Is it time to trade in your wedges for more racks?
So you have been hanging on to the simplicity of wedge monitor mixing, but you are ready to take the plunge into the wild side of personal monitors. Welcome to the brave new world. Yeah, I like the thought of not lugging heavy wood wedges, long lengths of Speakon patches, racks of graphic EQs and power amplifiers as much as the next guy, but what replaces this?
I have seen great personal monitor (PM) systems, and I have seen less than adequate performances from acts that went cheap on wireless PMs. On the negative side, I remember a cover rock group that lost its sense of performance dynamic range once the lead singer and guitarists went over to PMs. In this case, the sound person could not bring the mono-volume lifeless performance back from the dead, but he did provide the performers a kind hint that things weren’t working well.
All in the Mix
Regardless of how much new gear you bring to the wedges-to-PMs conversion process, the monitor mixing game is brand new. What used to be “gimme some vocals and a touch of the guy on the other side of the stage” with wedges has now become the great salad bar of PM mixes, with just about all the mic and direct box inputs used for each performer. In fact, smaller acts will tote around a rack-mount mini-mixer so that each performer can walk up to the mixer and adjust their own monitor mix to individual perfection at sound check. But for dedicated monitor mix engineers, your sound check workload just went from routine to something like an order taker at a fast food restaurant at noon.
The good news might be that this gig may become a regular one, maybe even one you tour with, and saving the console settings (on paper or digitally) will be rewarded by fewer adjustments on the next gig. Another item to consider would be to place a couple of forward facing microphones for audience response, so that the performers feel less isolated wearing the PMs. Typically, this is a pair of mics placed on the forward sides of the stage, set tall and inconspicuously so that feisty audience members will not start commanding your attention by grabbing and shouting into them.
Stereo or Mono
Stereo PM mixes are the cat’s meow if you’ve got the gear to handle them. But before you go saying you do, think of the idea of needing 12 aux sends per channel to feed six performers onstage. All but the top-of-the-line monitor consoles stop at 12 aux sends, so think of the reality of what really needs to have spatial separation. Even many famous live groups are happy with mono mixes, especially if they get a bit of stereo reverb added in. If stereo mixes are the word, consider what is to be panned and how much intensity will go into the panning. What might be a great FOH effect of panning the drummer toms might be an intense distraction to the other performers trying to keep the song on track.
And console selection fun does not end with the number of aux sends. Many PM wearing performers request a taste of reverb to be included instead of a mix of dry mics. This will quickly add ‘verb units to your monitor mix rack if each performer needs a unique blend of sources and reverb types.
Wireless Issues
And just like wireless mics, most PMs are driven by receiver belt-packs, and these packs eat batteries as voraciously as mic transmitters. Not to mention that the RF frequency bands and transmit power levels are under similar restrictions, so keep the PM transmitter rack near side-stage to keep the drop outs to a minimum.
And unlike wireless mics, having multiple frequency adaptability is a requirement. While you can backup a wireless mic with a wired mic in a pinch, you must have the performer freedom with PMs, because normally you do not carry backup wedges, and most PM belt packs do not have backup XLR signal inputs. And chances are that your PM transmitters and belt-packs are all the same make and model, thus making frequency diversity a must for non-interference between nearby install transmitters besides adjacent performers.
Bring on the DSP
And with the rack of PM transmitters, each mix will likely need additional digital signal processing to save the performer’s hearing. Make adjustments for equalization due to earbud model and personal tastes. Rane corporation makes a nice dedicated PM processor called the MM42, but you can use some speaker drive and digital equalizer processors as well. The type of processor you can use depends a lot on what is provided at the PM transmitter and belt-pack. If the transmitter/belt-pack has user-adjustable volume limiters to protect the performer’s hearing, then the processing only has to be gain and frequency equalization.
With cost-effective speaker processors coming from a number of quality brands, there is no reason why a nice 3 by 6 or 4 by 8 DSP unit could drive three or four PMs to keep the rack space consumed to a minimum. While I know of no PM software equivalent of Smaart or Spectra-foo, I would let the performers tweak from a flat or loudness compensated frequency response curve. And no one said you couldn’t mix in a little of your favorite iPod tracks and adjust for the un-flatness of the earbuds, transmitter/belt-pack or anything else in the drive through the console.
With DSP processing, you can typically do more than just graphic and parametric frequency equalization with gain. Nice dynamic processing like downward expansion gating, loudness equalization for tired ears and a touch of compression to force a performance dynamics expansion are just some the things to consider.
Bundling Up
So to supplant the floor wedges, cables, amps, drive processing and EQs for the monitor mix, you now have a rack or two with wireless PM transmitters, antennas, processors and maybe a multi-reverb/effects processor or more. Your monitor mix console may need an upgrade, but you could get by in the short term with mono mixes for each performer. Plus, don’t forget a modest investment in audience response mics to open up the venue into the performers’ plugged ear canals. And woe to those of you production monitor mixers who need a little stage wedge mix plus PMs for performers who can’t convert all at once. But more gear means more wages, right? I won’t hold my breath waiting for your response to that.
Whisper in Mark’s ear at marka@fohonline.com.
