Mixing More Intentionally

Recently, I had the privilege of being added onto Rock Harbor's sound ministry roster as a regular member. To me, this was a big step of recognition from "intern" to a "sound man" in training. I was extremely excited to say the least. Having been given such a privilege, I was inspired to improve in my abilities and begin seriously tune my ear for the main sanctuary (or "Centre"). The past few times I had mixed in the Centre, I was hindered by not being accustomed to the acoustics of the room. Because of this, I did not have a good handle on the EQ's of the sound board.

To help myself improve on my ear, I set aside time to record my bass and acoustic guitars as a simple, flat EQ'd mp3 file. I then put these tracks on my iPod and hooked it up to the main sound board. This gave me the freedom to experiment with the EQ's in a controlled environment outside of sound check. I was also fortunate enough to be given a handout by my mentor that mapped out all frequency levels with musical descriptions next to them. Before the band came, I spent an hour and a half experimenting with my two tracks. By listening and walking around the room, I was able to hear the differences between the adjustments I made.

By the time the band came to practice, I felt that I had a much better grasp on the room and how to EQ it. I was proven right when I started sound checking the band. I felt much more comfortable setting a solid mix than I had ever felt before. The only problems I experienced were sometimes getting the vocal levels under control and remembering to un-mute all the channels at the correct time. However, I feel much more confident in my mixing abilities and am excited to mix again in three weeks.