Using In-Ear monitors on stage...

WOW.... my band tried em for the first time with all of us using in-ears... Unbelievable... Anyone else use in-ears all the time on stage?

Dave

Some of the guys use Shure PSM-200 series, and some are using Shure PSM-400 series... I personally am going to use the Shure PSM-400 because the P4HW bodypack is Stereo rather than the P2R bodypack which is mono... The PSM-200 (although mono) is a bit more versatile, because the P2R bodypack is "hybrid" in that it can go wired, or wireless. If you can just afford the bodypack and the earbuds to start with, you just go wired... And then down the road if you want to go wireless you can buy the Shure P2T transmixer unit and voila, yer wireless... With the PSM-400 series, it's not a bybrid bodypack... But I went wired cuz I don't need to move on-stage... Check out www.shure.com for more info...

Dave

I've been using my Motu 828 MkII on stage as part of my keyboard rig and with the in-ears... Both my keyboards run in stereo into 4 inputs, and then the Main Outs pump out in stereo signal to the sound system, but I can also hear them through the phones jack. Then the sound guy runs an aux send monitor mix into a 5th input on the Motu and I route that to the Phones output as well... So, with my PSM-400 (stereo) in ear system plugged into the phones, I'll hear my keyboards in stereo and at the same time i'll hear the mono monitor mix being sent to me from the sound system... And I can control the volume of my keyboard output and the volume of the system monitor mix output separately. If I want to hear more keys over top of the rest of the band, I just turn down the 5th input's levels, and then turn up the gain on the Shure bodypack or vice versa... Pretty sweet setup... Maybe overkill, but it was a cool way to use my Motu 828 MkII as part of my rig, since I sold my little Behringer mixer...

I agree too about using it sometimes in one ear... If i'm playing somewhere that cannot send a monitor mix to my in-ear system, then I just use the in-ears in one ear to hear my keyboards (then I don't need my keyboard amp..) and then I hear the floor monitor output in my other ear...

Ultimitately tho, the biggest advantage (I think) of in-ears is avoiding hearing damage! it's so true... :)

Dave