# The Monitor Engineer's Mission: Crafting the Perfect On-Stage Mix While the Front of House (FOH) engineer crafts the sonic experience for the audience, another equally critical role is being performed side-stage: the Monitor Engineer. Your audience isn't in the crowd; your audience is the band. Your mission is to provide each performer with a custom mix that allows them to hear exactly what they need to deliver their best possible performance. If the band can't hear themselves or each other properly, the entire show can fall apart. A great monitor engineer is a communicator, a technician, and a musician's best friend on a chaotic stage. This guide will cover the core principles of monitor mixing that apply to any console, from a Behringer X32 to a DiGiCo SD-series. # The Core Principles of Monitor Mixing Your job is fundamentally different from FOH. You're not creating one balanced mix; you're creating multiple, personalized mixes simultaneously. # ✅ 1. Communication is Your #1 Tool Before you touch a single fader, you need to talk to the musicians. Understand their language. When a singer asks for a "warmer" vocal, they might mean they need a little less high-end EQ or more low-mids. When a guitarist says their monitor "feels weird," you have to translate that into a technical solution. Build a rapport with the band, establish clear hand signals for during the show, and always be listening to their needs. # ✅ 2. Gain Before Feedback: The Constant Battle Feedback is the high-pitched squeal that happens when a microphone picks up the sound coming out of a speaker, creating a looping, ever-loudening signal. This is the monitor engineer's biggest enemy. Your primary technical challenge is to get a signal loud enough for the performer to hear without causing feedback. Ringing Out Monitors: Before the show, you must "ring out" your monitor wedges. This involves slowly turning up a microphone's level in the monitor until it begins to feed back. You then use a Graphic EQ (GEQ) on that monitor's output to find the exact frequency that is feeding back and cut it slightly. You repeat this process until the monitor is stable at a loud volume. Mic Placement & Technique: Proper microphone placement and encouraging the vocalist to sing close to the mic are crucial first lines of defense against feedback. # ✅ 3. Less Is More: Clarity Over Clutter A monitor mix is not a full album mix. It's a utility mix. A drummer might only need to hear the kick, snare, bass, and lead vocal to stay locked in. A vocalist might want their voice way out front with a little bit of guitar and keyboard for pitch reference. Overloading a monitor mix with every single instrument can create a wall of sound that is just as unhelpful as hearing nothing at all. Start with the essentials for each player and add other elements only as requested. # ✅ 4. Wedges vs. In-Ear Monitors (IEMs) The tools you use will drastically change your approach. - Wedges (Floor Monitors): These are traditional speakers on stage pointing at the musicians. They contribute to the overall stage volume and are susceptible to feedback. Each wedge mix must be carefully EQ'd to fit its environment. - In-Ear Monitors (IEMs): These are custom-molded earbuds that provide a direct audio feed to the performer. - Benefits: They eliminate feedback, dramatically lower stage volume (which cleans up the FOH mix), and protect the musicians' hearing - Considerations: The mix needs to be more complete, often in stereo, with effects like reverb to sound natural, as the performer is sonically isolated from the room. # The Power of Aux Sends (Mix Busses) So how do you create multiple, independent mixes? The answer is Auxiliary (Aux) sends, which are also known as mix busses on digital consoles. Each musician's monitor (whether it's a wedge or an IEM pack) is fed by a dedicated Aux send. ## Pre-Fader is Non-Negotiable This is the single most important concept in monitor mixing. Your Aux sends must be set to "Pre-Fader." What it means: The signal is sent to the Aux bus before it reaches the channel fader that the FOH engineer is using. Why it's crucial: This ensures that when the FOH engineer pulls down the guitar fader for the audience mix, the guitarist's monitor level remains exactly where they want it. The FOH mix and the monitor mixes are completely independent of each other's fader levels. **Signal Flow:** [Channel Input/Preamp] -> [PRE-FADER Aux Send Knob/Fader] -> [Aux/Bus Master] -> [Output to Wedge/IEM] The FOH fader is on a separate parallel path and does not affect this flow. # Building a Mix For each musician, you will go down the channel list and use the dedicated Aux send knobs or faders (e.g., "Aux 1" for the lead singer, "Aux 2" for the guitarist) to build their personal mix, sending the desired amount of each instrument to their monitor output. # Final Thought: Be the Rock for the Band A monitor engineer's job is often high-pressure and goes unnoticed by the audience. However, your success is directly reflected in the quality of the performance. When the band is comfortable, confident, and inspired by what they hear on stage, they can connect with the music and deliver a truly memorable show for the audience. You are the foundation upon which a great live performance is built.