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Mixist, Sound Technician, Sound Eng......No


Chienmortbb

What should we call the knob twiddler  

49 members have voted

  1. 1. What should we call the person that mixes live sound

    • Sound Engineer
      28
    • Sound Technician
      7
    • Sound Person
      11
    • Mixist
      2
    • Idiot
      3


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Hearing Deficient Person is another good name for these people, especially in all rock genres. Or even and very often Sound Inventor is the right name as what they do is absolutely not faithful to what they are supposed to hear and reproduce.

This is the main reason why I no longer go to rock concerts anymore : I'm really fed up by these deaf people pretending to be Sound Engineers.

I'll go for Sound Destroyer.

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1 hour ago, Chienmortbb said:

Yes and quite frequently at concerts where other bands are playing. I make a point of standing just behind the desk if it does not sound right ,as it should at least sound good there. Often it does not.

In many venues good sound at the desk will not equate to good sound for the majority of the audience. Thekla in Bristol is a good example - the desk sits in a corner under a balcony so the bass frequencies are hugely increased. Mix it so it sounds right there and the rest of the room are listening to mids and tops.

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1 hour ago, SteveXFR said:

Try calling yourself any of those without any qualifications. 

I always had suspicions that the qualifications of the "Dr Beat" referred to by Miami Sound machine were a little suspect. And don't get me started on the Boss Dr Rythmn from the 80s, I have no idea how that learned anything, it could only do 16 steps of 4 drums.

In reality, the UK is one of the few countries that doesn't have engineer as a reserved occupation. 

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1 hour ago, Chienmortbb said:

... standing just behind the desk if it does not sound right ,as it should at least sound good there...

Hmm... Our annual festival (Trois Elephants...) had Keziah Jones, among others. His set started; no-one could hear Keziah or his guitar. The bass and drums were there, but not the principal artist. I was standing behind the console, just behind the Sound Engineer (basically as a translator...). It took me nearly five, very long, minutes to convince the bloke to leave the faders for a second, and to come out to where the public were, and listen to what they were hearing, not the sound in the console booth (about 100 m from the stage...). He'd obviously been 'indulging', but once I got him outside, he twigged, popped back in and adjusted the mix. It was touch and go; several of us were ready to ditch him and take over the console. A catastrophe was averted; the sound behind the console was OK, but not out in the public area. It happens...:|

2004
Keziah Jones – Bénabar – Zenzile – No One is Innocent – Feist – Tinariwen – Mei Tei Sho – As Dragon – dDamage – The Cat Empire – Camille Bazbaz – Sweet Back – Fingathing – Dj Netik – Relax – La Kinky Beat – Language Computer – Strup X-Perience – La Tropa

Edited by Dad3353
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27 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

I always had suspicions that the qualifications of the "Dr Beat" referred to by Miami Sound machine were a little suspect. And don't get me started on the Boss Dr Rythmn from the 80s, I have no idea how that learned anything, it could only do 16 steps of 4 drums.

In reality, the UK is one of the few countries that doesn't have engineer as a reserved occupation. 

Are you OK with the qualifications of Dr Dre and Judge Jules? Surely Doctor and The Medics are all qualified medical professionals?

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I usually refer to them as 'FOH sound' as in "Is James doing FOH sound on our stage again this year?

I've also used 'sound bloke/dude' (when it's a bloke/dude) and 'that grumpy c**t' (when it's a grumpy c**t).

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1 minute ago, Ricky Rioli said:

When academia started awarding qualifications in engineering, did they invent the word "engineer", or did they merely take an existing word? If they had wanted to a trademarkable term, they should have come up with a new word. Surely if someone can mend a kettle they can make a new word?

You are quite right that originally Engineers, like Stevenson etc  designed and made engines. Which of course counters my claim to be an engineer. Although the creation of sound has a lot to do with fluid dynamics, I rather feel that getting a good mix is an art. Of course someone that mends a kettle is a Technician or maybr a Kettle Mender?

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3 hours ago, Silvia Bluejay said:

Over 30 years ago, when I lived in Italy, an engineer was someone who had a degree in Engineering (mechanical, chemical, electronic, whatever). Anyone else was a technician. That person behind the sound desk was therefore called, in show credits etc. 'Tecnico del suono'.

I understand the thing that English words can mean many things but the quote above explains the formal route as it is in the UK, even now. The Doctor thing is more complex, my son-in-law is a Dr and my daughter is a Nurse, however I would rather have my daughter treating me as his PHD is in Archaeology.

On an aside, I am shocked to see that 11% in the poll voted idiot. I was not one of them.

3 hours ago, Dad3353 said:

Tunnel vision, it would seem. What I actually typed was '...It's almost an art, really, just like 'real' engineering.' Most things, done well, are artful; engineering, sound mixing, diagnosing ailments, making dinner... 'Artful Dodger', anyone..? Words have very wide meanings; it's really only the legal profession that try to pin things down. The 'Real World' is quite different, and all the better for it. B|

We must agree to disagree on this.

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5 hours ago, Ricky Rioli said:

When academia started awarding qualifications in engineering, did they invent the word "engineer", or did they merely take an existing word? If they had wanted to a trademarkable term, they should have come up with a new word. Surely if someone can mend a kettle they can make a new word?

You mean to differentiate from kettle menders aka tinkers?

Edited by Downunderwonder
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