Inside Pool commentary

R

Rooolfl

Banned
Does anybody enjoy the commentary from Inside Pool? I'm just interested and would like to know what you guys think. I saw the Hohmann - Moore

match and it was imo the worst commentary I ever heard. Plus it was kinda offensive to do a horrible Thorsten Hohmann / German accent that lasted 15

min. Many people on the stream also commented on this.

Nothing against Inside Pool I'm grateful for them putting up a great and free stream.
 
The thing with commentary is that no mater what, there are gonna be some that like your commentary and some that hate it. It's just the way it is.

I'll agree that commentary, in general, needs structure. In plain English, there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.

One of the biggest problems with "untrained" commentators is the overuse of "ahhh", "ummm" and "uhhh". It is distracting and takes away from the quality of the words. Another thing about technique; poor or unclear pronunciations and "plosives"-especially when using words that start with "P", "B" & "T". Having your mouth too close to the mic is bad too.

Lastly, I feel commentators should try to stick to commenting on the match at hand. Getting off course is a slippery slope; before you know it, you aren't even focused on the match anymore.


Eric
 
I did hear the unfortunate banter and while I agree it was extremely immature & distracting, I did notice that the rest of the weekend was without any such issues. It would appear that they corrected the problem.

The beauty of it is that you didn't pay for it. :D
 
We need to ease up on these guys a little. Not an easy job to do well, or anyone could do it. No matter who commentates, some will like you and some won't. People are attracted to different personality types.

Personally, I thought Inside pool was bad early as well. Too many "hey dudes" and "hey man's" for me, but they got better at the end. I always like Billy Incardona in the booth. Some pretty good pool commentating overall.

I thought Big Truck did an excellent job periodically introducing himself and his booth partner. Very professional. The thing I didn't like about both was the low soft voices. Understandable, since they are not in sound proof booths, but I really would like to hear a little more enthusiasm.

One thing I don't understand from all of the commentators is why they can't see if a ball will go past a hole or not. I can call just about every shot from the stream and be right. I would think from seasoned players that they could too. Maybe I just see things differently than others. I don't know.
 
My b**** with just about all streamers (seems women do a better job though) is that they don't change the score right after the game ball goes down. If your really paying attention to the match your talking about you know when it's time to change the score. I, like others go in and out of the stream, weather it's free or ppv. I don't like to have to beg for 5 min in the chat for a score when I come back in. Johnnyt
 
Johnnyt said:
My b**** with just about all streamers (seems women do a better job though) is that they don't change the score right after the game ball goes down. If your really paying attention to the match your talking about you know when it's time to change the score. I, like others go in and out of the stream, weather it's free or ppv. I don't like to have to beg for 5 min in the chat for a score when I come back in. Johnnyt
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I agree about getting irritated when the scores aren't updated. A simple thing to do & glaringly unprofessional when not done in a timely manner.
Glad to see I'm not the only one who this rubs wrong.

I can cut the commentators a bit of slack though, since they are still learning the art.

Other than that, the streaming from ultimate 10 ball was excellent.
The quality was top notch and makes me want to hook up a computer to my entertainment projector & watch on a large screen.
 
I thought Big Truck did an excellent job periodically introducing himself and his booth partner. Very professional.
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That's really the big difference. Big Truck just exudes professionalism and gives his broadcasts a leg up over others.
 
jason said:
Personally, I thought Inside pool was bad early as well. Too many "hey dudes" and "hey man's" for me, but they got better at the end. I always like Billy Incardona in the booth. Some pretty good pool commentating overall.
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I think with Alvin it depends on who is his co-commentator. I have seen commentary from him at the SBE and at the Ultimate 10 Ball, that was

decent. In the Hohmann - Moore match there was a complete **** with him in the booth (don't remember his name). The guy kept referring to

Hohmann as "the Iceman" and said that he heard rumors that Shane is using a Cuetec cue. During the SBE when he was alone, Alvin was using

"the Indian Robot" accent, as he calls it, while Mika was putting on a clinic. He got some laughs from dimwitted people in the chat, while me

and several other people in the chat were in agony. This form of commentary does not happen on any other stream whether its free or

ppv. Kudos to Bigtruck who did an excellent job commentating. Billy Incardona is the master of Pool commentary.
 
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Eric. said:
The thing with commentary is that no mater what, there are gonna be some that like your commentary and some that hate it. It's just the way it is.

I'll agree that commentary, in general, needs structure. In plain English, there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.

One of the biggest problems with "untrained" commentators is the overuse of "ahhh", "ummm" and "uhhh". It is distracting and takes away from the quality of the words. Another thing about technique; poor or unclear pronunciations and "plosives"-especially when using words that start with "P", "B" & "T". Having your mouth too close to the mic is bad too.

Lastly, I feel commentators should try to stick to commenting on the match at hand. Getting off course is a slippery slope; before you know it, you aren't even focused on the match anymore.


Eric
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Even a lot of professionals do the "ah" "um" thing. Just watch David Letterman, he's brutal.
 
The soft voice issue was is a combination of the background noise (other matches, breaking, conversational background noise, music being piped in over the venue speakers, etc) - plus, we are only about 3 feet away from the stream table, and you do not want to distract the players or have them overhear what you are saying when they are trying to concentrate on the shot that is before them.

That happened a lot yesterday during the Angel Paglia/Allison Fisher match. Allison likes to back up a few feet from the table to evaluate the layouts, and several times I had to either lower my voice, or just stop talking so not to distract her.

Commentary is not as easy as it looks - My style is to evaluate the layout, and describe the players options by watching where their eyes go. I try to describe what I am seeing/evaluating the same way I would if I was sweating a match with a student that wanted to learn from what they are watching. That's not always easy. I have a background in radio - where silence is a no-no - and I know I jabber on a bit more than most other commentators, but that's just how I am.

