IEM Setup for Live gigs - what do I need?

[Axiom451]

Hello,

we are currently planning to use an IEM system for live/rehearsal use to play along with backing tracks + click

I checked many sources but got many different answers so we want to know what exactly we need.

We are 4 members (1x vox, 1x guitar, 1x bass, 1x drums)

What we have so far:
Laptop w/ Reaper (any other DAW possible)

What we plan to buy:
4x Sennheiser IEM G4 System (They have different ranges like "D" or "E", which is the best for our use?)
1x Focusrite Scarlet 18i20
1x Digital Mixer (any recommendations?)

What else do we need?

Its mostly for playing to a click while backing tracks like bass drops etc are playing for the crowd/us via the DAW
Both Guitar and Bass Amps will be digital for the PA aswell

We are "noobs" in this subject at this point so any guidance is very welcome.

 

[SamSam]

The D, E etc on the wireless units determine the frequency range (bandwidth). Difference countries have different licence free frequencies. You can find a frequency chart on the sennheiser site.

We use a presonus live rack mixer (16 channel) and two rack splitters to get the signals we need to both the front of house and our in ear mixer.

I would recommend watching some guides on YouTube, geargods and fluff both have videos on this topic with slightly different routes you can take budget permitting.

 

[Riffer]

You'll need a "split snake" to split your signal so the front of house can get all your instruments/vocal signals independently from your bands signals. That way the sound guy can mix the mains without interfering with your IEM mix.

 

[Emperoff]

The A-E letters mean frequency bands. You should get the frequency range that's legal to use in your country. Don't quote me on this but I believe frequencies over 700hz are totally fine in Germany (so I'd probably get the "D" or "E" models). In Spain for example it's not recommended to go over 694hz.

Great info here:

Radio frequencies and wireless systems – t.blog

Say goodbye to cable clutter, here is a brief overview on the topic of wireless systems.

www.thomann.de

Quick guide

Actors, singers, hosts will often find a mic cable bothersome. Don't want to get caught in a cable? Go for a radio mic! But navigating the flood of available models can be difficult:

www.thomann.de

We use Behringer X32 and Behringer X-Air mixers (depending on the band). They work great and the ability to do your own monitor mixing with the app is GODLY. Only issue is the built-in router is crap, so better buy a separate one.

The only downside is that the aux outs are limited to 6 (at least on the X-Air), so you can't have an stereo mix. Not that we use it anyway since we have a clicktrack on the other channel and we sum both to mono.

 

[l1ll1]

Seen so many Behringer X32s in the last 6 years in IEM racks. I hate using them at FoH, but apparently they work for a ton of bands.

If you're into computers and dive a little into Dante (the data protocol thats about to rule live sound and in most places in europe already does), you might get around buying an analog splitter and just use a good network hub for splitting the audio stream in the venue your playing – or take the secondary stream of their existing audio network if its free.

 

[spawnofthesith]

My band does a lot of live looping, and thus play to a click so that is the primary reason we use IEMs. We do things a lot more simple than most though. We just have our in ears and behringer P2s and we just request aux sends from the FOH and have the sound guy mix our in ears instead of the monitors.

Usually works like a charm. Only ever ran into an issue doing things that way once. It was the sound guys second day on the job, and he didn't really know what he was doing


We do have a janky backup system for the odd show that isn't equiped to handle aux sends, and we just take XLR splits into a small mixer connected to a headphone amp that goes to our P2s. Its a tiny old mixer and the 3 of us have to compromise on all having the same mix but we rarely have to bust that out.

 

[Screamingdaisy]

If you're into computers and dive a little into Dante (the data protocol thats about to rule live sound and in most places in europe already does), you might get around buying an analog splitter and just use a good network hub for splitting the audio stream in the venue your playing – or take the secondary stream of their existing audio network if its free.

Can you go into this a little bit more? How would I know if this is available as an option?

I currently use a Presonus StudioLive 16R with a couple of splitters. I’m about to upgrade to a 24R, which means another splitter and another snake.

If there’s a way I can send all 24 channels as a data feed, I’m all ears. I know it’s possible as I can route them to DAW, I didn’t know it was an option to route it direct to another mixer?

Edit - in hindsight, I think there was a venue where the soundman did this. He told me he put mine in remote mode since it was just for monitors, and thus didn’t have to patch everything over to my rack just to feed our IEM.

Either way, I’d like to know more.

 

[DEUCE SLUICE]

One nice thing about the Behringer options (X32, XR18) is that instead of using a splitter like the ART S8 you can send a split digitally to a Midas 4816-O over Ultranet. Saves buying a couple of splitters and a LOT of cabling.

I have a setup that's just an XR18, a 4816-O and a pile of the wired P2 headphone amplifiers. Eventually I'll swap out wireless IEMs for me and the singer but wired is fine for now.