Mixing on a Presonus 16.4.2 console for a small town festival - Event video 41

This is an extended video covering a sound system setup -- console setup, load-in, system setup, the event, and load-out for a small town festival. It was a long day, but with the plenty of help and cool weather, it was an easy show to do.
We are providing sound for Bahama Days 2022 in Bahama, NC. FOH console is the Presonus 16.4.2 with RCF NX-45A for tops and an RCF 8004-AS for the sub. Monitor speakers are Yamaha CM12V powered by a single QSC PLD 4.2 amp. This event was originally cancelled for the first of October due to hurricane Ian.
The band: Southern Guns Band.

[@MichaelAChang]

Wow, what a ton of work and physical labor. Respect!

[@dennisbeckwith5654]

as always, a good time hanging with the SLAP crew

[@stageleftaudio]

It is great working with you and Craig!!

[@RobMLyon]

I see most of the time you are running your subs in the center. I take it this is what you recommend in many of these situations. Ty again, love your videos!!

[@stageleftaudio]

You are correct, how you see the speakers deployed in the videos is the recommended way for that setup. There are some physics issues with bass frequencies, that can be easily remedied by placing subs in the center. Thanks for your comment.

[@chrisclose7793]

I enjoy sound engineering these community festivals setting up is so labour intensive but worth it in the end ,I just done sound for my local community festival and had midas pro6 martin audio w8lc and ws218x subs powered by crown and lab grupen amps with martin audio le1200 monitors

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for your comment. Looks like you are using some great gear!

[@Jimsalos]

Interesting video, thank you for sharing!

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for watching!

[@adolfomontenegro944]

hace mucho tiempo veo sus videos y han sido referencia para mí, sus equipos de sonido son profesionales, yo trabajo en alquiler de sonido, tarima y luces en mi ciudad Yumbo Colombia, Saludos y un abrazo

[@stageleftaudio]

Gracias por el comentario. ¡Me alegro de que estés disfrutando de los vídeos!

[@JimLGTv]

great.. i like your setup and all equipments

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks!

[@MaerooBand]

great job.. great equipment.. great sound produce.. fan from malaysia.. ❤❤❤❤

[@stageleftaudio]

Thank you very much!

[@kelvinkalaluka8185]

Good videos as usual.. I love SL

[@stageleftaudio]

Thank you! Glad you are enjoying them.

[@piwcrandallstown4238]

this video helped me a lot to set up for my church. i want to ask how did you run your subs separate from your speakers

[@stageleftaudio]

Thank you for your comment. The FOH signal was sent to the sub first. We used the internal crossover of the sub (xover at 90hz) to send the mid/high signals to the top speakers. This was a basic bi-amp (2-way) setup.

[@sesburada]

We love SL Videos 🤘🤘

[@paulcharters422]

Given that you had spare channels is there a reason you chose to combine snare and hi-hat, rather than using a dedicated snare mic? I usually find the frequencies and compression that I want from each are very different.

[@stageleftaudio]

Good question. I most always use one mic to cover both... but only if the snare sounds good (no odd sounds or heavy ringing). I will have the drummer play the snare and hat while we are setting up the mics. If the drummer has good stick control over the snare/hat, this is a good indication that a single mic will work. For us, placing a condenser above the hat with the snare in the back-ground, does very well. I apply some compression that accommodates both the snare and hat. For multi-band events, (with the drum kit as backline) we usually use separate mics for the hat/snare.

[@officialmoondancer]

You gotta get a trailer bro. Jumping in and out of that van is demolishing your back, not the mention the zillions of times I know you've cracked your noggin on the roof!

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for the comment! Good observation. For these smaller shows, there's enough room in the van to carry all the gear. We do have a dual-axle trailer we use for larger shows. You are right, I have cracked the noggin more than a few times!

[@carlosmiguelcr]

Excellent !!! greeting from the city of fernando de la mora PARAGUAY🇵🇾

[@stageleftaudio]

Greetings!

[@rivanoctav7730]

Niceee 👍👍

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks!

[@miditec-pd8424]

😍😍😍💪💪 woow supar lovely🌼🌼

[@galaktika177]

Молодец. Здорово получилось.

