There is nothing better than a great performance that is reinforced with great sound. Bad sound can take the best artist and make them 'Just OK'... (though even the best sound can't help a really bad performance). It is the one position that literally puts all of the players 'in the mix' so that the audience can hear what they need to hear, how they are supposed to hear it. Oddly, though, the sound guy rarely hears about how good the mix sounded. I've become accustomed to hearing everyone's opinions on what there should be more or less of, which is really kind of sad.
Now, I'm not saying that all people who mix sound do so well and with great skill... but lets remember that there is an 'ART' to mixing. That said, there are some things that are the mark of an amateur, and (hopefully) in time they usually work themselves out.
I've had the pleasure of working with people from volunteers to absolute pros. Here are a few things that I recommend for truly respecting the role and the resulting sound:
Doing sound is a Customer Service Job - Though there is a lot of technical knowledge in the sound job, you should first be serving ALL of your customers. When you are doing soundcheck with the band, they are your customers and their requests for adjustments should not be met with any negativity. If you feel that the monitor volume is getting to a point where it will affect the mix in the audience area, you can always THINK about the request - it is likely that you can meet the performers needs by reducing something in the mix instead of just boosting everything. That is why you are the sound person and they are the performer, you can make the performer happy and be conscious of the monitor volume at the same time - true story!
When you have dialed in the stage mixes and move onto the show, the audience becomes your customers. They want nothing more than to not even think about the sound. They really just want to be able to enjoy the show.
Promoters/Venue people/Etc... are also your customers. If you have an objection to a request or demand, offer your insight in a way that shows them you want the same thing they do - a great show without incident - and you will likely be met with happier customers!
Louder is not Better - We all love to rock out, but watch for people in the audience who cringe or turn their heads away from the stage - it is pretty obvious when they do. If you think that the guitars, vocals, or cymbals might be a bit harsh, other people will too. Remember, the average audience member probably doesn't spend as much time as you do around loud music, so their hearing is actually 'better' in the mids and high frequency ranges. If the bass notes in the EDM music are making you feel like you're going to hurl, you're going to hurl... just be aware of the audiences reactions and don't just go for 'louder is better'. No one cares how big your rig is if they are walking out of a show because it is too loud.
Effects CAN be overused - I like to dial up a good mid-sized reverb sound that has lot of 'verb on tap. I like to have a delay set up with a tap-tempo so I can fatten up a chorus part or have some fun with sparse lines. Too often, though, rookie sound engineers think that a lot of reverb and/or delay is necessary... I like to have them on tap in high supply, but I use them very sparingly in the mix if there is a solo singer or a part that really can benefit from the effect. At rehearsals, I run them hotter, playing around a bit and getting a feel for what they are actually bringing to the table, so that when it is 'Go' time, I know how to listen for their contribution to the mix. a little 'verb can sweeten things for you, too much and it gets really cavernous really quickly!
Compression, do you really NEED it? - This is a tool (NOT an effect) that is best left 'OFF' if you aren't sure how to explain what the different parameters are actually doing. Many professional performers know how to work their instrument/microphone with techniques that vary the levels according to what they know the song needs, essentially mixing themselves (if you are lucky, you can have an easier time mixing when they do this! My old cover band was great in this respect, once we had sound check done, I knew I could play bass and sing and watch the mix from the stage because my guys had their rhythm and lead levels well adjusted!!). If someone is all over the place volume-wise, maybe a compressor is what you need. You should not start off by patching/inserting compressors on every channel and expecting to use them, though. Compression will also affect the monitors if you are using one board to mix FOH and monitors, so it can quickly become part of the problem if it is not being used correctly.
When I worked festival style stages years ago one crew member (who also mixed for a living) asked me why I wasn't using the compressors we had in the rack. His default was to compress everything he could. I expressed that if he thought we needed to compress something, we could patch it, but I didn't feel the performers needed it. The band was a group of well-versed professionals who during sound check had demonstrated their professionalism and level of performance ability. If we used the 16 compressors we had, that would be 16 'more' things that introduce new issues (another couple of connections and cables, another gain stage, possibly another issue...).
Your idea of 'good' tone might not really matter - You love Eddie Van Halen, Stevie ray Vaughan and Cheap Trick, we all do... Except maybe that band who has chosen to use older/cheaper/vintage gear for that lo-fi vibe. It is not your job to 'fix' their tone. Band girlfriends will spare no time telling all about how the sound was, and anything that stands in the way of the integrity of that vintagy tone will become bad news, quickly. You see, that mid-60's Hollowbody guitar with a weird short scale length and without adjustable bridge saddles for each string going through a handful of vintage effects pedals and into a barely-maintained low watt tube amp that was bought at a yard sale after it was dredged from the bottom of a lake isn't going to sing like Jimi Hendrix's Marshall/Sunn stacks, but it is not meant to.
