Trey Anastasio Band 2-22-11 Terminal 5, New York, NY Sources Review

Wow, already 4 nights into Trey tour.  I think this band is playing really well and I suggest that everybody who is close to a show should try and catch at least one.  The acoustic sets aren't nearly as dreary as many imagined they might be, though the crowd noise tends to be problematic on the recordings, and as I've heard, in person as well.  Show a little respect for your fellow fans please and keep the conversation down during the music.

Source 1 (hereafter SP source)
Source: Sound Professional AT853 Cardiods -> SP P/S -> Edirol R-09HR
Transfer: Edirol R-09HR -> USB -> Cool Edit Pro -> Trader's Little Helper

16 bit source

Source 2 (hereafter AKG source)
Source: AKG se300b/ck93>Edirol UA-5 (bm2p+)>iRiver h120
Transfer: iRiver h120>usb>MacBook Pro>Audacity 1.3.7

16 bit source

Neither of these two sources is perfect, however it is clear from listening which one rises to the top.

The SP source sounds very distant on both the acoustic and electric portions of the show.  However, the crowd noise does not sound very distant, and as a result the acoustic portion is sullied mightily by conversations.  When Trey brings the rest of the band on to complement his acoustic, the bass sounds very thuddy, is buried in the mix, and overall just lacks tone particularly at the lowest frequencies.  The bass does not improve during the fully electric portions either.

The AKG source immediately sounds more in your face than the SP source.  The acoustic sounds nice and out front.  Though there is still crowd noise, it is not nearly as evident as on the SP source.  Unlike the previous night, this source suffers from a lack of bass rather than a surfeit (and I know they are two different rooms, two different AKG mics, two different tapers, etc.).  However, the bass does sound better than on the SP source.  While neither source is perfect, the AKG source is clearly the better of the two.

Happy listening!