Tue, 02 Jul 2024 19:37:38 -0700WeeblyWed, 11 Jul 2012 22:27:29 GMThttp://www.fedoraav.com/blog/why-i-dont-like-hanging-micsI don't try to hide it, I am not a fan of hanging stage mics.  The results are just not what people expect.  Here are my thoughts as to why:

Full disclosure:  Most people want to use hanging or front-of-stage mics for a theater presentation as an alternative to requiring 20, 30, or more wireless mics--especially when some of those actors only have one line.  I get that.  And yes, Fedora AV earns more when you rent more wireless mics from us.  But my intention is really to set expectations correctly.  After years of trying various methods, stage mic'ing just doesn't work.

When mic'ing an actor with a headworn or theater mic, the mic element is normally about 2-5" away from the mouth, being the voice source.  The closer the mic is to the source the better from an audio quality perspective (which is why the Countryman E6-style mics sound so good).  Professional theater, as you know, place mics over the ear or on the forehead at the hairline, or something similar, to keep them a constant distance of about 4-5" away.

What moves the mic element is changes in sound pressure.  Because "sound pressure level" (SPL) disperses at a fairly significant rate (I'll spare you the physics), at a distance of only 6 feet, one would have to actually shout to create the same SPL as normal speech at one foot.  And that's at just 6'.  Talk normal at 1', scream at 6'.

So, why not just turn up the sensitivity on the mic?  Well, you can.  Sort of.  What you really do, is turn up the volume of whatever the mic is picking up.  And unfortunately the ambient noise of the stage starts to come into play.  The mic cannot distinguish voice from other sounds, so it amplifies whatever it picks up, including sound from the speakers themselves, creating feedback, which nobody likes.  So, gain before feedback becomes a critical balancing act.

In practice, stage mics any further than about 2-3' from the performer are functionally worthless in my opinion.  And even in those cases, the actors must speak extra loudly to get heard.

The same is true of stage mics at the front edge of the stage.  However, front-edge mics at least have the advantage of being in the flow of the performer sound.  Most speech tends to go down, not up, and towards the audience.  But still, the proximity issue comes into play.

So, what can you do?  Theater directors do have a couple options.  One is to have actors trade microphones.  This works when the actors have mutually exclusive scenes.  However, as a mic owner, I cringe at this plan.  The hurried removal and replacement of the mic in the heat of performance has resulted in many broken mic cables and beltpacks.  

Another option that we have used with some success for certain theater types, is to have 2-3 people wear a wireless microphone on their shoulder or in their hair, pointing backwards.  Then, that person becomes a sort of roving microphone.  Theater blocking is simply arranged to get the speakers as close as possible to one of those roving mic people.

Professional theater groups never compromise on microphones for the actors, but then professional groups aren't worried about giving every performer a chance to have a speaking line.  School and church groups often are.  Theater is so often a life of compromise.  

Still,  stage mics should never be considered as an alternative to wireless mics for actors.  Wireless is really the only way to go.
]]>Fri, 22 Jun 2012 16:23:59 GMThttp://www.fedoraav.com/blog/eds-thoughts-from-infocommOk, so maybe the heat of Las Vegas is getting to me, but I'm getting a new picture of technology for professional audio and lighting.  Technology is, in fact, moving ahead.  Here are a few things I've learned so far:

1. Dante by our good friends at Audinate, is a new technology for digital audio over IP networks.  And it's not just a future dream.  Dante is everywhere.  And built into everything.  Yamaha's new CL-series digital mixing console includes Dante.  Whirlwind has a new product with Dante support (but manual preamp controls..whaaahhh?), and Shure's new ULX-D digital wireless systems has Dante built in as well.  In fact, all built in--not option cards, built in.

I asked the guy from Yamaha why they made the commitment to Dante when AVB is around the corner.  He said that the Audinate stuff is fully upgradeable with firmware to full AVB support, no problem.  So by supporting Dante, they support AVB in the future.  For today, Dante has won the day.  Dante is the new standard in audio networking.

2. The Yamaha CL-series console is very cool.  I need to play with it some more (as is true of all audio technolgoy toys), but I found it very easy to navigate and intuitive.  It is more expensive than many competitive solutions, but the intuitive interface and digital features might just be worth it for the right venues--including church productions that involve volunteer sound engineers.

3. The Shure ULX-D wireless mic system blew me away, and not just because of the Dante integration.  This is cool:  The beltpacks/handhelds actually digitize the signal right off the mic element, and the signal stays digital (24bit 48kHz) all the way to the mixer if you use Dante.  Perfect.  The transmitters have 130dB S/N which means that analog gain is not required--digital gain at the console is sufficient.  

But wait, there's more.  Using software on the same Dante/Ethernet network, you can control and read the status of the receivers and transmitters from a laptop.  No additional network required.  Batteries, which are rechargeable (or 2AA), tell you how much time is left on the mic accurate to within 15 minutes--time, not just bars.

You can buy it in a configuration that puts 4 channels in a 1U rack space.  When you do that, you get additional benefits.  For example, you can pair two channels together to make absolutely sure that the RF from one of the two is getting through.  You can even sum the channels together to a single audio channel if you really need to save a channel on your mixer.  Price?  Yea, it's expensive too.  Roughly $6000 for the 4-channel version, $3000 for 2-channel version.  That means it retails for about $1,500 a channel.

Clearly I have expensive taste.

4. Now a little jewel for Russ our lighting guy.  LED lighting is everywhere.  Just so you know, I have learned that 19 10watt LEDs are equivalent to about 700 watts of incandescent (average about 34 incandescent watts per 10w LED).  I looked specifically at the Elation Platinum Wash ZFX Pro, a moving head, zoomable (17-43 degree) wash fixture--RGBW.  Wireless DMX built in.  As is typical of my favorite technologies, these little jewels are expensive, retailing for about $4,500, but I do think they are cool.  They also have a 37 10watt fixture (XL version) that throws the equivalent of 1200watts, and retails for a whopping $6,500.  I want 10 of them.

5. Another cool lighting device.  A small startup in California has an LED light bar with 11 10w LEDs that not only uses wireless DMX, but also uses battery power--for up to 18 hours of completely wireless lighting.  Just stick it where you want it and go.  Don't need to power it or wire it.  Buy six, and they give you a free case that includes a charging system inside the case.  Very cool.


InfoComm is a great place to get a handle on technology for the Audio Visual space.  I'm looking forward to next year!


Ed A.]]>