How to Reduce Setup Time for Band Gigs

Introduction

Every musician has experienced those frustrating moments when things have gone wrong before a gig. There is always something popping up from nowhere with the sole intent of making your gig setup and soundcheck a complete disaster.

You realize there is no room for the guitar player because the drums are blocking the way. You’ve run out of signal cables, power, cables, microphones, there is always a mic holder that’s missing. Everyone is nervous, very often yelling at each other, which is a no-no for future gigs at that particular venue.

Setting up the PA and all the instruments for a band performance can be very stressful and time-consuming.

To avoid this type of scenario I have made a detailed guide that will help you with your future gigs. After playing more than 700 gigs with my 50s & 60s cover band Pacific Bullets I have gathered all the negative and positive experiences of a gig setup and took a closer look to find what are the most important guidelines for a non-stress gig. This guide is based on my band’s experience of playing small and medium-sized gigs with our own PA and lights. We usually use 2 x 12” active speakers for small gigs and add a couple of 15” active subs for medium-sized outdoor gigs. For these outdoor gigs, we also use a small light truss.

It takes us about 40-45 minutes for everything, 20-25 for gig setup, and the rest for soundcheck. Sometimes when we’re in a hurry, like when someone has to make the last ferry, it takes us 20 minutes to have everything packed in the car. This is where a good cart comes in handy. You don’t have to be that fast, these are simple and practical tips to streamline the setup process for bands. The goal is to make the whole process relatively quick, smooth, and most importantly non-stressful.

Preparation is crucial

Before starting any carrying from the car, placing gear on stage, in front of the stage, or anything like that, your band should have these things prepared ahead.

1. Organize your gear

This is where everything starts. All the band’s gear has to be systematically organized and stored in individual cases or bags. I.e. store all the stands (mic, speaker, light, sheet music,…) in one flight case so that everyone knows where all the stands are located. If some smaller components are in a smaller bag, place that bag in the bigger flightcase with the stands if there is room as long as it doesn’t get too heavy.

I call this “The modular approach” for a gig setup. Not only will everyone know what is located where but it will also take less time to get your gear from the car to the stage. Imagine having the speaker stands in one separate bag, light stands in a second one, and so on. It would take someone an additional trip to the car and back. Been there. When all your gear has been systematically stored, it is much easier to find what you are looking for, saving precious time before the gig.

Tip:

Pre-assemble anything you can in advance. Even if the guitarist uses only 3 pedals but still places them loosely on the floor it takes time to connect them together, and then with the power adapters and then the plugging the adapters into a power strip. This can all be avoided if a small pedalboard is made. No pedalboard is too small!

After each gig don’t just throw the cables in their cases. Adopt a proper way of wrapping them. Try this over/under technique for best results:

Not wrapping cables properly can be a massive waste of time. Untangling cables looks unprofessional.

2. What goes where

Different venues require different positioning for band members due to the size or shape of the stage or space reserved for the band. When playing weekly gigs at the same place every Tuesday you know exactly who and what goes where. Knowing the placement of everything ahead of time is extremely time-saving so try to remember the scheme for every venue where you play frequently. Creating a stage plot that outlines the placement of each band member and their equipment will minimize your setup time

Playing for the first time at a venue is different. Don’t unload anything before at least 2 band members go and take a look at the stage and decide what would be the best way to place the band members. Always talk to the manager and see if the venue has a concept of placement. Don’t forget to find where you will be getting power from before you bring anything to the stage. Even better, call the venue in advance and ask for these details, or have a look online at the pictures of the stage.

Now that you know who and what goes where you can start bringing your band’s gear to the stage. Place the gear somewhere near where it will be placed during the gig, but don’t start opening cases up and start mounting things yet.

Gig setup: Work together

This is what makes gigging with a band a success or not. If you want to make it work everyone has to make the same effort to set things up fast. Some band members spend less time setting up their own gear than others. A singer or maybe the bass player could be done with their equipment sooner than the drummer. Instead of having a chat with someone from the venue or a friend that just popped up, one could have mounted the complete lighting for the band or removed all the empty cases and bags off the stage or at least in a corner of the stage if there isn’t room for it somewhere else.

Routine

Try out different scenarios and in a couple of gigs you will see what works best in terms of saving time. It is very important to set up things in a specific order, so no one gets into each other’s way. Creating a routine is what we are looking for. When you get things right everyone will do his or her assignments automatically, without much thinking. The band should have a routine for the whole process: unloading the gear out of the van or car, placing gear on stage, assembling everything, soundcheck, and after the gig teardown. 

Order of assembling things

Different bands will have different gig setup routines for the setup itself. This is just a guideline, what works for my band doesn’t necessarily have to work for others.

It’s a nice habit to make things look neat on stage, starting from the cables. Try to make them run into a straight line wherever possible. Also, where there are multiple cables laid side by side, gather them together in a way like a snake cable looks like.

1. Start with power cables: If you go laying some cables after assembling all the instruments it can be hard to get around through tight spots on the stage. Starting with power cables you are automatically marking the placement of musical gear. It’s best if you figure out a scheme for this at home or on the road, this way not only will you do it faster, but you won’t use more power cables than you need. We had times when we would use up all our 12 cables and still need more, but could have done it with 7 just because of bad planning.
2. Mixer placement: Place the mixer exactly where it’s going to be placed during the gig.
3. Signal cables for FOH and monitors: It’s much easier and better looking when there are not a lot of messed-up cables running all over the place. In my opinion, the best solution is to lay all the cables that are going around the drums to lay them behind the drum kit, not in front. To do that, it’s best to do it before the drum kit is placed in position. So connect all the signal, instrument, and power cables that go to the drum’s side so they all go behind it.
4. PA: place the FOH and monitors in place and connect all the cables to them. Placing the PA can be done while someone else is doing steps 1-3 so there is no delay later on.
5. Instruments: Now that the PA and most of the cables are in place everyone can assemble their instruments.
6. Input list: Always use the same input list so that everyone knows what instrument goes into which channel.
7. Soundcheck: For tips on how to mix your band have a look at this article.

Teardown

After playing the gig just relax, have a drink, chill, and let the roadies do their job. It would be nice if we had them, but today, we are alone. 

I know that is the least interesting part of gigging, but someone has to do it, and if done as a team, believe me, it doesn’t have to be hard at all. I think that that’s the part of the evening where due to fatigue or better, a great gig, we tend to joke a lot and say a lot of things that really make no sense at all.

Teardown is really nothing else than doing everything in reverse order rather than setup. The best thing to do first is to put your guitars in their cases. That way you’re avoiding them falling down because someone caught a cable with their foot or just accidentally knocked the whole thing over. Put the cables away after that, it’s much easier to walk around the stage with no cables around while putting your gear into cases and bags. After that it’s easy, pack the stands, amps, pedalboards, whatever you have, and place all the equipment next to each other in one place.

When carrying your gear to the van, first take the things that came out last when you were unloading. Everyone should know the exact order of placing things inside the van. Always place everything in the same way so the process runs as smoothly as possible.

Conclusion

Reducing setup time for a band is a collaborative effort where everyone needs to be involved to save precious time. In the beginning, it requires planning, but it will pay off in the long run. Whether it’s an outdoor concert setup or a solo gig setup these tips apply in the same way. By optimizing this process with these guidelines the band will have more time to focus on their music. With more time left for other things like the soundcheck, your band will play a great show every time.