We caught country singer-songwriter Miranda Lambert on her Wildcard Tour, in support of her seventh studio album of the same name. Lambert is a two-time Grammy winner, nine-time Academy of Country Music Awards winner and two-awards from the Country Music Association.
The first North American leg of the Wildcard tour began on Jan. 16 and wrapped up March 2 at Denver’s Pepsi Center. A second leg — of northern U.S. and Canadian dates — was slated to kick off on April 23, but at press time, there was no word on if/when the tour would pick up. We’re keeping our fingers crossed on that.
The FOH Position
FOH engineer Todd Wines selected the Yamaha Rivage PM10 after using it in a few festival situations where he had to spin-to-win. “Immediately, the benefits of the console’s summing and the pre’s (along with its Neve transformer and SILK emulation) were apparent in those pressing situations, where the console’s sonic performance and ease of use shined. Yamaha’s reputation for reliability and support also played a part. Miranda’s band consists of her plus eight others — and zero tracks. We regularly accommodate guests who join her on stage. There are just over 70 inputs; the PM10’s 144-input capacity provides plenty of space for effects returns and utility channels. An 80-channel analog splitter sits between two independent RPio 622 I/O racks, allowing Josh (Hughes, monitor mixer) and I to have separate control of pre’s and SILK.”
Wines typically submixes inputs based on the player, except for BG vox and artist/guest instruments. “The PM10 has plenty of definable mixes/buses and matrices fed by any input or bus, all of which can be returned to inputs and then routed to the two masters — all configurable for stereo or surround + stereo downmix. I am particularly fond of routing primary and spare RF vocal mic input channels to a bus that effectively serves as the artist’s channel: independent input channels allow for gain and response corrections. The bus hosts dynamics and the bus EQ has double the filters of the input EQ, so color and feedback issues can typically be addressed in one location.”
The routing fun continues. “Effects sends are routed from the bus via matrices,” Wines explains. “When a BGV has a feature in the performance, by using mute groups, I can route that vocal to the artist’s effects chain to bring the source forward in the space. I have yet to find a routing approach that the console limits. With custom fader layouts, DCAs that spill and can control any input or output, and ample user-defined keys, I can build an ergonomic and creative layout that suits my workflow while eliminating unnecessary paging through layers.”
Wines routes his stereo mix to several places via analog and AES3. A stereo mix goes to two Lake LM44 front-end processors. From there, distribution to the P.A. and other subsystems is subsequently controlled by Lake processing in Lab.gruppen PLM and LM26 units. “I send a 2-mix and a squawk mix separately to video, and I build a mix for our lighting director, which consists of my 2-mix, click, squawk and radio/show-call. There are plenty of ports and expansion options for Rivage. Yamaha has a plethora of MY-format conversion and control cards that can be incorporated at many places throughout the system. The HY (high-capacity) slots on the DSP-R10 let me multi-track and virtual sound check via Dante (HY144-D-SRC) and use Universal Audio’s UAD-2 Live Rack via MADI (HY128-MD). I love the sound and operation of Rivage and the support team is truly incredible.”
Effects. Lots of Effects
Wines adds that the suite of plug-ins Yamaha has developed, along with the available internal DSP, ups the power and quality of the platform, especially for those who love Neve EQ and compression flavors. “My go-to vocal chain is 5045 (PSE) > 5043 (comp) > DynamicEQ. Yamaha’s 4-band DynamicEQ is the closest emulation of BSS 901 for those who know and love that analog piece. There are other great emulations that would’ve been found in most FOH engineer’s hardware kit: for me, it’s the Eventide H3000, that I use for vocals and Rev X (SPX) verbs, which I like for drums. It is worth noting the delay compensation on the desk works well for everything kept inside.”
During rehearsals, Wines typically multi-tracks the run-throughs and stays late with virtual sound check auditioning and mix building. “Late one night, I finally started inserting the UAD-2 plug-ins. I did not expect it to be so changing and impactful. I A-B’ed in disbelief. I was able to add Sonnox Dynamic EQ — hands down, it’s my favorite dynamic EQ plug-in, due to its transparency, response, intuitive GUI and filters that can simultaneously be static and dynamic. I’ve wound up using Distressor for kick and snares. Sonnox Inflator is also on ‘kick out.’ SPL Transient Designers are on toms and ‘kick in.’ API 2500 is used for parallel bus compression of the drums (a dry group of the drums is also sent through the unit for delay compensation). For bass, there is a Distressor followed by Sonnox Dynamic EQ. Fatso, Jr. is used for electric guitars. Miranda’s vocal chain consists of 5045 (on PM10) > Elysia MPressor > Sonnox Dynamic EQ. My master bus chain consists of BX Refinement > Sonnox Inflator > Elysia Alpha Master. All other channel and bus processing is handled with the suite available in the PM10.”
