Hi all,
I'm a newish convert to IEMs - they work great at a gig at which we mic everything up. But at small gigs or when we rehearse it's too much hassle to mic everything, and I especially find the lack of drums into the mixer a bit of a problem. I can hear myself well (guitar and vocal) but sometimes struggle to keep tight with the drummer when he's being quiet.
So I thought I might get an omni-directional mic for these situations that I could point vaguely at the drums so it would pick up enough to feel real. Wouldn't matter if it picked up some guitar/bass etc as well I guess but would be great if it could catch some kick and cymbals as well as snare without getting fussy about positioning (e.g. I might just clip it to my mic stand).
Anyone have and suggestions for a suitable mic for this application? I guess I have a ballpark cost of say 50 to 100 quid in mind, if a half-decent mic can be had for that. (One that didn't need phantom power would be good in that it would be more versatile, but I usually have access to phantom power so this is not a hard constraint.)
Grateful for any suggestions...
Comments
Wondering what your experience is in terms of volume - do you find you turn your IEMs down a lot from what you normally use, if you put both in (if you ever do)?
(I’m wondering also if it makes a difference to volume/safety if the IEMs are custom moulded unit or just looser sealed ones.)
A lot of IEM units have a built-in limiter so it you do start to push it, that will automatically kick in and drop the level down a bit - yours may have a similar feature as a safeguard.
Typically I'll have mine up between 1/2 and 3/4 volume (I usually start lower and turn up as the gig goes on).
Also, I don't put everything though the IEM mix, as I found this was too much for just my single ear to cope with - I won't for example have our 2nd guitarist, bass or drums in my mix because I can hear them all well enough through my open ear.
I just have keys, backing vox, my main vocal and my guitar in my IEM.
I guess you could also look into using the one-ear method and getting a really good custom moulded ear plug (ACS or Ultimate Ears) for the other as a level of protection.
For the record, I don't have custom moulds (just the rubber and foam ones that came with my IEMs)
As an aside, we didn't actually start using IEMs for ear protection, but rather for a cleaner mix, clearer stage, less feedback and to enable everyone to get the exact mix they need.
... how about wearing an IEM in one ear and an ear plug in the other?
Might this help with keeping the volume down in the IEM ear, but letting just enough ambient sound bleed in via the other ear?
Anyone do this??
Think I’ll try it...