Anyone know a good sound/noise limiter engineer?

[BrightLights]

I was in a venue last weekend that had a very sensitive noise limiter that threatened to ruin the night. I don't want to go into to much detail here but suffice it to say I do have plenty of experience working with noise limiters, and this one was particularly bad.

To cut a long story short I'm 100% confident that the music I was playing, speech on the mic, etc. was not the cause of the limiter triggering. It was the noise of the guests cheering, shouting, etc. - generally enjoying themselves. So it repeatedly cut the power to my equipment and there was very little I could do about it. Asking the guests to keep quiet had very little effect.

I have emailed the venue's management to explain the issue and to offer a couple of suggestions that might improve the situation. To their credit they are taking my email seriously and have asked if I know of a good sound engineer who could take a look at the noise limiter to see if needs to be recalibrated, if moving its microphone might help, or to offer any other suggestions.

Can anyone recommend someone who might be willing and able to do this?

[Corabar Steve]

Wasn't in a converted barn was it?

[BrightLights]

PM sent

[DJ Sammy]

This proably won't help you, but I work at a venue that has the exact same problem. The venue managers solution, to put some duct tape over the sound limiter microphone and do regular checks with a decibel meter. Probably not strictly legal but it's worked a treat.

[CRAZY K]

I was in a venue last weekend that had a very sensitive noise limiter that threatened to ruin the night. I don't want to go into to much detail here but suffice it to say I do have plenty of experience working with noise limiters, and this one was particularly bad.

To cut a long story short I'm 100% confident that the music I was playing, speech on the mic, etc. was not the cause of the limiter triggering. It was the noise of the guests cheering, shouting, etc. - generally enjoying themselves. So it repeatedly cut the power to my equipment and there was very little I could do about it. Asking the guests to keep quiet had very little effect.

I have emailed the venue's management to explain the issue and to offer a couple of suggestions that might improve the situation. To their credit they are taking my email seriously and have asked if I know of a good sound engineer who could take a look at the noise limiter to see if needs to be recalibrated, if moving its microphone might help, or to offer any other suggestions.

Can anyone recommend someone who might be willing and able to do this?

I hate to be negative or defeatist---however I will be as its a sound limiter.

Really you ought to get the original fitters of this much hated device back to sort it out with a complaint that its not acceptable.

Thats where the blame lies and getting different people in without asking the original fitters is a Titanic mistake unless they do not exist etc.

The big problem is Licensing of course.

If its been fitted to comply with a particular requirement and the licence granted on certain terms it only needs one complaint followed by an investigation and the premises licence could presumably be taken away or not renewed.

Knowing the attitude of people living near such premises can be extremely devious ( one down the road here was making complaints on a night when music was not even being played in a nearby Restaurant) I would be very careful what you suggest if anything.

I am thinking of you personally here believe me--the staff need to refer this back for their own safety( job safety) unless its a privately owned place and the owner is involved.

I think you might be wasting your time here--im afraid these pieces of are not intelligent.

Last week I set one off every time I used the mike loudly--however I had the disco music blasting at very high levels no problem--IMHO you wont be able to factor out the clapping UNLESS you go down the duck tape route--or borrow my sledgehammer

I well remember the Barn Dance function ruined beyond belief in a Village Hall where the audience were completely off with my music being interrupted so just sang the final Scottish tunes acoustically--magical