What is a "Live P.A."?

Live P.A. stands for "Live Personal Appearance" or "Live Performing Artist" depe
nding on who you talk to. In the context of electronic music, Live P.A. means t
hat electronic musicians are playing a live show using electronic music gear (la
ptops, keyboards, synthesizers, samplers, hardware sequencers, etc.) Typically
electronic musicians write and produce their tracks using sequencers before the
show, and play and improvise on their gear during show.
Back to the Top ▲
What is a sequencer?
A sequencer is either hardware or software that records and plays back midi note
s. An explanation of MIDI is beyond the scope of this FAQ, therefore please chec
k out the MIDI spec at http://www.midi.com/, and read on about the various popul
ar sequencers below.
Back to the Top ▲
What are Live P.A.s actually doing up there?
It varies from performer to performer. Some Live P.A.'s push play on a CD, DAT,
or DAW (nowadays usually a laptop) - this is called using "backing tracks" and i
s used by musicians that don't want to take the risk of making a mistake onstage
. Others take it a step further and remix that material on the fly and add live
instrumentals and gear tweaking over the top. The "real" Live P.A.s take it fur
ther by recreating their studio sound live and have the expressive capability to
improvise and change the music on the fly, because all of their instruments are
right there with them on-stage. Therefore, you'll see some Live P.A.'s play sh
ows with racks of hardware gear, and others with just a laptop (as it's possible
with today's powerful computers to create entire music tracks using just a comp
uter). Part of the beauty of the art of Live P.A. is that there is no set metho
d. Performers use whatever means they can to produce the music.
Back to the Top ▲
Will Live P.A.s be replaced by DJs?
No, Live P.A.s will not be replaced by DJs because many electronic musicians wan
t to play real live concerts, as opposed to spinning vinyl or mixing mp3s. That
's because many of us grew up going to and playing in rock, jazz, and classical
bands and concerts, where musicians play instruments live and put on a show for
the audience. Some Live P.A.s also DJ, and some DJs also do a Live P.A., so the
two performance methods go hand-in-hand for some musicians, while other more tr
aditional musicians wouldn't want to be caught dead behind turntables - it all d
epends on the person.
Back to the Top ▲
But many Live P.A.s that I've seen spin vinyl. Should I spin my tunes?
That depends on your objectives and values. The advantages of musicians DJing t
heir tracks on vinyl as opposed to using hardware gear are: better portability,
the consistency of the vinyl recording (vinyl doesn't deviate or "screw up" unle
ss it gets scratched or there's a problem with the turntable), and ease of accep
tance, because 99% of the clubs and events out there already have turntables and
a DJ mixer setup. The disadvantages of DJing are that the audience does not ex
perience a true live concert and the musician DJ has very little freedom to impr
ovise (i.e. to create something musically new on-the-fly), unless they have turn
tablist-level DJing skills. The simple act of beat-matching and crossfading fro
m one track to another does not amount to musical improvisation, in our collecti
ve opinion. In that respect, another disadvantage of DJing tracks is that you e
arn very little credibility from your peers that put in the full effort and ener
gy to create and play a real live show, and even less (and likely negativity) vi
bes from traditional musicians who go up on stage and perform every note and nua
nce of their instrument specifically to deliver the best live show they are capa
ble of. So those are some of the values that other musicians have that you shou
ld consider if you are looking to build a reputation with your musician peers.
Most people won't be jerks about it, but you can be sure it's on their mind if t
hey have to put more effort in than you for as much or less respect (and monetar
y retribution...) from the public.
Back to the Top ▲
Are laptops viable musical instruments?
Yes, now that laptops are smaller, cheaper, and significantly more powerful than
just a few years ago, some DJs and Live P.A.s (and even some keyboard players i
n bands) are dropping their vinyl and bulky hardware gear for a laptop. Another
key advantage of the laptop is that it's customizable with the musician's softw
are and hardware controller of choice, and can be played at a live concert. For
example, USB controllers integrate with software to give the Live P.A. control
over the live music in a very similar way that hardware electronic music gear al
lows. When the musician plays the ivory keys of a USB keyboard, it sends MIDI n
ote data through the USB cable to the laptop, which then plays audible notes (wh
ich are created by the musician's software) through the laptop's soundcard audio
output jack. Likewise, virtual knobs and faders in software can be controlled
by hardware potentiometers/knobs and faders on USB controllers and older MIDI co
ntrollers. Also, certain professional music software programs (MAX/MSP, Reaktor
, Buzz, etc.) allow modular "programming" of sound and music within the laptop s
o that musicians can create and perform using their own virtual instruments (i.e
. algorithms). MAX/MSP has a very loyal following in academic electronic music
circles where the entire focus of graduate study programs is on algorithmic comp
osition and live computer music concerts, sometimes even incorporating live acou
stic instruments that are modified by the MAX/MSP algorithm to create a computer
ized "improvisation" on the live musician's playing.
Back to the Top ▲
But Live P.A.s stare at laptop screens during the show and look like dorks..
The answer to this problem is that Live P.A.s need to PERFORM - that means using
your musicianship during your show. Play the keys, tweak a USB hardware contro
ller, freak your synth, beat your drum pads, play a traditional acoustic or elec
tronic instrument, rock the mic, etc! A good live act has control over their mu
sic and can improvise at a moment's notice to blow the crowd's minds in ways tha
t a DJ cannot. If all you have at your disposal is a laptop, then at least put
some effort into having fun and getting into your music, and interact with the c
rowd. A mantra of live musicians across all genres of live music across the wor
ld is to fire up the audience and draw their energy and put it back into the mus
ic, and repeat the cycle to keep the good vibes going. This can be done easily
- all you need to do is use your charisma with your audience (even if there's on
ly 2 of them watching) and use your limbs to your advantage (FWIW, we do not con
done indecent exposure), and control the music from the laptop's ASCII keyboard
to make as much of a live performance out of it as you can. For example, in Abl
eton Live 4, use the preset track mute keys, trigger legato clips using other ke
ys, and throw in some improvisational live sample triggering, and show them you'
re doing it live using your body language! If you're having fun, they will too.
(and it helps to write good music, too...) :-)
Back to the Top ▲
Which is better for Live P.A. - laptops or hardware gear?
There is no set method, so use whatever means works for you. Many people have la
ptops these days, so it is very simple to get started with software like Propell
erheads Reason or Image Line Fruity Loops. On the other hand, many Live P.A.s c
hoose to use hardware gear for tactile, immediate control over the instrumentals
. Also, hardware gear provides a more professional look than a laptop does. So
me Live P.A.s have gotten into hybrid setups, where both hardware gear and lapto
ps running software are used. (see below) As far as instrumental sounds go, ther
e are sounds that hardware synths can do better than software (i.e. fat analog s
ynth sounds), and there are some sounds that software creates that most affordab
le hardware can't (i.e. real-time granular resynthesis, ala Absynth and Reaktor
) so if you crave sounds or effects from both hardware and software, you may wan
t to consider a hybrid setup. A simple example of a hybrid setup is using Ablet
on Live 4 to sequence silky smooth basslines on a Studio Electronics analog bass
module. The other way around would be to use an Akai MPC1000 hardware MIDI seq
uencer to trigger realistic multisampled upright bass sounds in a soft sampler l
ike NI Kontakt or Tascam Gigastudio.
Back to the Top ▲
