Is this the future of Pro Audio forums

[David W]

I've notice at least for a while now that on Melband/ Ausband the Pro Audio Forum littered with posts from bands looking for studios or mix engineers.
Lately I've also noticed it happening on Gearsluts also for mastering and Mixing.

For me it's a huge turnoff and adds nothing to the Pro Audio discussion only to see the seagulls come flocking in with there poor attempt of subtlety.

Do others feel the same way?

One on GS at the moment mixers offering to do 1st song free, does this turn into an auction to fight for the lowest price? Who really wins this kind of thing. Seems many bands are onto this type of thing now.

[OzDrum]

sorry.. I'm on it.. we are actually re-designing the whole site which will also have a "home" recording section as well as a "pro" audio forum to try and split all of the amateur discussion from the pro section...
but there's only so much that I can do whilst trying to run the business (pony music)..
cheers
Geoff
MELBAND etc..

[David W]

[quote="OzDrum"]sorry.. I'm on it.. we are actually re-designing the whole site which will also have a "home" recording section as well as a "pro" audio forum to try and split all of the amateur discussion from the pro section...
but there's only so much that I can do whilst trying to run the business (pony music)..
cheers
Geoff
MELBAND etc..[/quote]

Geoff it dosn't seem to be totaly isolated to Melband (only using it as an example) I see you have your hands full with the General Forum at the moment anyway.
Gearslutz in copping a lot of it also. I am wondering if bands see this method as a way of getting cheep/ free mixing or Mastering done. It's becoming a trend.

[mfdu]

and here was me who, upon reading your post, thought "oh, i'll just nip over and have a look at what tasty music morsals might be going"

but yeah, given there's a marketplace page there, as well . . .

so what if i put a post up on the marketplace? hey - that's ok, isn't it?

chris.mfdu

[Aearth]

Well I pimp my gear for hire and people ring me about the stuff so I must be one of those nasties.

nIC

[norm]

Nic Your the Nastiest guy I know and I love you for it :) Your mate Norm

[heathen]

Well I pimp my gear for hire and people ring me about the stuff so I must be one of those nasties.

nIC

Man you need a pimp mobile for your gear drop offs.

[Adam Dempsey]

we are actually re-designing the whole site which will also have a "home" recording section as well as a "pro" audio forum to try and split all of the amateur discussion from the pro section.

Nice one. Glad to hear it, Geoff.

Adam
myspace

[David W]

[quote="Aearth"]Well I pimp my gear for hire and people ring me about the stuff so I must be one of those nasties.

nIC[/quote]

Not quite what I mean. Your a regular here much more then me.
I am just describing people /bands whose sole perpose to log into an audio forum is to get studios/engineers to fight it out to get the work. Seems to happen a lot to get a free master done as well over at GS or PSW, apparently people have been caught out trying to get a masters done for free at say 5 or 6 different mastering studios and there you have it (they think) Free Mastering for ther EP.

[davemc]

The asking for work etc does not worry me. I mean times are changing a lot of musos doing stuff at home now. Although there are always bands trying to get stuff done for free.
What does annoy me:
People who post info as if they actually used something not just reposted what they have just read elsewhere. So they pretend they know stuff although they never ever used it before. Yeah I know the internet is full of this on forums. Although it annoys me.
Fanboys annoys me. Reaper is good everything evil. You know what I mean.
The Coke vs Pepsi wars, who cares I drink Coffee he he

[David W]

[quote="davemc"] The asking for work etc does not worry me. I mean times are changing a lot of musos doing stuff at home now. Although there are always bands trying to get stuff done for free.
What does annoy me:
People who post info as if they actually used something not just reposted what they have just read elsewhere. So they pretend they know stuff although they never ever used it before. Yeah I know the internet is full of this on forums. Although it annoys me.
Fanboys annoys me. Reaper is good everything evil. You know what I mean.
The Coke vs Pepsi wars, who cares I drink Coffee he he [/quote]

What do you mean . I use a Fairchild every day. It says so in the picture on my computer screen. :-)))

[astrovic]

Yeah, one of the great things about forums is the opportunity they create for the unlearned to ask questions and get answers - sometimes from people who like the sound of their own voice, sometimes from people who have been in the game for decades (and also like the sound of their own voice). The trick is to know where to set your crapola filter so you know who is giving you valuable information and who is not.

I remember clearly my early days as a young muso in the early 90s. With little knowledge, no contacts and feeling completely out of my depth, there was very little way of getting useful advice without stumbling across it. And like many young fellas lacking self-confidence and intimidated by people who I thought (incorrectly) looked down on me for being a newb, knowling where when and how to pipe up and ask questions was something I found pretty difficult. Sometimes I still do, cos I still prefer to look a fool rather than open my mouth and remove all doubt.

But these days if you go onto any relevant forum, not only can you generally feel comfortable to ask a sensible question and get a sensible answer, you will generally find that your question has already been asked a hundred times before and fully answered along the way.

So as far as bands using forums like Melband as a way of finding soundies - that's a pretty great way of connecting the two groups together.

As far as the signal to noise ratio on a forum is concerned - well, I guess when you open your doors to all comers, either you're going to have to moderate pretty heavily to set the tone of the forum and keep it, or take a stand back approach and see what happens. Both approaches work fine for me, and each has its good and bad aspects. Which is why I enjoy participating in Melband and Turtlerock (and AGGH from time to time) for generally totally different reasons. (I must say, I do feel like a bit of a fraud on here, being your classic "studio in a bedroom guy", so in trying to keep my S2N ratio high here my post count is low! But I do appreciate the fact that I always feel welcome here and have learned a mountain, which is the main thing!)

