A little desire, a little training, and a little creativity is all you need.

For two reasons: 1) To run tracks your drummer and the person running the tracks both need to hear the click in their monitor to hear the count in and to keep time with the tracks. 2) If you have a floor monitor for the drummer, it has to be loud enough to match the volume of a drum kit, if not louder. From a sound standpoint, this can cause all the monitors to be louder than they need to be and create issues for your front-of-house sound person. These days, with in-ear monitoring so common and affordable, we recommend an Aviom system as a long-term solution for your stage monitoring.

Short Term Solution: For an in-expensive way to make the transition right away, you can hard wire the drummer’s mix by skipping the power amp and going direct into a headphone amp like a Presonus HP-4 and using a set of studio grade headphones like the Sennheiser HD 280 Studio Headphones and your drummer will be set with his direct mix from the sound board. The bass player could share a mix and come off the same headphone amp if he/she was willing to do so. Lastly, if your guitarist, keyboard player, or singer is running the tracks from their laptop they can do a wired mix with a headphone amp as well. For more discrete looking in-ear’s with great bass response, check out Westone’s UM2’s.

Overall Configuration:  We recommend running from the stage.  We see IWL almost like another instrument that someone on stage is triggering like a DJ.  This can be done by anyone and midi interfaces can help you do this without looking like you’re checking your email.  We recommend this is run by the person who can function as a music director or someone who can communicate well on stage with the music director.

For Keys: We recommend using a two-tier keyboard stand and building a stable platform for the top tier where you can place your laptop.  You can look at your computer and use the computer keys on your laptop to trigger your session because it’s right in front of you.  If you prefer to use a midi controller or another keyboard to trigger this, you can do so as well.

For Guitar or Bass:  We recommend the Ability controller which is built to work with Ableton.  You can find out more details on http://younfx.com.  If you need a volume pedal with your midi controller, check out the Roland FC-300.

For Drummers:  Any midi unit with big pads that you can use to trigger from behind the drums.

For Singers:  The Ability Controller http://younfx.com or the Roland FC-300 are great Midi-foot controllers if you want to cue sections from a foot controller on the stage more discretely.

Ableton is Mac and PC compatible.  If you or your church is buying a dedicated computer for this purpose we recommend that you buy a Mac.  We won’t debate you on which is better if you like PC’s because both will work, but Mac are often preferred by audio engineers.  They come with a Firewire 400 connection ready for your Firewire 410.  We recommend the same Firewire 400 connection for your hard drives if you use them.  Lastly. The new Mac OS X operating system called Leopard allows you to share your computer with another user through iChat which can take your phone support from IWL to another level.  Should you have an issue, through your Mac computer, you can iChat with your IWL support tech and allow them to take over your computer and solve your issue while you watch.

For Hardware Minimum requirements, go to http://www.ableton.com/pages/faq/general_questions

We have detailed instructions for how to unzip and utilize your IWL tracks.  Please click here to view our tutorial.

In a situation like this, you may have been running tracks, worship videos, or even split tracks.  We know of some churches using IWL that we’re just putting on CD’s and having everyone sing along.  It’s hard when the worship leader get on and says “Thank You and Goodnight Cleveland!” and you’re at a church in Chicago and it’s 9:30 in the morning.  All of this can be solved through IWL because you can get inside the tracks and turn each one on or off.  You can direct the tracks in the moment too—so you can think of your worship leader as a live DJ and their directing the tracks like they would a band. 

Preferred Setup—Our preferred setup is for those who want to know everything they could possibly need.

1. Mac or PC Computer—We recommend filling your computer with as much RAM s you can—and at least 1GB.  If you have a PC you need to add a Firewire 400 6pin PCI card so you can connect to your Firewire 410 and external hard drive.
2. On-The-Go 100 GB Hard Drive- Our downloadable files are only 30-80 MB on average so you may be able to run sessions off your computer’s hard drive to start.  BUT, the best way to run audio is the audio files on an external hard drive and the software on your computers internal hard drive.  The On-The-Go drives are portable, bus powered, and we really like them.
3. Firewire 410—You can run out of the 1/8th in jack on your computer to your sound system, but it’s not the best possible connection.  You can connect to an Audio Interface like the Firewire 410 and assign your tracks through the 410 to you sound person. 
4. Midi Units—You can use the ability controller from http://younfx.com o or the Roland FC-300 as foot pedals that can cue the different sections of your songs from a foot pedal on the floor.  This way you can direct the tracks without looking like your checking email.

“Only the Basics” Setup- This is our “bare bones” recommendation of what you can’t live without and what you need to know if you don’t get the items in the Preferred Setup above.

