IEM best practices

spv

Inspired
I’d be interested in understanding best practices from those of you who use IEMs for live performance. I’ve had good luck using IEMs in professionally mixed shows, but have typically used one or two Atomic CLRs, stage monitors, and musicians’ earplugs (which I don’t like and find frustrating). Recently I bought a Shure P3TRA215CL IEM system, which I’m starting to use, with the hypothesis that the optimal live IEM setup would include: 1) decent sound isolating headphones (I have the Shure 215s and Linsoul ZS10s), 2) the full band in the mix, and 3) some stage volume (e.g., through the CLR) to assist in feedback generation. So far, I’m the only IEM user in the group. In reading some of the posts, I realize there are a range of ways in which people have used IEMs, and so would love to start a thread around questions:

1) Earphones? - Sound isolating or ambient? Are custom molds worth it? Are super expensive headphones better than say the Linsoul 5-driver ZS10s that get mentioned in the posts?

2) Mix? — If using ambient headphones, do people monitor just their own sound or monitor FOH or add an ambient mic? How to avoid problems (e.g., instruments out of balance)

3) Any stage volume (other than standard wedges for the benefit of others) and what to use for this?

I’m perpetually in search of the optimal live mix and would appreciate perspectives.

Thanks!
 
I'm interested too .... I just invested in some pretty decent IEM's, a dbx IEM processor and I'd love tips and suggestions that have worked for people !
 
i've never used ambient IEMs. with that said, i use IEMs mostly for hearing protection, so i don't want any stage sound getting in.

general rule i stick to is that if it's not in the IEM send, i won't hear it. many people say they want to use IEMs and only put their guitar in it. well at a certain level (pretty low), you won't hear anything else since the drivers are so close to your ears and the IEMs are acting like plugs too.

i have used several IEM models from $100 to $500. in my experience, i don't think the expensive ones offer too much more than the cheaper ones. but i'm approaching this as MONITORING, not a studio high-quality listening experience. i'm not there to bask in the glory of the sound. i use the SE215s as well. cheap, easily replaceable, and sounds good with a little EQ on your monitor send from the mixer. in general i'm boosting a bit of high end, and reducing low end so it doesn't bog down the mix. i also pull out some mid range frequencies, very slim Qs, whatever the mixer allows.

some people swear by custom molds, but i am completely satisfied by the SE215 with the rubber tips.

for the mix, like i said, if it's not in the send, you probably won't hear it. even drums, depending on stage volumes. if there are vocal mics on stage, many times those offer enough "ambience" as they are open mics letting in sound. i personally don't need or want to hear crowd noise or stage noise - that's the whole point of IEMs for me. add what you need though. for drums, you don't necessarily need a full mix. just one mic near it - even a 58 - that's mixed into IEMs only, and not sent to the mains.

keep that in mind - you can add mics that only go to IEMs and not mains.

for stage volume, if you need interactivity with your guitar for feedback, etc. then yes you need to have that speaker on the stage. if you want to "feel" air moving from a loud cab on stage, then add it. it's all up to you. i play places that don't want amps on stage, so that's not an option and i honestly don't miss it.

it all depends on your goals for IEMs. for me it's clarity. some restaurants i play, the crowd noise is so loud from clanging plates and talking 3 feet away from me, and the venue doesn't want ANY speaker on the stage - sound only through the ceiling speakers. so it's impossible to play without IEMs. some of my partners use headphones instead of IEMs and it works for them. but i like the fit and feel of IEMs.

what you can do for your IEM totally depends on your mixer. a standard analog board doesn't have too many options. the digital offerings like the x32 or Touchmix are preferred.

i always EQ my IEM sends from the mixer. no speaker sounds perfect flat, IEMs are speakers, so i EQ those as needed. i described it a bit earlier. the biggest problem i see is too much bass frequency in the IEM and then you "can't hear" anything. reduce bass. see how low you can get it to function. you'll be surprised at how much clearer the mix sounds immediately.

again, i approach it for monitoring, not a relaxing home listening experience. it's a tool to help me do my job. it doesn't sound bad by any means. it's just not the mid scooped "LOUD" button in the car sensation. and i don't want that at a gig because then i can't hear things!
 
