FRONT OF HOUSE
GETTING CREATIVE IN CROWDED SPACES | Kent Morris
This summer has been brutal for travel , with millions of tourists determined to engage in revenge travel following the pandemic . As a result , airports are packed , planes are overfilled , and the interstates are jammed . Finding space to think can be a true challenge . The same principle applies in a live mix . So many drum channels contest with loops and percussion tracks while keys and bass duke it out over the lower octaves and guitars contend for bandwidth with vocals . What ’ s a mix engineer to do ? Here are some ideas to lessen the stress and pressure of a complex mix .
First , realize every input doesn ’ t need to be heard all the time , just some of the time . When there are three guitarists , all playing all the time in the same register , the only option is to create ebb and flow on the console . In this instance , the best move is to pull back , alternating among the three as attention allows . In addition to level , create openings with EQ , removing an octave around 1KHz on one guitar and 3KHz on the second and 600Hz on the third . This move will let each “ voice ” have its own signature and be distinct within the trio . If a keyboardist insists on playing heavy left hand in the bass region , simply high pass the keys at 200Hz to eliminate the conflict between keys and bass guitar .
Next , work to make the vocals cohesive . When the BGVs ( Back Ground Vocals ) number half a dozen or more , the sonic result can be chaotic . Some light ( 3:1 ratio ) individual compression set with a high threshold around -5 and no make-up gain can be combined with a more pronounced group compression set to -10 threshold , 5:1 ratio and 2dB of make-up gain with attack around 50mS and release at half a second . This combination prevents errant individuals from triggering the group compression while bringing the ensemble up and down in unison .
Third , conserve the effects . When a mix is highly congested , adding extensive time-based effects is counterproductive to a clean sound . Essentially , reverb and tap delay are going to make the situation worse when the channel count exceeds a few dozen . Bring effects only into signals where their presence adds to the result and leave the “ toys ” for experimentation in the studio . Live events carry the weight of the room which adds its acoustic stamp onto everything in the mix . Usually , there ’ s too much verb already .
Fourth , don ’ t be afraid to band-limit every input . Snare can be high passed at 70Hz and low passed at 16KHz while vocals can be high
passed at 90-125Hz and low passed at 14KHz . Live isn ’ t the studio and there is too much data coming down the snake anyway . Part of our job is to remove anything that isn ’ t essential to conveying the moment and experience . If the acoustic guitar fits in the mix better high passed at 160Hz and low passed at 9KHz , then do it .
Finally , taper the mix around the lead vocal . Instead of trying to cast the lead on top of an existing heavy mix , start with the bare essentials of kick , snare , bass and guitar and place the vocal front and center and then add other voices and instruments as a complement to the lead vocal , not as competition . It ’ s a top-down mix build instead of a bottom-up mix build . Remember : the lead vocal is more important than the kick drum .
A complex mix need not mean a congested mix , but it requires concentration and focus . Pull things out and give bandwidth to specific inputs at specific times . Actively engage in every moment of the event , making the effort to ride the wave in real-time . If you ’ re exhausted when it ’ s over , you ’ ve done your job .
Kent Morris Kent Morris is a 44-year veteran of the AVL arena driven by passion for excellence tempered by the knowledge all technology is in a temporal state .
130 August 2023 Subscribe for Free ...