The crowd were on their feet from start to finish, taking in all the great music for Sammy Hagar’s Best of All Worlds Tour, celebrating the music of Van Halen (VH). Material in the set included Hagar’s years in Van Halen (1986-95) and earlier VH favorites. With original VH bassist Michael Anthony (and his indelible backing vocals), the skillful hands of Joe Satriani on guitar and Jason Bonham on drums, the set also included some Hagar fan favorites from his Montrose, Chickenfoot and solo years. The tour was impeccably run by the multi-talented Alastair Watson, handling tour manager, production manager and stage manager duties.
The FOH View
Mixing at FOH for the Best of All Worlds tour was Michael “Ace” Baker, who has been on the DiGiCo platform for a little over a decade. “Something about their layout just works with the way my brain works. It feels very natural to me. I also feel like their boards can be as simple or as complex as you want them to be. If you want an easy Sunday drive down a country road, you can do that on their boards. If you want to plow through the weeds on a motorbike, you can do that too. I had primarily been on the SD10 but I switched over to the Quantum 338 console this January. I love it. Just like Sweet Caroline, it is “so good, so good.”
Baker is at 56 inputs, routing his Left/Right/Sub/Fill mixes over to systems engineer Norm Stallings, who would handle any venue, lawn, press, hearing assistance, etc. feeds. “I would also send a left / right mix to our lighting director for her IEM’s and I would send a left / right mix for recording purposes.” Baker has a Radial Workhorse 500-series rack filled with some special things he says he really enjoys using. “I use a Trident 80B and dbx 560a combination for Jason Bonham’s kick and the same combination on the snare. I used an API SV-12 on Michael Anthony’s bass. For Satch [Joe Satriani] I used the RND 542 on his guitar, but I only used the silk function. Satch’s new amps (3rd Power Dragon Amps) were really, really awesome, so I didn’t really need to do much there, but sprinkling in the Silk would just give me a few more options depending on the venue. For Sammy’s vocal, I used the RND 545, a Trident 80B, an EL8 Distressor and a dbx 520 de-esser. On my master, I used two of my favorites: ‘The Cooker’ by Maor Appelbaum Mastering and Hendy Amps which fed into a Smart Research C1LA compressor.”
Baker says anyone who has ever been in a band and done some studio recording knows that the “mixing part” of your project can be an intense process for band members.
“With an artist like Sammy Hagar, it’s even more important to study the recordings, because those recordings sold a sh*tload of records. The mixes have proven themselves in the eyes of the public. Even though I had been mixing some of these songs for Sammy for almost 15 years, I went back and spent hours and hours listening to the recordings and watching every bit of old Van Halen videos that I could find. Although there will always be room to add a little bit of a ‘you’ into a live show, I believe you must start by getting the live show to sound as close to the records as possible.”
Before mixing the “Best of All Worlds” tour this year, Baker had mixed both the “G3” tour [Joe Satriani, Eric Johnson, Steve Vai] and the “Satch/Vai” tour [Joe Satriani, Steve Vai]. “Satch and Steve Vai was an incredible time! The rig that I used for that tour was basically the same as this one. Last December when Clair was chosen to provide gear for the tour, I worked with Robert Drewes and Tim Omer from Clair to design a rig that I could use for all three tours that we would be doing with them — G3, Satch/Vai and “Best of All Worlds.” The rig we put together was perfect. I loved it so much that I am using the same rig again here in Europe right now with the band Dream Theater,” this time provided by Entec.
Summing up his touring perspective, Baker says, “In the words of the 80’s supergroup Journey, ‘Don’t Stop Believing.’ There is no secret to success, just work hard, be on time, work every show that you possibly can and keep smiling. What you pay attention to becomes your life.”
The Systems Approach
Systems engineer Norm Stallings says he and Ace have formed a fantastic working relationship and friendship from the get-go. “Ace and the entire crew are a pleasure to work with, and I hope to do it again with them. Discussions regarding goals and objectives are crucial in developing the relationship between the crew. I give everyone on our team massive thanks for both accomplishing this and being proactive in establishing this communication.”
Eighth Day Sound is the tour audio provider with a d&b audiotechnik GSL/KSL rig. “The array prediction and processing deliver a very smooth and even coverage across the venues. We’re both very happy with the results. Ace has been a dream to work with — a great engineer and great personality.” Stallings will time and tune the P.A. with a tablet before handing it over to Ace. “I monitor the system during our line check and sound check, walking the venue during both these times and at the beginning of the show to make sure coverage remains accurate and tuning is maintained for our goal with a live audience.”
The Monitor Side
In terms of console choices for the tour, Ace and monitor engineer Ruben Aguirre III selected Quantum 338’s. Aguirre says making the jump from the DiGiCo SD10 to the Q 338 was a no-brainer. “I like to stay within the box for the most part, for FX and whatnot, so the things like the Spice Rack and Mustard Processing were a big selling point to me. And of course, being on monitors, the Nodal processing is a huge help for me in tailoring each person’s mix to exactly what they need for a comfortable show.”
Aguirre uses the parametrics and graphic EQs on all his mixes, mostly for the wedges and slightly in the IEMs as it helps add some color and clarity to an in-ear mix, and also uses the Naga 6 in the Spice Rack. “I’m using it to get a little more gain on the bottom-end and a quick attack on the compression for a nice punchy low-end while not muddying up the mix. I also like using the Mustard channel compressors on the auxes and tend to use the Optical Compressor for the IEM mixes. It allows the transients to come through, giving me a cleaner and tighter mix. But one of my favorite features on this console is the Nodal Processing. Being able to tailor and individual channel’s EQ and dynamics in multiple different ways without eating up unnecessary channels is great. It definitely makes it easier with artists who are very particular about what they want or need to hear.”