Wines currently carries two Bricasti M7’s for Miranda’s vocal and BGVs, respectively. “They’re simply the best reverb processors I have used. I’ve yet to hear a plug-in or other hardware that compares.” All other signal processing prior to the matrix feeding the P.A. is handled by PM10 or UAD-2 Live Rack. There are a couple of Mac Mini computers in a Sonnet Rack Mac Mini. One handles multi-track duties and is interfaced with the Yamaha AIC128-D Dante Accelerator in a Magma chassis. The other handles MIDI routing from the console through Figure 53 QLab, which distributes it to devices throughout the package. This machine also runs Smaart 8 and Live Rack control software.
“I’ve been using Metric Halo interfaces for years on the road for all sorts of duties outside of the console,” Wines says. “Currently there is a ULN-8 3D interface for measurement mics and references for Smaart and test and playback sources. I also use it to mix the feed to my nearfills — I send my squawk mix (with no delay) and my delayed monitor feed; then return a stereo feed to two VUE i8-a (active near-field speakers).”
Wines offers some advice for becoming a successful FOH engineer. “As important as refining mixing techniques is, developing critical listening through ear training is crucial. It’s also necessary to have a good working understanding of deploying P.A.s and optimizing them for mixes. Live mixes should be dynamic. I learn the music and reinforce the performance by understanding the genre; making the vocal intelligible; selectively featuring nuance; and creating space. Ultimately, my goal is for the artist to be well represented and for the audience to be gratified. There is always something more to learn or explore. Having the privilege of sharing what I’ve learned with someone else on a similar path rewards me too — teaching seminars this past year has been grounds for proving that all the more.”
Monitorworld
Monitor engineer Josh Hughes stepped into that role last year from the monitor/stage tech position. The band switched to the Yamaha PM10 console a few years ago and continued with the same console. “I have become a big fan of the PM10 over the past few years, and it’s become my go-to console,” says Hughes. “The sound quality of the desk is excellent, and the ease of use lets me dial up mixes quickly and efficiently. I find I’m using less EQ and overall processing to get the sound I am looking for. The width of the stereo field allows me to pan inputs so everything they need is heard, but not cluttered. I am also using SILK on almost all inputs. It adds an extra dimension that really brings the mixes to life. We are currently around 72 inputs. I have 20 channels of PSM1000 IEM mixes and one hardwire IEM mix for our drummer using an Albatros PH9B headphone amp.”
Hughes is a fan of plug-ins, but tends to use them sparingly. “When adding a plug-in, I’ll ask myself if it is actually necessary, or am I adding it because I can. And with the latter, most times I end up not using a plug-in. With the PM10, I don’t need to use as many to get my desired result. I’ve been leaning heavily on the onboard Dynamic EQ4 plug-in. It allows shaping the sound without hacking the input EQ. I use the Rupert Neve Designs Portico 5045 on vocals to help with some of the stage bleed into the mics. There are a few other EQ plug-ins here and there, but mostly I’m using onboard desk processing. I did take out a UAD-2 Live Rack on this run to try out. I used a SSL Channel on Miranda’s vocal, so I could have it available quickly at all time, along with SPL Transient Designers on the drums and a few reverbs to check out.”
The only outboard piece Hughes uses is a Rupert Neve Designs Portico II Master Bus Processor. “It’s inserted across Miranda’s IEM mix and used primary for the SILK and the SFE (Stereo Field Editor) section. I adjust the SILK based on how the room is interacting each day. The SFE allows me to use the width and depth to play with the stereo field to get a great sounding mix and create a nice pocket to fit the vocal into.”
