Percussionist I'm recording will ONLY use wireless headphones because he needs to be able to dance around, HELP!

[audiosymmetry]

I'm recording a percussionist who insists on using his beats by dre wireless headphones when he plays to the track because he needs to be able to dance around in order to *feel* it and he can't do that with a wire hanging over his shoulder. It's non negotiable, I've tried everything, he won't budge.

The problem isn't the latency, I was able to use latency compensation to sync his track accordingly. The problem is that suddenly the latency amount will CHANGE after a random number of takes, thus skewing my formerly correct latency compensation. There's zero consistency in when it happens or how many milliseconds it decides to shift. I've tried other wireless headphones thinking maybe his pair is wonky, the issue remains. Would should I do??

input is phantom powered condenser going into focusrite scarlett.
output is bluetooth from macbook pro.

[miyaru]

Blutooth will invite latency, and can't be solved. If he wants to go wireless, maybe wireless In Ears with a transmitter/receiver pack will work.

If he wants his beats to be out of sync, he really should make it non negotiable though...... Dancing around will also introduce low freq rumble from his feet on the floor.

As a christmas gift to you: maybe get yourself a different percussionist LOL

[jestermgee]

As a christmas gift to you: maybe get yourself a different percussionist LOL

Ha. Yeah nothing worse than "that guy".

Tallent can believe all they like as to what makes them "feel the groove" or whatever methodology they like, but if they want to reap the rewards within YOUR world, they need to take note from the professional... that would be you! What you should do is be firm and confident that your skills and knowledge on the subject outweigh their beliefs and needs and state it bluntly that his choice makes everything harder and will take/cost much more to adapt to.

You need to make it clear that his headphones are far from suitable for that application. They are consumer headphones, not professional use hardware and all it will do is make your job harder and longer as it has done already. Bluetooth does not take latency seriously and the way the system works the latency can shift easily when the connection resets or changes which is not an issue when just listening to music or talking on a phone but as you discover, is a nightmare when trying to use it in sync with other gear.

Dedicated wireless systems use a direct communication that isn't reliant on BT technology or anything, it is a simple modulate/demodulate system without overhead and buffers like BT specifically for low latency and so you need to be firm and state he needs to use the correct equipment OR charge him a processing fee for wasting your time having to manually compensate for his vibe. You are recording for mixing I assume, not a "live recording" so he should be less focused on his own need to prance around and more focused on what HE can do to deliver the best material for the project. A real professional will do what it takes to get the recording done and take guidance from the ones that know better.

If you do not have a pro wireless monitoring system and cannot get one then you will need to use cabled headphones or just record his performance and then fiddle with the timing after the fact or just scrap him altogether and sequence it.

[jamface]

He's got a point though. Think about all the music that was ever recorded by any percussionist ever, prior to the availability of Beats by Dre. Completely devoid of feel...

[Mark Williams]

If he cant get the feel without prancing around in a studio, then he isnt worth recording. On stage yes, Studio no. Just upsets well placed mics causing a low rumble noise in recordings, and with those BT headphones, big no no, way too much latency, which again would ruin any 'feel'.

[yur2die4]

Serious musicians strive for serious results. They will learn how to determine whether or not compromises are justified or worthwhile.

If he’s not willing to be serious and understand the situation, just explain to him that the results will reflect that, he gets what he gives. If it sucks, it sucks.