I like to roam the stage as the band gets set up. This way I can hear the drums and amps 'live' and get a feeling for what each one really sounds like. The job at the mixer becomes using the EQ only to correct issues like feedback or microphone anomalies and to make the sound of each instrument come through the PA. There really is no 'fix it in the mix'. The crowd is not going to assume that the sound guy is making that guitar rig sound that way - they expect to hear the band the way the band intends to be heard.
LISTEN and LOOK - While most of the job of running sound is about SOUND, it is also a job that requires knowing where to LOOK. If something sounds off, look at the mixer, racks, stage until you find something that helps indicate what might be not right. Mixers have meters and LED lights to give a quick indication of what is going on. Racks of outboard gear typically have meters and lights to help you see how signals are going. Lastly, the performers may be indicating that something is not right by either struggling to hear and intently listening to their monitor/amp, or they may very well be trying to catch your eye to alert you that something isn't right. By the time the offending issue is causing visual cues from the performers, the audience will be in on the hunt, too (there is nothing worse than audience members figuring out what is going on before the sound guy even knows there is an issue...).
Knowing the stage layout and where amplifiers and monitors and microphones are placed and being able to reference that visual can also help resolve issues. One show, I was working the festival stage but letting a less experienced engineer man the board (he was a studio guy trying to learn more about doing live sound) when a strange low-mid rumble crept up. I stood behind the engineer and started to think about what might be happening, while he stood there and didn't seem bothered. I asked him if he heard the low-mid rumble and he said 'I thought something was weird' - even though he had not picked up the headphones or adjusted anything on the board... He was clueless. I looked at the stage and was reminded that the bass player had positioned his amp very near to the drums, with his cabinet sitting partially behind the floor tom. This group was not used to playing bigger stages and relying on monitors, so they set themselves up like they would in a smaller venue (and really didn't ask for much in the monitors at all!). The sound we heard was the floor tom's heads grabbing on to certain notes coming from the bass amp and resonating wildly. A quick adjustment of the 'sweepable' mid on the floor tom channel calmed the rumble down in the FOH mix and the show went on. While the issue was an audio issue, it was the visual aspect of the stage and positioning of the equipment that made the fix a quick one.
Not an exhaustive list, but some things to look out for to ensure the show is the best it can be!!
Now, I'm not saying that all people who mix sound do so well and with great skill... but lets remember that there is an 'ART' to mixing. That said, there are some things that are the mark of an amateur, and (hopefully) in time they usually work themselves out.
I've had the pleasure of working with people from volunteers to absolute pros. Here are a few things that I recommend for truly respecting the role and the resulting sound:
Doing sound is a Customer Service Job - Though there is a lot of technical knowledge in the sound job, you should first be serving ALL of your customers. When you are doing soundcheck with the band, they are your customers and their requests for adjustments should not be met with any negativity. If you feel that the monitor volume is getting to a point where it will affect the mix in the audience area, you can always THINK about the request - it is likely that you can meet the performers needs by reducing something in the mix instead of just boosting everything. That is why you are the sound person and they are the performer, you can make the performer happy and be conscious of the monitor volume at the same time - true story!
When you have dialed in the stage mixes and move onto the show, the audience becomes your customers. They want nothing more than to not even think about the sound. They really just want to be able to enjoy the show.
Promoters/Venue people/Etc... are also your customers. If you have an objection to a request or demand, offer your insight in a way that shows them you want the same thing they do - a great show without incident - and you will likely be met with happier customers!
Louder is not Better - We all love to rock out, but watch for people in the audience who cringe or turn their heads away from the stage - it is pretty obvious when they do. If you think that the guitars, vocals, or cymbals might be a bit harsh, other people will too. Remember, the average audience member probably doesn't spend as much time as you do around loud music, so their hearing is actually 'better' in the mids and high frequency ranges. If the bass notes in the EDM music are making you feel like you're going to hurl, you're going to hurl... just be aware of the audiences reactions and don't just go for 'louder is better'. No one cares how big your rig is if they are walking out of a show because it is too loud.
