Hanging Microphone

[Shez]

The capsule inside the PCC160 is actually pretty well damped anyway. What may not be immediately obvious is the difference between what is picked up acoustically and what is picked up by mechanical conduction. In the tests I've done, floating them just above the stage made a negligible difference as the sound of clomping shoes was far more significant than the mechanical vibrations. Depends on the construction of your stage of course so YMMV.

[Bobbsy]

Yeah. I should say that, as often as not, I've ended up using the PCCs (and, more recently the Bartletts) on very reverberant stage extensions. It must be karma or something but they always seem to bring out the extensions when I'm doing sound, both adding to mechanical noise and also getting the turns nearer the FOH speakers. For this I use the mouse pads--if ever I have the luxury of a nice solid stage I may try without them!

[BatchFile]

We just got three of these http://www.dv247.com...ne-black--78974 for our school production - similar to the CPC ones (but in stock!) - to pick up the non-mic'd characters. I have to say they worked very well and can recommend them - I would also comment that having more than one worked (exponentially) well for us as when we got the first one out and set up we were underwhelmed (not much pickup before feedback), but the situation improved dramatically with 2 and then 3 of them.

 

Did the gaffer-grabtab thing underneath them, straight on to the stage and just hit the mutes when scenery was being moved :) (oh and put a white gaffer horseshoe shaped marking around them to improve their chances of not being trampled).

[Johnno]

... I would also comment that having more than one worked (exponentially) well for us as when we got the first one out and set up we were underwhelmed (not much pickup before feedback), but the situation improved dramatically with 2 and then 3 of them.

 

If you didn't have much GBF with one mic, how could you have more with three? Potential Acoustic Gain drops by half for each doubling of the number of microphones. You should lose about 5dB gain with three mics.

 

Could it be that with more mics the average distance from a microphone to someone speaking was reduced and therefore, on average, you got more output?

[erroneousblack]

I suggest that you do a search of the BR for the terms 'hanging mic' and see what turns up.

 

The general opinion of many experienced members (and my own) is that hanging mics are next to useless for the majority of PA use, just like most shotgun/rifle attempts to pick up the chorusses of am dram groups.

The more popular (and successful) pickup mics used tend to be boundary mics of the plate mic type - eg the Crown PCC160 or similar.

 

And don't forget that the MOST important aspect of any chorus pickup (or even principals in may cases) is to get the beggars to actually project when singing!

 

With you there mate, once had a teacher who'd turned up with his choir and gave my noise boy a hard time because he couldn't hear them at the back of the audotorium. I had to tell him, that I couldn't hear them either, and I was in prompt corner!