Audio Expert Explains the Best Places to Stand at a Concert

Summer concert season is coming up, and you will be going to a lot of them, I’m sure! River Edge Park has a TON of good ones and the coolest outdoor music venue around! If sound quality is the top of your priority list at these shows, where is the best place to set up your seat?

According to one audio engineer that the website Lifehacker spoke with, it’s just off-center in the middle of the venue. The middle makes sense…but why off-center?

Standing equidistant from both speakers allows for more bass, which doesn’t always lend to picking up the best sound quality, he said. If you’re at a music festival like, say, Coachella, a good marker is anywhere in front of the soundboard where you might find the engineer at work—while this varies, usually, you’ll be at the center of the venue here.

From that explanation, I’d imagine the best places to sit at a RiverEdge show would be here!

The Lifehacker article also gave these other pointers for improving your live concert audio experience:

– Don’t stand too close to the stage – some distance will help the music blend.

– Stay away from structures like walls or balconies – these can reflect sound in weird, unexpected ways.

– Night shows offer better sound quality than daytime shows – without getting too sciencey, weather conditions at night lend themselves better to sound waves moving through the air.

It’s also pointed out in the Lifehacker article that sound quality at live shows might not be the most important thing to a lot of people (if it was, throw on some headphones and listen to the album), and the visual experience may be more important. In that case, do whatever you feel is best.

Just have fun!