[@stageleftaudio]

Благодарю вас!

[@paolorussian1081]

Many thanks for the information. Useful with the Presonus mixer 24.4.2. The 16-channel one is unfortunately out of production. Best wishes from Gorizia, Italy.

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for your comment! Greetings!

[@johnmcquay82]

I believe nearly all of this specific generation of PreSonus boards are out of production now. I have a 16.4.2, they made a 24.4.2 and a 32.4.2 and later made AI versions which I believe ran USB rather than FireWire. I think (please don't quote me) the only mixer of this generation made now is the 16.0.2AI.

[@brianlebrun2382]

I love the RCF stuff. I'm on staff with a church here in sw Florida and run a 35000 watt RCF concert array. It's great stuff. I've been thinking about picking up a Presonus like yours for my personal use. I'm in 2 duos, 2 trios and a 4/5 piece band and my Mackie is good but there's so much more that can be done with yours. I noticed during your set up that you never had to access the 31 band eq and just used the individual channel eqs. How often is it even needed? Great video.

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for your comment. We enjoy the RCF cabinets. We rarely make FOH EQ adjustments unless there is an issue with a frequency (or two), especially for indoor events. There is an indoor event we do where FOH EQ is adjusted (subtractive EQ) to combat FOH feedback (due to physics issues with the hall). Any EQ adjustments we do are on the individual inputs and only to correct tonal issues with the affected input. As an end result, no FOH EQ should ever be needed assuming all the inputs are setup the best they can be, especially for outdoor events.

[@flugfloh6281]

Hi just a question, why you did not use the 2-track in for the MP3 playback, as this would be stereo instead of chan 15 mono, no?

[@stageleftaudio]

Good question. The sound system is setup for mono, therefore a stereo "image" would not have been possible. Also, most all of the time, we use a channel input for playback music... this allows ease of control of the MP3 player (we treat it as an instrument), and also allows for that input to be easily routed to any of the monitor channels.

[@flugfloh6281]

@@stageleftaudio Alright understood. Let me say that your videos are very interesting to watch, as myself is also doing live sound for small events here and there. And we also own Presonus gear for that. Which you dont find so much in Europe. I think its underrated here, we are very happy with the features from the 16.4.2 up to series III now. :)

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for your comment. Of the digital consoles I've mixed on (including our A&H QU), the Presonus consoles (including the 16.4.2) have the best work-flow.

[@TalentLe8159]

Good work! 👍 and can I ask how do you mix a full band through the Pa

[@stageleftaudio]

Take a look at our other videos. They may be able to help you and answer your questions. Thanks for the comment.

[@darrenriser447]

Great video. In these outdoor situations, how do you protect your equipment if it starts to rain?

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for your comment. We always use a tent for FOH (regardless of the weather). Though, we do carry different sized tarps just in case. We had the tarps for this event, but we kept them in the cargo van.

[@dparel]

I have two 15" QSC speakers that I bought for mains some years ago. I also have the Presonus 16.4.2 mixer. I wanna add a couple of monitors. Is buying a couple powered QSC speakers a good way to go for this? I was thinking 8's or 10's.

[@stageleftaudio]

QSC is good. You may want to consider the 10" speakers. In my opinion, they sound better than the 8". The 8" seems too small for any type of low frequency reproduction. We do not use powered monitors. In our professional opinion, powered monitors can be rather expensive, and because they are powered, this requires another cable to manage on stage for that monitor. Also, monitor speakers tend to get "used" more than FOH speakers, which can result in problems for the speaker. However, if you are needing monitor speakers for an install, or for a church (anything not mobile), powered speakers are usually a good choice.

[@rreider1017]

Hi - Do you ever use a digital 'stage box'? Is there any noticeable signal degradation when using an analog snake into a digital board? Would a cross-over go before or after a distribution amp? Do you remember when & where you did your first live mix for a band? Do you remember what you were using for a PA setup? Thanks for the videos and taking the time to answer our questions and I guess you could say - being a mentor.

[@stageleftaudio]

Thank you for your great comment! I hope to have a video in the future showing how Stage Left Audio started out. For digital stage boxes, there should never be any signal quality differences between digital and analog (I have personally never heard a difference). Depending on the distribution amp, it's usually best to place a crossover before them.

