How To Run An Analog Soundboard

In this instructable, I am going to go over the basics of running an analog soundboard.  Many people can get overwhelmed with all of the knobs and buttons and such on a soundboard, but it's nothing to be afraid of.  Once you learn one channel, then the rest are exactly the same.  (In most cases.)  For this instructable, I will be showing how to run a small Berhinger board because I am not allowed to take pictures of the boards I use for other companies, so I have to use my personal equipment.  Running a small board is the same as a large board, the only difference is that there are less channels, so there is less that you can do with it.

Also, keep in mind that a Berhinger board is one of the cheapest you can possibly buy, and you get what you pay for.  So if you are buying a board and there is the slightest chance that you can afford a better brand, you should defiantly get a better brand than Berhinger.

I will not cover how to run a digital board, since all digital boards are completely different from each other.  Even if I showed you how to run one digital board, there wouldn't be much you could glean from that if you were using another board.

I am starting with the assumption that you know how to make the connections to the board, which is pretty self-explanatory.  If you are not familiar with making these connections, then there is a very nice instructable here that covers that.  You may also contact me if you have any questions regarding this or any other sound issue, and I will either help you over the internet, or I can refer you to an AV consultant in your area.

Step 1 Adjusting Loudness

There are two main adjustments on a sound board for the loudness.  The gain is the pot (aka knob) at the top of the channel, and the volume is the fader at the bottom of the channel.  The "textbook" way to mix sound would be to bring your volume to unity (Unity is 0db on the volume, which is aprox. 3/4 of the way between the bottom and the top) and make all of your adjustments at the gain.  However, this is not normally practical, unless you are only mixing one mic.  I normally make my more permanent adjustments at the gain, and my more temporary adjustments at the volume.  Please note that if you have having issues with feedback or clipping (see my instructable "Audio Problems" for more information), you should make your adjustments at the gain.  Also note that as you adjust your EQ (see step 3), you will be adjusting the loudness of specific frequencies, which may make it seem like your volume is louder.

You can also adjust your overall volume with your main faders.  There are three basic configurations of main faders (aka mains): Mono, Combined stereo (Where the left and right are controlled by one fader), and split stereo (where there is a left and a right fader).  There are some boards which will have both a mono main and a combined stereo main.

Comments

[dog digger]

I thought your user account pic was familiar and when I saw the Hi-res pic immediately that It was a yamaha mc2404 mixer. We got one for free and it's our rehearsal room console

[thegeeke]

Ya, it's not a bad mixer... However that's not me in the pic... I would never use duct tape on a mixer! :)