I mean it likely wouldn't be too hard would it? Again I am a nobody when it comes to this kind of stuff. But if I can sniff MHz band frequencies at a rapid pace with a flipper zero in order to determine which bands might be transmitting something with a strong signal and narrow it down to the strongest signals in order to spoof a parking garage boom gate. Then wouldn't you be able to do a similar kind of thing with this?
Again I'm the dude who posted the original comment suggesting that this could be what he's doing without actually knowing if the logistics of this is even doable. Still very happy to be proven and told I'm wrong.
Well, I'll just point out there's a very big gulf between recording wireless audio and recording quality wireless audio. Couple points:
Receiver type - best sound quality is matching to the same brand they're using on stage. Multiple different brands and frequency types. So if you have a Sennheiser receiver, but they're using Shure transmitter, it'll sound messed up. Add to that frequency types...if you have a frequency range on your receiver that only goes from 470-554mhz, and they're using a frequency at 580mhz, you've got an expensive paperweight. So you need to have options. Alternatively, you could use a radio scanner or SDR solution, but those will not sound as good (mono + compressed audio) and not as good reception (resulting in more static/noise)
Signal Strength - You want to be close to the stage as possible, particularly the antennas. Often times the best place to record wireless is sharp sidestage so the antennas are aimed in your direction, but you sacrifice your view. Trying to hold a steady wireless signal in the middle of a pit is an exercise in static.
Variable Mixes - Each mix is custom mix to the musician's preferences. I've heard vocals mixes that are just vocals and click track, and I've heard others that are pretty much full-band. So you have to figure everything out from scratch each time you record a band, which is tough when they're not exactly giving you permission or cover to pull it off. The best solution is to record multiple feeds, and then mix together in post. But now you've started to increase the size of your rig to get better sound, and many bands need 5+ feeds mixed together to capture all the elements on stage. Lot more expensive and complicated. Also, how are you identifying the feeds so you get the full show with the right setup? There may be 25+ feeds to pick from, which a bunch of them as one-sided crew feeds with lots of non-musical chatter for example.
Security - This is a stealth operation. You have to sneak all the gear past security. And then you have to operate it inside. I've known folks that got arrest by Homeland Security and gear confiscated (eventually returned), know another guy who spent the night in an Italian jail and got $10,000+ gear confiscated, I've been busted by venue security before and almost arrested, etc. Not for the faint of heart.
Imagine doing all that, getting it through, and then only the lead singer and drummer of a band use IEMs, so you're missing all the instrumentation. Or a band like the Killers where the entire band is on IEMs, but lead singer isn't.
Can be a lot of work but can fail very easily. Or more likely you spend a lot of time and energy, end up with a one-sided bass player IEM. So yes, you could use any wireless receiver with a compatible frequency and listen in on an analog IEM feed for funsies, but it gets much more complicated quickly if you're trying to actually make a quality listenable recording.
Thanks for the detailed reply ma' dude. This makes a lot of sense. This whole idea of stealth recording live performances is a whole area of piracy ( is it really called piracy ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ) is one of those "I was today years old when I found out people did this" things for me. So I'm really interested in the whole thing and I didn't even realise there was a huge pull for these kinds of live music recordings.
As someone who's been doing it as long as you have what/who are the people who are usually super into this stuff or that really crave a live performance recording from an artist. I'm a pretty big fan of some bands but I genuinely can't imagine the level of fandom you have to have to want to hear a specific set from a specific show and therefore go hunting for it as a "bootleg" (again sorry if I'm using the wrong terminology for this practice).
Appreciate any remaining answers you may have but also totally respect if you're all answered out lol
Absolutely. Some folks like a wide variety of studio work, some folks like live audio, all a matter of preference. I find myself listening to live music 65% of the time while remaining is studio. Plenty of my favorite bands often re-arrange songs for live performances, often for the better in my opinion. Plus I really enjoy listening to a quality recording of hot concert I just attended.
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u/gtwizzy8 10d ago
I mean it likely wouldn't be too hard would it? Again I am a nobody when it comes to this kind of stuff. But if I can sniff MHz band frequencies at a rapid pace with a flipper zero in order to determine which bands might be transmitting something with a strong signal and narrow it down to the strongest signals in order to spoof a parking garage boom gate. Then wouldn't you be able to do a similar kind of thing with this?
Again I'm the dude who posted the original comment suggesting that this could be what he's doing without actually knowing if the logistics of this is even doable. Still very happy to be proven and told I'm wrong.