The Apprentice
To address some of the monitoring issues at the church, I have been looking at the Aviom Personal Monitoring System. Dan Gerhard, who designed the sound system for The Apprentice, selected Aviom for the live finale of the show.
His view is that he was able to keep overall stage volume to a minimum by using electronic drums and eliminating on-stage guitar and bass amplifiers. The musicians used In-ear Monitors (IEMs) connected to the Aviom Personal Mixers to allow them to hear a studio-quality stereo mix while performing. He writes:
The use of the Aviom system combined with IEMs minimized multiple sound sources in the relatively live hall. If there is a musician trying to communicate with the monitor engineer by hand signals, it puts a pretty big psychological strain on their performance. With the [Aviom] Pro16 Mixer right in front of them, they are able to control what they hear. This is a very different mentality and helps keep the musicians focused.
I have talked to our worship pastor about the Aviom system. We have also talked about whether we would keep wedges and amps onstage. Unlike Dan’s application, which was background music, our application will need to keep open air cues for the worship leader, vocalists, and electric guitar. Hence the need for hotspots. The rest of the band, bassist, drummer, second keyboard, acoustic guitar, will likely prefer IEMs over open air. Particularly if they can control their own mix.
Hey Richard – Andy B. here. What great solution for audio containment. We’ve also been pondering migrating to the IEM’s but this Aviom would be a fantastic addition to any audio setup. Does the Aviom sys. also come with IEM’s? Wouldn’t that be sweet! Thanx for bloggin’ – best on the web! ps-comin’ down to check out the coffee house some time:)
Hey Andy!
I’ve been checking in on your family blog. Very cool idea!
The IEMs are directly supported by the Aviom personal mixer (each mixer can drive wired/wireless headsets as well as active/passive wedges). The actual wireless IEM rigs are extra $$ and made by other vendors. Shure has some decent offerings for those folks who would like to go in-ear without a wire.
im a musician and i play onstage every week. At our church we use stage mons, and guitar amps, and a bass amp. the stage volume is so loud that the house is rarely turned up past 1/4. After using the aviom system in the studio i will never look at monitors the same again! Personalized mixes, and flawless sound mixed w/ silent stage volume… who could ask for more!