1. IMO isolating are the better choice. Otherwise you have to balance against what is the outside sound (usually a drummer), so you turn the IEMs up.
2. Hopefully you are using a digital mixer and can have your own AUX mix, so you can create your own mix. Ambient mics help you with audience feedback.
3. I don’t want to haul extra cabs and amps, so it’s straight to the board for me. Cuts out some of the noise onstage.
 
1) I went from Westone UM Pro 30's to Custom 64 Audio A12t's. Going to custom molds was really game-changer. Lots of clarity in the mix, etc. No real words to describe it except to say I'd drop the $$$ again for them.

2) We use an Allen-Heath Qu-Pac Mixer. Every band member gets their own mix which they can control independently. I mix the band feed directly into the Ax3 and blend my guitar in there. I have to mute my guitar from the mixer so it's not doubled. My drummer does the same (using Pearl Mimic, electronic drums). I use the the same Shure System as you for IEMs. Each band member can mix their self using their smart phones or tablets. They have their own EQ, Compression, etc to boot.

3) We run a perfectly silent stage. The advantage is we can play as loud or quiet as we want. We don't have to play to the drummers minimum volume. :) We don't use any ambient mics at all, but I've toyed with the idea. Mostly so you can hear people trying to talk to you than for any other reason.
 
My 2 cents on custom fitted, for me I have rather large ear canals and I could not keep off the shelf IEM to stay in nor seal well enough to get any bottom end. When I got custom fitted IEM my world changed. Now I did some rather upper end ones, and they sound fabulous. What I'll never know is if custom fitted lower end ones would have sufficed. I chose this route because at my age I did not figure I had time to upgrade later. That and I want my musical experience to be as pleasurable as possible.

The only thing the bugs me is when playing on small stages I get a good bit of drums and such bleeding through my vocal mic, and even the guitar from the mains can sometimes bleed in enough to cause that weird comb filtering sound. But I do love the ear plug benefit and never go home with ringing ears from standing too close to a drummer.
 
I find a good sealed isolation is best. I use to use molded ears, but got tired of having issues and replacing them. So these day I use Shure SE535s. They have lasted longer than any molded set I've had before. My whole band uses IEMs with ambient mics on each side of the stage, that only go to the monitor mix.
 
1) I went from Westone UM Pro 30's to Custom 64 Audio A12t's. Going to custom molds was really game-changer. Lots of clarity in the mix, etc. No real words to describe it except to say I'd drop the $$$ again for them.
My first thought was holy crap those are expensive. Second one was I guess they're right in the range of a pair of CLRs, also expensive.

Don't have either one so far :)
 
My first thought was holy crap those are expensive. Second one was I guess they're right in the range of a pair of CLRs, also expensive.

Don't have either one so far :)
I used the 64 Audio V6S which were close to top tier from them about 4 years ago.

Shortly after, they came out with the A-series and the 2nd to lowest tier of those is more just about the same price as what I have cost.
 
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Made the move to IEMs recently
  • Custom molds are awesome. Very good isolation and therefore you can keep the IEM volume low and still not hear your drummer. I’m using ultimate ears UE7 pro. Will save your ears in the long run. Stage volume wars are a thing of the past.
  • I run the axefx in stereo. Just having a nice stereo delay and a well setup mix is inspiring to play.
  • We mix our own IEMs. I usually want the entire band in there. It’s a bit too much gear to mix your own ears though, we have a xr16 rack, xlr splitter and then the IEM packs. So sometimes we just go old school with monitors in small venues.
  • With IEMs, we can run a click and cues just to the musicians which is great. We also run backing tracks once in a while to match our record sounds.
 