I'm just starting out as a Live P.A. - what should I use?
For beginners to electronic music, a common recommendation is to start off simpl
e and build from there. If you have a laptop but no musical experience, downloa
d demos of Fruity Loops, Acid, Reason or Live, and get the feel for them. If yo
u don't have a laptop, and don't have the budget for it or any expensive gear, s
tart off with a used Yamaha RM1x and a used E-Mu (ESI or Emulator series) or Aka
i (MPC, S2000, or later S-series or any Z-series) sampler, and download samples
from the internet or get a few cheap sampling CDs. Another approach would be to
get a bunch of used Electribes, like the ER-1, ES-1, and EA-1, and sync them al
l together and write and play out your tracks like that. You can prepare and pe
rform an entire live set using just Reason, Live, or an RM1x + a hardware sample
r if you spend enough time learning your software or hardware gear. Read the ma
nuals, check online FAQs, and ask questions on forums like this one and Dancetec
h.com. As you feel the need for better sounds or more control of your tracks, yo
ur next gear acquisitions will naturally fall into place. For example, with sof
tware you would probably want to get a few good soft synths (checkout KVR-VST fo
r the latest, most popular soft synths) and a USB hardware controller. If you m
ake a mistake and buy gear that you didn't need or grow out of it - it's OK, it
happens to all of us. Experiment with gear, find out what works best for you, a
nd most of all... have fun!
For keyboardists and musicians that are just getting into electronic music, the
above recommendations might provide a good and inspiring starting point, but you
may want to opt for a more powerful instrument early on. For example, for a la
ptop Live P.A., you could skip Fruity Loops and Acid, and go straight for Reason
or Live. Get a good VSTi analog-modeling synth like Absynth, Albino, Sonic Syn
th, Tera, or Zeta+ for your basic synth leads, pads, and basses. For bread and
butter sounds, check out Sampletank and GigaStudio, and for samplers, look at Ko
ntakt and Halion (both of which support many established sample library formats
and hard disk streaming). If you're getting a laptop more to mangle sounds, pro
ceed straight to Reaktor and check out NI's website for downloadable Reaktor ins
truments. For a hardware Live P.A., checkout the Yamaha RS7000 and Roland MC-90
9, or for even more power, look at the Roland MV-8000 and Akai MPC 4000. As a s
lightly cheaper alternative, you could get a serious hardware sequencer like an
Akai MPC 1000 or 2000XL and use it to drive a few VA and analog synths, the most
popular of which are the Access Virus and also the Clavia G2 modular and Nord L
ead series (note: the Lead 3 sounds VERY different than the Lead 1 and 2.) A fe
w popular analog synths currently in production (as of early 2005) are the Dave
Smith Instruments Evolver, PolyEvolver, and the Alesis Andromeda. Other hot syn
ths include the Kurzweil K-series, the now-deceased Waldorf Q and Wave lines, th
e Yamaha AN1x, the vintage Roland Juno and Jupiter lines, the Novation Supernova
synths, and the Alesis Ion and Micron. The Korg MS2000 and Roland JP-8000 have
their supporters out there, but those cats probably never played a Virus. :-)
For electronic musicians that have been making tracks for awhile, it's a differe
nt story. The main pieces in your gear setup now should give you a good idea of
what you need to bring out live, so if for example, the Virus was your main syn
th, plan on taking that out, and sequencing it using Ableton Live or an MPC. Ho
wever, if you don't want to break the physical continuity of your studio, or ris
k taking out your very expensive gear investments, you might want to consider us
ing Ableton Live to remix your tracks on the fly, as opposed to recreating them
in their original state. If you want to avoid laptops and software altogether,
but still want to take the sounds from your studio out, there are a few hardware
devices that you could consider as alternatives. The Roland SP-808EX stores sa
mples directly to zip disks in a compressed format, and bypasses RAM limitations
of standard samplers, so that long phrase playback is possible. There are a fe
w live acts out there that use (2) SP-808s to remix tracks on the fly at live gi
gs. Other hardware samplers with large RAM capacities include the Akai Z-4, Z-8
, MPC4000, and the Roland MV-8000. A certain famous techno Live P.A. uses (2) Y
amaha SU700 loop samplers for slamming multi-hour techno sets. All of the above
hardware samplers are capable of taking chunks of your studio tracks and recrea
ting them live in a spontaneous way with the possibilities of improvisation at h
and.
Back to the Top ▲
What are some common setups for Live P.A.?
A popular hybrid configuration is to use Ableton Live to trigger audio and MIDI
loops stored on the laptop, and connect a hardware sequencer with its own built-
in sounds like a Korg Electribe to the laptop with a MIDI cable. In this config
uration, the Electribe functions as the MIDI master and Ableton Live as the MIDI
slave. When you press "Play" on the Electribe, the laptop running Live or Reaso
n should playback in perfect sync with the Electribe. You should setup a simple
bass drum or high hat pattern on both to check if there's any lag between them.
If there is, adjust the MIDI sync parameter in Live to sync Live and the Elect
ribe up tightly. Then, you can trigger loops ("clips" in Ableton terminology) i
n Live completely independent of your patterns on the Electribe, and mix back an
d forth between the two alone and both together to create one continuous flow of
music. The non-stop flow of music is important for electronic dance music genr
es, but perhaps overkill for non-dance electronic music genres. Ultimately it's
up to the musician and the desired artistic effect of the show.
For all-hardware setups, the most reasonable configuration is a hardware sequenc
er (like an MPC) driving a few synths and a rack-mount sampler. The reason you
would want a rack-mount sampler in addition to the MPC is because the MPC can't
play samples chromatically up and down the keyboard. So you would use the MPC f
or drum samples and the rack-mount sampler for multi-sampled instruments, and th
e synth obviously for basses, leads, pads, etc. Basically, you would write your
music on the MPC or on a computer (in which case you would transfer the MIDI fi
les to the MPC), and play it back live using the MPC 1000 or 2000XL's "Next Sequ
ence" feature to create a live, spontaneous song structures. Another powerful M
IDI sequencer that's even more geared towards dance music is the now discontinue
d E-Mu Command Station series, with its powerful X-Mix feature that lets you mix
and match tracks from the current and next pattern, much like the Roland MC-505
Megamix. The Yamaha RS7000 (see Motifator.com RS7000 discussion board for disc
ussion) or RM1x could also be used in this configuration, but you would probably
want to avoid using the internal RM1x sounds if you're going for a professional
live sound... Also, you could look for the venerable Alesis MMT-8, which can mi
x and match tracks like the Command Stations and MC-505, but since it came out n
early 20 years ago (!), you'll have to use MIDI SYSEX dumps or analog tape to sa
ve your sequence data.
Another all-hardware setup is the multi-sequencer setup, where multiple hardware
sequencers and drum machines are MIDI synced together, but play their own inter
nal sounds (or even trigger external sounds on synths or a laptop). For example
, one fairly vintage combination is the Roland TR-909 and TB-303 synced together
for vintage acid house and trance music. A simple modern example is the Electr
ibe MX and SX, teaming the MX's analog modeling synthesis with the SX's sampled
drums and bass, respectively. As long as your sequencers support MIDI Time Code
(MTC) and MIDI Machine Commands (MMC) (and most all of them do...), you can syn
c as many as you want and create a groovebox ensemble.
Back to the Top ▲
What software can I use for a Live P.A.?
Some titles that we've seen in action are:
Cubase (Steinberg)
Logic Audio (Emagic)
Reason (Propellerheads)
Fruity Loops (Image-Line)
Orion (Sonic-Syndicate)
Live (Ableton)
MAX/MSP (Cycling '74)
Reaktor (Native Instruments)
Back to the Top ▲
Which is the best one for playing live?
The current favorite for electronic music is Ableton Live. For the more experim
entally inclined, check out Native Instruments' Reaktor and Cycling '74 MAX/MSP.

