WORLD – FOH engineer Andrew Peters (Dragonforce, Iced Earth) has chosen the Waves eMotion LV1 Classic for Queensrÿche’s 2025 The Origins Tour. He credited Waves for sound quality and the user interface and detailed his favorite plugins when mixing the band.
More details from Waves (www.waves.com):
The iconic American progressive metal band Queensrÿche, formed in 1982 in Bellevue, Washington, is renowned for their innovative sound and powerful live performances. With over 30 million albums sold worldwide and multiple GRAMMY® nominations, their groundbreaking albums, such as Operation: Mindcrime and Empire, have cemented their legacy as one of the most influential bands in the genre.
When asked about the technical performance of the eMotion LV1 Classic, FOH engineer Andrew Peters highlights the sonically pristine quality and endless number of plugins as the most beneficial features during live shows. He notes, “The sound quality is absolutely stunning. It is a significant step up from other consoles I have used in the past. With the LV1 Classic and the Signature Preamps in the Waves IONIC SoundGrid stageboxes on stage, it’s a whole other beast, making the sound sonically huge.”
“The user interface of the LV1 Classic,” he adds, “is incredibly user-friendly. Navigating the system and patching is both straightforward and beneficial. I’ve never encountered a day where I was confused about how to operate something on this console. Even after my first use, moving around the system became second nature, like clockwork.”
Peters highlights the benefits of having integrated Waves plugins in the LV1 Classic, stating a few of his must-have processors: “I use the H-Comp Hybrid Compressor as the perfect buss compressor for drums. My go-to key vocal delay, which I use in almost every song to replicate the band’s albums to accuracy, is the Waves H-Delay Hybrid Delay. Using the Waves Space Rider on my vocal reverb gives my singer and backing vocals just the right amount of space and sauce. I insert JJP Drums and the Vitamin Sonic Enhancer on my toms to give it that extra snap and attack, making the toms always present in the mix. The Magma Tube Channel Strip always gets the job done on my bass channel for that rich analog sound, and I rely on the Q10 Equalizer on the majority of my channels as the ultimate multiband parametric EQ.”
Peters also uses Waves’ eMo IEM (immersive in-ear mixing for the eMotion LV1 live mixer) for his lighting designer, providing an entire FOH mix that helps the designer follow along with the band, enhanced by 3D panning for an immersive experience.
Reflecting on specific moments where the LV1 Classic made a significant impact, Peters shares, “Various people, including some well-known musicians, have told me that while other performances at some of the venues we’ve played at sounded terrible, the Queensrÿche performance was the best-sounding show they had ever witnessed at those venues.”
Peters concludes, “The eMotion LV1 Classic enhances the experience for both myself and the audience, allowing me to replicate the band’s mix as if listeners were hearing the album live. I highly recommend the LV1 Classic to other sound engineers for its portability, extensive choice of plugins, exceptional sound quality, and robust build. I will be using this console on every upcoming tour.”