Just getting started on IEM. Have an X32 on the way and some cheap iems to start. I’m holding off to get ear impressions before I spend any real money on nice ones.

On the ambient mic, I’m planning to run two of them, and gate them so any time there is anything coming through the mains they will gate off.
 
Thanks all for the insightful and quick replies. Super helpful as usual from this group!

We had a show this weekend where I used the IEMs and my ears felt great the next day. Like Chris, the job I’m solving for with IEMs is mostly hearing protection and reasonable sound clarity across the band on stage. Except for a mixing glitch where the keys had been over mixed into the IEMs for the first song with keys (they literally obliterated everything else in the mix and I had to pull out one of the monitors for that song in order to hear anything else!), the setup performed admirably.
 
Just getting started on IEM. Have an X32 on the way and some cheap iems to start. I’m holding off to get ear impressions before I spend any real money on nice ones.

On the ambient mic, I’m planning to run two of them, and gate them so any time there is anything coming through the mains they will gate off.
When you get your X32, set you in ears mix for "sends on faders". Absolute best way to setup monitor sends. When you do this your actual channel faders individually become the gain setting for each vocal and instrument, even effects. And this works for each band member's separate in ear mix.

Regarding ambient mics, only send them to the monitors and keep them out of the mains. Then you can adjust how much ambience you want in your monitor mix. It works great that way.
 
When you get your X32, set you in ears mix for "sends on faders". Absolute best way to setup monitor sends. When you do this your actual channel faders individually become the gain setting for each vocal and instrument, even effects. And this works for each band member's separate in ear mix.

Regarding ambient mics, only send them to the monitors and keep them out of the mains. Then you can adjust how much ambience you want in your monitor mix. It works great that way.
Not to nit pick but some clarity on terms used:

Sends on Faders is a method to “reveal” the Bus sends on the actual faders view (the slidey things). It’s way faster then going into each channel’s sends view one by one. Always be sure you’ve selected YOUR bus and aren’t adjusting someone else’s by accident. This works on the app and the bigger units with physical faders.

Also, doing this doesn’t change the “gain” which is a specific term on most mixers. It simply adjusts the send level and doesn’t change the gain at all.

On digital mixers, the channel gain setting is crucial because they aren’t as forgiving with clipping as an analog board. Most people set the gain to hit around -18 on the meter, with -12 or so as the peak. This keeps you well away from the 0dB hard clipping limit of a digital console.
 
We've been using the following config [below] for a few years now - with me on bass - as it works for any of the following configs:
  1. When WE run FOH thru our own PA
  2. When we send House an L/R feed (pretty much the same as #1)
  3. When we tie into the House stage box and take their split into our X32 Rack
  4. When we tie into our splitter snake and put other leg into House snake (when house doesn't have a splitter leg).
We ALWAYS run our own IEM and wedge mixes over wifi with our own router. 2 still use wedges.
Buds used are 1964 A12's, my A8's and whatever the drummer is using - UE7's (I believe).
I keep my IEM volume real low, and the ADEL diaphragms kind of act like ambient ports.
We have FULL STEREO mixes on our IEM's allowing panning of instruments to physical stage location. Wedges are mono (duh!).
We generally run 2 overheads and a kick for most venues - works REALLY well, and I put kick in my mix with a little overhead.
2 guitars panned 11/2 based on stage location.
3 vocals - with LEAD centered, mine about 1pm at slighly lower level to hear blend, 3rd is lower still at 11am - so I can hear him talk, but not sing! :)
The mix is awesome, and I would take any triple-driver or better CUSTOM IEM over a single-driver universal bud such as the SE215. YEs, I've used them. You're better off buying the KX ZS5/6 or AS10's over most single-driver buds.
Why? Because single drivers cannot handle the full range aural spectrum like multiple drivers. They tend to distort more quickly and you get ear fatigue, so you turn up more, get more fatigue, turn up.. vicious cycle.
The key is to have good buds and keep the volume as LOW as you can!
And ALWAYS use TWO buds, or you'll turn up the one you ARE using to match external levels, which defeats the purpose of using IEM's!
Our brains like order/structure!

