The WCW Ring
 

What did they do to get that crisp sound on a bump? I'm talking about the characteristic "cra-ack-ack" sound that was so unique and different to the WWF/E's standard "thump". Watch any WCW match from the 90s, and you'll hear it.

Did they mic the ring differently? Was the material used different?

Ok, go!

The WWF Ring during that time was known to be very brutal to land on compared to WCW's. They've since changed it. WCW's ring rope had more bounce as well. I remember Jericho saying he had a harder time doing a Lionsault in the WWF when he first debuted.

It was a different ring overall, and as Gertner alluded to, it had more give.

It was also smaller (18' by 18' versus 20' by 20' in WWE)..... that might also have something to do with it....

Main difference in the ropes was that WCW (and TNA, and most other feds) use cables while WWE uses actual ropes and wraps them in colored tape.

They very well could have been doing something different with the mics and audio mix as well. Only the audio people working those events could tell you.

I believe it is a combination of all of the above mentioned things.

They may have also used aluminum or chains attached under the structure as some promotions used to. The effect, for an indy show on it's own - or for a TV show using sound as LJ mentioned above - would be that you'd hear the extra rattling noise as the guys bump.

That's strange because I always remember hearing more noise with the WWF ring than WCW. That might have just been the way they did audio, but to me it always sounded like the WWF ring was giving more than WCW's....guess I'm wrong about that. I know the WCW ropes were harder and tighter since they used the cables. The WWF ropes are so stretchy that sometimes they even do spots where people get caught in them. Bret Hart at Summerslam '95 comes to mind.

yeah WCW used Elevator Cables IIRC

I thought that back in the day the wwf used big bungee chords for ropes.

Seth82, yeah you are right.

Its' cable, surrounded by garden hose or specially made tubing - depending on the ring.

IMO, better and easier / safer to work with than the out dated WWE ring ropes.

I think that's the only piece of tradition Vince has carried into the modern era.

Aren't the WWE ring ropes preferred by wrestlers as opposed to the WCW cables that were used? I think it was Rey Mysterio that said that the WWE ropes are easier/more comfortable to run into.

Not really, I have read a bunch of people complain as the ropes "Tear you up" when you hit them alot. Where as th cables are a bit easier to hit. The main complains I have read with the Cables is they have little give, case in point, ripping off Foleys Ear.

I think the smaller guys prefer springboarding off WCWs ropes.

So I think they both have pros and cons.

WWE used to cut up the ropes from events and sell pieces to fans. Like I bought this Plaque with a piece of the canvas and rope from WM12 when I was a kid.

So that brings me back to the original question. Was the ring miked differently?

How do you really mic up a ring? Do you use standard SM-57 / SM-58 type microphones? Do you add more reverb or tune the sound on mixers to treat it? Is the ring actually miked up at all? At live events, can fans hear the thump / cr-ack-ack on contact? Has anyone here actually setup a ring, or have working knowledge of a professional ring setup?

You can absolutely hear the ring live. Everything from big spots to running. The WCW crack isn't a reverb, it's just how it's rigged to sound (whether on purpose or naturally) I think.