Sit with the cello between your legs. Place the stand a little more than 12 inches from the front of the instrument. Place the microphone in the holder on top of the stand, ensuring it’s no more than 1 foot from the front of the instrument.
Adjust the height of the stand so that the microphone is level with the bridge of the cello.
Plug the microphone into the pre-amplifier. This placement will give a well-defined, rounded sound to the cello, but the distance from the instrument means that the sound won’t be isolated (that is, it will pick up other, surrounding sounds).
Plug the pre-amp into the amplifier using a 1/4-inch jack cord; the pre-amp boosts the voltage gain to send a louder, but true, signal to the amplifier, otherwise the amp won’t receive a strong enough signal to give a proper sound to the instrument.
Turn on the amplifer and pre-amplifier. Sit to the front and side of the amplifier, not directly in front of it, as this can cause feedback. Run the bow over the cello to hear the different notes. Change the bass, middle and treble controls on the cello. Start with the bass control and the lowest string, adjusting until you achieve the tone you desire.
Repeat with the middle and treble controls. Alter the settings with each new venue, as the acoustics in each place will be different. Experiment to find the ideal tone for the cello, ensuring that you don’t lose the middle and upper registers of the instrument, which can easily blend into other treble instruments.
Plug the direct injection box into the speaker jack at the rear of the amplifier; this will feed the sound directly into the mixing desk and eliminate the necessity of setting up another microphone in front of the amplifier speaker cabinets (you’ll still be able to hear the instrument through the speaker and be able to make adjustments as needed).