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Topic: Portable Sound Shield |
Lee Baucum
From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 12:47 pm |
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Ever had an over-zealous drummer playing just a tad too loud? Perhaps a lead guitar player that likes to point his amp at your head?
I wonder if there is some device out there, such as a clear, acrylic music stand, that you could place between your head and the offending drum kit or amplifier.
Any ideas?
Lee, from South Texas |
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Richard Sevigny
From:
Salmon Arm, BC, Canada
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 12:57 pm
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Sounds like a job for the Get Smart "cone of silence"
_________________
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If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.
-Albert Einstein |
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Lee Baucum
From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 1:03 pm
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 Portable?  |
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Lee Baucum
From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 1:05 pm
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Hmm. Maybe an acrylic cone, pointing back at the offending band member......
Beam all that racket right back in his face! |
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Alvin Blaine
From:
Picture Rocks, Arizona, USA
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 2:28 pm
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Drum Shields
and
ClearSonic
I also think that Musicians Friend, and about 50 other online dealers, sell them.
However if your trying to lower stage volume, these DO NOT WORK for that. They are designed for microphone isolation and bleed, and not for lowering stage volume. In fact the many times that I have used them I have found that the players, behind the shields, end up playing louder. So they end up making the stage volume louder and more uncontrollable.
Using them to help amps and drums from bleeding through vocal mics, other instrument mics and vice-versa, does work. Using them to lower stage volume, doesn't.
_________________
http://www.oldbluesound.com/about.htm
http://www.facebook.com/cowboytwang |
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Lee Baucum
From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 2:58 pm
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I'm not really thinking about lowering the overall stage volume. There are times, though, that I would like to have some sort of barrier between me and an offending drum kit or amplifier, just to get out of that direct hit.
I've set up a regular metal music stand before, for this purpose. It's amazing how much that can help. It doesn't look so great, though. A stand made out of clear acrylic would do the same thing and not look so strange. Also, I could still see, if it was clear. |
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Dan Hatfield
From:
Columbia, Mo USA
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Posted 29 Sep 2009 5:50 pm
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| Lee, I don't know if this would be suitable for you or not but here is what I did. I bought a 4 X 8 sheet of that pink two-inch thick styrofoam at Home Depot and cut it into two pieces -- a 3 X 4 and a 4 X 5. I painted both pieces a flat black so they are hardly even noticeable from the audience. I just stand one of the pieces (whichever piece is most appropriate, depending on the proximity of the guitar amp and the drummer) between me and the offending sound source. This configuration doesn't seem to diminish the overall volume, but it prevents the offending sound waves from slamming directly into your tempanic membrane. It sure works for me; your mileage may vary. Dan |
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K.J. Tucker
From:
Texas
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Posted 30 Sep 2009 12:16 pm What holds it up ??
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Dan ;
Great Idea , but what do you use to hold the foam vertical during performances ?
Thanks
Tuck
_________________
In Memory of My Friend http://rickalexander.com/BigSteel/
If you can read this Thank a Teacher , If it is in English Thank a Soldier !
Luck is preparation meets opportunity............ My Grandmother |
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Dan Hatfield
From:
Columbia, Mo USA
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Posted 30 Sep 2009 6:28 pm
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| Tuck, good question. My original intentions were to just cut out a couple of pieces of styrofoam maybe six inches long and five inches high with slots in the middle and just set the large piece down in the slots. But so far all I do is just lean the shield up against my own amp (Nash 400). I always set up on the right side of the stage with my 400 just behind me and slightly to my left. The drummer and the lead amp are to my left, so this configuration works for me. Dan |
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David Doggett
From:
Bawl'mer, MD (formerly of MS, Nawluns, Gnashville, Knocksville, Lost Angeles, Bahsten. and Philly)
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Posted 1 Oct 2009 7:43 am
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Lee, if you can figure out a stand for it, any plastics shop will cut and polish a piece for you of any size and thickness, and will drill holes for attachment. I like your idea of a clear "baffle" to block the direct sound from your head. The mids and highs are the most irritating and damaging frequencies, and they are highly directional. Your music stand experiment shows you don't really need a big panel, just something small that blocks the direct sound from your head.
Also, cheap earplugs can help. The cheap ones give a really unbalanced sound, mostly cutting the highs; but if you just use one plug in the offending side, that might work pretty good. |
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Lee Baucum
From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
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Posted 1 Oct 2009 11:39 am
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David - I have a pair of expensive custom-molded musician's ear-plugs that I wear when the overall stage volume is too high. I've got some -9db filters and -15db filters.
There are times though, even when the overall stage volume is fine, there is still that annoying crash cymbal or guitar amp that sneaks in a quick shot to the ears. That's what I'm wanting to protect myself from.
If I can find a plastics shop to do the work, maybe I could use a hacksaw to cut most of the top off of a music stand and attach the acrylic panel to that.
Lee |
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