Microphones Microphone Testing

Hi all,
I couldn't find a thread about this so I'll start a new one.
I know it's generally frowned upon to test a mic with "Testing, testing, 1 2 3" but sometimes I struggle to come up with something else to say.
I know one tech that makes a popping sound in the mic.

What do you say when testing a mic?

It is common to also use Check check the hard ch and K sound help give you a rough feel for clarity and distortion

Sharyn

When checking a mic for someone who is actually EQing it, I use Check, a word or two with a hard P to take care of plosives, and then "Tssssss" for taking care of the S sound.

Sometimes I just take an equipment manual to the podium and read that.

Or tell a random story. It's fun.

The Jaberwocky goes down well.
If just line checking check 1, 2 is fine though.

acoppsa said:

I know it's generally frowned upon to test a mic with "Testing, testing, 1 2 3"

Click to expand...

Not at all. Its very accepted, to the point of nauseam.

A buddy of mine had 32 channels to check every show this summer, sometimes twice a day. After about a week, we all knew his check. Hey, Hey. Check One. One-e-e-e, T-Two. Check, Check... you get the idea.

As long as you know what you are listening for, say whatever you want.

When it's me, I will usually just say test/check...

If I'm having someone else talk, I usually have them give me a short monologue or sing a short song.

When I can get away with making actors check their own mics, I make them say some lines and sing a few bars from one of their songs (often asking them to pick particularly loud or challenging moments from the show). If I'm doing a line check myself, it's "Check one, two, hey...", and if it's EQ'ing or something like that I'll just ramble on until I'm told to shut up.

Check, check, cash, visa, money order....

"Check, One, Two; Sibilance, Sibilance!"

Any other SNL fans??

Given a choice, for a line check I don't want to hear check anything. I want the line name so Kick Kick Kick one two or something or 1st violins 1. But there again when there's 260 odd channels under discussion it's a little different to your average school or bar gig...

Theater: Have the actors sing or recite an excerpt from the casted role. Stress that they do it all "in character." Often times people back off or shy away when there mic is the loudest thing in an empty house before the show.

Bands/Music: Have the tech/musician promptly identify what they're playing and then play it. This is particular useful when you don't have a perfect visual on what is being played. It's also an extra precaution to ensure lines/channels aren't misrouted or mislabeled.

I like to recite the abc's or count or recite constants like pi or e. If I'm going to be there for a while (monitors, feedback ring out, etc), I'll humorously grab a manual or nearby reading material and read it. "The Shure SM58 is a famous dynamic cardioid microphone..."

The trouble with Check One Two is it tells you how great the wedge is at consonants and sibilance (and whether it has that "big & chesty" tone, which just adds to the mud on stage). What you need to know is does the wedge have the ability to give a singer what s/he needs, which is their pitch - the midrange. "Heeeey Haaaay" is better at this.

Or my favorite:

Obstacles

Spectacles

Testing

If im at a concert, doing quick line checks right before the 2nd band comes on, I have found it gives the crowd a laugh (and runs thru some specific sounds that mics have issues with) to go "Pop! Pop Popsicle! Ice! Ice! Icicle! Test! Test! OK this mic works!"

For Line Check, all I care about is that signal is passing where and how it should be. Line check is kind of hard to do by oneself, but it is possible to PFL a channel and crank up the headphone volume to listen for background noise and the like. When I do have someone on-stage, I'll have them tap the mic or do a single "Check". If there's a DI connected, I'll have them use a dynamic mic to check it - if it's an active DI, they'll use a condenser mic. If there's an instrument AND we're allowed to use it real quick, I'll get the person on-stage to strum/play it real quick.

Remember: Line Check is just for making sure everything is connected properly. You should be able to jump from channel to channel - if there's outboard connected (gates, compressors, etc.), then it's good to verify they're passing signal, so it may take a little longer. Use Sound Check for getting things dialed in.

For a TRUE Sound Check, I'll get the individual performers to go through whatever they do during the show/gig. If it's vocals, they sing; if guitar, they play at show level.

I always compensate for actual show levels by leaving the gain/trim 3dB-6dB less than I would otherwise want it.

I've often used the following when getting things into the ballpark:

"Check, one, two" (hitting the consonants hard)
"Hey, He-eeyyy, Ha, HA"
"Sibilance, Sssss, Super, Sexy, Slick"
"Ba, Boom, Bark, Broke"
"Poop, Poo, Pa, Papa, Pop! Peeeeee"
"Test, Testing, Tit for Tat, Tubular"

The basic idea is for vocals, especially with multiple speakers you want to have the "bases covered" for the worst cases. There is usually one person with hard P's or B's, or horrible S's C/K's and such. It also just gives you "something" to say.

For music ALWAYS rely on the PERFORMER, you can make it sound okay by eliminating any potential problem. But if you only work on making it sound great for the particular "signal source" (ie the person singing) you will get a much better result.

If you are just doing a quick line check I just say one word into each microphone. And never "Hey, is this thing on?". I never do ANY of those tests with a potential audience anyways.

Totally off subject, I suppose, but isn't that weird how actors will freeze up during a sound check, and then go straight back in the dressing room and do something like be in character singing a song in front of everyone? Interesting study in there, somewhere.