Looking for EQ tweaks for PA system.

[Roland Molegraaf]

I perform regularly with the Pedalsteel but the person who is in the venue and controls the sound, often not know how a Pedalsteel should sound. Does anyone have a list of EQ tweaks I can give to the sound mixer? Many thanks in advance.

[Richard Sinkler]

I wouldn't think a set list of parameters would work as most PA systems are different beasts. The type of mixer, power amps, and speakers all make up the sound that comes out of the PA. I think the difference in FOH speakers make the most difference. Say, you were using cabinets with 2-15" speakers for bass and Altec Voice of the Theater type high frequency multicellular horns, they would probably be EQ'd differently than a system with line array type speakers. How much different, I don't know.

[Dave Hopping]

Times like that (admittedly not often) I've told the soundman to EQ me flat, no board F/X. I'll control that with my rig. The idea is to dial in what you want from your setup and have them just amplify it. As an aside, I've caught soundmen riding the slider trying to defeat my volume pedal. They need to know you're going to be ducking down in the mix when someone else is doing call-and-response with the lead vocal and coming up when you're soloing. That's something we take for granted but we shouldn't assume that the bouncer doubling as (ahem!) "sound engineer" will be aware of those nuances!

[Fred Treece]

Times like that (admittedly not often) I've told the soundman to EQ me flat, no board F/X. I'll control that with my rig.

This.
“Flat” EQ means all knobs at noon.
Set the fader for your maximum volume and then tell the guy to keep his paws off of it.

Channel Gain setting may depend on whether you are running direct or mic’d. Either way, keep the meter out of the red zone.

It would also help to know if you are using a conventional amplifier or a modeling unit.

[Stew Crookes]

This may seem like a bit of an 'extreme' solution, but what I like to do at sound check is loop 30 seconds of my playing with a looping pedal.

Then I stand up, walk out to FOH, and chat directly with the soundperson about the tone and they can tweak the EQ while my steel continues to 'play' through the amp and PA until I shut it off.

By doing this I can know exactly how I sound to the audience, and I've found most sound techs to be very responsive to this approach especially if they don't know what a steel 'should' sound like - it's a trick I wish I learned 15 years ago!

[Richard Sinkler]

Wow Stew. What a great idea.

[Fred Treece]

Wow Stew. What a great idea.

+1

[Brooks Montgomery]

Stew, what a great idea. I’ve got a little TC Electronics Ditto Looper. Where would I put it in the signal chain to do a sound check? Last after reverb?

[Stew Crookes]

Stew, what a great idea. I’ve got a little TC Electronics Ditto Looper. Where would I put it in the signal chain to do a sound check? Last after reverb?

Thanks all! When I figured it out I felt simultaneously clever (because it worked so well) and not so clever (because I'd already played hundreds of gigs through my "loop-able" delay pedal and had never before thought to use the 'looping' setting to do this)

As long as you place it after the volume pedal, and before the amp (or DI) it'll work. I have it after my other effects pedals, but before my amp (a Quilter SuperBlock into a TOOB speaker, with the XLR out feeding direct to the PA) and I work with the amp settings to get it closest to what I want to hear and then adjust at the mixer.

I'm not familiar with the Ditto, but it's important that you can set the level of the loop to match the bypass level so you aren't introducing a difference in volume. I use an EHX Stereo Memory Man delay pedal that has a looping setting that is unity gain when you set the blend to 100% and it works great - the only downside with this pedal is it only loops 30secs but that's enough and it's already on my board for delay. If I ever get a different delay that doesn't loop, I'll also get something like the Ditto to replace the looping functionality...

[Brooks Montgomery]

Thanks Stew. Can’t wait to finally here out front my own guitar in the mix.

[Dave Grafe]

As a longtime mix engineer the best you can ask for is to put a good mic in tight on the amp and run the mix channel flat. I carry a Sennheiser MD409 or e906 to festival gigs just in case, as the commonly available e609 and SM57 are both very peaky at 3kHz which can make for a shrill, thin steel sound. If the mains are properly luned running the channel flat is the best way to get what you hear at the amp to the audience. If the mains are NOT properly tuned the sound of your steel is among the least of the problems.

The biggest issue I have encountered with mix folk not understanding the steel guitar is the volume pedal. Too many try to turn it up when I'm laying back and then complain TO ME when I turn up for a solo. We don't maintain constant volume like drums or bass so in addition to leaving the EQ alone they need to set the fader to solo level and leave it alone for us to manage. That's a hard one to get across.

[Richard Sinkler]

The biggest issue I have encountered with mix folk not understanding the steel guitar is the volume pedal. Too many try to turn it up when I'm laying back and then complain TO ME when I turn up for a solo. We don't maintain constant volume like drums or bass so in addition to leaving the EQ alone they need to set the fader to solo level and leave it alone for us to manage. That's a hard one to get across.

That is why I give him the maximum volume I would use during solos, intros, endings etc... But I also give him the volume I would use playing chords or fills behind the singer so he knows that the lower volume is normal and to not increase the volume. Too bad we can't always carry our own sound man.

[Pete Martin]

the bouncer doubling as (ahem!) "sound engineer" will be aware of those nuances!

Maybe the best description I’ve ever heard!!!!