As a bass player and sound man...I ask some questions and state my opinion. I hope this is helpful. (p.s. I used 4 mics, 2 DIs and 2 cabs to record for the last song I recorded. I love mics as much as anyone.)
I propose that if your goal is to have the band sound good in most situations(With a good PA) you will want to: Use a DI(I like transformer coupled DIs
), turn down as much as possible to avoid bleed into other mics, have your cab pointing at you and at ear level or tilted back, and let the monitors carry you.
Check out the freq response on this mic...do you want your tone to go through this EQ before it hits the house?
Grab your graphic EQ and boost 5 dB at 5k-6k and drop 5 dB at 100hZ. Then drop 10dB at 50hZ. what kind of sound do you get? That is kind of what a 57 will sound like.
Do you really think a 57, Beta 52, or pick a random cheap mic(Mics walk off, no need to have $500 mics at a venue) is going to be used on your cab is going to capture that feel of your cab? Can you tell the sound guy if an on axis or off axis placement will work better? Can you tell the sound guy if you want the mic in the center of the dust cover or at the edge of the speaker cone?
If you are in a club with a good system, please turn down and use a DI. If you have invested in a mic hat you like the sound of, from experience and not from a forum suggestion, please present that to your soundman with an idea where where you like it mic'd. Maybe even get an audix cab grabber and have the mic set up for him. Help him help you.
A soundmans' life is not easy, and there are many things that are higher in priority than the effects of a 57 capturing your tone. How much bleed are the bass, drums, and guitars giving to the vocal mics?Riding the fader as your guitar player hits the wrong pedal and does permanent damage to the front row. Adding a delay to the vocal(Who has not effects/rig on stage and is really usually 40% of why anyone listens) at the right time. Getting bands on and off so the night does not go 1 hour too long for the headliner who everyone came to see. Are all the cables out of the way so the band does not trip as they entertain. How does your bass sound through their subs? What is the master EQ like in the club? Is it set up for a reggie band, or thrash metal with no subs? Are the drum overheads working at all on this kit? The drummer has 2 snares? where does that kick, who has no DI, like its mic? What sound does the band want?
In short, I know it is really important to me as a bass player to get my tone out there. I payed $700 for a cab, I want to know that is not wasted money. In the big picture micing a cab is just not the best option for a channel or a sound mans time a large percentage of the time.
Best of luck. Please, other sound men speak up. If I am wrong here, let me know.
I propose that if your goal is to have the band sound good in most situations(With a good PA) you will want to: Use a DI(I like transformer coupled DIs
), turn down as much as possible to avoid bleed into other mics, have your cab pointing at you and at ear level or tilted back, and let the monitors carry you.Check out the freq response on this mic...do you want your tone to go through this EQ before it hits the house?
Grab your graphic EQ and boost 5 dB at 5k-6k and drop 5 dB at 100hZ. Then drop 10dB at 50hZ. what kind of sound do you get? That is kind of what a 57 will sound like.
Do you really think a 57, Beta 52, or pick a random cheap mic(Mics walk off, no need to have $500 mics at a venue) is going to be used on your cab is going to capture that feel of your cab? Can you tell the sound guy if an on axis or off axis placement will work better? Can you tell the sound guy if you want the mic in the center of the dust cover or at the edge of the speaker cone?
If you are in a club with a good system, please turn down and use a DI. If you have invested in a mic hat you like the sound of, from experience and not from a forum suggestion, please present that to your soundman with an idea where where you like it mic'd. Maybe even get an audix cab grabber and have the mic set up for him. Help him help you.
A soundmans' life is not easy, and there are many things that are higher in priority than the effects of a 57 capturing your tone. How much bleed are the bass, drums, and guitars giving to the vocal mics?Riding the fader as your guitar player hits the wrong pedal and does permanent damage to the front row. Adding a delay to the vocal(Who has not effects/rig on stage and is really usually 40% of why anyone listens) at the right time. Getting bands on and off so the night does not go 1 hour too long for the headliner who everyone came to see. Are all the cables out of the way so the band does not trip as they entertain. How does your bass sound through their subs? What is the master EQ like in the club? Is it set up for a reggie band, or thrash metal with no subs? Are the drum overheads working at all on this kit? The drummer has 2 snares? where does that kick, who has no DI, like its mic? What sound does the band want?
In short, I know it is really important to me as a bass player to get my tone out there. I payed $700 for a cab, I want to know that is not wasted money. In the big picture micing a cab is just not the best option for a channel or a sound mans time a large percentage of the time.
Best of luck. Please, other sound men speak up. If I am wrong here, let me know.
