Sound Advice by Leon Sievers Sound Professional August 08, 2006
With such a variety of microphone
technologies there are some that lend themselves to specific applications
within the church.
The type of mic you will
use on the Worship Leader depends on whether the person stays at
the pulpit or wanders around. If they remain at the pulpit, install a lectern
mic on the pulpit. This application also works well when you have different
people making announcements or reading from scripture. Most manufacturers
sell a Lectern Mic that swivels and has a shock mount to avoid thumps from
contact with the pulpit. If the Worship Leader is active and moves about,
use a wired or wireless clip-on lavalier microphone. The transmitter usually
clips onto a belt and the receiver in the wireless system plugs into a
mic or line input in the mixer. Locate the mic at chest height about 8
inches below the chin using the manufacturers microphone clip and route
the cable inside clothing. Lavalier mics come in omni and cardioid pickup
patterns. The omni microphone is best suited for this application as it’s
design resists noise from clothing and has less proximity affect when the
speaker turns their head.
For stage vocals use
a dynamic handheld cardioid mic, such as the Shure SM-58. Every church
should have an adequate stock of this workhorse microphone, as they can
be used in place of most microphones when failures occur or when you have
expanded needs. If budgets allow, try using a condenser cardioid like the
Shure SM-87. Higher quality microphones will always produce better results
in your mix and on stage.
When micing a piano
try using a stereo pair of cardioid mics (preferably condenser, like the
Sennheiser ME-40) aimed inside the piano at half-stick or full-stick open.
If your church has an upright piano, open the top lid and aim two
condensers in, or, alternatively, point two condensers at the back sounding
board of the piano. If your worship team uses a keyboard, invest
in a high quality direct box to convert the signal from unbalanced ¼”
to balanced XLR inputs and run directly into the console.
There are a number of high
qualities microphone “kits” specifically designed for micing drums and
percussion. If you don’t have the resources to buy a complete drum
mic “kit”, you should at least invest in a dynamic mica such as the AKG
D112 for use on the kick drum. You can easily substitute a Shure SM-57
on the snare and employ two condensers or some more SM-57 microphones in
an overhead configuration to pick up the toms and cymbals.
condensors
We use AKG C1000s mics for vocals and have found them to sound much cleaner then SM58s (no big surprise really). I have been able to get them on Ebay for around $150 each (new) which makes them a better value than SM58, in my opinion. Don't get me wr...more
Submitted by: Pat Gibbons Location: Magnolia. Tx
SM 58? and other micing comments/quesitons
I am surprised that you did not talk about the frequency and transient response of different mics which ultimately affect the sound of the mic. In my experience, the SM 58 has decent frequency response but poor transient response which ends up makin...more
Experiencing Worship, The Study
Used by churches all over the world to help teach worship, the Experiencing Worship study can help your worship team too.
Your team will learn why we worship and gain a better understanding of how to worship.
One user said..."Your 5 week study course has made a tremendous impact on my life in the study of worship... I would like to express my thanks for a well written study course that leads into a higher realm of praise and worship."
The Paul Langford Project
This is the debut album by EXW friend Paul Langford. Paul is a Chicago based singer, arranger, keyboardist, producer and conductor. Paul has a career that spans 14 years. Paul's work includes arranging for groups like GLAD, Voices of Liberty, VoiceTrek, The Chicago based "Caroling Party" and Day of Discovery Singers. His arranging has appeared on recordings side by side with greats like Gene Puerling and David Maddux, and he has sung with Don Shelton, Bonnie Herman and Bob Bowker, among others.
Used by churches all over the world to help teach worship, the Experiencing Worship study can help your worship team too.
Your team will learn why we worship and gain a better understanding of how to worship.
One user said..."Your 5 week study course has made a tremendous impact on my life in the study of worship... I would like to express my thanks for a well written study course that leads into a higher realm of praise and worship."
This is the debut album by EXW friend Paul Langford. Paul is a Chicago based singer, arranger, keyboardist, producer and conductor. Paul has a career that spans 14 years. Paul's work includes arranging for groups like GLAD, Voices of Liberty, VoiceTrek, The Chicago based "Caroling Party" and Day of Discovery Singers. His arranging has appeared on recordings side by side with greats like Gene Puerling and David Maddux, and he has sung with Don Shelton, Bonnie Herman and Bob Bowker, among others.