Back to the Top ▲

How powerful of a machine do you need to play live?
The more power the better. You want to run the latest apps with a comfortable a
mount of CPU headroom and low latency. Most Live P.A.s on this site use Pentium
4 and M-based laptops, and most applications suggest at least 512MB RAM, with 1
GB RAM recommended. Some models we've heard good things about are IBM, Toshiba,
Sony, and Avertec. You should plan on getting an external USB2 or Firewire har
d drive to backup all of your data on a daily basis, and make it bootable so you
can take to gigs in case your main hard drive crashes. You should get a good q
uality PCMCIA, Firewire, or USB2 mobile audio interface (i.e. sound card) with s
everal outputs and onboard MIDI i/o. RME is the best. M-Audio makes decent car
ds. Roland / Edirol are known for reliable cards. The Tascam FW-series control
lers are solid, too.
But keep in mind, you can make music with ANYTHING, so don't get discouraged if
you can't afford the latest system. Use what you've got and try to maximize it'
s potential. On older PCs, you can still run MIDI from a sequencer. A few good
pre-VST applications were Cakewalk, Massiva, Pure Data, FastTracker, Buzz, Fruit
y Loops, etc. Some of the first standalone apps like Propellerheads Rebirth and
NI Battery can run quite well on a 500MHz-ish Pentium 3 chip, assuming you have
a decent audio card with ASIO drivers. If you don't have a good audio card, tr
y a websearch for ASIO4all, as it can (depending on your CPU and on-board sound
chip) reduce MME driver latencies down to around 4ms.
Back to the Top ▲
How about using ADAT digital i/o, digital mixers, and mLAN?
You could consider an audio interface with ADAT lightpipe or mLAN, and get the c
ompatible digital mixer from Tascam, Roland, or Yamaha, and route tracks directl
y from the mixer to the laptop and vice versa (you would use the A/D and D/A con
verters on the digital mixer instead of the audio interface). I've heard of goo
d results with RME Digiface and a Tascam digital mixer with ADAT lightpipe in a
studio situation, and there's no doubt a proper Yammie or Roland digital mixer w
ith ADAT lightpipe couldn't do the same sort of job. The Yamaha digital mixers
are widely regarded as high quality, but have a distinct "digital" character to
the sound, as compared to a Mackie, so you might want to make sure you like the
sound before you jump.
However, mLAN is a different story, because it requires the installation of an m
LAN MIDI + Audio driver on your laptop, in order to stream all that MIDI and Aud
io data through the IEEE-1394 cable. With mLAN, be prepared to take a significan
t hit on your laptop's CPU resources (20% or so on a Pentium M 1.4GHz...). I pe
rsonally would wait a few years before diving into mLAN until Yamaha can optimiz
e the drivers, and by that time, CPUs will get incrementally faster due to expec
ted fabrication process improvements, and at that point laptops will be better a
ble to handle the bandwidth requirements of mLAN along with a bunch of VST and V
STi plug-ins.
Back to the Top ▲
Where to buy?
(USA)
www.novamusik.com
www.zzounds.com
www.audiomidi.com
www.kraftmusic.com
www.roguemusic.com
www.music123.com
www.guitarcenter.com
www.sweetwater.com
(UK)
Digital Village
(Canada)
www.savedbytechnology.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Art of Performing Live Electronic Music by Sneakthief

