Members mhuxtable Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 My fiancee sings in our band with me & 2 other guys...has a fantastic voice, we do some great harmonies. But she's just very quiet...thats just her nature and her voice. Sound guys always ask "is that how loud you're gonna sing"? Is there a hardware solution for this? Compressor? Without getting massive feedback? She's not wisper quiet, just much quieter than the rest of us, plus we have 2 guitars, bass, keys, drums....it's a lot going on & sometimes she can get lost in the mix. And I don't wanna hear "make her sing louder"....its the way she sings & it is what it is. I'm just wondering if there's something we can put between her mic & the channel....like a compressor & feedback eliminator or something like that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Operator Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 Compression will help smooth out her voice, but if her dynamic range is consistently quiet (that is, the same level of quietness) it's not going to do a whole lot. Make sure she gets right up on the mic, like she's making out with it. You'll need that kind of proximity to make up for her lack of projection. Also, you're going to need to work with her as a band to keep your stage volume low enough that you're not overpowering her. Something tells me it's partially a nerves thing, so nothing will help her project like more confidence. She might be staying quiet so that she won't be noticed too much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RadioSilence Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 get a sound guy with a bigger PA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mhuxtable Posted May 13, 2011 Author Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 we definitely have our stage volume down....we're a big band but we work it well so that everything gets heard. she's gotten better about getting up on the mic...but she also knows how to work the mic (if she needs to blend, she gets a couple inches back, if she's lead, she's up on it). i don't think its nerves, shes very comfortable...she's just quiet. that's her voice. oh and we're an original band so we play clubs with PAs already installed. it's not awful...just could be better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members eti Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 Get a sound guy with a mixer. Then tell him to put his finger on the fader that corresponds to her mic And push it up until her voice sounds as loud as the others. Alternatively, he could turn the other guys down to match her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Operator Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 we definitely have our stage volume down....we're a big band but we work it well so that everything gets heard.she's gotten better about getting up on the mic...but she also knows how to work the mic (if she needs to blend, she gets a couple inches back, if she's lead, she's up on it).i don't think its nerves, shes very comfortable...she's just quiet. that's her voice.oh and we're an original band so we play clubs with PAs already installed.it's not awful...just could be better Yeah, I feel like if she's comfortable and everything, and you have a good in-band mix, maybe the sound guys are just dumb? Wouldn't be the first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vinnies Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 as soon as i saw the words my fiance, i thought, "this will end badly" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mhuxtable Posted May 13, 2011 Author Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 Get a sound guy with a mixer. Then tell him to put his finger on the fader that corresponds to her mic And push it up until her voice sounds as loud as the others. Alternatively, he could turn the other guys down to match her. thanks knucklehead....i knew i'd get some jackass response. if you make her mic too hot, there's a ton of feedback. shocker! you end up getting sound from other sources (drums, guitars) and not just her voice. I'm looking for something that can boost her voice but control feedback....is there an anti-feedback device that you can run after the mic into the board? that way he can boost her vocal? at practice she uses a Shure condensor that is a hyper cardioid pattern, which helps with rejection....but most soundguys are hesitant to use that live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members english_bob Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 How's her technique? Is she singing "properly" from the diaphragm? Good technique will get her lots of extra volume, and will probably be a much better solution than any gizmo to plug in between her mic and the desk... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members english_bob Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 as soon as i saw the words my fiance, i thought, "this will end badly" I thought this too. Constructive criticism in creative endeavours is sometimes better coming from people you *can't* withhold sex from as punishment :poke: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Loobs Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 Carrot in the bumhole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ambient Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 thanks knucklehead....i knew i'd get some jackass response.if you make her mic too hot, there's a ton of feedback. shocker! you end up getting sound from other sources (drums, guitars) and not just her voice.I'm looking for something that can boost her voice but control feedback....is there an anti-feedback device that you can run after the mic into the board? that way he can boost her vocal?at practice she uses a Shure