Definition of Live sound mixing
Live sound mixing is the blending of multiple sound sources by an audio engineer using a mixing console or software. Sounds that are mixed include those from instruments and voices which are picked up by microphones (for drum kit, lead vocals and acoustic instruments like piano or saxophone and pickups for instruments such as electric bass) and pre-recorded material, such as songs on CD or a digital audio player. Individual sources are typically equalised to adjust the bass and treble response and routed to effect processors to ultimately be amplified and reproduced via a loudspeaker system. The live sound engineer listens and balances the various audio sources in a way that best suits the needs of the event.
Related terms
Sound reinforcement system
A sound reinforcement system is the combination of microphones, signal processors…
Automixer
An automixer, or automatic microphone mixer, is a live sound mixing device that…
Spill (audio)
Spill (also known as bleed and leakage) is the occurrence in sound recording…
Gain before feedback
In live sound mixing, gain before feedback (GBF) is a practical measure of how much a…
Virtual mixer
A Virtual Mixer is a software application that runs on a computer or other digital audio…
Overhead microphone
Overhead microphones are those used in sound recording and live sound reproduction to…
Gain stage
In audio engineering, a gain stage is a point during an audio signal flow that the…
Tape recorder
An audio tape recorder, also known as a tape deck, tape player, tape machine, or simply…
Fader creep
Fader creep is a colloquial term used in audio recording to describe a tendency for…
Questions people ask
Real questions from the Stack Exchange community – follow a link to read the discussion.
- Software for Live Multi-Tracking Recording & Mixing · Sound Design SE
Frequently asked questions
What is Live sound mixing?
Live sound mixing is the blending of multiple sound sources by an audio engineer using a mixing console or software. Sounds that are mixed include those from instruments and voices which are picked up by microphones (for drum kit, lead vocals and acoustic…
Sources & credits
- Wikipedia: Live sound mixing – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Image by Shepzy at English Wikipedia – Public domain