Just How Loud is too Loud?

[Mr. Widget]

I was sitting at my desk this evening paying bills and the neighbor's stereo was bugging me... I could hear them playing the Rolling Stones and I could feel the bass in my guts... hold on, I am the guy on the block with the BIG stereo... I went downstairs, opened the door and realized it was Mick and the boys about ten blocks away at the ballpark!

This aerial view shows my location and the ballpark.
Damn, that must have hurt!


Widget

[morbo!]

im going in for a zoom look

cool
morbo thinks he has never seen a real city

show us your ride Mr.Widget

[Zilch]

Durnit, couldn't hear 'em over here.

Island in the way.

[That'd be too loud, I'd say... ]

[Hofmannhp]

......it was Mick and the boys about ten blocks away at the ballpark!
Widget

shi...., and I'm sitting araound here......my favorite band.

HP

btw: nearly sure that they do it with EV


Morbo: I never get this sharp pics from world wind.....what's wrong?

[morbo!]

takes practice

maybe i should sell my images!!!
it take`s sometime because it actually dloads the latest pics from the database at nasa
(do not firewall it)
patience is the key (that prolly sounds funny comming from me)
wait for it to load and find the best sat for your need at the time!
in america u can use better sats and the urban sats and the 1m sat b&w
man i zoomed inside the stadium it was empty when the sat last passed over


p.s it does suck bieng on the wrong side of the word when any night of the week you can see a world class act just as a casual thing in america!

p.p.s i just dloaded the new version and still comming to grips with it(but it does kik ass)

[Ian Mackenzie]

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?sec...ent&id=3627930


The play the stones video link...a familiar face Nelson Pass and wife Jill Pass interviewed..the baby boomers and live squences of one of the concerts.

I'll bet it was a hoot.

Ian

[Oldmics]

Looks like that EV line array was pretty much pointed at you !!!!

Oldmics (liked the Beatles better)

[scott fitlin]

Yeah those Line Arrays are LOUD, and throw really far!

I cant stand line arrays for this very reason, they are too F#@KING LOUD!

This past summer, during the Village Voice Siren festival here at Coney Island, they had a bandstand setup at the Boardwalk and Stillwell Av, a good block and half away from me! At the entrance of my arcade on the Bowery which faces towards the Boardwalk, the band sounded like they were right next to me, so I took a walk over there, and they were using McCauley Line Arrays! The closer I got the more it hurt, this rig was super loud! Even the kids in the street were holding their ears! The buisinesspeople located on Stillwell Av that have concessions there all had earplugs, and of course, NO BUISINESS that day!

The sound? TERRIBLE! Way to loud, and the nastiest, most atrocious sounding harsh midrange I have ever heard in my life! I walked right up to one of the engineers running the rig and told him flat out it was far too loud and sounded like SHIT! He looked at me and told me, this is what people want, you gotta have SPL man! I told him take his sunglasses off, and look at the people holding their ears, and walking away! This system was being used for grunge rock bands, and had to be in excess of 140DB! I couldnt believe how far the sound from these Line Array systems throw, but, it doesnt sound very good!

I have heard Vertec, and McCauley line arrays, and I dont care for they way the sound. They are nothing but SPL machines!

[Zilch]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...&sn=003&sc=694

"No louder than the Blue Angels."

Right.

[clmrt]

"Realign" the speakers ...yeah, that'll go over.

[Mr. Widget]

Looks like that EV line array was pretty much pointed at you !!!!

Oldmics (liked the Beatles better)

I rode by on my bike on Sunday during the sound check, and you are rignt the stage was aimed directly and home plate... and my house!

It was quite impressive here is a pic from Zilch's link...


Widget

[clmrt]

I was a lowly stagehand for the Babylon tour (I think...1994? Big snake-head thing cantilevered up over the stage?)


That was a terribly, terribly large production.

[edgewound]

Yeah those Line Arrays are LOUD, and throw really far!

I cant stand line arrays for this very reason, they are too F#@KING LOUD!

This past summer, during the Village Voice Siren festival here at Coney Island, they had a bandstand setup at the Boardwalk and Stillwell Av, a good block and half away from me! At the entrance of my arcade on the Bowery which faces towards the Boardwalk, the band sounded like they were right next to me, so I took a walk over there, and they were using McCauley Line Arrays! The closer I got the more it hurt, this rig was super loud! Even the kids in the street were holding their ears! The buisinesspeople located on Stillwell Av that have concessions there all had earplugs, and of course, NO BUISINESS that day!

The sound? TERRIBLE! Way to loud, and the nastiest, most atrocious sounding harsh midrange I have ever heard in my life! I walked right up to one of the engineers running the rig and told him flat out it was far too loud and sounded like SHIT! He looked at me and told me, this is what people want, you gotta have SPL man! I told him take his sunglasses off, and look at the people holding their ears, and walking away! This system was being used for grunge rock bands, and had to be in excess of 140DB! I couldnt believe how far the sound from these Line Array systems throw, but, it doesnt sound very good!

I have heard Vertec, and McCauley line arrays, and I dont care for they way the sound. They are nothing but SPL machines!

Most ALL concerts are too loud nowadays...sound like an old fart, huh? With all due respect to the E-V line arrays....they sound awesome!!!....when driven sensibly....140dB is not sensible, Scotty...I totally agree with you. It's the guy behind the mixer pushing the faders that should be arrested for abuse of our ears and the system. The fortunate thing about the advanced sound systems is truly great HIFI sound at a concert....the unfortunate thing about it is the ASSHOLE at the controls that has to use every ounce of headroom to "give us what we want". The Pacific Amphitheater in Costa Mesa must comply with SPL laws to remain in operation....I think it's about time all venues should do the same....or sound systems won't be necessary, cause we'll all lose the gift of hearing.

[scott fitlin]

Loud can be beautiful, within proper range, and if its clean! But most of what I hear these days is the use of said systems to acomplish the same things the kids are doing in their cars! Sheer SPL!

Human ears, or any ears, have a threshold of pain, and once that threshold is reached, no matter how clean is the sound, its going to hurt!

If Widget could hear and feel the sound from the Stones concert ten blocks away and inside his house, HOW LOUD was it in the concert venue? TEN BLOCKS DISTANCE is a great distance! This cant be good for the people anywhere in that park!

I have never heard the E-V line arrays so I dont comment on them, but Ive heard others, and always, TOO LOUD! Maybe it is the guy in the drivers seat! The funny thing is I also heard JBL,s small vertecs, in a club, played at a fairly low volume, and thought they sounded good! Till they turned em up, and then the sound fell apart, completely, and did what I havent like about line arrays everywhere else!

Maybe its time to begin requiring high power sound rig operators to take course, pass tests, and become licensed by the state to operate such rigs?

[Don Mascali]

I think they turn it up so that THEY can hear it.
After years of abuse, alot of those guys are deaf as a post.

I have a friend who is in the guitar pick up business and has alot of back stage time. He keeps asking why he can't hear the tweeters on my system.