ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the role of the mix engineer. Every band would have their own mix engineer, who is familiar with the material and every band members monitoring preferences. Small and medium-sized venues seen on a different scale at major tours and stadium gigs, that doesn't actually make the mix engineer's job any easier. Even a band that doesn't have an engineer, mixing themselves from the stage, helps to takes responsibility for ensuring that the spares requirements are covered. Balancing the band first and then expecting the vocals to compete doesn't work in smaller venues, as the feedback threshold is often lower. The purpose of putting all the instruments through the PA system is not just to make everything louder in large venues, but also to give the engineer control. The chapter concludes that leaving plenty of headroom on all the channels and trying to fine tune the balance within the first few bars as each new band starts.
