Cordless vocal mic recommendations

M

Morodiene

New member
I've recently started singing opera at restaurants, and while my voice carries, since I'm singing with tracks, and talk a lot in between, I do need a mic. I have sung with the SM58s before, but since that boosts around the 3-5 kHz area, where opera singers focus a lot of energy, it actually ends up not sounded that great for me.

I own a Rode NT1-A for studio recording, and since that has a flatter response it works better with my voice. So now I just need to find something like that in a cordless dynamic mic.

Price range is under $500 for a cordless system and one mic, but for the right mic may consider higher. Hopefully I can find something that will work!
 
Sennheiser SKP300 G3-GB Plug-on Transmiier XLR (Has 48V Phantom) CH38| Lighthouse Audiovisual UK - Lighthouse Audiovisual

That ^ is a start. A transmitter that will allow you to use the Rode you already have or indeed any other phantom powered mic.

I am glad you are not trying to do this on the cheap. From what I can gather there is an awful lot of mediocre radio mic kit about. There is also a bit of a minefield re frequencies and NOT getting in bad with the local police!

Do not leave us! But do go ask at Sound On Sound | Recording Techniques | Audio Technology | Music Production | Computer Music | Video Media There are several guys there that do big PA events as bread and butter and others that will have micc'ed up people for the Proms and Jools Live!

Dave.
 
Thanks for the info, DaveI I will definitely check those out. What cordless mics would you recommend that have a flatter frequency response?
 
Morodiene said:
Thanks for the info, DaveI I will definitely check those out. What cordless mics would you recommend that have a flatter frequency response?
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Sorry, I really don't know, not my game (why I passed the buck to SoS!) . If pressed I would say you have to be looking at a condenser type for YOUR particular voice.
There are lots of condensers that can be battery powered and you can get adaptors to mate XLR to belt transmitters. But I would really advise you to go to a professional supplier since there could be level matching issues to sort out.

Could drop Sydney OH a line? MUST be some walkabout opera singers there!

Dave.
 
The choice of a condenser may or may not be the right one. You are talking about live performance here, not studio recording. There are many, many mics which sound stunning in a studio and would be an absolute PITA on a stage. Are you running stage monitors ? Do you have an EQ available to tame the 3-5K you don't like in the 58?. What are you using for mains, that alone can have a significant impact on the end result.

While The Rode is a fine mic, I would not use it live in the setting you are proposing. I might use one for a choir or as OH's on a kit but not for what you're talking about. Using condensers in close proximity to speakers is not for the casual sound guy.

If you are determined to go wireless, I would recommend the Line6 V55 or V75 series with modeling. I use a rack of them for live events and have found them to sound great and be very durable.
 
Ya, I had no intention of using the Rode in live performances. I'm checking into the Line6 V55 though, looks interesting. Thanks for the suggestion!
 
So turns out the guys on Sound on Sound recommend a better PA system rather than upgrading mics right now. Really, I need both, but not sure I want to spend all that money at once! I do have to spend money before the end of the year, though, or I'll be handing it over to Uncle Sam. :(
 
How well do you believe you operate your system now ? All too often suggestions of buying this or that emerge when the biggest gain would be to learn to run your current gear to it's fullest capabilities.
 
Current gear: Roland Cube, with android Tablet hooked up to it to play tracks, and running an old Audio Technica mic (probably less than $75 purchase at the time). So nowhere to go but up!

I am thinking I'll forgo the mic upgrade though, since I am doing a lot of operatic stuff and it's not really needed except for talking. The restaurant I'm singing in is really small.
 
If you were putting the mic through the Roland Cube, that could explain a lot. It's a guitar amp with a tiny speaker. That combination will get you a lot of 3-5k as well.
 
Well, if you decide to put a new radio mic back on the table, have a look/listen to the Sennheiser XSW 35 system. It would fit your budget and the mic capsule is the same as an 835 which is a nice smooth sounding mic with tons of gain before feedback.

I think of this specifically because, at a recent live job I did, I was thrown a Flower Song duet wanting to use handheld radio mics about 5 minutes before the show started and these were what I had fired up and ready. I wasn't expecting great things on the typical "high energy, heavily projected" opera style but the results were good enough that both the singers and show producer commented on the quality.

Considering they are at the economy end of radio mics (well, economy end of decent mics) they're worth thinking about.
 
For ecc83...

The radio mic licensing (or lack of licensing) arrangements are very different than in the UK. Basically, users of low power radio mics and IEMs are allowed to use spare UHF channels and/or "white space" between channels without a license as long as they don't create any interference for licensed users like broadcasters. This requires a bit of knowledge of the frequencies in use locally to avoid buying gear on the wrong band but the big manufacturers (Sennheiser for sure and I believe Shure as well--gawd, that read badly!) have calculators on their sites to to you what can be used in your area.

Avoid the upper part of the UHF TV band though--since the digital re-shuffle that has been re-allocated and sold off for mobile comms. A lot of cheap foreign gear will be on illegal frequencies.
 
Bobbsy said:
For ecc83...

The radio mic licensing (or lack of licensing) arrangements are very different than in the UK. Basically, users of low power radio mics and IEMs are allowed to use spare UHF channels and/or "white space" between channels without a license as long as they don't create any interference for licensed users like broadcasters. This requires a bit of knowledge of the frequencies in use locally to avoid buying gear on the wrong band but the big manufacturers (Sennheiser for sure and I believe Shure as well--gawd, that read badly!) have calculators on their sites to to you what can be used in your area.

Avoid the upper part of the UHF TV band though--since the digital re-shuffle that has been re-allocated and sold off for mobile comms. A lot of cheap foreign gear will be on illegal frequencies.
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Thanks Bobbs,
I have not been involved in RMs for many years but I read of horror stories here and on the continent.
There was a frequency sort out across the EU some time ago and apparently the market was flooded with old kit that at best would be interfered with (more dodgy grammar!) or worse, get you arrested.

Still, looks like the lady is going "unplugged" for the music and just use a generic dynamic for the talking. Cool, "keeping it real" (that was me being un-cool)


Dave.
 
Morodiene said:
Current gear: Roland Cube, with android Tablet hooked up to it to play tracks, and running an old Audio Technica mic (probably less than $75 purchase at the time). So nowhere to go but up!

I am thinking I'll forgo the mic upgrade though, since I am doing a lot of operatic stuff and it's not really needed except for talking. The restaurant I'm singing in is really small.
Click to expand...

If you want to upgrade your sound, first replace the Cube - you don't mention which model it is, but that's the weak part of your system. Interesting that Roland don't give the frequency ranges of any of those amps in their spec pages.
 
mjbphotos said:
If you want to upgrade your sound, first replace the Cube - you don't mention which model it is, but that's the weak part of your system. Interesting that Roland don't give the frequency ranges of any of those amps in their spec pages.
Click to expand...
Why would they give frequency ranges for guitar amps?
 
Are you going to be wandering around with your microphone? I'm only asking because surely a cable would so much simpler, cheaper and more reliable? While I too rather like the Line 6 modelling, surely the thing here is quality? If you don't like the really tiny presence hump in a 58, then you need a pretty decent PA, because most smaller ones are pretty compromised, tonally?
 
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