well, I guess this is going to take much time and practice.
first off, the owner had someone come in and "set it" so that whoever comes in will be "good to go" ( I understand that every performer must be monitored because they each will need different levels for themselves and their intruments, which means that i will have to scramble to find the problem). although you gave me the most basic (if that) run down, it is very helpful. i saw the gain way high on some of the mics, and yes that could be the problem. i guess what i have to do is go in there during my free time (might be impossible since i run a business and have a daughter and needy wife) and play with the system for a while. maybe i should invest on a small board for my lab at home? whatever the case, this guy is going have to cough up more money because this is more stressfull for me. since the board is in the dj booth, i get all the dirty looks from the bands and the crowd when it sounds like tihs. that sucks!
well, thanks for the advise, and the invitation.

If the owner wants to set it so it will be good to go, then he's not experienced and not going to get results.

I do many festival shows, and there is no "set it and good to go". It's a fight each act to get their levels right since I often don't get a sound check, just "roll and go".

I get hard hitting drummers with screaming guitars followed by an acoustic act, but I have open channels so I'm OK but then the next band comes in and they are jazz so levels are more reasonable but the vocalist is a monster. Then comes on a hard rock act with a drummer who is quiet with bad drums, the guitarists who are at 11 and the singer is super quiet....

No, you're walking into a bad situation with that mindset.

The gain too high MAY or MAY NOT be the issue, so don't rush to assume tht is where the problem is. I've had the gain cranked and been fine on mains and monitors, it just depends.

And you're in the DJ booth, which does suck. I mean, I can SORT of understand the DJ being in a DJ booth, but as a live sound mixer, I need to be IN the room to rspond to the room, even if I ran my RTA or not, I need to be IN the room to hear properly.

You're running into a situation where it's crap. You're clueless but trying to learn, and I commend you for that. But this isn't some quickie skill. I've been doing this for 27 years and I STILL learn something every day. The owner has shown a lack of understanding of how things work.

You're going to need something to practice on, but let me give you some words of warning. First off, analog consoles provide the best learning platform as what you learn on one can be applied to another, even if larger and more expensive. Case and point, I jumped up from a Mackie 1604VLZ to a Allen & Heath ML5000 48B. I got the big console having never really used one before and used it for a crappy rehearsal, and then the next day I was out kicking ass and taking names with it for my concert.

Digital consoles are their own realm. Everyone does it a different way. They aren't intuitive. You have to basically say "hey, this is what I'm gonna learn" and move in that direction. Some have mega high learning curves, others not so much. Some are super complicated, some aren't. The Allen & Health iLive series acts like a analog console to a certain degree, which means less down time and less training to get familiar, where as a Digidesign Venue series requires a larger amount of familiarity. Everyone does their boards their own way. While you still need your foundations and it always apply, how you can do what you want to do can vary greatly between brands or even models or even firmware!! It's not intuitive like an analog console. My choice is A&H not only because I have one that I love, but because dealing with the other companies has been a pain. I've literally been told that if I'm not spending a few million dollars, that I can go f*ck myself(Digidesign was so smooth! in that direct quote) Midas was simply saying that while they'd like to help, their products are simply outside my budget, which is right. Digico didn't want to talk to me because I'm not touring with anyone big enough so why bother? Harmon Kardon(Soundcraft/Studer and others) won't return my calls. Yamaha is not returning my calls either, despite me being a client with my ProMix01 and SKM-100 subkick mic, but that's small beans and not someone they take seriously. I'm not big enough, yet A&H takes the time out to deal with me no matter what.

Guess what: it pays.

ADJ took time to answer my questions and provide good support. Guess what: a competitor whose products I have will not support me at all. ADJ wins my business going forward.

I too run a business. I have a needy wife who keeps changing her schedule and rat-f*cking mine(costing me millions in losses per year due to her simply no taking my needs into consideration) and 3 small kids(5, almost 3 and 4 months at this writing).

No offense, but I think you're no qualified for the job. I think it is wrong for him to have put it upon you. I'm not saying you won't in time be able to do the job, but right now you ain't the guy for it.

This is how I behave: Each band requires a fresh set-up whenever possible. There is no "global set and forget", it just doesn't work. The guy needs a real sound engineer at the console running things. Stick around that guy and learn. BUt also, go to school for this, it may take time but it will seriously help you out. The hands on in real world will help with the education as you can directly SEE and apply what you're doing in school for it. AND YES, since you're spending time and money on it for this guy, you need to be compensated.

Without being there and seeing it myself, I can't help you much more. I want to, really I do, but I can't. I'll do what I can based on what you provide to me.

How far is this place from Disneyland? It looks like I'm heading down in October and I might be able to squeeze in an extra night or plan my first night around this. Maybe you can swing by and get me from the hotel I'm staying at. I teach when I mix, everything should be a learning experience.

If you have good gear and you RTA the room, then you have your "flat". Once that is done, you COULD theoretically mix from a booth, but I would not recommend it.

DO this though:
Find the make and model of the console. Hopefully it's analog. Find a documentation chart, some companies provide them. Use pencil/pen and those sheets and document the console. Because if I get there, I expect the console ZERO'd and start fresh. I have my own way of doing things, but you won't find it much different than many other engineers. Good foundation. I can get a mix happening quickly, as well as monitors depending on the cooperation and communication of the band. But if it's a digital console, all bets are off, I don't like digital consoles all that much right now. Analog always gets the job done and never gives me crap.(or crashes 5 minutes before show, like a Digico Live D5 did right before a Kieth Urban concert)