Taking live sound concepts to the stage of a festival is an incredible, yet daunting, opportunity. Follow my journey as I prepare for my role as audio engineer at Yonder Festival...
Recently, I linked up with local electronic duo Penelope Two-Five to be their live engineer. They have since been booked for Yonder Festival, taking my role rapidly to the biggest stage I will have worked on. In addition to looking after their sound, I have been asked to assist with another few artists as well. It's funny how you hold your breath for opportunities like these, and yet when they come you immediately want to bury your head in the sand. I figured the best way to overcome this feeling was preparation.
"Success happens when opportunity meets preparation" - Zig Ziglar
Communicating via email with the festival's producer, I completed my online site induction, familiarised myself with the site and stage I would be working on, and gathered contact details for each of the artists I would be working with, as well as the stage manager overseeing my stage and their supervisor. I also inquired as to the equipment I would be working with, particularly what desk I would be using.
As it turns out the desk on my stage is an Allen & Heath QU16; a digital desk. Previously I have only worked with analog desks, but with knowledge of signal flow and a little research it shouldn't be too hard to wrap my head around. I immediately jumped on SoundOnSound (2014) and found Mike Crofts had done a review. I was delighted to see straight away in the pros column: "Very easy to set up and use even if you're new to digital mixers".
I learned that this digital mixer features 16 mono inputs (channels 1-16) each equiped with XLR and TRS sockets, as well as a further 3 pairs of stereo line inputs (ST 1, 2 & 3). Two of which have TRS inputs only, and a third being the stereo mini-jack on the top panel. To use the main analogue inputs and outputs there's no internal soft patching necessary; you can start using the QU16 straight away with its factory settings. On the output side there are main left and right XLR connectors, and 10 further mix-bus outputs of which four are mono and the remainder are arranged in stereo pairs, again all appearing on XLR connectors. There are also digital inputs and outputs, including bi-directional USB (B type) and a Cat5 dSnake port, for use with Allen & Heath's proprietary digital snake and monitor systems, though that wouldn't be necessary for my purposes.
To make things as simple as possible, each channel has its own fader, mute and solo/PFL buttons. The rest of the usual channel-strip controls are directed by a series of 'one-knob-per-function' controls, in association with the digital interface, and by selecting whichever channel you wish to work on. The preamp section allows input trimming, individual 48V phantom-power switching, polarity switch, delay, pairing to an adjacent channel, and the ability to insert internal effects. Also included is a gate and compressor, with basic operating controls clearly available and advanced functions accessible via the touch screen. The EQ section is four-band fully parametric, linked to the clear display of what is going on. They all have the same degree of control available, with the exception of LF and HF having shelf-curve options as well as the variable-width bell curves.
The input channels are controlled by two fader layers: inputs 1-16 on the first layer, and the three stereo line inputs on the second, together with the effects sends/returns and mix masters. If both fader bank buttons are pressed at the same time you have access to a user-configurable layer, which can be made up of a custom combination of inputs and mixes.
Input sources can be selected as analogue or digital, either from the corresponding XLR/TRS input on the rear panel or from the USB inputs, by using the touchscreen. In this way you would be able to play several recorded tracks from an external USB hard drive alongside live tracks from stage, making it a potentially useful tool if the artists require backing tracks to any of their performances.
A row of buttons down the right-hand side selects the various bus mixes, useful for my in-ear sends or more likely in this situation foldbacks, enabling a configuration where the LR master fader becomes the mix fader and the mix inputs are all on the other two fader layers.
The QU16 has four independent effects processors, which contain a large array of useful presets, with detailed editing of parameters available. Besides the usual processing (reverb, delay, chorus etc.) I discovered one that I was previously unaware: ADT. Automatic (or Artificial) Double Tracking is an analogue recording technique designed to enhance the sound of voices or instruments during the mixing process. It was developed for The Beatles in the 60s, and uses tape delay to create a delayed copy of an audio signal which is then combined with the original (Martin & Hornsby, 1994, 155).
Reading through the user manual I familiarised myself further with the functionality of each control, and took note of the console's signal flow diagram:
With 100 scenes available, I established that I should first pick one, label it, and Reset Mix Settings to zero the board. I will then name my channels and masters, and set up any required groups. If applicable I could also assign the soft keys on the right side of the desk, by selecting Setup / Control / SoftKeys. This could be useful to apply tap tempo for something like a delay on vocals. Following instructions in the user manual I will also bring a USB hard-drive, pre-formatted appropriately, so that I can save any scenes for use the next day with different artists, should it seem appropriate.
As another measure to understand the functionality of the desk, I watched a couple of tutorials on YouTube:
I felt a little more at ease, it seems like quite a simple desk to operate, and quite user-friendly. Next step was to research the artists I would be looking after, trying to understand the sound they're aiming for.
