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Setting up a Worship Band Monitor Mix: How to avoid a Disaster at
Soundcheck on Sunday Morning
By Michael Hill, Sennheiser
Ever have problems with stage volume that's just too loud? Combating sound issues from performers who can't hear
themselves play—much less think—can be tough.
How many times have you pulled down the master faders to (-)infinity at FOH, and the sound coming off the stage was
still so loud you knew you were going to get a visit from the head deacon or usher before the first chorus?
Or how about the worship leader who leads from the piano? His complaint is he can't hear himself, but he has the
high freq section of the monitor aimed at the piano, and the woofer is the only thing aimed at his ears. The
monitor gets turned up and blasts the soundboard of the piano, which is picked up by the piano mic, which gives you
a nice 55-gallon drum sound (true story). The piano has a muddy sound in the monitor, no definition, gets turned up
(because they can't hear) and drowns out the worship leader's voice. Now the vocal needs to be turned up, resulting
in a mix that no one is happy with. Not to mention the sound tech must mix over this roar.
The sound mixer has a few options:
- Raise the overall house volume level to get on top of the stage noise
- Don't put any piano in the house mix because there is enough piano volume coming off the stage
- Touch the knob and smile
Not very good options.
How many times have you pulled the master faders down to (-)infinity and the sound coming off the stage was still
so loud you knew you were going to get a visit from the head deacon or usher before the first chorus?
The purpose of this article is not to be condescending, or to start a conflict between stage performers and the
sound/media team, but to educate all involved about a few laws of physics that we all have to obey. Many sound
problems that are a constant weekly battle can be fixed without spending a ton of money.
Examine your monitor system
The first thing we need to do is take a comprehensive look at your monitor system. Are you mixing monitors from the
Front of House (FOH) mix position, a dedicated monitor console, or onstage personal monitor mixers?
If you are mixing from FOH, make sure your aux sends are "pre-fader". This means all adjustments happen before the
fader and any fader adjustments will not affect your aux mix. A "postfader" aux means that any adjustment that you
make, EQ or fader, will affect the aux level. This will give you an inconsistent monitor mix and an unhappy
musician because the mix is always changing.
Make sure that your floor wedges are pointing at the musician's ears
Sometimes wedges are pointing at knees or the ceiling. Be aware of the coverage pattern of the horn. Do you have
too many people sharing a monitor?
Have you "rung out" the monitors for feedback?
Start the mix with a clean slate. Many times rehearsals will start with the same mix that ended with last week's
service. The problem is there were three other services and other musicians on stage and you are just compounding
problems.
Let's start out with a clean slate by "zeroing" out the mixer. Now let's hold that thought for a moment. I would
NEVER recommend that you start this new mix 15 minutes before service time. We need a comprehensive sound check
before and during rehearsal. Having said that, coordinate this undertaking with your Music Director/Worship Leader.
They will appreciate your concern for their mix.
Now let's get back to our clean slate. "Zero Out" the mixer by turning off all of the aux sends. The quickest and
most efficient way I have found to do a soundcheck is to run a chorus of the most upbeat song in the set list.
Remember to take into account the volume all of the acoustic instruments (piano, drums) will make, not to mention
the electric guitar amps, before you turn up any monitor.
I have my band play a chorus with no monitors just to hear what kind of level we are generating before we add
monitors.
Then I start with the rhythm section, beginning with the drummer, going through the levels of each of the
instruments: bass, electric, keys, lead vocal, until the drummer is happy with his mix.
If I am the worship leader I coordinate with the sound person on my mic. If I am the soundman, I will use a
talkback mic and communicate with the musician on every change I am making.
If I have the luxury of a monitor engineer, I am on stage with the musician using hand signals with the monitor
engineer.
Listen from the performers' perspective
I always recommend sound people walk out on stage, especially if they are mixing wedges, to hear exactly what the
musician is hearing. Be sure and listen to each monitor. Different brand monitors are going to sound different.
Cuing the mix up in a headphone is not an accurate representation, unless you are mixing "wireless personal
monitors" (See "Mixing Wireless
Personal Monitors in Worship").
This approach has always been successful for me in the worship setting. It lets the musician know the sound tech
cares about what their mix sounds like. It is very frustrating for a musician onstage to need something in their
mix, or have a problem, and the soundman behind the board never moves from behind it.
I move then to the bass player, then electric, then keys. Usually during the rehearsal musicians will asks for
changes and adjustments will be made. Before we stop I always like to run the upbeat opener once again, just so
there are no surprises when it is down beat time.
Do away with "fader fighting"
One of the biggest mistakes sound techs make is what I like to call "fader fighting," or additive mixing. If you
can't hear a particular instrument, you push that fader up. If that covers another instrument up, you push its
fader up, and so on and so on, until we have a muddy roar.
Try subtractive mixing
Listen for the most offending (loudest) instrument and bring it down in the mix. You will have a much cleaner mix
and happier musicians. Remember, less is more.
Don't make adjustments during breaks
Another big no-no is making adjustments while the band is not playing. Musicians tend to make changes to their mix
during breaks. Doing so will result in either too much or not enough adjustment. Wait until the band is playing to
make the adjustment, and it will be like the baby bear...just right!
What does a band want in their mix?
Every musician is different. But my experience has been that the rhythm section will want various parts of …the
rhythm section. For example, drummers will typically want bass, electric, and the lead vocal, and the worship
leader's instrument. Bass will typically want kick, snare (unless they are standing next to the drummer) and the
worship leader's instrument. Electric players will usually want bass, drums and more electric! Keyboard players
will generally want more of the worship leader's instrument and vocal.
Again, these are not hard and fast rules, just typical generic things that I see. The point is that nobody needs
every input in their mix; only what they need to enhance their performance. Many times the acoustic level of a
particular instrument is enough. (See "Setting
up a Praise Team Vocal Monitor Mix").
In conclusion, if you are consistently listening to the wedges that the musicians are listening to, you can help
fix the mush in their mix (subtractive mixing), because you know firsthand what you have placed in the mix. Plus
you will have built trust with the musician. Have a good mix!
Other Tips & Tricks Topics:
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Testimonials
What worship ministries are saying about Sennheiser...
"I also would like to thank you and Sennheiser for not only your assistance with the whole TVBD fiasco, but your support of the H.O.W. market in general. It is truly remarkable these days to have a manufacturer of the size of Sennheiser that allows its personnel to interact with the end-user not only through outlets such as CSC, but the rapid personal response to crazy tech guys like me! It is why I can recommend using your products so readily."
"I also would like to thank you and Sennheiser for not only your assistance with the whole TVBD fiasco, but your support of the H.O.W. market in general. It is truly remarkable these days to have a manufacturer of the size of Sennheiser that allows its personnel to interact with the end-user not only through outlets such as CSC, but the rapid personal response to crazy tech guys like me! It is why I can recommend using your products so readily."
Jay Ballard, Director of Technical Ministries, First Baptist Church of Plant City, Florida