Preface
Please remember, the art of playing live is about being cool-headed when things
don't go the way you expect it. Try to take everything in stride, and for god's
sake, never panic.
The most hard-won piece of advice that I have right after you perform DO NOT CRI
TICIZE YOUR SET IN FRONT OF OTHER PEOPLE. If you must, save the self-deprecation
for another day and only for your closest friends.
Why?
First of all, most of the "mistakes" made while performing will only be noticed
by you. If someone thinks that you played fine, and then you start telling them
about all of the fuckups, it can change their perception of your performance in
a negative way. Your confidence and self-assurance plays an important role in ho
w your music will be received.
The truth is, there will always be things going wrong - e.g. gear fuckups, bad c
ables, bad sound, audio glitches, police, people trying to talk you or hit on yo
u, etc... live performance is about Having the confidence to overcome such diffi
culties and play your music as best as you can.

Although it may look impressive to haul a lot of gear, what really matters is wh
at you do with it. Having more gear means having more things to go wrong. So thi
nk twice about bringing your whole studio for your next life gig.
Studios are like laboratories - they're usually safe and controlled environment
that you're familiar with. The minute you drag your equipment somewhere else, yo
u introduce all sorts of weird variables including
-power fluctuations
-low lighting
-heat/cold
-humidity
-dust
-strange sound system setups with weird cabling
-spilled liquids
-intoxicated/obnoxious/distracting party goers
-lots of bass to rattle wires, connections and hard drives
As such, I prefer taking less gear rather than more. It also helps to really kno
w your equipment inside and out.

Live PA Checklist - (this list has been compiled thanks to helpful suggestions f
rom those on the livepa.org, EM411.com, and the now-defunct Moving-Parts & Topic
a livePA mailing lists)

Ask beforehand about the setup if possible and don't forget to make your needs v
ery clear. I highly recommend printing out a simple rider that spells out exactl
y what you require - some promoters might forget that you need power connectors,
table space, an audio input into the sound system, etc. (Note: to prevent power
issues and line noise, avoid going on the same electrical circuit as the discol
ights/fogmachine/etc.)

Make an equipment checklist and use it before every show. It's so easy to forget
one little thing that will prevent you from playing. Having your own power bar
is essential if you need more than one outlet and always bring duct tape).

Don't be afraid of writing down a listing of all the tracks you have - that way,
if you're doing any kind of spontaneous transitions, you can quickly choose wha
t you might want to play next. (and NO, I don't necessarily mean a pre-planned s
et list). Also consider making notes for patch numbers and changes, volume level
s, or anything else that’s essential to your live workflow.

Know ALL your cable connections inside and out. Check your cables beforehand and
make sure they re all working... even midi cables go bad, and when they do it c
an be very frustrating because you might not think to check the cable when midi
data isn t being transmitted properly.

Mark your cables with coloured tape or label-tiewraps (so you know what goes whe
re). Don’t forget the duct tape!

Bring a flashlight - lighting conditions can vary and chances are you will need
one.

Bring many different types of *extra* connectors because you never know what kin
d of audio inputs/cables the venue will have. If you’re using a laptop, you migh
t want to also bring a power connector that removes the ground (aka a ground lif
t) - this can help get rid of grounding problems (50/60Hz hum).

Consider putting a compressor/limiter on your final mix (see section below on Co

mpression/Limiting for more info)- it comes in handy for sounds that get a littl
e out of control. Remember, records have gone through a whole mastering process
and will generally deliver a consistent volume range, whereas live sound can hav
e some pretty crazy dynamics (but try not to squash your mix if you limit/compre
ss it). Some cheap compressor/limiters: DBX 166, Behringer Multicom Pro, SYMETR
IX 501, YAMAHA- GC2020B, ASHLY Model CG85E, ASHLY Model CG85E, DBX 266, ALESIS:
CLX-440, 3630, ALTO CLE2.0, etc.

A monitor is necessary, or at least headphones. You will find that listening to

both will help give you a better idea of what s being heard on the dancefloor. N
evertheless, what you hear from the monitor speakers is NOT what the people hear
on the dancefloor.

Soundcheck! If you are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to setup your eq
uipment before the event starts, take some time to LISTEN TO YOUR SET ON THE DAN
CEFLOOR! This is essential, even if you don t get a soundcheck, run out onto the
dancefloor when you first start playing so you can get an idea of how everythin
g sounds. Resources on soundchecking and live sound:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onemusic/performing/soundcheckp01.shtml
http://www.roadie.net/
http://www.jeepjazz.com/handbk.html
http://www.digitalmusicworld.com/html/hardware/KarlsProduction/Mus_Pro_BasEquipL
Sound.php
http://www.bobbrozman.com/soundhints.html
http://personalpages.tds.net/~rpmccabe/AcousticsLinks.htm
If the room sounds bad, a 10, 20 or 30 band eq will allow you to compensate for
it. every room has a resonant frequency that may detract from your sound - Not t
o mention, all sound systems are eq d differently.

Be friendly to whoever is doing sound because they can make or break your set th
rough carelessness or malice. A good sound engineer will let you know if you’re
running a signal that’s too high or too low, and will also be on duty to make su
re that the sound system levels are staying consistent. A lazy or unfriendly sou
nd engineer won’t give a damn if your set sounds like crap because your output i
s clipping and the limiters are squashing your set. If people are running away f
rom the dancefloor, then you better check and see if you’re killing them with un
friendly mid-high frequencies, clipping or distortion.

