TimmyP1955
Well-Known Member
Sorry if this has been said: Put the mic'd cast on a group or DCA, so you can one-finger blend them with the ensemble during the big numbers.
Turn mic on or not?
- Thread starterRobert F Jarvis
- Start date
Hi
Me being no sound professional I feel you have to just make that decision for yourself. See how it sounds. Or if you can lower the Charector actors mics just low enough that you can just hear them and see how that mixes in with everything else. I think the idea is having to get a good mix between between both. See that is like the same thing for me when I run sound for a theater production that has a live band. I have to get a good mix between the sound of the actors playing on stage and the band playing. Doing both of those makes everything mix out just right and sound good.
I am sure you will get it
Best of luck
Me being no sound professional I feel you have to just make that decision for yourself. See how it sounds. Or if you can lower the Charector actors mics just low enough that you can just hear them and see how that mixes in with everything else. I think the idea is having to get a good mix between between both. See that is like the same thing for me when I run sound for a theater production that has a live band. I have to get a good mix between the sound of the actors playing on stage and the band playing. Doing both of those makes everything mix out just right and sound good.
I am sure you will get it
Best of luck
Part of me wants to laugh, because way back in the day before fancy digital boards that you could cue, we had to balance all the mics with mute buttons and faders, line-by-line was an imagined dream. I still prefer live mixing over letting the board do all the work because some nights some people are off, tired, or just plain flat.
In my unprofessional opinion (because I’m unprofessional usually) use the hanging mics as reinforcement. They’ll never be as accurate or dynamic as what a “lead” is wearing, but sometimes you can get some interesting parts and voices up over the leads that add to the show. On the flip side, sometimes you can get some lead voices that need to be “softened” a little, so being active on the faders, giving a bump here or there or dropping the mic a hair and USING YOUR EARS AND BRAIN can make the sound so much better.
I’ll still occasionally sit at the board with my headphones on one ear so I can listen in to muted mics or solo out a mic to hear what we’re getting. Just because it sounded good at mic check doesn’t mean it’s going to be the same after act 1, and there have been beautiful parts that got buried because we didn’t hear them until we listened.
In my unprofessional opinion (because I’m unprofessional usually) use the hanging mics as reinforcement. They’ll never be as accurate or dynamic as what a “lead” is wearing, but sometimes you can get some interesting parts and voices up over the leads that add to the show. On the flip side, sometimes you can get some lead voices that need to be “softened” a little, so being active on the faders, giving a bump here or there or dropping the mic a hair and USING YOUR EARS AND BRAIN can make the sound so much better.
I’ll still occasionally sit at the board with my headphones on one ear so I can listen in to muted mics or solo out a mic to hear what we’re getting. Just because it sounded good at mic check doesn’t mean it’s going to be the same after act 1, and there have been beautiful parts that got buried because we didn’t hear them until we listened.
macsound
Well-Known Member
Definitely makes a case for an A2. During tech week I usually have them sit with me in the house instead of backstage. They keep on eye on the RF as actors change costumes (some stuff interferes), pfl mics during group numbers, takes notes for ideas I have while frantically mixing, fields questions and comments (and hollers) from the tech table.
While I agree hanging mics and floor mics can help with a large group of singers that aren't all mic'd or when mics are assigned based on speaking roles but don't take into account harmonies, ambient sound on stage is sometimes deafening when amplified but totally disappears without the mics. Like a squeaky caster that is covered up by a piccolo solo becomes painfully obvious when you're cranking that floor mic to pickup the 3rd baritone from the left.
While I agree hanging mics and floor mics can help with a large group of singers that aren't all mic'd or when mics are assigned based on speaking roles but don't take into account harmonies, ambient sound on stage is sometimes deafening when amplified but totally disappears without the mics. Like a squeaky caster that is covered up by a piccolo solo becomes painfully obvious when you're cranking that floor mic to pickup the 3rd baritone from the left.
