The A/C in our sanctuary at my Church recently bit the dust, so we’re forced to move our Sunday services to an alternate location for a few months while our entire system is replaced. Unfortunately, this space doubles as our fellowship hall/youth meeting space, so the sound equipment isn’t quite what we normally have to work with, and before the A/C mishap, was next on the list of things to upgrade. However, I still feel like I can create a mix that I’m happy with, even with limited resources.
Here’s how I try to accomplish that:
1. Get Back to the Basics
I think many engineers, including myself, get caught up in all the fancy gear and effects we have at our disposal, and let those things trump what I consider the basics of live audio. The situation I’m in right now, forces me to make sure I have good gain structure, EQ, and mic placement above all else. I don’t have any external processing, reverb, or anything else to sweeten my mix, so I’m relying fully on these basic tenets of audio to achieve the mix I’m looking for.
2. Listen Carefully
Many times, small adjustments are the key to getting that near perfect mix. In my case, making sure the guitar cuts through in certain portions of a song can make it sound great, while other times the keyboard or other instrument should cut through and take the lead. Sometimes all this takes is a slight level adjustment, or EQ tweak. I would caution from experience, not to make any large, sweeping adjustments during a service, save those for sound check.
3. Heed Advice
I know what you may be thinking, “They always tell me it’s too loud,” or “Too much bass!” You’re never going to make everyone happy with your mix, so find a few people whose ears you really trust, and ask them to critique your mix. They might notice something you could tweak that you haven’t since you’ve been focused on other things. Also, reach out to other audio folks or Twitter, Facebook, or Google+ with questions you might have. I’ve found that these places are amazing for getting advice and opinions for people much smarter than me.
What other tips do you have for someone who might be in a similar situation?
[Image via Life of Bryan]
Brian Alexander says
Great tips Chase. You have been doing this long enough to know that the way you mix isn’t always going to be perfect, but with that being said there are things that you can do to make your mix as best as possible.
Thanks man!
Chase Livingston says
Thanks man! I don’t consider myself an expert at all, these are just some things I’ve learned to do over the past few years.