If there isn’t a sound engineer, you can try to find someone who’s sober enough
to let you know if any of your levels are going astray or if there are problems
with the sound system.

Consider using at least 2 sequencers/laptops (or at least an extra drum machine)

. If one of them crashes, you ll at least have a backup. If everything fails or
the power goes out, start clapping to the sound comes back on or break out your
emergency acoustic instrument. Or try beatboxing. I m not kidding. (e-trinity on
ce performed this successfully to a screaming crowd when his laptop crashed minu
tes before the end of his set at a big party in Sweden). Cheap sequencers to us
e as a second sequencer: Alesis MMT-8, Yamaha QY-70, QY-100, etc. (Plus: see Dru
m Machine section below for cheap drum machines that can be used as a sequencer.
)

Bring backup disks (or cdr s, flash memory cards, hard drives) for everything...
this sounds ridiculous, but redundancy is the key here. Consider what you would
do in a situation where your synth loses all it s patches or if your hard drive
crashes. If you have a laptop, could you make a bootable cdr? Also, if you have
a laptop, you could keep sysex dumps handy for external gear. The same goes for
sampler data. External scsi cdrom drives are cheap. For about $50 or less, you
can buy a cdrom drive and do a dump of your sampler s hard drive to a cdr. Not t
o mention, external Firewire/USB2 hard-drive enclosures are ridiculously cheap a
nd don t weight that much.

Hard drives can be susceptible to low frequency vibrations which can cause misre
ads, or even head crashes (this is Bad ThingTM). So please be careful when you’r
e choosing a space to place your laptop. Consider placing it on foam, or even a
t-shirt and at all costs avoid putting your computer on a bassbin!

Have some kind of backup plan in case your gear crashes, even if it’s something
cheap and simple like a minidisk. This will give you some breathing time if you
have to suddenly reload anything. If you re using a laptop, consider having it a
utomatically boot into your music software and automatically play a track (in ca
se of a reboot) - remember to scandisk and defrag your machine regularly.

During your set, take a moment to occasionally look at the audience and see how
they re reacting to what you re doing. If people start to leave the dancefloor,
then perhaps you should try something different ;)
Practice! I know it s obvious, but it will help you overcome unpleasant situatio
ns where things fuck up. If you think you know your gear well, you may find out
differently when it s dark and in a completely different environment. doh!

Be prepared to politely shoe people away if they ask you to play their favorite
song, or "what all those buttons do", or make out with you during your set (hehe
h). And for God’s sake, don’t let anyone put their drinks next to your gear, and
be extra vigilant when drink-wielding patrons are hovering around you.

I strongly recommend to not get fucked up on whatever substance. It s rude and d

isrespectful to not perform your best - you will not play any better if you re s
eriously intoxicated. Save the "partying" for after you ve finished your set and
packed up your equipment and it s in a safe place.

Don t be afraid to take chances and improvise whenever you feel comfortable in d
oing so - a perfectly pre-rehearsed gig can end up being too rigid. You have to
be able to create some kind of repor or feedback with your audience, n est-ce-pa
s?

Record your set and listen to it. You may end up getting some great material, or
at the very least be able to figure out where you need improvement.

Try to have someone trustworthy watching your gear when you re not around and pa
ck up your gear as soon as possible!!!!! This will significantly reduce your cha
nces of anything bad happening including theft and accidents.

“never never never never never never never never never act bashful during your s
et. It s not cute and it s embarrassing for everyone.” (credit djugel at EM411.c
om)

If you make a mistake, don’t make a big deal out of it. Just keep on playing. Mo
st of the time it will only be you who notices or remembers it.

If you re not afraid to crack open your equipment, don t forget to bring a screw
driver in case you need to open up your gear right before or during your set in
order to carry out some crazy emergency repairs.

If you re traveling with your gear, make sure to pack it very well. A lot of sma
ller equipment fits nicely in those cheap hardware-store metal toolkit cases. Ni
ce pieces of thick foam don t cost too much and just a few minutes with a knife
and scissors will allow you to customize the shape to fit your equipment nicely.
Please remember that baggage handlers and roadies can be cruel bastards *lol*

Believe it or not, you *can* make a living doing live performance. It certainly
takes determination, experience, perseverance and a little obsession. Many music
ians from all walks of life have come to realize that there is typically more mo
ney to be made from performing as opposed to releasing recordings. As such, don
t underestimate your value as an entertainer - there should come a time when you
will want to charge for your efforts. Although the amount of time and effort pu
t into a live set is usually never offset by the income from performing, don t d
oubt for a second that what you re doing is worth being paid for.

Oh yeah, the most important thing is to have fun!

NB: as you get more experience, you eventually get less and less nervous before
performing - but there should always be some excitement and sense of anticipatio
n. Otherwise why bother?
Label EVERYTHING. Most wall-warts power supplies are black - get a white marker
and write your name and email address on the back, and write what device it is
for (SH-101, FX pedals, etc) on all five visible sides in big letters - that way
you can find them in the dark. Label every single cable - a really good way to
do this is to buy 1/2" heatshrink tubing from an electronics supply shop, then
print off bits of paper with your name and email address on them and use the shr
ink-wrap tubing to hold them on securely. If you don t have your name on everyt
hing, you *will* lose cables!
Some additions from the rest of LivePA.org:
When travelling internationally, expect that customs will open and search your e
quipment, and will not likely take the same amount of care to repack it afterwar
ds - you are not allowed to be present at these searches. If your equipment is
in locked cases, they *will* break the locks. Make sure your equipment is packe
d in a way that is obvious for repackers, and possibly even include a note or di
agram explaining that the equipment is very delicate and must be repacked proper
ly.

