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American Idol Tour Profile

The American Idol tour has kicked off once again, showcasing the Top 10 finalists from the reality show. Mix caught up with front-of-house engineer Randy

Photo: Film Magic/Getty Images

The American Idol tour has kicked off once again, showcasing the Top 10 finalists from the reality show. Mix caught up with front-of-house engineer Randy Lane.

How did you get involved with this tour?

I received a call from Clair Global, the company that provides audio for the American Idol tours, informing me that the tour would need a front-of-house engineer for the tour during 2008. Jim Ebdon, the tour’s FOH mixer and sound designer, was already slated to do the Maroon 5 tour, so I stepped in to cover 2008 and was invited back for this year’s tour.

How much gear are you carrying?

Randy Lane

Photo: Chris Marksburg

The tour is carrying 28 i5s and 20 i5B supplemental bass cabinets flown with six BT-218 subs on the floor.

How do you have your board set up?

I have a Yamaha PM5D-RH with a DSP5D extender. My setup has one MY16-MD64 MADI card for recording 64 tracks per night if the need arises. We’ve recorded one show for iTunes release and I mixed the tracks on the road during days off.

What would you say is the most important part of your mix?

Vocals are the primary consideration. They must hit every seat in the house so the P.A. is tuned primarily to make sure that vocals make it to the last seat in the house.

When you’re not on the road, where can we find you?

So far this year, I have been on the road most of the time with Julio Iglesias and with James Taylor. That’s kept me busy and on the road the whole year.

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