How close do you sing to your mic?

And what have you found as drawbacks from eating the mic versus a few inches away?

EDIT: BTW, I was at a club the other night that provided PA and mics. Man, this dude got up and was eating the mic and I did NOT want to sing after him. He was suspect. I backed off that sucker. I guess some people use only their mic, period. Health reasons and stuff.

[This message has been edited by SemiLiveMusic (edited 10-01-2004).]

For the same common sense health reasons of not sharing my toothbrush with anybody else, I never let anyone use MY mic either. Some people don't understand why I'm so uptight, but I had to learn this from experience. When I started out, I shared my mic with others because it appeared uptight & selfish not to share. It wasn't till I actually caught a BAD COLD & got a throat infection from doing this, which then kept me off stage for over a week that I learned my lesson and now keep an extra mic available for guest singers. For extra insurance, at the end of the gig, I wipe the mic heads down with a cloth lightly soaked with rubbing alcohol (slightly damp, not wet). Health is a #1 priority, especially for a singer who requires their body & throat as the main musical instrument.

As far as 'eating the mic' itself goes, this can interesting vocal proximity effects. Better watch the teeth though.

- Scott

This thread is old but I'll drag it back up because it never went anywhere. But I'm curious what everyone does.

I have always sung almost touching the mic.

I just watched a video clip of an artist who was doing a live performance in a radio studio, live radio, and he was several inches from the mic. Looks like six inches to maybe a foot away. Link: http://tinyurl.com/ltal4

Do you think it's better to back off the mic? If so, what do you do differently with settings, if anything?




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Bill
Yamaha PSR2000

Bill, a very interesting topic, First off, try not to ever let anyone else use your mic, if by any chance you do, always carry a
little can of Lysol in your bag and give the mic a quick shot...I do this before every performance just to kill "mold" growth that can happen overnight on your mic from the moisture of your breath, especially if you use the rubber filter screens on your mic...
the other thing to consider is are you holding the mic while singing or are you using a mic stand or boom while playing the keyboard...this will make a difference in how close you are to the mic.....remember, the mic is an instrument just like the rest of the instruments on stage, you have to learn to control your voice volume with the mic as to farther or closer to your mouth for emphasis and phrasing effects...if you leave the volume level on your amp or keyboard the same at all times, you will soon learn to use your mic to control the volume with out "EATING" the mic, which while doing so by the way, tends to make everything you say or sing distorted and garbled anyway...that is for people that can't sing IMHO...I try never to hold my mic less than 6 in from my mouth unless singing very soft or low for effect...I hope this is of some help to you.....
TR

...what Tony said. Bill, make no mistake, this is an important (and often overlooked) topic. I'm not a singer but have been working with singers for 40 years. I just can't tell you how important good mic technique is for a singer. I've known singers that sounded good even with a mediocre mic because they knew how to use the aural feedback from their monitors to control their performance. So my advice would be; make sure your own ears are part of the equation (especially when performing live) and also, seek out a REAL "pro" (perhaps someone like DonM) and have a little one-on-one "tips & tricks" session.

chas

There are a number of factors that have to be considered, including, but not limited to, your own voice projection, mic quality, EQ, FX, etc. ...
I am usually about 2 - 3 inches away, but will 'back off' when hitting a 'big' note ... I will also get closer for effect ...
And don't be fooled by some of these big name stars when they are hitting a big or high note and the mic is arm's distance away ... While some of them have that power, others have a sound engineer adjusting the volume at the same time they are hitting the note ...
Just make sure that whether you are singing or speaking you can be heard and very clearly understood ... Being able to turn off or lower effects(reverb/delay) when you are about to speak over the mic is a plus...
t.

PS... Tony Rome... How YOU doin' ?!?!?
t.

Hey Tony...back atcha..just trying to get this place finished and back to normal ...haven't had too much time to spend on the forum but I check it out whenever I can....post some songs if you can.....keep the faith.....
TR

double post

[This message has been edited by DonM (edited 07-25-2006).]

Bill has watched me sing for many hours! You must get pretty close to the mic and keep the gain up when using most pa systems so that feedback is minimized. Particulary with the keyboard vocal harmonizers, gain and proximity balance is extremely important.
Also, it helps to use a hyper- or super-cardiod mic.
Now, recording and radio work is a whole 'nother story. You have a guy on the mixer to adjust, add or detract whatever your voice needs. Just be sure the guy knows what he's doing!
BTW, I must be pretty bored to be spending the week in Atlanta, GA and take the time to post on here!
Oh yeah, don't let anybody you wouldn't French-kiss use your mic.
DonM

Funny that you just posted, Don, as I was going to bring this thread back up.

Because in the past 15 years, I have watched as many live acts as anyone I know. And almost all of the singers eat the mic. I wondered if there is a difference in genre or just what. The acts I watch are either country or rock. Actually, I've seen quite a few folk acts but I can't remember what they do. All of these acts have a sound man.

Two women at my last gig said "Move away from the mic, you're too close. We can't understand your words." Now, they were age 70 and 80. I asked two 45ish ladies and they said they could understand every word I sang. If there is any skill I have vocally, I try hard to enunciate well.

Anyway, I told them "No, I'll just turn the volume down." Which I did a bit. I dunno, it sounded great to me.

I was actually a bit miffed that these women in the audience were telling me what to do, haha. But if you knew them, they are rather, uh, take-charge, know-it-all types. But as far as I know, they have zero skills in performing music.

I've just always ate the mic because of sound men I have asked told me to. That it is totally consistent.

But, hey, I'm open.


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Bill
Yamaha PSR2000

the sound guys will always ask you to do that with dynamic mics, the further away the less low and low mids come through, with some mics even the mid range gets lost...sm58's have a specific boost in these ranges,so if you back away the mic just not work as well...my rule of thumb is just that...i have my mouth about a thumb's width away from the mesh.....
dennis

First of all I carry an extra mic for people to use – they do not use mine.
I bought a cheap wireless mic, didn’t like it so I tried to return it a few days later and was told that they could not exchange it for health reasons.

A mic has different qualities as you move closer to it. I try to take atvantage of that difference in my vocals. I am normally about 2 1/2 inches away, but there are times when I am almost touching. When I am that close the sound is deep and I hold back and let it flow easily.

John C.

I use a Crown headset mic, and although the instructions are to have it almost touching your lips, I find it better to have it about an inch away. I'm still a baby musician, but I find it easy to overpower and create distortion if it's too close.

By the way I loved that song "Even Heroes Die"

Most rock and pop performers will eat the mic ... ever see John Mayer?!? ... however, the "old pros" like Tony Bennett, Paul Anka, etc. will generally have the mic FAR from their mouth ... but of course they have the equipment and sound men ...
t.