Assume that the house mixer will require you to plug in using 1/4", XLR, or RCA
- and make sure you ve got the appropriate adapters to plug into any of those co
nnections! A good rule of thumb: for anything that you will need to connect you
r rig to the soundsystem, do not trust anyone but yourself to provide the approp
riate connectors.

If you ve got gear that uses wall-wart type adapters, buy and bring a decent-qua
lity multiadapter with reversible polarity and many different types of tips - la
bel it "Spare" and don t depend on it. Sooner or later, all wallwarts will go f
laky, and having a spare might just save your show.

If you ve got a bunch of wall-warts and don t want to carry around 10 power bars
to plug them all into, consider buying three or four cheap 6-foot extension cor
ds, chopping the ends off with three inches of cable each, and splicing the ends
together to make a single six-inch extension cord. You can usually plug two wa
llwarts into a single plug on a powerbar this way. Hint: if you get 25 extensi
on cords instead of 6 , that leaves you with 24 of nice thick cable that makes
for *excellent* home stereo speaker wire!

MIDI cables can and do die. When you discover that you have a MIDI cable that i
s definitely flaky (i.e., it works if you bend it one way, but doesn t work if y
ou bend it the other way), EXECUTE IT IMMEDIATELY WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE!! Thou
shalt not suffer a sketchy cable to live! Sketchy cables have a sneaky habit o
f finding their way back into use later on... immediately destroy the cable by c
utting it in half, so that it can never bite you. If the ends are non-molded, y
ou can salvage them for later use - but most MIDI cables these days have molded
ends.
If you re handy with a soldering iron, it is cheaper and better in the long run
to build your own high-quality patch cables rather than to buy them. "Molded en
d" cables (ie. Hosa, etc, where the 1/4" plug is plastic and cannot be taken apa
rt) are fine for short-term use, or use in things like patchbays where they will
rarely be moved. For live-pa use where cables will be plugged and unplugged, c
oiled and uncoiled a lot, it is better to spend the extra dollar or three up-fro
nt, so that if/when a cable dies in a couple of years, you can repair it rather
than throw it away. You can also tailor your cables to your live rig this way,
and if later you change your setup, you can just keep the ends and rebuild new c
ables. I recommend Neutrik or Switchcraft plug components, and Mogami, Canare,
or Sommer cabling. It s not cheap; instead of buying a ready-made 20 1/4" patc
hcord for $14 at the music store, you end up paying $18 for parts (Neutrik 1/4"
connectors are $4 *each*!) but you end up with a cable worth $50 at the same mus
ic store!

You can greatly improve the lifespan of your cables by never, ever bending or fo
lding them at sharp angles - for 1/4" patch cables, store them in 1 loops. Add
extra strain relief anywhere that cables have their weight supported by the jac
k or cuff of the cable - velcro tie-strap strips work excellently for this, and
can be attached to flightcases or mixers without trouble. One good method for p
acking cables - sew a drawstring into a small pillowcase, and store coiled cable
s in there. Cables stored in this way are much less likely to become entangled
in travel - I use a mesh "stuff sack" that I got for $3 at an army surplus store
.

Always bring either a bunch of demo CDs of your stuff, or at the very least prop
er business cards with your contact info and website. People have very short at
tention spans these days, and if you want someone to remember you, you have to g
ive them something physical that they can take home with them! The more profess
ional you come off, the more likely people are to recommend your act for other e
vents.

Learn how to take a compliment graciously. When someone comes up after your set
and starts gushing about how you re their new God, shake their hand, look them
in the eye, smile and say something like "Thanks, man, I m really glad you enjoy
ed it!", or "Thanks, that means a lot to me!". Be a full-on rockstar on stage,
but be a regular, down-to-earth person afterwards - if someone is impressed with
your music, they ll be even more impressed to find out that you re a regular, a
pproachable guy. This leads directly to more gigs!

UPS - Uninterruptible Power Supply: get a small cheap Belkin UPS from Office Dep
ot or Office Max. It has a battery back-up that will save your fanny and gear i
f the power goes down as you re playing. There s one model that s the same size
as a power strip but has the UPS inside, it s $30USD. Also, they just recently
came out with sub-$100 UPSs with built-in Voltage Regulation (!) intended for h
ome office use, but they are also compact enough for our purpose of taking them
live out on gigs to deal with places with dodgy power situations.

Instead of just a screwdriver, get a multi-tool, like a Leatherman or a Swiss Ar

my Knife. More useful, and sometimes the problems you may have to fix are not e
ven your own.

Back to the Specific Topics ▲

Ableton Live 4 - hardware controller tips
Evolution UC-33 - map faders to volume, three knobs to aux sends, keys QWERTYUI
to toggle clips on/off, ZXC to low/mid/high kill on the master out EQ.
Behringer BCR-2000 (rotary encoders): 20 buttons, 32 rotary encoders with circul
ar LED displays, USB connectivity, 1 MIDI in, 2 MIDI outs, 2 footswitch.
Behringer BCF-2000 (motorized faders): same as BCR except has 8 motorized faders
instead of the 24 additional rotaries.
Kenton Control Freaks and Spin Doctor. Highly customizable. http://www.kentonuk
.com
Peavey PC-1600 and PC-1600X: the industry-standard 16-fader (non-motorized) + 16
button MIDI control surface.
Akai MPD-16 is nuts (as a controller for Live). Very cool to use as a switch fo
r whatever functions you want to assign it to. (transport, mute/solo, clip launc
h etc.)
Faderfox boxes - made for Ableton Live, look quite dope in our collective opinio
n (although nobody has one yet): http://www.faderfox.de
A DM2 ($30 off eBay) with the DM2 to MIDI hack at: http://www.pdoom.ch/dm2/
Multiple controllers at once ( i.e. Akai MPD16, Ensoniq ESQ-1, and an Oxygen8) w
orks just fine for Live.
If your controller has an infinite knob, in Live you can assign it to scroll thr
ough all your clips on an individual track. Then you can assign another button t
o play the clip. You could assign a button to play the next clip in the list. Y
ou'd have to organize your clips in such a way that they would be in a certain o
rder, however.
Back to the Specific Topics ▲
Ableton Live - song structure tips
One option is to use Scenes in Live's Session View as the 'main structure' of ea
ch song with of loops, effects, and samples, but tweak synths (running a hardwar
e synth or Reason through a Live audio track) in real-time, because it can be to
ugh to sequence a good breakdown using only Tracks and Scenes.
Another option is to use Scenes as sections of your songs, i.e. Verse, Chorus, B
reakdown, Build, and just launch the Scene for that section of your arrangement.
To spontaneously make your tracks change at the press of a button and for launch
ing immediate drum fills, experiment with Live 4's Follow Actions + Legato Mode
+ Clip Launch Quantization settings. Check out this very nice little tutorial f
rom Ableton: http://www.ableton.com/index.php?main=tutorials&sub=tips1104
Scene selection can be controlled via MIDI Program Changes. This way, you can k
eep Live and connected hardware devices on the same page.
One approach is using a top-down approach, to assemble the clips with similar mu
sical contexts near each other and color code each region going downwards.
Insert blank Scenes between "songs" (assuming each song is a group of Scenes) to
write notes to yourself.
Possibly use Scenes between songs as "segue" areas which can involve pads, vocal
samples, etc.
Back to the Specific Topics ▲

