Sep 1, 2003 12:00 PM

Known for years of live and studio work with artists such as The Crusaders, David Sanborn and Marcus Miller, FOH mixer Paul Mitchell is out with The Crusaders again, this time featuring a reunion of the band's co-founders, Joe Sample and Wilton Felder.

What are some of the challenges in working with The Crusaders?

With this band, I'm proud to say that there's no processing: no gates, no compression. Joe Sample's been working on dynamics for 50 years, and it seems unfair to plug in a piece of gear and lose those dynamics. The approach to sound is totally honest and natural. I just set the gain structure and let the band go.

Is there any “must have” gear you travel with?

All I travel with are mics: all Audix, except for Shure wireless on sax and vocal. We do a lot of festivals where hooking up a piece of gear can be a problem. I don't use a lot of [effects] processing anyway. I send out riders, and if I have a 480L, great, but I can also work with a PCM 70.

What's different about this tour?

We're multitrack recording every show, going to Pro Tools|HD at 96 kHz to a single external 200GB FireWire drive. It's all in three small racks: one for the 192 converters, one for the computer/flat-panel display, and one for cables and drives.

What do you do when you're off the road?

I'm out 200 days a year, so when I'm home, I try to spend as much time as I can with my wife and kids. But, thankfully, I'm in a business where I'm off the road between Thanksgiving and Valentine's Day.

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