MIKING UP THE DRUM KIT
Jamison Butcher
Monitor Engineer
PS: Tell us a bit about your relationship
and history with the Dashboard
Confessional camp, and what led to you
being tapped to mix monitors on the We
Fight Tour.
JB: I was brought in by a past FOH engineer
with Dashboard [a few years ago]. I did a sin-
gle fly-in show as a test run and was hired at
soundcheck for that upcoming spring [tour].
They’ve been a pleasure to work with for the
past three years.
PS: Speaking to the main components
of your rig – the Digico SD9, Waves serv-
er & plug-ins, and the Shure PSM1000
system – how did each earn your favour
and its spot on the We Fight Tour? And
also, which Waves plug-ins are most
crucial to your work?
PS: Can you give us a general idea of
your approach to the band’s mixes for
this tour, and maybe more specifically,
if there’s anything about your mix or
general workflow for this tour or artist
that’s unique vs. other tours you’ve
done or clients you’ve worked with?
JB: My general approach to mixing mon-
itors is easy: I want the band to walk on-
stage and off stage happy. If that happens,
I’ve accomplished the goal of giving them
what they need for a successful show. Un-
like mixing FOH, monitors are so personal,
JB: The first time I mixed a show on a
Digico, I was hooked. It was an SD9 and it
sounded amazing right off the bat. It was
easy to use and I felt extremely comfortable.
I’ve been choosing an SD9 for anything
around 48 inputs ever since. Joel and I share
an SD-Rack and run our consoles at 96 kHz.
With those mixes being put onstage via
the Shure PSM1000, it’s a dream combo.
I use [Shure’s] Wireless Workbench 6 to
tune the RF and use Waves Tracks Live to
make any touch-ups or changes from the
night before. A lot of times I’m in virtual
soundcheck just for fun. I also have a Waves
Extreme server for plug-ins in case I need
that little something extra. I don’t use many,
but I will use anything depending on the
circumstance. Most of my plug-in usage is
directly on my output, using the Waves NLS
Channel and SSL G-Master Buss Compressor.
so by getting to know the band and what
they’re looking for, I can understand the
vibe they need to make a show feel ex-
citing. It’s more trust than anything else.
We also use virtual soundcheck in case
we need a closer look at something at
any point.
I will also say, the right microphone
is crucial to your singer’s comfort. Since
switching to a DPA D:Facto, we’ve had
nothing but successful shows. Its clarity and
rejection is second to none. It makes some
other microphones sound broken [laughs].
PS: What informed the decision to tap
VER as the supplier for this tour, and
how did you find your working
relationship with them?
JB: VER was wonderful to work with. They
have the support around the country we
need and assembled some amazing sys-
tems with us.
PS: On a similar note, tell us about
your working relationship with Joel
on this trek. Did you guys have much
a history prior to this? It seems like
you may have been collaborating a bit
more closely on this trek than an FOH
and monitor engineer might on other
tours, though maybe I’m grasping at
straws with that last part.
JB: [Laughs] Joel and I met working with
Dashboard, so our friendship is early but
strong. I look up to him a lot and we brain-
storm mix ideas regularly. It’s awesome to
have that kind of friend on a tour with you.
I’m blessed to have Joel on the other side
of the snake making those audience mics
easy to mix in. We have a very family-like
atmosphere in our entire camp, too. I’m
blessed to call all these guys my family.
Andrew King is the Edito r-in-Chief of
Professional Sound.
DIGICO SD9 & SHURE PSM1000 SYSTEM AT MONITOR STATION
PROFESSIONAL SOUND • 33