Alternative Sequencers
Sequencers that break the mold:
Hardware
Karma - takes MIDI input and generates complex musical phrases. http://www.korg
.com http://www.karma-lab.com
Doepfer MAQ 16/3 and Schaltwerk - analog step sequencer using 48 rotary encoders
. Outputs CV and MIDI. http://www.doepfer. com
Evolver - 16 x 4 sequencer with an awe-inspiring list of destinations and variab
le lengths. http://www.davesmithinstruments.com
Revolution - Circular sequencer with Remixing (256 variations for each pattern/s
ong) and the ability to reverse the sequence. http://www.future-retro.com
P3 - User-configurable step sequencer which takes cues from analog and drum mach
ine sequencers and has track mute keys. http://www.p3sequencer.com/
Midibox - you can use the mod wheel to fade between 2 sequences and blend them t
ogether. http://www.midibox.org/
Notron - performance MIDI sequencer. (out-of-production) http://www.synthservi
ces.com/notron http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/Notron
Software
MAX/MSP - Program your own algorithmic sounds and MIDI sequences and/or effect a
udio input. (PC or Mac) http://www.cycling74.com
Native Instruments Reaktor - object-oriented sound creation tool capable of perf
ormance sequencing. (PC or Mac) http://www.native-instruments.com
Numerology 123 - a modular analog-style MIDI sequencer designed for streamlined
live performance. (Mac) http://www.five12.com
Artwonk - object-oriented MIDI sequencer with an Ultra Arpeggiator, as well as g
raphics capabilities. (PC) http://algoart.com/artwonk.htm
X-Phraze - 32 x 4 wave sequencer with "X-Mix" live remixing function with multi-
sample import capabilities. (PC or Mac) http://www.steinberg.de
Back to the Specific Topics ▲

Building MIDI Controllers

Doepfer - Professional MIDI gear as well as DIY MIDI controller kits. Used by R
ichie Hawtin. http://www.doepfer. com
MIDIbox - DIY MIDI controller kits. http://www.ucapps.de/
PCBs and various parts for MIDIbox kits - http://avi.dezines.com/mbhp/
Other resources:
http://www.audiomulch.com/midipic
http://tomscarff.tripod.com/
http://www.musicianstechcentral.com/midihard.html
http://www.starrlabs.com/
http://infusionsystems.com/
Back to the Specific Topics ▲

Circuit Bending
Circuit Bending is not recommended for people without prior electronics or solde
ring experience.
http://www.oddmusic.com/illogic/
http://www.anti-theory.com/soundart/circuitbend/
http://www.alien-devices.com/
www.em411.com has a circuit bending forum.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/benders/
http://www.knowledgeofbugs.co.uk/bugbrand/index2.htm
Back to the Specific Topics ▲

Compact Mixers for Live P.A.

Mackie VLZ Pro series 1202, 1402, 1604. Highly recommended new when made in the
USA (before 2004).
Allen & Heath Mixwizard series. Check out the WZ20S.
Soundcraft Spirit series. Check out the ES http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/
g=live/search/detail/base_pid/630922/
Soundcraft Compact 10 http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=rec/s=mixers/search/
detail/base_pid/630926/
Behringer RX1602 http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=live/search/detail/base_p
id/631243/
Behringer UB2222, UB1832 or UB1622.
Allen & Heath Xone series (DJ mixer) - has analog filters on both sides of the c
rossfader.
Pioneer DJM series (DJ mixer) - the de-facto DJ mixers with DSP effects and BPM
counters.

