Solo Boost: sounds great in IEM but soundman says it's not enough boost

macfly

macfly

Inspired
I'm now about 3 months into tweaking the AX8. While I feel like I have it set up so that it sounds great, I have one remaining thing to tweak out. I have set up out 1 for FOH and out 2 for IEM. I started from Austin Buddy and tweaked out 1 to sound great on my CLR. Soundman and a couple of guitar players offered unsolicited compliments on tone, but soundman says that my solos are not boosted.

I have a Null Filter block near the end of the chain (there's a PEQ behind it) set for a 4dB boost with lowcut set at 100 and hicut at 6500.

Out 1 and the PEQ are devoted just to the CLR and FOH. They are set both to sound good and to minimize feedback. The hi and low cut on the Filter block are because boosting level at the gain I'm getting from the amp and pedal, the low end got woofy and the top end had some shrillness in places.

That solo boost is loud AF in my earbuds and sounds just like I would have it on an amp when I listen to the CLR in the room. I'm right on the edge of microphonic feedback if I turn the guitar to the side (with the monitor behind me), so I don't really know what else to do. I have the gate at the input and another right behind the cabinet...not sure that's the right placement, nor that my settings on the gate are optimal. The gate does help the microphonic feedback from running away if I mute the strings.

What do you guys think? (Attaching the preset if that helps--solo is scene 4)
 

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4 dB (after the Amp!) should be more than enough. I'd kill a band member if he'd go much louder than that for leads. Luckily I'm the only one doing leads.

BTW, the Filter is set to 3.5 dB, not 4, in your preset.
 
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Yeah I always set my Filter solo boost in the FX8 at 3dB...maybe there's something about the eq and/or gain that causes it to wash out in the mix? It's so loud in my ears that I had to put an FX loop in front of Out 2 so I could turn that scene down 2db into my IEM
 
Thanks so much for looking. I know you are a pro at this--I am not!. Solo is Scene 4. It's set to the y value, which is 4dB
 
I'd do soundcheck at -2B or roll down the volume knob. That way you've the gas when you need it and volume in context sounds dynamic if done right.

But yeah...I don't get him not boosting your solos. I'm assuming he does, but letting you know that your boost method isn't cutting thru.
 
brokenvail said:
Sounds like he has you to low in the mix so the boost is not enough
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This. Had the same thing happen at our last gig. 4 dB boost should be more than enough. I have mine set at +2.6 IIRC. When I watched the video of our gig the drums were the loudest part of the mix. Soundman told me he was boosting my solos anyway...shouldn´t have to do that. After the solo I turn off my boost, he pulls back the fader, and the guitar is gone in the mix...people in the audience afterwards complained they couldn´t hear the guitar...maybe the soundguy is a drummer? :rolleyes:
 
brokenvail said:
Sounds like he has you to low in the mix so the boost is not enough
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Good thought...I'll have to get a guitar player friend to listen and see about that. Question: Does unity gain have anything to do with this? Soundman and I have talked and checked to make sure we're at unity gain...so when I set levels for my patches I have them going through a mixer (unfortunately only a Mackie 402) and set everything to unity according to markings on the Mackie, and unity on the AX8 (something I've seen, I think an Austin Buddy video, said unity on the AX8 is around 11:00-11:30 on Out 1 and Out 2 controls). We checked in our last soundcheck and he said it was good.
 
bstaley said:
My boost is usually 3 to 3.5db. Perhaps you should bump the mids up a little too.
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Yep...thought I'd look into this next. Does it matter that I have the low end and top end cut? The solo patch is noticeably more mid-heavy. I have read in here that 2K is a good place, so I played around with boosting that with a PEQ. On top of the existing eq, I didn't like how it sounded but I guess I could play with gain and width of the boost more.
 
gitfruit said:
...maybe the soundguy is a drummer? :rolleyes:
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Hahahaha! Actually he is...

He's a great guy and while he is REALLY busy, I'm hoping to carve out a little time to talk through it with him. You guys are giving me some good questions to ask.
 
macfly said:
Good thought...I'll have to get a guitar player friend to listen and see about that. Question: Does unity gain have anything to do with this? Soundman and I have talked and checked to make sure we're at unity gain...so when I set levels for my patches I have them going through a mixer (unfortunately only a Mackie 402) and set everything to unity according to markings on the Mackie, and unity on the AX8 (something I've seen, I think an Austin Buddy video, said unity on the AX8 is around 11:00-11:30 on Out 1 and Out 2 controls). We checked in our last soundcheck and he said it was good.
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Unity gain is somewhat meaningless in a live situation, from a practical standpoint. That’s why mixers have gain knobs on the channels, and why gear has a volume knob.

The (potential) issue is the relative volume among your different tones, not the overall output of the Axe.
 
Cutting through the mix isn't about volume as you may think. Most guitars have a scooped tone, by pushing back some of those mid's you will cut through the mix with out needing as much volume. I have two things going on for my solo boosts. The first is about a 1db boost of the master volume and the other is a PEQ boosting the mids, keeping the high where it was, and dropping a bit of the bottom out. I boost the mids starting about 500 and at about 1.1k at the peak. It might sound a little different when you are playing by yourself, but with the band , you will really jump out.
 
chris said:
Unity gain is somewhat meaningless in a live situation, from a practical standpoint. That’s why mixers have gain knobs on the channels, and why gear has a volume knob.
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Disagree here, at least in principal. Gain staging is audio engineering 101. It’s one of the first things I teach my interns and students. Finding the nominal level for analog gain stages and maintaining unity through digital gain stages is literally the definition of gain staging.

But that’s a tangent. The issue is the difference of the mix in the IEMs vs the FOH mix, where the guitar sounds like it’s sitting well below the fold. I agree, just push up the fader for solos.
 
philipacamaniac said:
Disagree here, at least in principal. Gain staging is audio engineering 101. It’s one of the first things I teach my interns and students. Finding the nominal level for analog gain stages and maintaining unity through digital gain stages is literally the definition of gain staging.

But that’s a tangent. The issue is the difference of the mix in the IEMs vs the FOH mix, where the guitar sounds like it’s sitting well below the fold. I agree, just push up the fader for solos.
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Gain staging is important for sure.

The Axe does not need to output unity gain for the presets to be balanced. It’s really not an important factor compared to many other things in a live situation. Use the volume knob like a volume knob.
 
I do 3.5-4db and it’s enough without a blast effect. Any more and it really sticks out. Sound guy is a goober.
 
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