Editing Sound reinforcement system (section)

===Mixing consoles===
[[File:Two Consoles at FOH.jpg|thumb|left|300 px|A Yamaha PM4000 and a Midas Heritage 3000 mixing console at the front of house position at an outdoor concert.]]

[[Mixing console]]s are the heart of a sound reinforcement system. This is where the sound engineer can adjust the volume and tone of each input, whether it is a vocalist's microphone or the signal from an [[electric bass]], and mix, equalize and add effects to these sound sources. Doing the mixing for a live show requires a mix of technical and artistic skills. A sound engineer needs to have an expert knowledge of speaker and amplifier set-up, [[effects unit]]s and other technologies and a good "ear" for what the music should sound like in order to create a good mix.

Multiple consoles can be used for different purposes in a single sound reinforcement system. The front-of-house (FOH) mixing console is typically located where the operator can see the action on stage and hear what the audience hears. For broadcast and recording applications, the mixing console may be placed within an enclosed booth or outside in an [[OB van]]. Large music productions often use a separate stage monitor mixing console which is dedicated to creating mixes for the performers on-stage. These consoles are typically placed at the side of the stage so that the operator can communicate with the performers on stage.<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.prosoundweb.com/install/tfw/eng/mon.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080325202949/http://www.prosoundweb.com/install/tfw/eng/mon.php |archive-date=2008-03-25 |title=The Monitor Engineer's Role in Performance |author=Philip Manor}}</ref>{{efn|In cases where performers have to play at a venue that does not have a monitor engineer near the stage, the monitor mixing is done by the FOH engineer from the FOH console. This arrangement can be problematic because the performers end up having to request changes to the monitor mixes with "...hand signals and clever cryptic phrases" which may be misunderstood. The engineer also cannot hear the changes that he is applying to the monitors on stage, often resulting in a reduction of the quality of the onstage monitor mix.<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.sweetwater.com/expert-center/techtips/d--02/16/2004 |title=Advantages of a Dedicated Monitor Mixing Console |date=2004-02-16 |access-date=2019-01-07 |publisher=[[Sweetwater Sound]]}}</ref>}}