Back to the Specific Topics ▲

Drum Machines
Hardware Drum Machines
Elektron Machinedrum - 16-part modeling drum machine that does vintage, real dru
ms, and sounds far beyond. http://www.machinedrum.com
Jomox XBase09 - modern-day analog drum machine. Check out the MBase01 for the Jo
mox analog kick drum. http://www.jomox.de
Roland TR-909 and TR-808 - 909 is the classic dance music drum machine, while th
e 808 provides the kick drum underpinning many hip-hop tracks.
Akai MPC - the definitive drum sampler and sequencer developed by Roger Linn. A
SQ-10 is the sequencer only. Most recent is the MPC1000 which has USB.
Command Stations, although discontinued, are very powerful. The PX-7 comes stand
ard with the highly-regarded Protean Drums ROM.
Roger Linn AdrenaLinn II - guitar/bass preamp, drum machine, and MIDI clock beat
-synchronized effects in one box.
Other Favorites:
Akai: ASQ-10 (MPC sequencer only), MPC60, 1000, 2000, 3000 (drum samplers), 4000
(full multi-sampler), Remix 16 and S20 (32kHz phrase samplers with non-MIDI seq
uencing)
Alesis: HR16B, SR16
Boss: DR-202, DR550, DR660, DR670, DR770, DR880, DR-3, DR-5, JS-5 (phrase sample
r)
Ensoniq: ASR-X, ASR-X Pro (samplers)
Korg: EA-1, EM-1, ES-1 (32kHz drum sampler), ER-1, EMX-1, ESX-1 (44.1kHz drum an
d phrase sampler), DDD-1 (digital, MIDI) KPR-77 (analog, similar to TR-606, DIN
sync - no MIDI) Music and More (MAM): ADX-1 (analog)
Roland: D2, MC-09 (phrase sampler), MC-303 307 505 909 (sampler), MV-8000 (full
sampler), R-8mkII, R-70, TR-505 606 707 727 808 909, SP-303 505 606 808EX (phras
e samplers), SPD-S
Vermona: DRM1 mkII (analog)
Yamaha: RY9, RY10, RX17, DD-55, SU200 (phrase sampler), SU700 (phrase sampler)
Zoom: MRT-3, RT-123, Sampletrak (32kHz sampler)
Hardware Drum Modules
Jomox AirBase99 and JaZBase03 - modern-day analog drums. Check out the MBase01 f
or the Jomox analog kick drum. http://www.jomox.de
Novation Drumstation - highly regarded 909 modeling drum synth.
Alesis DM-4, DM-5, DM-Pro (sample import) - PCM drum modules with drum triggers,
highly popular in hip-hop circles.
Software Drum Modules
Native Instruments Battery (can run very efficiently on slower PCs) and Battery2
(added filters, envelopes, multi-sampling, compression on each cell).
Spectrasonics Stylus RMX
Linplug RM IV
Waldorf Attack
FXpansion DR-008
Steinberg LM-4
Sonic Charge Microtonic
Image-Line Fruity Loops
Propellerheads Rebirth RB-338 (TR-808, TR-909, TB-303 emulator)
Stomper Hyperion 5
Back to the Specific Topics ▲

Live Compression and Limiting

Compression increases the average loudness of your mix by reducing your mix's dy
namic range. The compressor increases the volume of quieter sounds and decrease
s the level of the louder sounds to increase the average (RMS) perceived volume
level of your final mix. If you don't want to learn how all this works, but nee
d compression / limiting, get a digital hardware compressor with presets (VST co
mpressor plug-ins also have presets.)
Basic compression concepts
Threshold is the dB level the compression starts at. Typically, this will be th
e bass drum and any sounds "riding" on it.
Ratio is how much the sounds over the Threshold will be decreased (compressed).
The higher the Ratio, the more the compressor will "limit" those sounds from ex
ceeding the Threshold. When the Ratio is set very high (for example, 25:1), thi
s is considered "Limiting" because the compressor will not allow loud sounds to
ever go past the Threshold.
Hard / Soft Knee determines if the compressor will either compress sounds over t
he threshold Hard (useful for drums and other fast transient sounds) or Soft (us
eful for softer acoustic instrumentals and voices where you do not want to hear
the compression happening.)
Attack sets how fast the compression occurs.
Release sets how fast the compressed sounds return to a non-compressed level. H
igher settings help avoid "pumping".
Gain is the compressor's volume output versus its input. Once you've set the th
reshold to apply a few dBs of compression to your input, you can increase the Ga
in by a few dBs, and thereby raise RMS level of your mix.
Bypass - If your compressor has a Bypass switch, you can do a quick A/B comparis
on to check your original uncompressed mix at the compressor's input versus the
compressed mix at the compressor's output. Useful to see how much your quieter
sounds have been raised, and to spot undesirable artifacts like pumping.
Gate (where applicable) allows you to filter out all the sounds below the Gate T
hreshold level. Useful when working with microphones because a Gate can filter
out breathing and other ambient noises below the vocalist or instrument's loudne
ss level.
Software Compressors / Limiters
http://www.kjaerhusaudio.com/classic-series.php
http://www.voxengo.com/elephant/
http://www.sonalksis.com
Waves L series (L1/L2/L3)
Pluggo's compressor http://www.cycling74.com
Endorphin mastering suite - http://www.kvr-vst.com/get/880.html
Hardware Compressors / Limiters
FMR RNC
TC Finalizer
Waves Ultramaximizer
Aphex Dominator

Live Recording Devices

DAT
Minidisc
Portable hard disc recorders. For example, the Creative Nomad Jukebox 3 has USB.
http://www.edirol.com/products/info/r4.html
Live Recording Resources
www.soundprofessionals.com
Tape-Op Forum (?)
Yahoo Nomad Jukebox 3 Mailing list - the "LivePA.org" of live concert Tapers.

Merchandise and Self-Promotion

Some advice from LivePA.org:
Learn how to screen print, and do T-Shirts and other merchandise yourself. MUCH
cheaper in the long run than going to a graphics company, although more pricy u
pfront.
Hold off on the merchandise until you know you can sell half of it. Come up wit
h designs that people are going to totally love wearing, even if they aren't sup
er into your music, give a few away to get folks wanting them, then sell a decen
t run.
Iron-on kits are cheap
As for CDs, DON'T go with the cheapest. Instead of getting them duped, get them
REPLICATED. This means using a glass master. Duped ones can skip, and if you'
re trying to get a gig, or selling them at a decent price, people deserve a CD t
hat doesn't skip. Remember, that is a representation of you. It's your product
, and if your product is half-ass and skips...you ain't gonna do anything but lo
se money, cuz nobody will book you, and everyone will ask for their money back w
hen buying CDs.
Stickers are some of the best promo you can possibly give out!
Other methods of self-promotion: Tabloids, flyers, business cards, word of mouth
, Internet, college radio, play free shows, etc.
http://www.stickerguy.com/
http://www.reuels.com/reuels/silk_screen_kits.html
www.cafepress.com
http://www.enemyink.com/
http://www.complimints.com/