[davemc]

What do you mean . I use a Fairchild every day. It says so in the picture on my computer screen. :-)))

he he Well at least your played with the plugin he he he he That is another thing all together.

[davemc]

I never have a problem with people asking questions. If the same one all the time. Well Stickys are cool. That is how we all learn by asking and trying.
I picked up stuf that I found useful from someone who just started audio and did something different from me.

I find turtlerock to be more civilized most of the time. We do not see the posts about how engineering skills or better gear is just a con job by engineers, be!@#$%^& is better then Neve. All you need is a plugin. :)

[David W]

Maybe I'm just feeling grumpy.
I used to buy all the audio mag's years ago but stopped when I realised the blatent bias towards there advertisers or potential advertisers.

I found a new nirvana on the WWW in Pro Audio forums but realised in the last year or so that there is strong bias there to now. So many gear pims putting on there cool cyber personalaties. But when you look a little close or read there past threads there is a common agenda. Oh well I now feel advice in the net can only be taken with a grain (Sorry cup) of salt.

A turning point for me was on PSW when Fletcher had Dan Lavry kicked off for questioning Apogee's claims about external clocking. Seems questioning manufactures claims isn't the done thing (just like the mags).

Sorry for the rant but I feel better now. :-)

Oh and I must add that this seems to be one of the last true Pro Audio forums that is Pimp free. Thanks Rick!!

[Chinagraf]

[quote="David W"]
A turning point for me was on PSW when Fletcher had Dan Lavry kicked off for questioning Apogee's claims about external clocking. Seems questioning manufactures claims isn't the done thing (just like the mags).

Sorry for the rant but I feel better now. :-)

Oh and I must add that this seems to be one of the last true Pro Audio forums that is Pimp free. Thanks Rick!![/quote]

No, it's questioning anything that Fletcher sells that will get you into trouble on his forum. If I hear him pimping Vintage Designs gear again I may puke on my screen. No matter what you ask about he seems to fit a plug in.
It is tricky because most forums are funded by sponsors who are inevitably pimps, but the sites can't run for free right? Big applause to Rick for keeping TR the way it is. And BTW I have nothing against people who sell gear, I love them and their gear.

[Chinagraf]

Oh, my P.S. - the asking for a mix for free is nothing new, it's just that the public are doing it more. Labels have been doing it for years. I was part of a selection of 12 (count em - 12) producers that were asked to 'spec' a mix (read - do it for nothing) for a major artist who had gold sales. Only 2 of the 12 got the gig and were paid. It was a MAJOR (read global) label. They had a lot more money than the teens asking around forums for some free work....

[jkhuri44]

Yeah...i was mixing this free album last week....and surprise, I was using a be!@#$%^& compressor on the mix buss.....it was frikkin fat! Seriously, forget all this AWA, Fairchild garbage....

:lol:



I second or third that, Turtlerock is a great place to learn :)

[davemc]

Even with some posters who you trust. With gear at the end of the day you need to try it yourself. Getting it to try in OZ is another thing....
Example: Drawmer 1969 was not my go to compressor over the Es8,1178,2254 although some freelancers loved it more. Everyones style and ears are different.

Fletcher does change his tune if he starts selling stuff as well. :)
I also always remember the Sebatron viral marketing stuff. Where one person logged on as different users to hype up gear. This happens a lot.

Best thing to do is make contacts and see if you can do gear nights or borrow something from someone to try if you cannot find a shop local.

[rick]

i have had dinner with fletcher several times
he always paid - and was very gratious

i dunno what to make of the online him
oh yeah i do - grumpy arse

[TimS]

I have to plead ignorance here - who is Fletcher??

[qiktune]

And like many young fellas lacking self-confidence and intimidated by people who I thought (incorrectly) looked down on me for being a newb, knowling where when and how to pipe up and ask questions was something I found pretty difficult. Sometimes I still do, cos I still prefer to look a fool rather than open my mouth and remove all doubt.

Some of us still feel this way....except for the "young" part.

[rick]

google him up the list will be looong and grumpy

[rick]

err add pro audio to the search or wait for our resident google hound to post
jkhuri44... bit slow today are we?

[davemc]

Personally I have had great chats and help from fletcher. Although if you sell something your always got vested interest.

[jkhuri44]

lol..

no need for googling this one rick :P
Fletcher is mercenary audio' (www.mercenary.com) primary father figure...

mix engineer, gear pimp..., and online Audio Messiah :P

well...to those that dont know how to think for themselves...etc.

[tunetown]

Fletcher also host his own forum at PSW.

Here's the link http://recforums.prosoundweb.com/index.php/f/28/0/

There is much knowledge that can be sourced from forums but you must know how to throw out the trash.

Cheers
Peter

[heathen]

The posts that piss me off are the ones looking for a constant freebie. I've met a few people from the forums to work with and they have been cool, as long as they have a bit of cash something can be worked out.

I just don't answer the freebie ones.

On the other note there's a whole world of gear I never would have known about if not for forums, so yeah they are great for networking, also great for talking (arguing) about new technologies.

Yep sorting through the BS is the hard part.

I love this flag.

[rick]

hey mark heathen is doing tricky stuff
i thought we were to dumb for that

[heathen]

hey mark heathen is doing tricky stuff
i thought we were to dumb for that

Nah, too much spare time on my hands. :)

Well until Jamil gets me workin for him tomorrow.