The task of mixing and broadcasting the 2023 Inter-American Division Pathfinder Camporee at the multi-purpose Trelawny Stadium in Jamaica recently fell to Premiere Entertainment Services CEO Michael Spence, FOH engineer David Heron, and Waves Audio’s eMotion LV1 Live Mixer and DAS Audio PA.
The five-day youth development event associated with the Seventh-day Adventist organisation attracted a live attendance of 12,000, and was also broadcast on radio and television. Premiere Entertainment – a family-owned business that provides audio production services for churches, educational institutions, and other large-scale functions both locally and abroad – was called in to provide lights, stage, screens, power and sound reinforcement.
The team arrived a week before the commencement of the Camporee to begin the technical and precise procedure designed for the space – a process led by Spence himself. ‘Features of the event included a drama performance, vocal pieces and a live band performing for broadcast on live radio and video, as well as broadcast to social media platforms,’ Spence says. ‘At the end of the event, all the participants, singers, dramatists and the band had high commendations for the quality of sound that was delivered to them. We were satisfied to receive much commendation from the live and online audiences as well. However, what was most telling is that the client stated that the sound quality exceeded their expectations. The eMotion LV1 has been our go-to console for a number of years, and it has never failed to deliver exceptional sound quality in any situation.’
‘The main reason behind my decision to choose the LV1 is the board’s exceptional customisability, enabling me to operate efficiently, and to create a unique sound akin to a studio setting, but in a live application.’ Heron says. ‘The LV1’s sound quality is really superior.
‘A further crucial aspect is the ability to use plug-ins in a live application,’ he continues. ‘There are times when an engineer will achieve a certain type of mix in a recording or a postproduction base setting, using the plug-ins we normally use on a day-to-day basis, either in a studio setting or postproduction. With the eMotion LV1’s plug-in integration, I can use all these plug-ins in a live setting.
‘One thing that stood out the most for me was that the matrices had 12 inputs in it. With that, I was able to specifically assign different inputs into the broadcast matrix and mix it separately from the regular front-of-house mixing mode.’
Heron’s set-up also included a Waves Extreme SoundGrid Server. ‘This set-up grants me full mixing capability along with any other required adjustments. Moreover, the LV1’s set up was very quick and easy.’
Using Waves plug-ins for live mixing the Camporee was integral to Heron’s workflow. ‘My goal was to achieve a warm nice analogue tone especially for the drums and vocals,’ he says. ‘I mainly relied on the Waves SSL G-Channel, the F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ and Torque to achieve the desired drum sound. I had two groups for drums, one specifically for the kick, snare, hi-hat and cymbals, and the other group was for toms. On my group channels. I used the CLA Drums and BB Tubes.
‘I used the H-Delay Hybrid Delay for my vocal delay and the Renaissance Reverb on vocal mics and drum reverb. I love the sound that these two plug-ins produce. Although the majority of the singers were already on key, I used Waves Tune Real-Time to create an enhanced and flawless sound. Also, for following the key changes, I created different snapshots for each key, so I was able to change the key on the fly while in action using the snapshots.’
Spence sums it up: ‘The clients expected sound consistency throughout the entire five-day event. The Waves eMotion LV1 provided us with flexibility, in that it allowed us to use different plug-ins for various sound creations to suit the various instruments and vocals. It helped us to achieve our objective of producing warm analogue sound, as it complimented the speaker system selected for such purposes.’