Miranda’s vocal mic is the SE Electronics sE V7-MC1 dynamic supercardioid capsule on Shure Axient Digital System wireless. Hughes says they were using another capsule before, and they were happy with it, but during tour rehearsals Todd asked about trying new capsules to see what we thought. “The sE V7 was one that we wanted to try after hearing about others having success with it. After discussing with Miranda, we ran a few songs. After the first song, she really liked it. That made the decision fairly easy.” Everyone is on Jerry Harvey Audio Roxannes for IEM’s, and has been for a few years now. Hughes notes that on top of being a great product, their customer service is first-rate.
Hughes adds that they did a drum mic shootout during rehearsals and selected the following: Shure Beta 91A inside the kick, sE vKick outside, sE v7X on snare top, SM57 on snare bottom, sE8 on X-stick (snare rim), DPA 2011c on snare #2, sE8 on hi-hat, DPA 4099s on toms, SM57 on ride and sE 4400s for overheads.
“Communication is key on tour,” Hughes continues. “Being able to communicate effectively with the band and understand what they need is essential to your success. Having trusted people that you can rely on for advice and help is essential. I have a group of people that I trust and can reach out to for anything. This is a big component to my success. Keeping up to date on current technologies is vital and will aid in your ability to deal with whatever is thrown your way.”
The Systems Approach
Systems tech Pat O’Neill has been with Clair Global for the past 18 years, and Miranda Lambert has been a Clair client since 2007. “At first, like many young acts, they rented board groups and stage patching. In 2010, the tour added P.A. for her first headline tour. I was fortunate to work that and several of the tours since and have enjoyed every one of them.”
The P.A. system consists of 16-deep Clair Cohesion CO12 for the main hangs and 16-deep Clair Cohesion CO10 for the side hangs. A pair of Cohesion CP-6 handles front fills. The subs are Clair CP-218, with three stacks of two on the ground that are used very lightly, mostly to fill in the pit area. The majority of the low sub information comes from six CP218 end-fire arrays flown about 45 feet above the downstage center. All amps are Lab.gruppen, with Lake control driving the P.A.
“With this system, the tuning process is quick and painless,” O’Neill explains. “We delay the P.A. and ground subs using the flown end-fire subs as our zero point. Once that’s done, we shade the lower boxes of the main and side hangs for a smoother transition from the front to back of the arena, and then I take a walk around the entire venue with the tablet. I don’t believe in doing much EQ, and with this system, ‘less is more’ is the rule — not the exception. Todd then adds his curve to the system, and we are on the way to sound check.”
Something New
“On this latest run,” notes O’Neill, “we started using XTA’s MX36 digital console switching system. It’s a slick way to route three consoles directly to the P.A. — individually or in tandem — via four analog outputs. We’ve found the MX36 very reliable, flexible and easy to use. Working with Todd and Josh on this tour is nothing short of a joy — they are great mixers, hard workers and good people. It’s a tour that you want to be a part of, the people, the gear, and of course Miranda is a class act.”
Miranda Lambert Wildcard Tour
Crew
- Sound Co: Clair Global
- FOH Engineer: Todd Wines
- Monitor Engineer: Josh Hughes
- Systems Tech: Pat O’Neill
- Monitor Tech: Brent Edgerton
- P.A. Techs: Matthew Gallagher, Brady Maness
P.A. GEAR
- Main Hang: (32) Clair Cohesion CO12, 16/side
- Side Hangs: (32) Clair Cohesion CO10, 16/side
- Front Fills: (2) Clair Cohesion CP-6
- Subwoofers: (12) Clair CP-218, six flown, six ground
- Amplifiers: Lab.gruppen
FOH GEAR
- Console: Yamaha Rivage PM10, (2) RPio 622 stageboxes
- Outboard Gear: (2) Bricasti M7 reverbs, UAD-2 Live Rack
- Drive: (2) Lake LM44s, XTA MX36 console switcher
MON GEAR
- Console: Yamaha Rivage PM10
- Outboard Gear: Rupert Neve Designs Portico II Master Bus Processor, UAD-2 Live Rack
- IEM Hardware: (2) Shure PSM1000, Albatros PH9B
- IEM Earpieces: Jerry Harvey Audio Roxannes
- Wireless: Shure Axient Digital
- Mics: SE Electronics sE V7-MC1 (Miranda vox); Shure SM7 (guitar amp); Shure, Se, DPA (drums)
