What to do before you reach for the EQ
As usual, I enjoyed reading Mark Amundson’s May 2007 FOH “Theory and Practice” article about the EQ strip. The article was well written and informative.
However, the subject matter really cried out for a prequel article. An EQ is, in a cosmic way, a distortion device. It distorts the harmonic order of a sig-nal. Also, on analog EQs, the circuits use phase shifting in their designs — coloring sound by smearing, so to speak. Many engineers hear something they don’t like and immediately reach for the EQ knob as a cure-all — sometimes with good results, sometimes they get frustrated. There are other solutions…
Placement works wonders. If you’re getting too much attack on the kick drum, and not enough beef, pull the mic back and aim it off the beater. Experiment with placement. The same goes for tom mics — move them up and off the skin for more natural sound. In short, move the mic around until it gives the most desirable result.
Guitar amps are another place where you’ll be surprised at how much changing the mic’s orientation matters. Do some critical listening. Start aiming directly at the cone. Move it off center — keep moving it until it’s angled at the speaker’s edge. The tone changes from more mellow to edgier — all before you reach for the EQ. Another issue touched on by Mr. Amundson is that of the proximity effect, in which dynamic mics are warmer in the lows and low mids the closer in you are to the source.
On the other hand, when a dynamic mic is too far away, it can sound thin. Two quick examples: first, on podiums, especially where everyday people are called on to do public speaking. Some survey once stated that people fear public speaking more than death itself. Therefore, many nonprofessional speakers stand a zip code away from the microphone. Generally, the higher up the corporate ladder, the better the person is at speaking. Many execs take seminars on public speaking or join groups like Toastmasters. Politicians usually speak well and are drawn to microphones like moths to a light. The trouble begins when regional mid-level employees are asked to speak.
The second example is horn players — especially old jazz cats — they are often not used to P.A. at all, or are more familiar with playing smaller rooms. You can TRY to get them to play into their mics, but that is usually a losing battle.
In the case of the podium, a condenser mic — either a long-necked stalk mic specifically designed for podium use, or any decent small profile condenser — can be used to get a warmer sound. A potential danger here is that a condenser is almost always more sensitive of a mic. You may have a speaker who is not intimidated by public speaking — who may speak directly into the mic and give way more giddy-up than you anticipated, plus the “plosive” popping of certain vocal sounds — “p,” “t,” “d,” etc.
For horn players, you can get a condenser and also run the potential risk of overload. There are clip-on mics for horns, but if the player uses dynamics well, the mic always will be at a fixed distance; therefore, the level may fluctuate more than you are comfortable correcting by use of the fader alone. If you don’t have spare compression just in case, this may not be the best answer. If time permits, experiment.
Another microphone commonly encountered, especially in the corporate A/V setting, is the lavalier or lapel microphone. This mic usually needs some EQ — especially if it is being used in a venue that is using other microphones. But, to get the least amount of EQ on the lav, placement will help. On a male speaker, I like the lavaliere an inch or two under the knot of his tie. On a female speaker, I try to get the mic centered on her blouse, no more than 12 inches away from her mouth. Many people place the mic on lapels. I try to avoid this placement be-cause the speaker is usually focusing on their material and their audience, not on their sound. If the mic is on their left lapel, and the speaker turns to the right to look at that segment of his or her audience, the distance to the mic increases, and the sound trails off. Conversely, if the speaker turns to the left, the distance to the mic decreases, and the sound gets louder. These shifts in volume can bring attention to the sound as opposed to the content of the message. This is why I prefer to center lavaliers.
Of course, there are some gigs, like festivals, with one band per hour. Get ‘em up, get ‘em sounding decent. No time to play. However, if you have already experimented with mic selection and placement a bit, it will help you predict the results you’ll get.
In short, try to get the best input signal into your board before you reach for the EQ!
Rob Orlinick has run audio in Las Vegas showrooms for more years than he really cares to think about. He can currently be found at the Luxor.