Penelope Two-Five I was quite familiar with, featuring Cameron Lee and Shannon Mavrik, who together create what they refer to as #DadAcid. Their sound ranges from audio for the afternoon through to made-for-the-club heaviness. I contacted the boys via their manager, and arranged to attend their next (and last) rehearsal before the event. Here I would better understand their requirements: mixing preferences, input list, stage setup, backline requirements. Check them out below:
With a solid knowledge of their songs, I should be able to replicate Cameron's vocal similar to how it appears in their EP, simulating a wet reverb with effective delays throughout, ultimately providing the audience with the package the boys' intended.
Prior to the rehearsal, I dropped into StoreDJ to familiarise myself with the QU16 desk in a hands-on environment. I brought a USB with some stems and my trusty cans, to practice mixing through the desk, adapting to the digital layout and multiple layers. Initially the USB wouldn't read, and I quickly learned that the best way to sync the two is to format the stick using the desk's format function, available under Utility > Qu-Drive > Format. After some quick soft patching I was able to route the channels to read from the MTK (multitrack) folder and after a few fumbles, and checking back on prior research, I eventually felt much more comfortable.
The rehearsal helped me to understand their set format, and the routing of their gear, though I quickly learned that I may not be as useful as originally anticipated. Their equipment is all patched in a chain, with an occasional pedal for extra control, into an interface and run through Ableton. Macro controls are pre-configured to control certain plugin parameters for desired effect. Similarly, Cam's mic is run in series through a couple of pedals and into the interface. They had planned to take the outputs from the interface into the DJ mixer on the stage, which would be already patched into the FOH mixer. I explained that this would make it impossible for me to control any levels, particularly the vocal, but for comfortability they opted to continue as planned as they had already planned their set around this configuration. They wanted to keep this performance as a 'before', see how it all runs, and discuss other options for the future after the event. Consequently, I answered some of their questions, and offered some suggestions for EQ and limiting on Ableton's master channel; to ensure unnecessary low-frequency content would be removed, and prevent the output from skyrocketing if a particular processing effect adds significant level.
With that I was off to the festival, to take a look at the stage, and find out who else I would be mixing. Upon arrival I found the producer, who informed me they had found their missing engineer, and I would no longer need to mix other artists, merely assist with closing down the stage at night and re-patching everything in the mornings. After looking at the current state of the stage, boy was I excited to tidy it up.
Immediately prior to the show I assisted Penelope Two-Five setup around the DJ that was playing, plugging their outputs into unused channels 3&4 on the DJM2000, and cueing these channels through headphones to quickly soundcheck without affecting FOH. I then remained in the audience until the performance began and signalled to Cam until the vocal level sounded appropriate. I quickly ran to the desk, did some basic EQ on the master, and adjusted their foldback level. Throughout the set I occasionally tweaked the vocal level manually on the DJ mixer to compensate for the touchy effects pedal Cam used, but that was basically all I could do; talk about over-preparation. However it was a really good chance to critically listen to the performance. Firstly I heard that the vocal required much more compression, to the point that I wasn't even sure if it had any. I noticed that at times it sat perfectly amidst the track, then, at others, it was swallowed by the acid lines.
In the end everybody was quite happy with the performance, and a few people commented that I had done a good job on their sound, though I suspect this was merely due to nudging it a couple of dB's. After the performance we sat down together with their manager, and discussed plans moving forward. They said that they are really keen to have me on board permanently, with a couple of large shows looking to be confirmed next year. Cam and Shannon wanted to sit down with me in future and see how they could incorporate me more into their show. I explained that patching their mic into the FOH mixer would be my first point of difference, allowing me dynamic and level control, ultimately sitting it perfectly throughout the performance. This would also allow me to send a separate mix for Cam so that he could hear himself better on stage. We planned to meet in a couple of weeks to discuss more options, thanked each other, and cracked a well-deserved cold one.
I was glad I did a lot of preparation, if not for the chance that I could have been required to mix other bands, then for the confidence that henceforth I will have a much better grasp on a digital console. Perhaps in it's simplest form my old friend Murphy didn't find the opportunity to throw his metaphorical 'Law' my way. The confidence gained from this preparation perhaps assisted the boys' impression of me, and certainly the festival's organisers. In an industry based on contacts, I hope to have my face known by a few more people now. I heard feedback that my work resetting the stage from shambles was amazing and greatly appreciated, and have been told that I will always have a place at Yonder Festival. I'm happy to have been a part of a first-year festival, particularly one that I feel passionately about, and one that is helping to further push the music industry of Brisbane / Queensland.
Stay Tuned
- TA
REFERENCES
Allen & Heath. (2016). User Guide [PDF]. Retrieved from https://www.allen-heath.com/media/Qu-Mixer-Getting-Started-Guide-AP10025_2-V1.9.pdf
Crofts, M. (2014). Allen & Heath QU16. Retrieved from https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/allen-heath-qu16
Martin, G., & Hornsby, J. (1994). All you need is ears (p. 155). New York: St. Martin's Press.
ProAudioSuperstore. (2014). Allen & Heath Qu-16 In-Depth. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7j99nxYv46I
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