[@sukmagatotpurwantoro4819]

Semangat ya..dan tetap fokus. Mantabs. Saya di jakarta

[@stageleftaudio]

Terima kasih atas komentarmu!

[@petersonmwangi6579]

Hallo bob,which codeless 🎤 are you using?kindly

[@stageleftaudio]

Hi Peterson - The microphone is an Audio Technica 2000 series; this is a very basic model.

[@hendrikusdetuinman8360]

Do you have any field experience with the RCF HD 32-A as main top for PA? I am planning on running those with a single 18 inch active sub (Db Sub 18H) for bar/club and smail outside gigs with a QSC Touchmix as digital mixer. They will arrive in 2 weeks so I am really looking forward using them...

[@stageleftaudio]

Sounds like you will have a nice setup! I have no field experience with the 32-A, but I'm sure they will work well for you, especially along side the Db 18H sub. Congrats and good luck with it!

[@joelglaser5657]

That stage looks familiar. Have you done a show there previously?

[@stageleftaudio]

Good observation. The stage should look familiar. We have provided sound for this gig for the past several years. This organization is a regular client for us.

[@XIIMonkeysMusicGroup]

Wondering why not use the 32SC?

[@stageleftaudio]

We don't have the 32SC. Though we have the SL 32 and SL 32S, both of which would be too large for this event.

[@scuoladoremi]

E' possibile avere i drivers per questo mixer?

[@stageleftaudio]

Probablemente no. Ese mezclador Presonus ya no es compatible. Consulte el sitio web de Presonus. Si tienen algo para ese modelo de consola, lo podrán encontrar allí.

[@elyamzon]

What do you use for tent side cover?

[@stageleftaudio]

The standard side-walls that came with the tent.

[@aswanemil8278]

Saya selalu menunggu anda mengirim video tentang sound anda. By the way, berapa rata-rata panjang kabel mic xlr yang anda gunakan ?

[@stageleftaudio]

Hello, terima kasih atas komen. Purata panjang kabel XLR kami ialah 9.1m.

[@mertaydindogmus]

Hi, Sir. What do you think about Yamaha LS9-32?

[@stageleftaudio]

I have no experience with it, though, it appears to function somewhat the same as their TF line. I think Yamaha produces good consoles.

[@vincentrema1006]

Would you know if there's any of that Preston's machine still on sale today?

[@stageleftaudio]

"Preston's machine".... ??

[@vincentrema1006]

@@stageleftaudio the presonus Mixer 16.4.2

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks for the clarification. That model of the Presonus is very popular... finding one used (in good condition) may be difficult. I'm not sure what is available on the used market.

[@vincentrema1006]

@@stageleftaudio thanks 😊

[@SuAmigoElilegal]

Hello, how come you dont use the remote acces qith a tablet. It is much easier and fun instead of running a snake and setting infront. I have that mixer brand but the one with 16 channels. I mixed a 5 group band 2 guitars one bass or tuba electric bass and 2 singers and all i do connect everything power up everything and never touch my mixer faders at all .i mixed monitors first with the group back there and then just to the front and do my mixing real quick

[@stageleftaudio]

iPad mixing is a good tool to use. However, as a service (we are a service provider), it does not do well for our use and level of service. We do mix bands on iPads, but the iPads (and sound systems ) belong to the bands. Thanks for the comment.

[@SuAmigoElilegal]

@@stageleftaudio well I know what you mean 😏 business is bussines

[@spewmister]

I like to be able to quickly grab faders if something unexpected happens, lot easier to pull faders than to try and pull multiple levels down on an iPad

[@avidaeseuscontratempos]

🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷👍🏻☑️

[@stageleftaudio]

Thanks!

[@crispi1973]

no juzgo las vestimentas de los gringos... pero parece que vienen de trabajar en el campo... 😂

[@PranavamMusics]

Meticulous!!!

[@rciancia]

The Presonus 16.4.2 is an engineering failure !!! The 5v voltage regulators all blow out because they are undersized. You will see your INPUT and OUTPUT suddenly be gone. It happens to all of them.