Happy Friday everyone. Welcome back. Number 8 already! I am faithfully writing these tips hoping that somewhere out there somebody is reading them and using a few of them to their advantage. As always, Tech Tips hopes to pass along easy to use common sense type tips for the casual soundperson who is maybe struggling a bit with less than "audio friendly" surroundings. In the spirit of that, here we go with.......

THE BIG TURN OFF
Like a light, when an audio channel (microphone) is not being used, it is generally a good idea to turn it off or “mute” it. This is common practice for audio engineers in concert who are dealing with lots of open (on) vocal microphones. This technique can really keep the mix clean and make a huge difference in the overall quality of the show. This is part of what I like to call “active mixing” When the stage is small and has amplifiers on it, the sound is constantly leaking into the vocal mics producing, well.....leakage! (go figure) So when you know that the background singers, or any singer for that matter will not be singing for a bit, (for example through the verses of a song) there is really no reason for the mic to be on and picking up the stage noise. This will just clutter the overall sound and reduce clarity. I am a big believer in this strategy and have faithfully employed it over the years. Almost every mixer has on/off buttons or mute buttons and even if they don’t, it is still possible to pull the faders down a bit when a mic is not being used. Remember though, if you are going to do this you must be totally on board. (pun intended) You can’t forget or be a split second late or you will be getting a few looks from the singers (or the bands manager) This is why many bands refer to the soundperson as the “fifth member” Or sixth depending how many in the band. You get the idea. You have to learn the show and arrangements, but hey, you are there anyway so might as well get involved. Particularly, in not so great sounding environments this can be a real life saver. In my opinion the hardest thing to consistently do is to make the vocals sound clean, clear, and loud enough, and this is a tip that can definitely help you to achieve that. New technology now exists that incorporates an infrared sensor mounted on the microphone stand that can be set up to turn on the microphone when you get about 3 or 4 inches away, and turn it off when you back up. This of course costs money and lots of it, so most of us use the hands on method. In fact if you check out a big concert they will often have more than one person at the soundboard to make this type of thing a lot easier. To further that, with todays automated digital mixers it is possible to program in scene changes that mute and unmute for you if the setlist is the same night after night and there is some kind of synchronized clock or click track that the whole show revolves around. I guess that’s why they call it “the big time.” When money is no object you would be amazed at what you can do. So remember, if it's not being used, go for the big turn off. Once you get the hang of this, (and a lot of it is just confidence) you will realize just how much sense this makes. Take care and see you next week when I show you why using a D.I. box is always the best way to connect an instrument to the mixing board.
TT
techtips@mts.net