condensor that is a hyper cardioid pattern, which helps with rejection....but most soundguys are hesitant to use that live. Just good mic technique, the right mic (narrow cardoid pattern perhaps) and standing in the right place so monitors/FOH aren't getting in too much. As long as the PA has been setup and eq'd/'rung-out' for the room it shouldn't be a problem at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Hiwatt Bob Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 yr band needs to get yr brown wings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members renula Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 yr band needs to get yr brown wings. LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members hrcnsfan Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 How's her technique? Is she singing "properly" from the diaphragm? Good technique will get her lots of extra volume, and will probably be a much better solution than any gizmo to plug in between her mic and the desk... This.There's alot going on with singing that requires good muscle development. A good vocal coach could probably help out a bunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ArrMatey Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 make sure she has the right microphone as well. A beta 57 often helps quiet female singers. Alternatively, look at condenser mics like the ones Neumann has, it will help a bit but she has to learn how to be a bit louder. Studio and live works are completely different approaches to mixing. Is she having trouble hearing herself? Think about in-ears. Her being quiet doesn't mean she can stay like that if she's in a band where there's a lot going on. She has to learn to adapt to a certain extent. Also, most often, the biggest problem with other instrument bleeds are from cymbals and snare. Try and find a way to control that. Cympads on cymbals and something else for the snare will help a bit isolate those sounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members companyman Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 cocaine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members macadood Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 a few beers? or just spay her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vinnies Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 yr band needs to get yr brown wings. spanking gets my woman loud too, lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the Dodo Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 thanks knucklehead....i knew i'd get some jackass response.if you make her mic too hot, there's a ton of feedback. shocker! you end up getting sound from other sources (drums, guitars) and not just her voice.I'm looking for something that can boost her voice but control feedback....is there an anti-feedback device that you can run after the mic into the board? that way he can boost her vocal?at practice she uses a Shure condensor that is a hyper cardioid pattern, which helps with rejection....but most soundguys are hesitant to use that live. Maybe its not the fitting mic for her. Wrong mics can do horrible things... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members janimarj Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 cocaine. But then you're out of tune and thinking you're the best singer ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members claytonjohn18 Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 Maybe its not the fitting mic for her. Wrong mics can do horrible things... Finally someone with a real answer. If a sound guy can't deal with feedback, he's not a good sound guy. If the mic doesn't match her voice and volume, get her a mic that she takes to gigs with her and uses instead of (presumably) the house SM58. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ryan. Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 My fiancee sings in our band with me & 2 other guys...has a fantastic voice, we do some great harmonies.But she's just very quiet...thats just her nature and her voice. Sound guys always ask "is that how loud you're gonna sing"?Is there a hardware solution for this? Compressor? Without getting massive feedback?She's not wisper quiet, just much quieter than the rest of us, plus we have 2 guitars, bass, keys, drums....it's a lot going on & sometimes she can get lost in the mix.And I don't wanna hear "make her sing louder"....its the way she sings & it is what it is. I'm just wondering if there's something we can put between her mic & the channel....like a compressor & feedback eliminator or something like that? Proper technique is really the only way, all these other "fixes" are just going to have weird effects on her voice. Turn her down in the monitor and see if she sings louder, sometimes that tricks singers into singing louder. Same way if you blow a guitarists head off in the monitor they may turn down a bit (unlikely, but possible). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members goodhonk Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ryan. Posted May 13, 2011 Members Share Posted May 13, 2011 Finally someone with a real answer. If a sound guy can't deal with feedback, he's not a good sound guy. If the mic doesn't match her voice and volume, get her a mic that she takes to gigs with her and uses instead of (presumably) the house SM58. Thats some crazy talk right there. I mean, yeah, find a mic that fits her voice... but you can't fault a sound guy because a singer is being too quiet... what is he supposed to do? Crank the gain up and then eq out offending signals? Eventually you've just eq'd out the whole spectrum and negated your gain increase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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