Sound Production

Sound production is a skill that requires extensive technical knowledge and a careful ear for balance. Sound engineers are able to mix many sources of sound input and craft an experience for the audience to bring a show to life. This guide provides an overview of the skills required in sound production and defines the key terminology for any sound engineers to know.

Terminology

• Audio Engineer: Sometimes called a sound operator or a producer, audio engineers assist sound designers during live performances by operating the mixing board, and also set up, maintain, and troubleshoot the sound system in a venue.
• Cabling: A general term for the set up of a sound system, and specifically the rigging of electrical cable from power sources to speakers, mixers and microphones.
• Channel: The term for an input on a mixing board. Each channel has its own set of faders and dials, allowing for each source of sound to be adjusted independently.
• Condenser Mic: A general term for microphones that are made to pick up small, delicate, and complex sounds, best used for vocals and acoustic instruments. Condenser mics require a power source in order to generate signal.
• Decibel: A unit of measurement for volume, abbreviated as Db. Zero Db is the threshold of human hearing, and 140 Db is about as loud as a gunshot at close range.
• Dynamic Mic: A general term for microphones that are made to pick up loud sounds and bass, best used for drums, electric instruments, and loud vocals. The oldest and simplest type of mic, dynamic mics use a coil and magnet to generate signal.
• Feedback: Buzzing, hissing, and screeching noises caused by a “looped signal” in the sound system. The most common cause of feedback is positioning speakers in front of microphones.
• Headset Mic: A microphone affixed to a headband or worn over the ear that positions a microphone directly next to a performer’s mouth. Commonly used in musical theatre, headset microphones work wirelessly using a transmitter and receiver, like lavalier microphones.
• Lavalier Mic: Sometimes called lapel microphones or simply LAVs, these small microphones clip to an article of clothing on a performer’s body. Commonly used in film and television, lavalier microphones operate wirelessly, with the performer wearing a transmitter pack that communicates with a receiver in the booth of a venue.
• Mixing: The process of balancing various parts of a piece of music or soundscape so that each part can be heard clearly by the audience. For recorded sounds, mixing is accomplished during the recording process. For live performances, sound designers and audio engineers mix in response to the action on stage.
• Mixing Board: Often referred to as a mixer or simply “the board,” mixing boards allow different parts (or channels) of sound to be adjusted independently from one another. Mixing boards can allow for changes of volume, pan, and effects like reverb to be added and removed from a given sound.
• Monitor: Especially important in performances of live singing and music, the monitor is a dedicated speaker that plays signals from the mic or mics so that performers can hear themselves. Monitors are typically set up downstage, facing toward the performers.
• Sound Operator: Another term for audio engineer.
• Sound System: The general term for the entire arrangement of mixing boards, microphones, and speakers that are used in a venue.
• Speaker: The general term for any device which amplifies and plays sound. Speakers receive signals from the mixing board, and play that sound into the audience.