Audio engineering on LSD

[hvbias]

Amazon Originals streaming released a six part documentary on the Grateful Dead. I think it is an ok watch even if you're not a Deadhead.

Episode 4 spends the first 15 minutes describing their Wall of Sound setup, something thought up by one of their PA/sound engineers who was also their guy that made the batches of LSD

It was interesting to see that they were trying to build something that had low distortion (trying to recreate what they heard on their monitors for what the audience heard instead of going through a crappy PA) and where the sound reached as many people as possible since it was the music that "connected them with everyone". They also used a two mic setup where the second mic would be out of phase so it didn't pickup feedback. It was powered (or partly powered) by McIntosh amplifiers. One of their roadies also says it took so long to setup/tear down that they had no time to sleep between gigs so they would only use this setup for one year. User reports are that that it did sound very good.

The picture above looks like it must have been one of the later versions, since the one seen in the documentary has the center midrange/tweeters lined up straight. They must have figured out later those frequencies are more directional.

 

[amirm]

Wow, that is some setup! Very different art than home systems.

 

[hvbias]

Didn't realize John Curl designed amps for the Grateful Dead, that's pretty cool

 

[DonH56]

http://www.cepro.com/article/beatles_pink_floyd_engineer_alan_parsons_rips_audiophiles

 

[davidB]

That picture is only part of that GD system. They had time-delay systems out in the field/arena/racetrack. And some 'little' towers for the back of a theater/club.
As to the acid, I had 'chopped and channeled' a Nakamichi 550 to make it easier to get past venue employees who did not understand that the band was all for it; I would man the meters because unless a trickster had dosed me, I was usually in the best shape to remember to keep an eye on things(although I recall one time....).

 

[amirm]

Speaking of Grateful Dead, here is my story on them.

I was at Microsoft and had just bought a set of Genelec speakers for testing. Went looking for a room to put them in and the entire building was occupied except this broom closet. It was half a normal office. I would say only 4-5 feet wide by 10 or so feet long. Still, it was better than nothing and I put the speakers there and a computer to drive them.

Fast forward a few weeks later and I am working in my office and I look up and see one of our business development people coming to my office with a few other people. He walks in and says, "hi Amir. Here is Grateful Dead!" I say hi and shake hands. They then hand me a disc with their music and I am told they want to see how it sounds in our codec right then and there. I ask for a few minutes to encode it and meanwhile I am terrified of how I am going to show it to them. At that time we had no audio demo room (we later built a half a million dollar one), and I figured we would look really bad. The only place I could think of demoing was that little closet.

I encode their music which sounded good actually using our codec, and I invite them to that little room. I open the door and I am ready for them to run away after seeing the tiny room. To my pleasant surprise they take one look at the Genelec speakers and say, "we know those speakers! Let's hear the track!" We all walked in and there is barely room to breath. I play the tracks, they love it and all was well. Saved by having those Genelec speakers!

For those of you not familiar with Genelec, they are one of the most common brands of studio speakers.

 

[davidB]

I'll bet it sounded like you all were inside a giant's headphones! Easy way to get concert-level sound.
By the by, thank you Amir for this site, I just found it from a post on diyaudio and joined. I really enjoy the tone here, we all know tone is everything.

Best, David

 

[tomelex]

That picture is only part of that GD system. They had time-delay systems out in the field/arena/racetrack. And some 'little' towers for the back of a theater/club.
As to the acid, I had 'chopped and channeled' a Nakamichi 550 to make it easier to get past venue employees who did not understand that the band was all for it; I would man the meters because unless a trickster had dosed me, I was usually in the best shape to remember to keep an eye on things(although I recall one time....).

were you the sound engineer and what would a trickster dose you with and how.....you lost me

 

[amirm]

Thanks and warm welcome to you David!

 

[davidB]

You are welcome Amir.
Tomelex- I was only the sometime engineer for my group of friends. It was common and encouraged to make recordings of Dead shows, and encouraged by the band. They knew it would not hurt their recording sales, in fact sometimes you could get patched in to the board. We had a binaural setup on a pole(also PZMs if a spacious venue), even a tripod if outdoors, and a shotgun mike for the Nak's blend channel. What might one be dosed with? Why lysergic acid diethylamide, of course. It was the Grateful Dead after all.

 

[Johnseye]

I've been seeing shows and collecting tapes since '88 and still do. Media for me changed from tape to dac to drive. No taping myself, but did my best to share the music through trading and etree.
Some good engineers are Deadheads. Bob McCarthy being one.

 

[NorthSky]

I just checked this thread; I was attracted by the title.

 

[wgscott]

Owsley Stanley is credited with developing monitor speakers and the differential microphone (described in the O.P.), as well as thinking up that wall of sound. He realized it was pointless to use stereo under those conditions. His studio recordings are of extremely high quality. In addition to being the LSD chemist, he was also quite an odd guy. He ate a diet of pure meat, and believed all vegetables are toxic. He moved to Australia because he believed a mega-cyclone would destroy the Northern hemisphere.

Here is his NYT obit: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/us/15stanley.html

 

[Wombat]

Queensland is known for harbouring eccentrics. He comes to Oz and gets a sheila named Sheila.

sheila: Oz for 'chick', 'woman'.