:
Shoestring Strap - Mudgrass
Check out what these boys did with some of the stuff that we recorded live at Winston's.
Chi Club - Welcome to the Club
The Chi Club's newest CD features a live jam "New B" that was recorded at Winston's by the Live Audio Lab!
Record it
Save your show for posterity or for practice. The Lab can come out to your band's next gig and multi-track record up to 34 channels of audio.
Mix it
Once recorded, you receive all the individual tracks so you can mix it yourself or with your favorite studio engineer, or we can mix your show down to re-create the best possible representation of your performance!
Release it
We'll provide you with MP3s of your performance, photos of the show, so you can get it out to your fans.
Not everyone has a giant band with giant sound and a giant stage to play on, and not everyone finds it economically efficient to drop a couple hundred hard-earned dollars to have a live recording made of your upcoming coffee shop show or next open mic appearance.
I'm on my second of Bill Gibson's S.M.A.R.T. guides and I find that, as the more I read through them, the more I appreciate how the information is organized: straightforward, logical and digestible (without being watered-down). 
