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Bringing own mic to a gig - compressor?


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Thursday I fly out to LA for a gig for my 3 piece band, corporate gig, about 2,000 people, killer sound system, multiple betacams, etc. I sing lead and play guitar and we have 1 set for about 70 minutes.

 

My favorite singing mic is my Sennheiser e945 which I'm bringing, but I'm also bring a Beta58 just in case they have EQ issues being unfamiliar with the e945 (I could also use what they have if need be). I highly prefer using a compressor (dbx 166xl is fine) on my vocals, using IEM's I have no feedback issues. Is the best way to bring a picture of my 166xl settings I normally use, or just let them add a mild compression on their own? Or forget the compressor idea? I'm just so used to using that mic with the compressor, and although we could argue about it all day, I'm convinced I sound a little better with this mic and compressor. ;)

 

Any thoughts?

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Talk w/ the sound company. If you have plenty of time for a sound check, then they should be willing to give it a try, but if there's no sound check and you are on stage right after the day's functions, you will want to be flexable. Whose IEM system? Let the sound company know in advance if it's yours. They should have plenty of comps, let them add as needed.

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The sound company will almost certainly patch in a compressor without you even mentioning it. That's just what gets done. Their job is to make you sound good, and they more than likely know how to use their tools. Your 166 is a decent compressor, but the sound company will have something equal or better (probably better).

 

You've got good mics, they should be fine. The Sennheiser shouldn't be a problem, but you might want to discuss it with the sound company beforehand. If you're using IEM's, they won't need to ring anything out, so it should be easy (they do know you're bringing IEM's, right?).

 

Bring your mic, get your monitors sounding good, remember never to ask the crowd if they can hear you or how you sound, and have a good show. :)

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Thanks guys. My IEMs, they know about them. There will be wedges on stage anyway, I'll have them turned off or down while we play.

 

They have 8 dbx1066 I think it is, something else and a couple dbx166xl's last time I saw them. I'll let them know I like compression on my mic and let them set it up.

 

We are going to be able to do a sound check, with the doors closed, so hopefully we can get the details down. It's in everyone's best interest that we sound good, so it should all work out well.

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It worked out that we will have time to set up in advance and do a full sound check several hours before we play. That'll give me the chance to make sure a reasonable compression is dialed in, as well as a good overall sound. Man, I am so pumped for this gig, maybe because we're doing different material than normal (look below). Combination of excitement and nerves, I like it. Getting a little out of my comfort zone for the 1st time in a while. 3 piece rock band, very sober but fun crowd and a bunch of the songs are in Spanish. I'll report how it went and probably post a couple videos on my site. I'm out of here Thursday mid day.

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Killer gig, straight record to DVD (even though a little heavy on the vocals). They had a 1066 on my lead vocal mic, my trusty e945, and we tweaked it at the extended sound check. IEM's worked great and all those JBL VRX 90's friggin rock! We were quite loud, but those speakers carry extremely well. A bunch of custom 2x18 cabs held the low end very well.

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