As mentioned above - it's about hearing what you need to do your job.. not a studio listening experience.

NOTE: you can substitute a number of different digital consoles for the X32R. Principle is the same.
This is NOT an expensive rig!

IEM_Split_Config.jpg
 
The mix is awesome, and I would take any triple-driver or better CUSTOM IEM over a single-driver universal bud such as the SE215. YEs, I've used them. You're better off buying the KX ZS5/6 or AS10's over most single-driver buds.
Why? Because single drivers cannot handle the full range aural spectrum like multiple drivers. They tend to distort more quickly and you get ear fatigue, so you turn up more, get more fatigue, turn up.. vicious cycle.
great post with nice details.

i agree with what you say about the single drivers. i had some triple driver Westones but i just could not EQ them to what i wanted to hear. some irritating notches in there i can't seem to tame. the SE215s EQ so much easier for me. i did use some consumer level quad driver UEs, and they definitely sounded better, but at $500, i couldn't buy a backup. also my gig partners typically rarely use IEMs and only buy them to gig with me haha. so they buy the lowest cost SE215s. i want to make sure i'm EQ'ing and mixing their sends the same as mine, and to know exactly what they're hearing, so i just use the same as them.

i'd love to get some quad drivers again, as i do appreciate what they do in general. i just can't drop that much money at the time, and for how often i use them. in a pinch i could use the SE215s as backups if the expensive ones ever break. but i typically like to have an exact duplicate of most gear just in case.

ugh. money.
 
I switched to IEM's a few years ago, and here is some of my experience with it.

I started with a Carvin system. The sound was not good. I hated it. The earbuds are worthless. Literally some Skull Candy's sounded better.
I upgraded to the Sennheiser system, and it was a good improvement. The signal was better and more clear, but I still didn't like it. I then bought some Shure earbuds. 215s I think. I still didn't like it.
Then I bought some 64 Audio 4 driver custom molds. Now, I was starting to like it. The sound difference was night and day. Some much more clear and detailed. But once we hit the stage in a show, I still had some issues and I struggled with them. Here are some tips and things I figured out:

1. It is MUCH better when EVERYONE in the band uses them. Especially the bass player, because even the best isolating IEMs can't block out that sound, and it can be hard to hear what you want without turning the IEMS up pretty loud. Quieter is better. Get the drummer to use a plexiglass screen, and get everyone one else to run silent stage. That makes it super nice! A loud stage is pretty hard to deal with for me.

2. The sound directly from the mixer can be super dry- and it has no life to it. This just sounds crappy to me, and uninspiring, so if you can get the mix POST effects - or add a little reverb to the IEM mix it that helps. I like bass and drums dry, but some air on everything else.

3. I feel very disconnected from the band and the audience, and I like a "room mic" mixed in a little bit. Sometimes the drum overheads offer enough to fill this purpose, but other times we put a mic near the front of the stage, and I want just a little bit of that in the mix. Again, if the drums and bass are loud on stage, this doesn't work as well (for me.)

4. I found that stability in my presets is critical. You need to EQ your IEM mix to be able to seperate things and hear all the pieces. Changing presets where one sound is dramatically different EQ wise from another can cause real problems. I hear myself great on one song, and it's the best thing ever. The next song I can't hear myself at all because I'm lost in the mix, and it's a nightmare. This was a real driver for me to ditch the "preset per song" approach, and just develop "my tone" that I like to work with all night.

5. Once you get your mix and EQ right, and the stage is quiet enough, there is nothing like it. It's like practicing in headphones at home. You can hear everything, and it's inspiring and I end up playing my best. It's the best stage sound I've ever had - once everything is right. It took a LOT of work to get it there though for me.

PS: We use a Allen and Heath QU24 and everyone can set their own mix. Similar to the X32 in that regard. A digital mixer is pretty important with IEMs.
 
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