S
soundchaser59
Reluctant Commander
We have a small stage, maybe 50-65 feet across, maybe 30 feet deep, ceiling maybe 30-45 feet high. Looking from the top down, the place is kinda fan shaped, so it's not a rectangle. We use 5 floor monitors on stage for the band, with 1 being for the choir.
The problem is the mics we have are perfect IF the choir is the only sound on stage. But we always have a band, with drums (has a shield), electric mic'd and acoustic guitar, electric bass DI, elec keys DI with keyboard amp for monitor, and usually 2-4 singers, once in a while we throw in a horn or sax. The mics we have (I dont know what they are, nobody seems to know, but I'm told they were "cheap"!) seems to pick up a lot of drums and guitar no matter how we arrange things on stage. I know they are condensors because they require phantom power, but I dont know the pattern. We have them on a pair of stands, slightly above and pointed toward the middle of the choir. The choir is usually 20 maybe 30 people tops. We have learned to place the choir so that the mics point away from the band and from the other monitors.
They are willing to invest in a better pair of mics IF it will improve our chances of getting a good choir sound with a fair amount of isolation and rejection of the rest of the stage noise.
My main question is do we really need to use condensors? Are there any dynamics made for this use? I'm talking about something better than 57's. What about the Heil mics? I've used them at home, but not sure how they would respond to the choir at a distance of maybe 5 to 10 feet. Of course, the obvious question reminaing is which mics should we consider? I would imagine they would refuse at $1000 for the pair, but we may be able to swing $500 for a pair IF it will make a noticeable difference in sound quality and ease of mixing. We frequently have amateur sound guys who know a little but are not well versed in the nuances of gear. The musicians themselves are decent but not pro, so these things must also be taken into account when looking at suitable mics. We are going into a Allen & Heath GL4000, so the board should not be an issue. The main problem we have is trying to get enough gain on the choir without getting too much band sound or feedback. I would put feedback at the bottom of the list, IF we can get better rejection of the stage noise. The choir sounds great solo, but then the band plays and steps on the choir sound coming in from the choir mics.
I know my guitar cab mics, but I dont know much about micing a whole stage or rejecting the sound of the band and focusing on the choir. Any suggestions?
The problem is the mics we have are perfect IF the choir is the only sound on stage. But we always have a band, with drums (has a shield), electric mic'd and acoustic guitar, electric bass DI, elec keys DI with keyboard amp for monitor, and usually 2-4 singers, once in a while we throw in a horn or sax. The mics we have (I dont know what they are, nobody seems to know, but I'm told they were "cheap"!) seems to pick up a lot of drums and guitar no matter how we arrange things on stage. I know they are condensors because they require phantom power, but I dont know the pattern. We have them on a pair of stands, slightly above and pointed toward the middle of the choir. The choir is usually 20 maybe 30 people tops. We have learned to place the choir so that the mics point away from the band and from the other monitors.
They are willing to invest in a better pair of mics IF it will improve our chances of getting a good choir sound with a fair amount of isolation and rejection of the rest of the stage noise.
My main question is do we really need to use condensors? Are there any dynamics made for this use? I'm talking about something better than 57's. What about the Heil mics? I've used them at home, but not sure how they would respond to the choir at a distance of maybe 5 to 10 feet. Of course, the obvious question reminaing is which mics should we consider? I would imagine they would refuse at $1000 for the pair, but we may be able to swing $500 for a pair IF it will make a noticeable difference in sound quality and ease of mixing. We frequently have amateur sound guys who know a little but are not well versed in the nuances of gear. The musicians themselves are decent but not pro, so these things must also be taken into account when looking at suitable mics. We are going into a Allen & Heath GL4000, so the board should not be an issue. The main problem we have is trying to get enough gain on the choir without getting too much band sound or feedback. I would put feedback at the bottom of the list, IF we can get better rejection of the stage noise. The choir sounds great solo, but then the band plays and steps on the choir sound coming in from the choir mics.
I know my guitar cab mics, but I dont know much about micing a whole stage or rejecting the sound of the band and focusing on the choir. Any suggestions?