MACKIE ONYX multitrack rig - tim's lessons from the field

timapter

timapter

Veteran
Hey everyone,

so reading lots of post by Phil and company, and having seen some activity here regarding multitracking to laptop rigs and stuff, i thought i'd post what i've been up to lately...

I was tasked with a tough show at the end of last year. Think american idol, on a much lower budget, not video mixed live, but with a live audience nonetheless.

That means live mix to Camera A, up to 8 track multitrack backups, and a live amplified mix for the venue. Simultaneously. On your own. Think having to fly your whole rig to Zambia every second week to shoot a batch of episodes. Think 2 reality crew units shooting during the day after I've been mixing ALL NIGHT and am not on set to supervise, where the commissioning editor of the show has INSISTED we use local crew - in a country where tech skills almost don't exist.

Welcome to hell, I thought. but somehow we killed it. This thread will hopefully cover how...
 
First thing I tasked myself with was the budget toss up. Inititally I was all fired up to import a Lectro venue system, until I realised the import costs into South Africa for that kind of gear... I would have eaten up my budget on that alone. So this was seriously a case of wringing the highest production value from gear that I could take into Africa easily and not die if it disappeared at the airport. That said - production wanted at least *a bit* of quality on the audio side.

I started by looking at creating an idiot proof sound rig for location guys with very little experience. This was an area I DIDNT skimp on. I already have 2 sound devices 302 mixers, and with use of the internal limiting settings, and a VERY rigid gain structure for them to follow in terms of line up to the Z1u cam's they shot on, we ended up with a "clip proof" system. They were given MKH416 shotguns, and I convinced production to carpet interior locations. This worked for me because the treated environment coupled with the extra reach of the 416's, PLUS their reliability meant I was more likely to get decent results. Two potential weaknesses? recording under, and being off mic. This was solved with a very serious meeting about recording too low and the implications this would have on a camera like the z1's noise floor, and then a quick session on how i would murder anyone swinging from the hip instead of aiming their mic properly. The content was mainly simple interviews, and we didnt have any problems - luckily, our guys lacked training, but they were intelligent and quick to learn.

The next step was figuring out the multimix situation in the venue where performances were held (again, think american idol) - a massive old theatre in downtown lusaka.

Luckily, one thing we had on our side was that SOMEWHERE we managed to source an HK PA rig in Lusaka that would not fly with us - that was immediately amplification and speakers sorted.

On the mixing front, my only real option in a realistic price bracket was the Onyx 1620 Mixer, equipped with firewire, and coupled (my god its not Mac!) with a Dell Inspiron laptop (core2duo 2.4, 4 gb ram) running Nuendo 3.0...

The reason I went with Nuendo and a PC was because A, I already had both, but B because Nuendo has incredible routing functions which allowed me to set up separate software EQ and plugins for tracks coming in, apply the effects and send them back to the PA, and still leave my camera tracks and multitracks untouched. Power. ;)

I also used an additional SD302 as a mastering unit for the output of the Mackie sends going to our A Camera - this basically meant I got to interface with that camera incredibly quickly, and immediately put my gain structure going to camera into a language I could easily understand... SD +8dBVU!

Next up, choosing the right mics for the job and routing those suckers into the three simultaneous mixes I had going on... This may turn into a long post. I'll add to it tomorrow, along with some photographs...

Hope its a decent read... fire away with any questions.
 
Tim, keep posting!! This is an excellent read. I was busy or I would have replied earlier.

My question is what instructions you gave the newbies on mixing.
 
Tim, I grew up in Guatemala. This all has a certain resonance. Great stuff. Making it happen will stay with you for life. It never is the same when you just take it off the shelf. Write more....thanks!
 
timapter said:
On the mixing front, my only real option in a realistic price bracket was the Onyx 1620 Mixer, equipped with firewire, and coupled (my god its not Mac!) with a Dell Inspiron laptop (core2duo 2.4, 4 gb ram) running Nuendo 3.0...

The reason I went with Nuendo and a PC was because A, I already had both, but B because Nuendo has incredible routing functions which allowed me to set up separate software EQ and plugins for tracks coming in, apply the effects and send them back to the PA, and still leave my camera tracks and multitracks untouched. Power. ;)

I also used an additional SD302 as a mastering unit for the output of the Mackie sends going to our A Camera - this basically meant I got to interface with that camera incredibly quickly, and immediately put my gain structure going to camera into a language I could easily understand... SD +8dBVU!
Click to expand...

Great stuff Tim and thanks for sharing. I have to second the Onyx mixers. They are hard to beat for the price. The pre-amps are quiet and they are very flexible for live sound and recording. I have a similar setup where I run 6-8 mics through the Onyx, then run a line from the main mix to an SD 302 for the camera. I record each channel to my Mac and then filter the live sound through a Sabine FBX-2400.
 
Keep it coming tim! sounds like a good gig!

I have that mixer but haven't used it yet on location so its nice to read about it.
 
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