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[Brian Jojade]

Well, if the sound co is hired to set up monitors, then yes, that should be part of sound check. 

I prefer to rough in FOH mix and then bring in the monitors to taste after that.  I've found that by doing that the average monitor mix level ends up being lower, as the FOH volume makes the artist happy, and the monitor simply cleans up the sound for them.

Getting the monitor mix on stage right before the show starts is critical if you only have one sound guy.  Personally, except for the very tiny shows, I prefer having a monitor tech along for the ride as well.

[Tim McCulloch]

Im with Milt on this. If you don't ask, you don't get it. How do we know what the musicians want?  i always look for signals or something. If they don't do anything to say or get my attention for monitors i assume they are happy. I wouldn't wanna mess things up.

The sound guy should have asked the band, not the other way around.  He's the 'professional' and if the band doesn't start right in with "I need my vocal in this wedge" he should find out if the band doesn't use/need monitors (yes, Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus), or at the conclusion of the FOH check he should ask "what about monitors?"

It should not be incumbent upon the band to ask for something that is routinely done, the soundperson should be taking the leadership role.

[Steve M Smith]

It should not be incumbent upon the band to ask for something that is routinely done, the soundperson should be taking the leadership role.

Absolutely - especially for those of us working with bands which have little or no experience of working with a full PA setup.


Stve.

[Bob Leonard]

The sound company has the responsibility to work with the act and insure monitors are placed properly, rung out, working properly and adjusted as needed as the act requests. This should have been done without having to ask for it to be done, and done as a cooperative effort.

This has nothing to do with reading minds or any other such horse shit. Regardless of the acts level or venue size the act should never have to go to the sound company and ask for monitors or anything else for that matter. The sound company should have approached the act and broached this subject to begin with.

EC: When do we check the monitors and get them put in the right place.

Soundco: You didn't tell us you wanted to check the monitors.

EC: I hope you'll be happy doing conference rooms at the Holiday Inn.

[Milt Hathaway]

The sound company has the responsibility to work with the act and insure monitors are placed properly, rung out, working properly and adjusted as needed as the act requests. This should have been done without having to ask for it to be done, and done as a cooperative effort.

You're right. I didn't see where that occurred in the original comment.

This has nothing to do with reading minds or any other such horse shit.

Wow, ok, whatever.

EC: I hope you'll be happy doing conference rooms at the Holiday Inn.

Well, I do like being able to pay for my gear.

[Jamin Lynch]

The sound company has the responsibility to work with the act and insure monitors are placed properly, rung out, working properly and adjusted as needed as the act requests. This should have been done without having to ask for it to be done, and done as a cooperative effort.

This has nothing to do with reading minds or any other such horse shit. Regardless of the acts level or venue size the act should never have to go to the sound company and ask for monitors or anything else for that matter. The sound company should have approached the act and broached this subject to begin with.

EC: When do we check the monitors and get them put in the right place.

Soundco: You didn't tell us you wanted to check the monitors.

EC: I hope you'll be happy doing conference rooms at the Holiday Inn.

Size does matter:

Here in the small sand box, we are lucky to get a rider, stage plot or input list. And when we do they are not current or correct. So we have to get our info directly from the band, at time of set up. That's why communication is key.

Over there in the big sand box. The layout is usually known long before the show. And the sound co. is expected to have it right.

[Mark McFarlane]

The sound guy should have included setting monitor levels as part of your sound check.  He is either lazy or clueless.

When I work with bands I start by getting them all together, usually around the drums, and explain my preferred workflow for soundcheck, i.e. step by step what I expect to happen over the next 10-30 minutes. Monitors are preset for vocals and any acoustic guitars, usually a little bass in the drum mons and a little kick in the bass mons, 


We go through the backline when I am providing backline, I do a quick FOH level mix then monitors then iterate FOH EQ and levels, then mons again.  I can usually do this in one song.  I stand next to each musician and listen to what they are hearing and generally I can dial in their monitors with very little input. 

Sound check always ends with the opening song so everything sounds great to both the band and the audience when they start the gig.  This approach has worked very well for me, much better than ending soundcheck with a random song that is very different from the opening song.

[Roland Clarke]

There are still a lot of unprofessional people out there.  A drummer friend of mine was out with a fairly well known international act, he told me that they had just done a gig in Germany the night before and the monitors were terrible even after the guy spent over an hour soundchecking them, go figure?

[Corey Scogin]

We played an outdoor show recently...

Sounds like more of a breakdown in expectations on both sides.  The sound person was waiting for the performers to let him know what they wanted in their monitors and the performers were waiting to be asked.  Sure, it may be more professional for the sound person to explicitly ask but it's also more professional for the performer to ask instead of simply remarking that the monitors are off.

I've found that what a band expects regarding communication protocol varies with every band.  Some bands won't play a note until you ask them, some get up there and treat it like a band rehearsal then expect you to have everything just right within moments.  More communication = less unmet expectations.  I have to remind myself of this over and over again as I often find myself frustrated with a band that does not communicate with me and who is likely waiting on me to initiate communication with them.  Of all the areas I need work on, this is probably 1st on the list.

[duane massey]

Unless I am missing something the OP said the monitors were "off", as in "not working". I can't imagine anyone who considered themselves a professional that would not at least ask the band if they wanted anything in the monitors before walking off. Sadly, I have had this happen to me on several gigs over the years in the Houston area, including a show at a major venue with a highly-regarded sound provider. The monitor engineer just walked away while the FOH guy got his levels set and didn't come back until someone chased him down, and then bailed out again as soon as the band was into the 2nd song for sound check. Inexcusable.

[ProSoundWeb Community]