MR

How do people record bootlegs? I take it they are digital recordings? What is used? How in the world do they get such good sound quality? Do they just take them in their pockets?

Inquiring mind wants to know.

I'm curious myself...

The only time I've ever done one, I did a Styx show at the Madera, CA fair in '99. I can honestly say I'm the only guy in the world that has it because it's so bad you can barely hear them.

It was outdoors and pouring rain. You can hear the raindrops louder than the band. I had an old (and I do mean OLD) tape recorder, cassette, in a backpack I was carrying.

I imagine most people are just packing a handheld tape recorder with 'em.

Yes if someone knows please tell us

I have no idea about it, but I imagine the people who perform this "service" would not want their secrets revealed.

knox wrote:How do people record bootlegs? I take it they are digital recordings? What is used? How in the world do they get such good sound quality? Do they just take them in their pockets?

Inquiring mind wants to know.

In the good old days it was a tape recorder. Then some people went on to a portable DAT (Digital Audio Tape) recorder. Some people still swear by those, like some people still prefer vinyl. Some people use Minidisc recorders but lately, more and more hardware based digital recorders are popping up. Like an MP3 player but with the ability to record. Add then some small, expensive, and good microphones and you're done. Everything is small enough to be hidden on your body and in some countries and venues, the security is non-existant or they are only looking for bottles and dangerous stuff like that.

In 1998, I took these pictures of a couple of guys recording a Bob Dylan show at a Danish festival:

http://www.blackpage.se/mr/

It's easier to bootleg at festivals but that first guy has a wrist band that gives him backstage access, wich of course means no security going through your bags. Makes things easier.

These days you even quite often see people with video cameras at shows.

HiMD is out now & very popular. CD quality, size of a pack of cigarettes.

Thanks for the information. I haven't attended a concert since the mid 80's, so I was just curious.

knox wrote:Thanks for the information. I haven't attended a concert since the mid 80's, so I was just curious.

Wait!!!! You haven't attended a concert in about 20 years??????

I'm curious why you haven't been to one lately (no offense).

I had a couple friends just bring in mini-recorders. If it's a new song I usually just call a friend with my cell phone and they copy it to mp3 & dvd. Of course the sound quality isn't the greatest but friends that couldn't attend a concert can hear a new song for the first time.

The FTLOSM boot that I saw appeared to be taped from somebody's CamCorder - in the Balcony section.

It goes WAY BEYOND a "ShakyCam" video:

You need to take freaking DRAMAMINE before you view it!!

You see Steve, then the band, then the bank of lights, and then SWOOSH! - you see Persian Rugs and Chandeliers! LOL

Hmmm.....ya think a Security Guard was, um, WALKING BY at that very moment??

Soundboards are the best, but tougher to come by.
Audience recorded boots are different levels. Some people refine it to a damn good recording and put a lot of work into making good audience boot records, as ArrivalRules can attest...not as easy as it sounds at all.

It's not as tough as you might think. Simply get yourself near the P.A. and away from loud drunks!

Security is hell at concerts today, though... I'm surprised people can get in the venue with a recorder.

A Fire Inside wrote:Security is hell at concerts today, though... I'm surprised people can get in the venue with a recorder.

God bless nanotechnology.

A Fire Inside wrote:Security is hell at concerts today, though... I'm surprised people can get in the venue with a recorder.

I've been to 2 concerts this year (Journey/Def Lep and Sammy Hagar) the Journey concert I just walked in, the Sammy show they just felt to see if you have anything that's not allowed to be brought into the event on you. You can sneak things in.

SuiteMadameBlue wrote:Wait!!!! You haven't attended a concert in about 20 years??????

I'm curious why you haven't been to one lately (no offense).

I had a couple friends just bring in mini-recorders. If it's a new song I usually just call a friend with my cell phone and they copy it to mp3 & dvd. Of course the sound quality isn't the greatest but friends that couldn't attend a concert can hear a new song for the first time.

Oh, no offense taken. With a 9 and 11 year old in the house, it is hard to drop $50 or so for a concert ticket when I have other hobbies like reptiles and my new Mx5 Miata. I was into motorcycling for about 10 years, and that took a lot of my money (bike payment, insurance, aftermarket goodies, gear, road trips, etc...) Doesn't leave a lot of moola left over for concerts.

In addition, until this latest version of Journey surfaced last week, there were no concerts I cared about spending money or time on.


But the biggest reason of all? I am lazy and don't like crowds . Plus, it is hard for an old fart like me to stay out past 11:00 pm.

If you have the equipment, it's really not that hard.

You need a pair of decent mics...Neumann 140's or Scheops mk41's are small, high-quality mics that are easy to conceal. Msot of the tapers I've known just mount the mics in a hat or something similar...most serious tapers still record to DAT (minidisc uses a compression scheme that isn't as harsh or damaging as mp3, but uses similar algorhythms, so most stay away from it). Really, it's not as hard as it seems, you aim the mics at each PA stack and hopefully are in a section without too many talkers, you check the levels on your preamp to make sure you're not overloading, and you hit record. If you're at just the right distance from the PA, you should get a fairly crisp recording without too much of the boomy sound that dominates big shows. There's some amazing U2 bootlegs taped from the audience that I actually prefer to the soundboards/broadcasts I have...if someone gets a clear recording, you really feel like you're there when you listen to it.

Really, with a decent mic and decent preamp, it's not hard. But a good audience recording is as much about the location of the taper as anything else, I think that's overlooked sometimes.