Vibraphone in monitor

Rafi Singer

Rafi Singer

Freshman
May 17, 2011
62
0
6
Waltham, MA
www.singerproduction.com
Hey all,

I just did a gig with a friend's band this past weekend, and I ran into issues getting the vibes player/BG Vox audible in her monitor. Now, one of the existing conditions is that the drummer plays too loud, so I tried mic'ing very close with two dynamic mics in hopes of trying to reduce drum bleed. I also ran into the issue that notes that fell too far out of the mic's proximity dropped off quickly. I was finding that when I began to get the mics loud enough to be audible, immediately, a number of frequencies began to take off, which resulted in a bit of hacking and still not getting it loud.

So, what have you guys done and what should I do, aside from cover the drumset with towels? Plexiglass panels in front of the drummer? Plexiglass between the drummer and vibes? Different monitor placement?
 
Re: Vibraphone in monitor

drummer plays too loud = drum shield all the time every time. Instrument too soft to get level in the monitors often means separate mics for house and monitor. Good mics in the right spot for house, smaller mics tight in the instrument for monitor level. In the case of vibes think cardiod lavs close to the bars for the monitors.
 
Re: Vibraphone in monitor

You don't have to put a full on shield in front of the drummer. Even though that might be optimum. Sometimes just having something along the line of sight takes care of it. I have a small plexi shield that goes in front of a guitar amp. It was made to come halfway up the top speaker on my vertical 2-12 cabinet. Some direct sound gets over it, but it keeps people right in front from getting blasted. Also throws sound up and makes it easier for the player to hear. I've used it with a few different people. Have also used in in front of drummers who tilt the snare way back so that the audience gets hit with the snare/bottom head sound. It just takes up enough space next to the kick to knock down that bottom snare without making the drummer feel like they're playing right into a concrete wall. I've also used it alongside a guitar amp to keep the sound over to one side and away from singers in the middle.

Sometimes an amp or a road case can serve as a gobo to keep sound from one spot from bleeding excessively to another. In a pinch, I've used a rectangular guitar case stood on end open and folded slightly to keep it upright. The fur inside does a pretty good job of knocking down an overly loud amp or drum from something next to it.
 
Re: Vibraphone in monitor

Dave Barnett said:
At least your friend's band doesn't also have a cellist with no pickup...
Click to expand...

I bought a CAD E100 after doing monitors for the Paul Winter Consort. They had an E100 on Eugene's cello about 18 inches from the instrument and I could get a surprising amount of quality SPL. Not sure it would be the same with a full on rock band though.
 
Top Bottom