Aguirre just recently started using outboard gear, specifically two pieces. “The Rupert Neve Designs 5045 (Primary Source Enhancer) cleans up the noise on the front end, giving me a cleaner vocal with less stage noise bleedover. And I really enjoy how smooth the EL8’s sound, with just a little compression with an overall boost in the volume. It really helps Sammy’s vocal fill out and be heard everywhere easily.”
Hagar’s vocal mic choice is a Telefunken M80-WH wireless capsule, having used them for a while. “The first time I heard them I was sold,” says Aguirre. “These mics have proven time and time again that they are nothing short of phenomenal. On top of being durable as hell, this mic’s sound pairs with Sammy’s voice so perfectly, giving his voice a nice amount of warmth and attack. It is quickly becoming a first choice for me for any vocalist.”
Hagar’s guitar amp has the pretty standard combo of the Shure KSM32 and SM57 mics placed just off-center of the dust cap where they get a good amount of bite and body for his tone. “For Joe Satriani, we took the same approach as we did with the G3 Tour and Satch/Vai Tour run we did earlier this year. A Shure KSM313 ribbon on the top speaker and a SM57 on the bottom directly over the dust cap. We used two pairs on the stereo wet cabinets and a pair on the dry cab in the middle. These mics captured Joe’s tone in a massive way. And his new guitar cabs had two different speakers in the top (Celestion G12T-75) and bottom (Tone Speak Manchester 1290), which gave us an even more colorful sound especially in the wet / dry / wet setup he had, giving us that classic Eddie [Van Halen] tone! Michael Anthony’s bass comes from a Radial DI before the bass amp and a direct out from the bass amp head. His tone is so big that all you need is two channels. This gave us that definition and power that we wanted.”
Jason Bonham’s custom DW drum kit is so impressive, says Aguirre. “It has more shallow rack toms than he normally has to accommodate for his 26” kick. This kit was definitely made for Jason! Sadly, not all three kicks were in play. It was just the center kick, which had a Beta 91A for the in and DPA 4055 for the out. The snare, Octabons and gong had Shure SM57s, with Earthworks DM-20s on the toms and floor toms. I love these mics because I rarely have to put any EQ on them. They always give a nice, deep, natural clean tone for the drums. Overheads and hi-hat were Earthworks SR-25s. We also had some drum pads that triggered samples like the 808 sound he’d play on ‘Good Enough’ and the drum loop on ‘Mas Tequila.’ There were some triggers on the Octo’s and snare that had a little more tone like the ‘5150’ drus sounds. Blending all of that together made those drums sing.”
For the most part, Aguirre says the bass, keys and vocals were the same for both wedges and IEMs. Aguirre generally gave the drums a little boost at about 4kHz on the toms and kick for the IEMs, so they could cut through the mix a little more. “Jason also had a pair of stereo wedges and drum subs behind him. He really enjoyed feeling his drums with every hit in the wedges so a little extra Nodal love in the EQ, dynamics and some creative panning applied for his wedge mix provided that massive, beefy Bonham sound without it feeding back. For guitar, I was using mostly the dry channel in the sidefills to help fill out the stage. For the IEMs, all six guitar mics were grouped and spread out, giving that wide, spacious, gigantic Van Halen guitar sound.”
Aguirre was truly impressed by the entire experience. ‘This show was truly a five-piece rock band. No backing tracks whatsoever. Watching these guys get up and do what they do at the level they did it every show was absolutely amazing. I am truly grateful to have been a part of this run and work alongside such talented guys who are also awesome individuals! Cheers guys, Stage Left!”
Sammy Hagar Best of All Worlds Tour 2024
AUDIO CREW
- Sound Company: Eighth Day Sound
- FOH Engineer: Michael “Ace” Baker
- Systems Engineer: Norm Stallings
- Monitor Engineer: Ruben Aguirre III
- Monitor Tech: Jake Caples
- P.A. Tech: Liam Martley
- Backline Techs: Joe Satriani guitars, John “Skully” McIntosh; Sammy Hagar guitars and Rai Thistlethwayte keys, Michael Arms; Michael Anthony bass, Kevin “Dugie” Dugan; Jason Bonham drum tech, Chris “Swiss” Huwiler
- Tour, Production & Stage Manager: Alastair Watson
P.A. GEAR
- Main Hangs: (14) d&b audiotechnik GSL8 & (2) d&b GSL12 (per side)
- Side Hangs: (8) d&b KSL8 (per side)
- Ground Subs: (12) d&b SL across front of stage
- Front Fills: (6) d&b Y10
FOH GEAR
- FOH Console: DiGiCo Quantum 338
- Outboard Effects: Radial Workhorse, (3) Trident 80B, (2) dbx 560, C1LA, Hendy Amps “The Cooker,” API SV12 compressor, dbx 520 compressor, Rupert Neve Designs 5045 Primary Source Enhancer, RND 542 Tape Emulator, (2) Bricasti Designs Model 7 reverbs, (3) Empirical Labs EL8 Distressors
MON GEAR
- Monitor Console: DiGiCo Quantum 338
- Outboard Effects: Rupert Neve Designs 5045 Primary Source Enhancer, Empirical Labs EL8 Distressors
- Vocal Mics: Telefunken M80-WH capsule (red), Shure SM58 (guest vocals)
- Wireless Mics: Shure Axient AD4Q
- IEMs: Jerry Harvey JH16 (Jason Bonham); FIR Audio Xe6 (Joe Satriani)
- IEM Hardware: Shure PSM1000s
