In Profile: Jim Yakabuski, Surviving Several Decades On The Road

Beyond the high profile nature of Lavigne’s tour, the gig had personal perks for the 45-year-old engineer. “It’s not easy for children to see their parents as being particularly hip. Working with Avril, I had a fighting chance of being cool.”

It was also on the first Lavigne tour that he had his first experience with a full digital rig, headed by a Yamaha PMPM1D digital console. Initially unsure if he preferred digital, now he wouldn’t go any other way unless the gig truly demanded an analog treatment.

These days he’s a big fan of the Digidesign Profile – with two out on the current Rob Thomas tour for monitors and front of house.

Experience Brings Gigs
The association with Nettwerk also led to one of his personal career high points – filling in on some 2008 Sarah McLachlan promo shows. “I’m a massive fan,” he states.

But Yakabuski’s success extends well beyond the road. With Professional Sound Reinforcement Techniques, a compendium of pro audio tips and tricks gathered over his many years on the road, he became a published author.

Since 1992 he’s also been a frequent lecturer at Orlando’s Full Sail University, and, more recently, he took the position of Senior Touring Engineer at LMG, starting up the company’s increasingly successful touring division.

Taking the position was an attempt to retire from the road and spend more time with his family – his second attempt, in fact. When LMG offered him the staff position in 2005, complete with a more normal work schedule and benefits, “That’s when I really though I might be done.” He wasn’t.

Although firmly ensconced in his house gig when Lavigne came back to him for another tour in 2007, he saw an opportunity. “I didn’t want to leave, but I said if you’re interested in using LMG as a provider, we could work this out.” That’s how the LMG touring division was born.

Since then, the division has continued to expand in terms of both high profile tours and a growing amount of product to send out on them. “As our touring division has grown, I’ve been looking towards what’s the next system on the horizon. We’d heard a lot of buzz about the new d&b audiotechnik J System, and it’s an absolutely fantastic rig, so we bought a whole bunch of that for this tour.”