Band Tip #2 - Sound Check Walkthrough

Okay - so now that we know what a Sound Check is all about, what actually happens during one?

This post will walk you through a typical show for me - starting with my showing up at the venue, and ending with doors being opened.


Typically, I like to arrive 30 minutes to an hour before any of the musicians are due to show up. I power everything on (the subject of an upcoming post for Sound Techs) and set up the stage for a typical 4-piece rock band. For me, this consists of drum mics, bass DI, two instrument DIs up front, two guitar mics on short stands and four vocals up front. The fourth vocal mic has enough cable to reach back to the drummer, if needed. This setup will work for about 80% of the bands/performers that show up. By using the same setup and plugging in to the same channels, it's possible to have outboard gear already plugged in that will need minimal tweaking to get the best sound. Same goes for EQ and gain settings on the sound board. Some venues even leave the mics and cables set up on stage, so if you were a punk rock venue it's possible to have this setup and only have to adjust individual volume faders.

But back to the sound check. Typically, the headlining performers show up earliest and get the first sound check. If there's only time for one band to sound check, then only the headlining act gets a sound check, unless they specifically ask to forego it.

It's helpful to start a conversation with the band after they've loaded in their gear and before they've started to set it up on stage. I like to introduce myself and ask about the stage setup. Primarily, I'll want to know how many vocal mics are needed 'up front' (at the front of the stage) and if there are any other mics that I'll need to set up in addition to the basic setup that's already on the stage. Building up a good rapport at this stage will mean a better line of communication between the sound tech and the band, which in turn leads to a better sounding show.

After setting up the instruments, the mics are put in place and DIs connected. If additional mics are needed, those are plugged in and set up at this time. Then it's time to head behind the board.

It's time to listen to some mics! Most sound checks start with the kick drum. The drummer should give solid, steady quarter-note hits on the kick drum. They should be spaced so that you can hear the attack and the decay of the drum. No-one else on the stage should be making any noise if possible. The sound tech should be getting a good input level and setting any outboard gear, if needed (another future topic for the blog). This is repeated for each of the drum mics - sound techs should be aware that not only is the drummer likely to hit harder during the actual show, but bleed from the other drums will increase the sound hitting the mics. I would recommend leaving 3 - 6db of gain to allow for this.
Once each mic is checked for level, the drummer should be instructed to play the whole kit. At this time, levels can be adjusted for the front of house mix and EQ/effects can be further tweaked. Once the levels are good, I instruct the drummer to stop and get a level on the kick drum monitor. Some drummers like to hear other drums as well, this would be the time to get those levels.

That's it for drums at the moment. The instruments can be checked in a similar manner one by one. Then the vocal mics can be checked. It's a good idea to start with the performers hearing the vocal mics only through the monitors first to set a good level, then bring up the front of house level afterwards. The performers may want less vocals in the monitor if they start hearing a lot of the front of house sound reflecting back to them. Don't forget about sending some vocals back to the drummer!
It's also a good idea to listen to the effect of the monitors on the overall sound. If too much of the monitors can be heard, it will muddy the sound and can be difficult to figure out once everything gets going. Careful placing of the monitors and watching the monitor level can really help the overall sound, particularly in smaller venues.

At this point, the band may want to run through a song to hear how everything sounds for them on stage. I usually ask the band to play a verse and chorus of a song only so they can check how it sounds. It may be necessary for parts of multiple songs to be played if there are instrument changes. It's not the time for the band to practice a new song or run through their entire set - although that may differ depending on the time allotted or the popularity of the band. U2 can take all the time they want - the local band who sounds like U2 should make it snappy.

Once everyone is happy, it's important for the sound tech to make a note of all of the settings of all of the channels, effects, monitor sends, etc. There are tricks to make this easier, such as using splitters to use multiple channels for the same mics, which will be discussed later. It is also avisable to mark the position of mic stand and monitors as this may change by the time the headlining act hits the stage and will have to be reset.
Sometimes the bands share amps/drums/instruments, which makes things easier for everyone. For an all-day event, it's almost a necessity as the changeovers could take up too much time.
For a normal show, the headlining act may leave all of their amps, etc set up (backlined) and the opening bands would set up in front of their gear. For smaller venues, everything would be taken off the stage and the next band to soundcheck would set up. (Or the opening act if it's time to turn down the lights and open the doors.)


That's it for this tip - next up, how to minimise setup and changeover time!