Fender Series 3000 Owners Manual - Page 19

Section II: How to Use Your 3000 • Mixer, a SelfTeaching Guide • • The Artistry of Mixing The sound system operator usually has a title having something to do with "technical operations" or "sound crew" or some other title implying behind-thescenes status. But the sound system operator also deserves to be recognized as an artist - as much an artist, in fact, as the musicians or performers on stage. At one time, a performance of any type had to be held in a room (or outdoor area) small enough that the performance could be properly heard by everyone in the (small) audience. That just isn't true anymore. Most performances now depend on some type of sound equipment either for sound reinforcement or for sound effects or both. In other words, the sound system has become an integral part of. the performance. In fact, many performances simply couldn't be held without a sound system. Knowing this, the sound system operator faces the responsibility of carrying the audio portion of a performance to everyone in the audience. The orchestra balance, once solely the responsibility of the orchestra conductor, is now in the hands of the sound system operator. The tonal character of an instrument, once controlled solely by the musician, is now controlled by the musician and the sound system operator. The quality and intelligibility of a voice, once the exclusive responsibility of the vocalist, now depends a great deal on the vocalist's microphone technique and the abilities of the sound system operator. In brief, the sound system operator now shares a significant portion of the artistic responsibility for a performance (and that can be a "performance" of any kind, from a live musical drama to a rock concert to a guest speaker at your place of worship). As you learn to use your Fender 3000 Series Mixer, you will find that it enhances your capabilities and helps you carry out those artistic responsibilities. For that reason, in this manual, we recognize your artistic responsibilities and we comment on the artistic as well as the technical nature of the various connections and controls. The Exercises The Purpose These "Exercises" to allow you to learn how to use your Mixer's controls and switches and to begin to appreciate the things you can do during an actual performance. And, even though that "performance" may be anything from a large outdoor rock concert to a special choir service at your place of worship, learning the controls and switches now will get you past the "mechanics" stage (what happens when I turn down the "Mid".control?) and farther towards the "artist" stage (how can I improve the vocal quality of that nasal-voiced singer?). The Site There's no reason why these exercises can't be done at home, in your living room. It's possible, of course, that you may want to set up a pair of loudspeakers, one or two microphones and several pieces of external electronics and that you may want to try out the system at higher than livingroom sound levels! If your living room doesn't give you the required space or your neighbors (or family) won't put up with the sound levels, we suggest that you practice "on-site," that is, wherever your "performance" will take place. The Mixer In these next few sections, we'll discuss the controls and features of the 3216. If you have a 3212 or 3208, you have the same controls and features as the 3216 (just fewer Input Channels). If you have a 3206 or 3106, you can skip over sections that refer to controls that you don't have. Check out the box labeled "Differences" at the beginning of each section to find out how the discussions in that section apply to your Mixer. The Equipment Your Fender 3000 Series Mixer includes just about every piece of electronics you need to perform these exercises, You just add the sources (microphones, etc) and loudspeakers! You should have at least one microphone, preferably of the type you'll be using "on the job." If you'll be using several types of microphones, try to get one of each type for your exercise sessions. For your musical sources, use a cassette (or reel-to-reel) machine, preferably a high-quality, stereo player/recorder like you would use in a home stereo system. You may need a pair of "RCA/phono jack to 14/ " phone plug" adapters. Ask your Fender Dealer about these adapters. Get a collection of tapes; search out some with strong solo instruments (and voices). We'll pretend that these tapes are live instruments (which is the reason you should look for lots of good solo passages). Also prepare a tape of the voice of someone you know very well and talk with often (your spouse or a close friend is an excellent choice). If that person sings, ask them to sing. If they feel shy at being recorded, have them read from a book or newspaper. The idea is to get the chance to hear how the controls on your Fender Mixer affect the sound of a voice that you know very well. Your own voice, by the way, is a very poor choice for this test! (Remember how foreign your own voice sounded the first time you heard it on a tape recorder!) Imagine how the microphone will be used in a live performance and ask your friend to duplicate those conditions as much as possible. For example, if you will be mixing a live musical performance, the performers will most likely hold a microphone close to their mouths and sing loudly. Thus, you should ask your friend to do 17