I would never do accents, or anything silly like the stuff I've read in this thread. I didn't hear any of that, so I really can't say anything about it. The way that I see it, the players have a lot invested in the event, and they could use the streamed matches to get additional sponsors - or show these matches to prospective sponsors. They have all worked very hard to get where they are at, and for that reason I believe that they deserve professionalism. If people tune in, and all they hear is a bunch of silly stuff, most will just dismiss everybody involved in pool as a bunch clowns.

I believe that the more professionally that we present our livestreams, the better chance we have to earn the respect of the mainstream media. JMO.

Personally, I would like to thank everybody that supported the streams by tuning in and watching the matches!
 
Blackjack said:
The soft voice issue was is a combination of the background noise ...
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I totally understand to keeping the noise level down. Personally, I like the european style with a lot of cheering, not as player, but as a spectator.

People like to complain about everything. Hell, we're obsessive compulsive perfectionist pool players aren't we? We want our cake and to eat it too!

This event has set a new standard we haven't seen since the IPT. Yes there are some great events the BCA, Derby, etc., but this just seemed to have a completeness to it. All the edges seemed smooth and well worked out.
 
The problem with stream commentary is that the people that think they are good, simply are not and the people that are good just are not on enough.
 
It's pretty simple.... Setup some instruction/exhibition gigs in the area and pay for Danny D's room, gas and food and I'd say he will be in his car and headed to wherever you are going to be streaming. Jim Weiss has plenty on his plate and everyone knows that Billy is always upto something.....

That way we have a "voice" for pool and one of the living legends gets some cash injected. Danny is actively teaching and traveling so I could see where this would be mutually beneficial for everyone.....
 
I Thought I Was The Only One

Good post. Hope it's read by the streamers and used to improve their product.

1.) 3 cameras ~ each with a different sound setting. When the active camera was switched the background noise went from barely audible to drowning out the commentary (and in some cases that wasn't such a bad thing).

2.) Incardona = excellent broadcasting. Corny at times, but knows what to say and what not to say, has a pleasant voice and is very knowledgeable for the task.

3.) BigTruck put on a first rate show. Visuals were very good. Commentary was very good. You can tell he's trying his butt off to deliver a serious product with value.

4.) Alvin doesn't belong in the booth. Too intellectually immature and is more concerned about his image and trying to be funny (often at the expense of players) rather than providing serious commentary. Resources are scarce, I'm sure. But a background job would be a better fit.

Ron F
 
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The thing about commentary, having done it, It is not as easy as it looks, and about the score, there is not always someone in the booth.
People have to use the restroom or find out scores whatever.

That being said, i had the MUTE button on the inside pool stream and when I did listen, it was to Truck.

This weekend was great for Ray, putting himself up head to head with another streamer shows how far he has come.


Sometimes just not saying a word is the best thing you can do, I am guilty of that myself.
The thing about steaming as compared to t.v. is most streaming viewers know pool , so you don't have to explain every little obvious shot.

BUT JUST REMEMBER IT IS NO WHERE CLOSE TO AS EASY AS IT SEEMS.
 
Ron F said:
Good post. Hope it's read by the streamers and used to improve their product.

1.) 3 cameras ~ each with a different sound setting. When the active camera was switched the background noise went from barely audible to drowning out the commentary (and in some cases that wasn't such a bad thing).

2.) Incardona = excellent broadcasting. Corny at times, but knows what to say and what not to say, has a pleasant voice and is very knowledgeable for the task.

3.) BigTruck put on a first rate show. Visuals were very good. Commentary was very good. You can tell he's trying his butt off to deliver a serious product with value.

4.) Alvin doesn't belong in the booth. Too intellectually immature and is more concerned about his image and trying to be funny (often at the expense of players) rather than providing serious commentary. Resources are scarce, I'm sure. But a background job would be a better fit.

Ron F
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Lets hope Inside Pool changes up. It's great to have companies supporting pool like they do. More professionalism would only benefit them.
 
I watched/listened all three days and I enjoyed the vast majority of the broadcasts. All in all I think it was a great show and IMO, it set a very high standard for future broadcasts. Congratulations to all involved and much thanks.

I think the video was very good, I do agree that additional camera angles would be nice, but I only remember a couple shots that were blocked due to someone in the way.

The commentators were fun to listen to. I always enjoy listening to competitors chat, eg. Gail on Friday. It adds a nice level of personalization to the broadcasts.

One suggestion to potentially help isolate the broadcasters from the competitors would be a drum shield. It's just a plexiglass shield you put between you and the 'audience', in this case the competitors. It would help reduce possibility of them overhearing your commentary.
 
Ron F said:
Good post. Hope it's read by the streamers and used to improve their product.

1.) 3 cameras ~ each with a different sound setting. When the active camera was switched the background noise went from barely audible to drowning out the commentary (and in some cases that wasn't such a bad thing).

2.) Incardona = excellent broadcasting. Corny at times, but knows what to say and what not to say, has a pleasant voice and is very knowledgeable for the task.

3.) BigTruck put on a first rate show. Visuals were very good. Commentary was very good. You can tell he's trying his butt off to deliver a serious product with value.

4.) Alvin doesn't belong in the booth. Too intellectually immature and is more concerned about his image and trying to be funny (often at the expense of players) rather than providing serious commentary. Resources are scarce, I'm sure. But a background job would be a better fit.

Ron F
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Well said.
 
I like watching the streams, especially this weekend where the quality was very good. I'll be honest though I always mute the commentary and block off the chat box so I can concentrate just on watching the pool.
 
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