ira
7 posts
May 24, 2014
9:20 AM
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hi...
does anyone out there who is lead vocal and harp player use only one mic? what do you use? do you change effects when you switch from vocal to harp? do you play cupping the mic or "acoustic" and not holding the mic?
as i said in another query i have fallen for the senn e835 for both vocals and for harp. when i put on the processor to a setting with good delay, reverb and a bit of distortion i can get that real chicago type sound..but i don't play for that sound on every song...
just curious about what others do.
thanks again,
ira
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FMWoodeye
833 posts
May 24, 2014
10:20 AM
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I have struggled with this, although I don't sing an awful lot. I play through one of Greg's custom bullet mics, through a digital delay pedal and into a Fender Bassman. With the Bass turned up and the treble turned down, it's not the best setup for singing. So I sing into an Ultimate 58 into the PA and play into the bullet. It's not hard to switch back and forth. All the songs I sing are harmonica intensive, i.e., Hoochie Coochie Man, Little Red Rooster, so I don't want to sacrifice harp tone. Neither do I want to sing through gear set up for a dirty blues sound. Good luck.
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2chops
248 posts
May 24, 2014
10:46 AM
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I don't go for the Chicago sound. I just some delay and a tight cup to add a little body while on the harp. I use an SM57 with a Bulletizer and just sing through my harp. Easy and my vocals don't get all muddied.
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nacoran
7771 posts
May 24, 2014
11:20 AM
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I do some singing. I haven't used it on stage yet, but I've picked up a dynamic boost pedal. I've got a fairly quiet voice and it lets me get up to the same volume as my harp so I can keep the mix right. I have a vocal fx multipedal and an AB switch I use sometimes, but again, mostly just messing around with it in practice but it lets me switch effects. The way I set up my amp it's usually just about ready to deliver some crunch if I cup, but it won't if I leave my hand open. I use that for both my vocals and harp.
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KingoBad
1468 posts
May 24, 2014
11:30 AM
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I sing and play off the vocal mike all the time.
You won't be able to cup your mic, but you can play off to the side or right in front, and use your hands to shape the sound.
I recommend watching videos of both Joe Filisko and Phil Wiggins. Both of them have their own style that work very well. I actually use both styles depending on how I feel.
You just need to find the right distance. Having a good monitor does wonders.
I use no effects.
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Danny
Last Edited by KingoBad on May 24, 2014 11:31 AM
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dougharps
626 posts
May 24, 2014
1:19 PM
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I often will sing and play through one mic in my acoustic style gigs. I also have a tube amp harp setup for electric gigs and will switch depending on the song. I use one of Greg's Ultimate 58s for vocals and harp. If I am hand-holding the mic, I open the volume wide and sing off the mic, outside of the proximity effect zone. When I play, I cut back volume and cup the mic.
The e835 does not have much (if any) proximity effect, so even with a volume control added, the high frequencies may dominate your sound.
I have seen RJ Mischo manage doing both singing and harp without a volume control. He uses a loose cup and technique.
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Doug S.
Last Edited by dougharps on May 24, 2014 1:24 PM
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ira
8 posts
May 24, 2014
3:24 PM
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as i said i've been going through a mod processor and into the pa...i have been cupping the mic though when i play...i move a bit off the mic when i sing. and work volumeand tone with vocal and harp tecnnique. as for the highs from the mic. i turn down the hi and mid and turn up the low on the pa. works fine so far and the high end of the harp sounds more powerful than shrill
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SuperBee
2021 posts
May 24, 2014
4:14 PM
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I sing and play in same song, often interspersing harp lines between vocal lines. Sometimes I don't have a PA. If I have PA I use it but sometimes drop a vocal into the harp mic for effect.
There's no opp to adjust between harp and vox when I only have the harp amp. Lately I've been favouring a 30watt 12" combo. I think the 12" projects the vocal better and it's easier to deal with than a 410. It's important to clean up the tone setting of the amp if you're gonna sing into it, IMHO.
I use shure elements in bullet shells mainly, although I use a 58 with a small busking amp if I have to go battery powered. And I think something like a 585, 533 etc might work well. No doubt many types of mic would be ok,
I never have an issue with volume control doing this but I do spend a lot of time with hands in front of my face, and I doubt it's a great look.
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Joe_L
2478 posts
May 24, 2014
6:42 PM
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I do it regularly. It's the great equalizer. I use no effects. If you've got good tone and technique, you can get away with it. If you use too much breath force or poor tone, you'll kill the audience.
As far as the "Chicago Sound", where do you think it came from? Cupping a low quality vocal mic into a early model PA. Early PA's weren't a whole lot different than guitar amps.
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Last Edited by Joe_L on May 24, 2014 6:43 PM
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jbone
1630 posts
May 24, 2014
9:10 PM
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My voice and a harp have opposite needs from a mic and p.a., so most times I either do without a mic at all or I bring both my harp mic/amp and also a small p.a. with Shure beta 58 mics for vocals.
But Joe is correct, playing through a pretty dry p.a. mic will force you to find ways to make the harp sound better!
Re early p.a.'s, people seem to forget, all p.a.'s until the early to mid 60's were tube powered. They sounded better than today's p.a.'s and could handle harp and vocs better. My opinion.
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Last Edited by jbone on May 26, 2014 8:04 AM
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BluesJacketman
142 posts
May 24, 2014
11:27 PM
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I have been thinking about doing this for this particular reason:
I would get a Shure 545 and plug it into a lone harp attack plugged straight into the PA. I would keep the pedal right by my foot and switch it on and off in between my vocals and harp parts. Don't know how well it would work.
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Kingley
3581 posts
May 24, 2014
11:42 PM
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Joe L makes some very good points and I agree with him.
I do this a lot and it's great for me and i enjoy it a lot. Nice simple set up and your natural tone comes through with clarity and of course you can be heard and hear yourself more easily which is always a big bonus. I mostly use either an SM58, SM57 or a 545 when playing like this.
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Gnarly
1012 posts
May 25, 2014
1:19 AM
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I prefer to use two microphones, one for harp and one for vocals. I bought a fireball and the Digitech processor with Richard Hunter's patches, and it works great.
But I haven't been using it because it's one more thing to set up at gigs, and I have too much stuff already.
I sing through a TC Electronic VoiceLive Touch (Brendan uses one for harp), and so I can alter my sound with that processor for a blusier tone.
Last Edited by Gnarly on May 25, 2014 1:20 AM
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