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#1
12-06-2014, 06:33 AM
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Singing and playing - 2 mics
I have a gig tomorrow afternoon at a local hall - think VFW or legion hall. I've played there before by plugging into the PA without issue, but they have a new system with wireless mics now. I looked last night at the setup and it looks like the best success I'll have is micing both my vocals and my guitar. My obvious concerns are both mic placement and feedback. There is no sound tech there. Any advice on placement for vocal mic and guitar mic? I do have an LR Baggs Lyric installed and can plug in to the PA, but the system is very far from the stage. There will also be lots of audience walking around, which could kick the cord.
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#2
12-06-2014, 06:44 AM
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Way too many variables to provide a good answer.
Without knowing what mics, speaker placement, size of the room etc, it's really hard to say. Generally, you'll have to probably attenuate the bass and mid frequencies if you are miking the guitar. Again, that depends on what kind of mic it is. I'm guessing they probably just have a few handheld, dynamic vocal mics that are wireless. If that's the case, you'll need to get pretty close to it to make it sound decent. If the mics are wireless, could you move closer to the board and plug in too?
__________________
"One small heart, and a great big soul that's driving"
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#3
12-06-2014, 07:14 AM
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I didn't check thoroughly, but I do think they are just some handheld, dynamic, wireless, vocal mics.
Basically it's about a 2,000 sq ft. midwest VFW hall. Maybe a little bigger. The problem is that they used to have performers on a makeshift stage with the board easily accessible behind them. Now, the stage is set in the center of the room, with the board far away at the back. I do think micing both my vocals and guitar is the best bet, but I am concerned with constant feedback and placement. I have performed with two microphones before, but it was done by a pro and with someone working the board.
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#6
12-06-2014, 09:13 AM
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I'd use one of their mics for vocals, but I'd get a simple DI box, plug the Lyric-equipped guitar into that and run a long XLR cable from that to the mixer. You can run a very long one or link several together to get the length you need if you need to go along a roundabout path to get to the mixer. And a roll of gaffer's tape will help with the tripping issue. A place like that might also have some runners lying around.
A PITA, but I'd prepare for that, rather than hoping to make micing-up the guitar with an unfamiliar mic work. Especially when you don't know how they have things set up for monitoring. It doesn't seem like a good bet that they've thought that aspect of the system out very carefully, and if they didn't, that will make using a mic even trickier. If you've got a DI and the cabling you need, you'll know at least that you can make that work. Louis Last edited by lschwart; 12-06-2014 at 09:19 AM.
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#7
12-06-2014, 09:29 AM
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One other question: do you know where the main speakers are in this new setup? In addition to monitoring, you may have to worry about where those speakers are, and their placement may be a very strong limiter of the whole system's gain before feedback. It depends on whether or not whoever installed the system knew what they were doing, and if someone has carefully rung it out in that room in some similar situation.
Like I said, if I were going more or less blind into a situation like this, and with no tech help, I would plan to make sure I could plug my pickup into that mixer the old-fashioned way. And a DI and some XLR cables is cheaper than buying a wireless transmitter for your guitar. And it's not like they won't be useful in other situations. You could also leave them in their packages and try the mic first. If that works, return the DI and cables on Monday if you don't think you'll use them again. Louis
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#8
12-06-2014, 10:52 AM
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Ok, well I've borrowed a simple DI box, and I guess I'll run some long cables to the board. The good thing is there will probably not be a lot of traffic so kicking the cable isn't a problem. Does cable length matter? That may be a silly question.
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#9
12-06-2014, 11:00 AM
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Quote:
The length of the XLR cable does not matter. The whole point of using the DI box is so that you can use that sort of cable, which allows for very long cable lengths before you start hearing any loss or noise. Remember that XLR cables can be linked together, although it's a good idea to reinforce the linked connectors with some gaffer's tape, and try not to have the connection points out on the floor where they can be kicked and stepped on. Try and lay the cable so that the connectors are tucked away where they won't be stepped on. And tape down the exposed stretches of cable or cover them with a runner or rug. Louis
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#10
12-06-2014, 11:09 AM
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Quote:
 Back in the day (pre-pickup) and occasionally now, I use a very heavy round base (Atlas type) mic stand, short-ish gooseneck for vocal mic and side saddle for guitar mic. This is stable and takes up a very small footprint. No mic stand legs for people to trip on (assuming no stage), no boom end for people to hit, bashing mic into your mouth... I've used this arrangement for well over 40 years, when appropriate. It works well. P.S. Side saddle close-up. 
Last edited by kydave; 12-06-2014 at 11:32 AM.
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