Wedges & Fills vs. IEMs

Originally?published?in?Worship Musician.

While not necessarily ranking up there with debates about proper cable coiling techniques (over-under is of course the correct answer) or the merits of 96kHz audio in live sound applications, there does seem to be two camps that emerge around whether to go with stage monitors (wedges and fills) or with in-ear monitors (IEMs). At its root, this is a big speakers vs. little speakers debate and personally, I don’t think there is that strong of a case to be made for sticking with huge speakers strewn across the stage in most church environments. Borrowing from a session I sat in on from Allen & Heath USA Live Sound and Touring Manager Mike Bangs (Katy Perry, Eric Clapton, Aerosmith, George Strait) a while back, let’s see how each option stacks up.?

At its root, this is a big speakers vs. little speakers debate

First off, this decision is largely up to the musicians in the equation when we’re talking about live sound touring. But with many churches, this need not be the case. We can offer up options and help guide the decision-making process. As I noted, there are many benefits that can come from switching over from wedges on the stage to an IEM system, let’s make sure we are well-equipped to tell that story. We’ll stay focused here on the house of worship application (this is Worship Musician magazine!), but note that the pros and cons may slightly vary in some other live sound applications.?

Pros and Cons:?

So, what are some of the reasons why wedges and fills might not be a good idea for your church? The ‘cons’ list for wedges and fills looks something like this:

• They are very loud!
• Disruptive to front of house — lots of undesirable frequencies coming off the back of wedges
• High latency — ‘out of time’ with the house system?
• Poor point of reference — what musicians hear doesn’t equate to what the monitor or FOH position is hearing
• Inconsistent — different phase and frequency response based on where musicians are standing
• ‘Recycled’ audio — audio fires back into the microphone and creates possible feedback issues
• Space inefficient — they take up a lot of space on the stage and don’t look great
• Power hungry — additional power amps needed and/or more robust/dedicated AC power

There are a few pros to think about with wedges and fills, though. For some musicians and scenarios, the ‘they are very loud!’ point above could be in the pro column. The energy that is created on the stage and the sense of sonic cohesion that properly functioning wedges create is often a desirable effect. This is an important element here to keep in mind as the suggestion to switch over to IEMs is frequently met with this simple point as the major reason why wedges are better. But there are ways to bring about this sense of cohesion and excitement and energy with IEMs if the system is designed and managed correctly — it needn’t be a con for IEM usage. So perhaps it is the case that ‘increased vibe and sonic cohesion’ is a pro for wedges, and a possible con for IEM that seems to be the leading cause of musician resistance to the switch.?

On the IEMs side pro list, there are a few key points to highlight:?

• They are loud as you need them to be. The perceived volume of IEMs is much greater, but the actual volume can often come down. This helps to prevent hearing damage — a great pro! The ‘earplug’ aspect of IEMs can work to cut down otherwise damaging loud sounds on the stage. Hear what you want to hear and little or nothing else
• They aren’t disruptive to front of house
• They have very low latency (from earpiece to ear canal)
• They are an excellent point of reference — the ‘earplug’ effect gives a more ‘pure’ delivery of audio to the performers

Getting the IEM mix right:?

How might we work to overcome the possible con for IEMs as it relates to the purported lack of vibe and the fear of sonic isolation? First off, it is important to get a sense of what the musicians who are on wedges and fills experience on the stage. Go and stand in their position during a rehearsal. Stand where the bassist stands, kneel next to the drummer’s throne, and make a mental map of the sorts of things that seem readily present in their particular position. Then think about how you might go about closely recreating that sonic experience in in-ear monitors. Rather than working from a clone of FOH, work from a clone of their wedge and/or fill mix. Once you think you are close to an in-ear mix that aligns with the existing wedge and fill mix, toss on your own in-ears at the musician’s stage position and start to do A/B testing. If you can have musicians test out the IEM mix from a starting point that is very close to what they are already experiencing, you are much more likely to convince them to make the leap. According to Mike Bangs, “If you can get this matched up as a starting point and then just pound them with their voice or instrument over the top of that mix, most musicians and vocalists would be overjoyed.”?

Cake and eat it, too?:?

One other option is to transition slowly from wedges and fills by introducing IEMs into the mix — run both. If you are going to go this route, it is usually best to treat the wedges and fills more like a low-frequency ‘energy’ machine and route a good chunk of the mids and highs to the IEMs only. Anything above about 500Hz doesn’t need to be in the wedge. This approach removes a few of the wedges and fills cons from the equation as feedback and recycling are dramatically reduced. One other option here is to add subs or transducer/shaker/thumper drum thrones or haptic bass platforms to IEMs so that the very low-frequency energy is still felt by the musicians while the rest of the frequency spectrum is covered in their in-ears. Basically, if the sort of ‘vibe’ or energy that musicians fear they will be missing with IEMs is really the low-frequency thump, use dedicated devices or a purpose-built wedge mix to make up the difference — (subtly) shake the stage.?

Stereo Ambience:

Another quick note on how to ensure that IEM mixes are presenting a sense of vibe and presence within the sonic stage — always opt for stereo in-ear mixes. Being able to mirror how the instruments are placed on the stage (the bassist slightly to the vocalist’s left, the guitarist on her right, etc.) will go a long way to alleviating the sense of being isolated or disconnected from the stage setup and interplay. To this point, deploying stereo ambiance mics would likely be the most powerful combo in switching people over from wedges and I consider them a must-do for all IEM mixes. In an ideal situation, there would be two mics (in stereo) if being fed to a stereo IEM mix. It kinda makes sense since we were created with stereo hearing and it is how we experience the natural world, hence mono mixes feel very u

Lastly, it may make sense to consider the addition of the ambient mic on personal monitor mixers like the Allen & Heath ME-1 into the mix. The onboard ME-1 ambient mic keeps performers in touch with the stage sound and lets them hear the rest of the band and communicate with each other without needing to pull out their earpieces. If the ‘vibe’ or energy that the musicians think may be lacking with an IEM rig really relates to the lack of hearing the hoots and hollers (or reminders that it is a Bb minor chord) from musicians right next to them that don’t have mics, an ME-1 ambient mic that they can control as needed might be just what the doctor ordered.

Final thoughts:?

While there are few absolute right and wrong answers in sound system design and audio mixing, I do tend to lean toward the IEM approach myself when it comes to most churches. Perhaps some hybrid approach is necessary if the musicians are really used to feeling the room move with 18” subs pounding in the drum monitor. But for churches that have the technical staff and the budget to make a complete IEM shift, it can save you a lot of monitoring headaches, help to protect hearing health and make for an all-around better musical experience for all.?

By Jeff Hawley

Jeff Hawley currently heads up the marketing for Allen & Heath USA. Jeff has a diverse background as a musician, engineer, and trendsetting industry executive. In addition to performing and producing everything from noise music to disco and Afro-Cuban jazz to avant-garde klezmer, Jeff has designed award-winning music industry products and accessories and directed the branding and marketing functions for a number of top musical instrument and pro audio brands. He enjoys repairing old truck engines, studying logical positivism, and listening to George Jones.

Connect with him at?www.dhirubhai.net/in/audiohawley