1. Mac or PC Computer—IF you don’t add a PCI card for Firewire to your Windows computer you can try USB.  Some audio engineers will only recommend Firewire at 7200 RPM speed and USB 2 may work for you as well.  If you notice skipping, you need to upgrade to a faster connection.
2. Your own hard drive or your internal drive—Again, the faster the better.  We recommend 7200 RMP drives.  Unless you specified, your internal drive is most likely 5400 and you could experience skipping with too many tracks and too little RAM.
3. Your computer’s 1/8 inch jack—This will work fine as long as you only need a left and right track and you never bump the cord and send loud scratchy sound throughout your service.  You could even pan the click left and the tracks right if you have a mono system and you wanted to hear the click tracks in your in-ears.
4. Midi Units—For the church with no band an a worship leader directing these tracks, I think a foot pedal is a must have if you’re going to do a lot of directing the tracks live.  You can preset markers in the song for the any command so that you can do it with your feet.  For example, you can set a marker to play, stop, song 1, song 2, a vamp on the bridge you want to repeat, Song 3, a vamp, and song 4, then the vamp for the prayer at the end of service.  You step on these cues and you’re cuing the session in the software from your foot pedal on the front of stage and directing the worship live.   Ability Controller http://younfx.com o or Roland FC-300 with volume pedal.

In a situation like this, you can play along with the tracks and mute the acoustic or electric guitar and fit right in with the mix.  We strongly recommend using in-ear monitors and putting the click track in your mix because you’ll need it to count you in on every song.  Plus it’s easier for your timing to get a little lost in the track if you don’t have a click keeping you in time.  Now, you can just pump the tracks in a monitor and that will work fine.  But the best option is always with a click and in-ears.

Preferred Setup—Our preferred setup is for those who want to know everything they could possibly need.

1. Mac or PC Computer—We recommend filling your computer with as much RAM s you can—and at least 1GB.  If you have a PC you need to add a Firewire 400 6pin PCI card so you can connect to your Firewire 410 and external hard drive.
2. On-The-Go 100 GB Hard Drive- Our downloadable files are only 30-80 MB on average so you may be able to run sessions off your computer’s hard drive to start.  BUT, the best way to run audio is the audio files on an external hard drive and the software on your computers internal hard drive.  The On-The-Go drives are portable, bus powered, and we really like them.
3. Firewire 410—This is very important because it gives you more options than just a left and right coming out of your computer.  The 410 gives you 8 analog ¼ inch outputs so you could send 8 to your sound person and he/she can have more control over the mix.  For example, you can mute the guitar, send the drums stereo down 1 & 2, the bass down 3, the rest of the tracks down 4 & 5 and the click down number 6.  This way the sound person has more control over the bass and drums, which are the foundation of your sound, and the click is separated to your worship leaders in-ear mix and the rest of the sounds are on 4 & 5.
4. Midi Units—You can use the ability controller from http://younfx.com or the Roland FC-300 as foot pedals that can cue the different sections of your songs from a foot pedal on the floor.  This way you can direct the tracks without looking like your checking email.

““Only the Basics” Setup- This is our “bare bones” recommendation of what you can’t live without and what you need to know if you don’t get the items in the Preferred Setup above.

1. Mac or PC Computer—We recommend filling your computer with as much RAM s you can—and at least 1GB.  If you have a PC you need to add a Firewire 400 6pin PCI card so you can connect to your Firewire 410 and external hard drive.
2. Your own hard drive or your internal drive—Again, the faster the better.  We recommend 7200 RMP drives.  Unless you specified, your internal drive is most likely 5400 and you could experience skipping with too many tracks and too little RAM.
3. Firewire 410—This is very important because it gives you more options than just a left and right coming out of your computer.  The 410 gives you 8 analog ¼ inch outputs so you could send 8 to your sound person and he/she can have more control over the mix.  For example, you can mute the guitar, send the drums stereo down 1 & 2, the bass down 3, the rest of the tracks down 4 & 5 and the click down number 6.  This way the sound person has more control over the bass and drums, which are the foundation of your sound, and the click is separated to your worship leaders in-ear mix and the rest of the sounds are on 4 & 5.
4. No Midi Unit—You can try running without a midi unit if you’re not doing a lot of cues for songs.  You can build a session where you press play and go and all the songs flow right into each other.  But you have to use your computer keyboard and this limits your flexibility.

In a situation like this, you can play along with the tracks and mute the keys and fit right in with the mix.  We strongly recommend using in-ear monitors and putting the click track in your mix because you’ll need it to count you in on every song.  Plus it’s easier for your timing to get a little lost in the track if you don’t have a click keeping you in time.  Now, you can just pump the tracks in a floor monitor and that will work fine.  But the best option is always with a click and in-ears.

Preferred Setup—Our preferred setup is for those who want to know everything they could possibly need.