Effects CAN be overused - I like to dial up a good mid-sized reverb sound that has lot of 'verb on tap. I like to have a delay set up with a tap-tempo so I can fatten up a chorus part or have some fun with sparse lines. Too often, though, rookie sound engineers think that a lot of reverb and/or delay is necessary... I like to have them on tap in high supply, but I use them very sparingly in the mix if there is a solo singer or a part that really can benefit from the effect. At rehearsals, I run them hotter, playing around a bit and getting a feel for what they are actually bringing to the table, so that when it is 'Go' time, I know how to listen for their contribution to the mix. a little 'verb can sweeten things for you, too much and it gets really cavernous really quickly!
Compression, do you really NEED it? - This is a tool (NOT an effect) that is best left 'OFF' if you aren't sure how to explain what the different parameters are actually doing. Many professional performers know how to work their instrument/microphone with techniques that vary the levels according to what they know the song needs, essentially mixing themselves (if you are lucky, you can have an easier time mixing when they do this! My old cover band was great in this respect, once we had sound check done, I knew I could play bass and sing and watch the mix from the stage because my guys had their rhythm and lead levels well adjusted!!). If someone is all over the place volume-wise, maybe a compressor is what you need. You should not start off by patching/inserting compressors on every channel and expecting to use them, though. Compression will also affect the monitors if you are using one board to mix FOH and monitors, so it can quickly become part of the problem if it is not being used correctly.
When I worked festival style stages years ago one crew member (who also mixed for a living) asked me why I wasn't using the compressors we had in the rack. His default was to compress everything he could. I expressed that if he thought we needed to compress something, we could patch it, but I didn't feel the performers needed it. The band was a group of well-versed professionals who during sound check had demonstrated their professionalism and level of performance ability. If we used the 16 compressors we had, that would be 16 'more' things that introduce new issues (another couple of connections and cables, another gain stage, possibly another issue...).
Your idea of 'good' tone might not really matter - You love Eddie Van Halen, Stevie ray Vaughan and Cheap Trick, we all do... Except maybe that band who has chosen to use older/cheaper/vintage gear for that lo-fi vibe. It is not your job to 'fix' their tone. Band girlfriends will spare no time telling all about how the sound was, and anything that stands in the way of the integrity of that vintagy tone will become bad news, quickly. You see, that mid-60's Hollowbody guitar with a weird short scale length and without adjustable bridge saddles for each string going through a handful of vintage effects pedals and into a barely-maintained low watt tube amp that was bought at a yard sale after it was dredged from the bottom of a lake isn't going to sing like Jimi Hendrix's Marshall/Sunn stacks, but it is not meant to.
I like to roam the stage as the band gets set up. This way I can hear the drums and amps 'live' and get a feeling for what each one really sounds like. The job at the mixer becomes using the EQ only to correct issues like feedback or microphone anomalies and to make the sound of each instrument come through the PA. There really is no 'fix it in the mix'. The crowd is not going to assume that the sound guy is making that guitar rig sound that way - they expect to hear the band the way the band intends to be heard.
LISTEN and LOOK - While most of the job of running sound is about SOUND, it is also a job that requires knowing where to LOOK. If something sounds off, look at the mixer, racks, stage until you find something that helps indicate what might be not right. Mixers have meters and LED lights to give a quick indication of what is going on. Racks of outboard gear typically have meters and lights to help you see how signals are going. Lastly, the performers may be indicating that something is not right by either struggling to hear and intently listening to their monitor/amp, or they may very well be trying to catch your eye to alert you that something isn't right. By the time the offending issue is causing visual cues from the performers, the audience will be in on the hunt, too (there is nothing worse than audience members figuring out what is going on before the sound guy even knows there is an issue...).
Knowing the stage layout and where amplifiers and monitors and microphones are placed and being able to reference that visual can also help resolve issues. One show, I was working the festival stage but letting a less experienced engineer man the board (he was a studio guy trying to learn more about doing live sound) when a strange low-mid rumble crept up. I stood behind the engineer and started to think about what might be happening, while he stood there and didn't seem bothered. I asked him if he heard the low-mid rumble and he said 'I thought something was weird' - even though he had not picked up the headphones or adjusted anything on the board... He was clueless. I looked at the stage and was reminded that the bass player had positioned his amp very near to the drums, with his cabinet sitting partially behind the floor tom. This group was not used to playing bigger stages and relying on monitors, so they set themselves up like they would in a smaller venue (and really didn't ask for much in the monitors at all!). The sound we heard was the floor tom's heads grabbing on to certain notes coming from the bass amp and resonating wildly. A quick adjustment of the 'sweepable' mid on the floor tom channel calmed the rumble down in the FOH mix and the show went on. While the issue was an audio issue, it was the visual aspect of the stage and positioning of the equipment that made the fix a quick one.
Not an exhaustive list, but some things to look out for to ensure the show is the best it can be!!