1. Mac or PC Computer—We recommend filling your computer with as much RAM s you can—and at least 1GB.  If you have a PC you need to add a Firewire 400 6pin PCI card so you can connect to your Firewire 410 and external hard drive.
2. On-The-Go 100 GB Hard Drive- Our downloadable files are only 30-80 MB on average so you may be able to run sessions off your computer’s hard drive to start.  BUT, the best way to run audio is the audio files on an external hard drive and the software on your computers internal hard drive.  The On-The-Go drives are portable, bus powered, and we really like them.
3. Firewire 410—This is very important because it gives you more options than just a left and right coming out of your computer.  The 410 gives you 8 analog ¼ inch outputs so you could send 8 to your sound person and he/she can have more control over the mix.  For example, you can mute the keys part you’re playing, send the drums stereo down 1 & 2, the bass down 3, the rest of the tracks down 4 & 5 and the click down number 6.  This way the sound person has more control over the bass and drums, which are the foundation of your sound, and the click is separated to your worship leaders in-ear mix and the rest of the sounds are on 4 & 5.
4. Midi Units—You can use the Axiom 25 or any plethora of different midi units that can be used to trigger the tracks and give you external volume knobs that are easily accessible. 

“Only the Basics” Setup- This is our “bare bones” recommendation of what you can’t live without and what you need to know if you don’t get the items in the Preferred Setup above.

1. Mac or PC Computer—We recommend filling your computer with as much RAM s you can—and at least 1GB.  If you have a PC you need to add a Firewire 400 6pin PCI card so you can connect to your Firewire 410 and external hard drive.
2. Your own hard drive or your internal drive—Again, the faster the better.  We recommend 7200 RMP drives.  Unless you specified, your internal drive is most likely 5400 and you could experience skipping with too many tracks and too little RAM.
3. Firewire 410—This is very important because it gives you more options than just a left and right coming out of your computer.  The 410 gives you 8 analog ¼ inch outputs so you could send 8 to your sound person and he/she can have more control over the mix.  For example, you can mute the guitar, send the drums stereo down 1 & 2, the bass down 3, the rest of the tracks down 4 & 5 and the click down number 6.  This way the sound person has more control over the bass and drums, which are the foundation of your sound, and the click is separated to your worship leaders in-ear mix and the rest of the sounds are on 4 & 5.
4. No Midi Unit—You can put the computer next to the keys or even on the top tier of a two-tier keyboard stand.  If you do this you may want to stabilize the laptop with some black felt covered plywood underneath, but having the laptop right above your keys is nice and you can use the computer keyboard for triggering your markers.

In this situation, we recommend that you have one of your musicians function as an “MD” or Music Director and this person would most likely run the tracks.  If you have an Aviom system or in-ear system and if it’s not crucial for that person to sing, turn the MD mic off in the house and put it in the band members ears.  Now the MD can talk them through the count-in, what sections are coming next, and you’ll find it makes the transitions really smooth and tightens the band overall.  The MD will need to turn off all the instruments that you have live on stage, but you can leave in counterpoint guitar parts and things like strings, pads, horns, B3, and melodic parts you may not have live.  Once you mute those parts and turn up the remaining mix, it should fit together really well.

Preferred Setup—Our preferred setup is for those who want to know everything they could possibly need.

1. Mac or PC Computer—We recommend filling your computer with as much RAM s you can—and at least 1GB.  If you have a PC you need to add a Firewire 400 6pin PCI card so you can connect to your Firewire 410 and external hard drive.
2. On-The-Go 100 GB Hard Drive- Our downloadable files are only 30-80 MB on average so you may be able to run sessions off your computer’s hard drive to start.  BUT, the best way to run audio is the audio files on an external hard drive and the software on your computers internal hard drive.  The On-The-Go drives are portable, bus powered, and we really like them.
3. Firewire 410—This is very important because it gives you more options than just a left and right coming out of your computer.  The 410 gives you 8 analog ¼ inch outputs so you could send 8 to your sound person and he/she can have more control over the mix.  For a simple set-up with a full band, send all the tracks down 1 & 2 for a stereo mix (make sure sound person pans hard left and hard right) and the click down number 3.  Give everyone the click if possible, but at the very least, give the click to the drummer and the MD.
4. Midi Units—Depending on the instrument, you can reference the keys and guitar recommendations above.  There are lots of midi units for every player or you may prefer to use the computer keyboard.

“Only the Basics” Setup- This is our “bare bones” recommendation of what you can’t live without and what you need to know if you don’t get the items in the Preferred Setup above.

1. Mac or PC Computer—We recommend filling your computer with as much RAM s you can—and at least 1GB.  If you have a PC you need to add a Firewire 400 6pin PCI card so you can connect to your Firewire 410 and external hard drive.
2. Your own hard drive or your internal drive—Again, the faster the better.  We recommend 7200 RMP drives.  Unless you specified, your internal drive is most likely 5400 and you could experience skipping with too many tracks and too little RAM.
3. Firewire 410—This is very important because it gives you more options than just a left and right coming out of your computer.  The 410 gives you 8 analog ¼ inch outputs so you could send 8 to your sound person and he/she can have more control over the mix.  For a simple set-up with a full band, send all the tracks down 1 & 2 for a stereo mix (make sure sound person pans hard left and hard right) and the click down number 3.  Give everyone the click if possible, but at the very least, give the click to the drummer and the MD.
4. No Midi Unit—You can use the computer keyboard if you prefer.