Feedback suppressors for live speech?

[AV Guy]

I know most people here hate 'em, but it seems that's mainly for music applications. Are feedback suppressors useful at all for clamping down feedback on just single person live speech applications?

Any thoughts, opinions or experience would be greatly appreciated!

[jchas]

I used a FBX unit on my churches sound system and feel it works pretty well at taming the nasty room peaks responsible for feedback. It has 6 auto-sensing 24db frequency attenuators which, to my ears, fixed the problem better and less destructively than a 1/3rd octave EQ.

[AV Guy]

Thanks! <bump>

[jamsmith]

I can't speak for people who do not like them. Perhaps they don't read the instructions. However, if you want to do the same thing manual, learn to use a set of notch filters. Unlike using a graphic EQ which screws with a whole 1/3 of an ocatve, a notch filter virtually zone in on a signal frequency. You sweep the frequency until you eliminate a feedback note and then set the (negative) gain so that the feed back is controlled but it doesn't completly eliminate the frequency. Perhaps the automattic system cut too deep. Seems they should be adjustable.

[tINY]

This seems to be comming up a lot lately.

Really, the FBX boxes are a band-aid, but sometimes the jagged room cuts your ear....

Learn to reset and selectively dump and lock the filters and you will be way ahead.




-tINY

[jamsmith]

Funny thing. I know most of the guys who worked at Sabine. In Gainesville. Sabine, like Marshall, started as music store.

[AV Guy]

I am just wondering if the FBX works well for speech only applications. It seems the consenus is that it sucks for music applications, but I am wondering how it works for simple speech.

Also, I don't have a notch EQ or Graphic EQ. What would be the best investment? FBX or an EQ?

EQ has to be set and fiddled with for awhile. I need something that is a quick fix for feedback that suddenly appears out of nowhere... Is FBX good at this?

[jchas]

A 31-band graphic can't cut narrow bands to eliminate the feedback without also noticably affecting the sound - but as you're not using on broad spectrum music through it it probably wouldn't matter much. Also, most graphics cut/boost 12-15db that may/may not be enough to cut feedback in a really ringy conference room.

on the other hand

A feedback eliminator automatically cuts A LOT of a small band (I think they're all 24db) leaving the source fairly accurate, but giving you no control over the overall sound of the room. If the room has a broad low level ring, it may supress the strongest frequency peak but won't give you a low cut to level off the boomy sound.

on the 3rd hand

A multi-band parametric will give you 2-4 bands of ADJUSTABLE cut/boost where you can use 1 or 2 bands to notch out feedback and the other 1 or 2 to tune the system to the room a little bit.

A combination of an eliminator and a parametric would probably give you the smoothest response but may be considered overkill for a solo narater - a cheap graphic would probably be the most cost effective method.

[Roland]

Originally Posted by AV Guy

I know most people here hate 'em, but it seems that's mainly for music applications. Are feedback suppressors useful at all for clamping down feedback on just single person live speech applications?

Any thoughts, opinions or experience would be greatly appreciated!

A well setup system with well chose equipment will not need feedback, eliminating the need for feeback supressors. They are a poor fix for poor engineering standards, I don't know any good engineers that use them.

Regards


Roland

[Larry Elliott]

Originally Posted by Roland

A well setup system with well chose equipment will not need feedback, eliminating the need for feeback supressors. They are a poor fix for poor engineering standards, I don't know any good engineers that use them.

Regards


Roland

Agreed!

[Jim vanBergen]

Originally Posted by Roland

A well setup system with well chose equipment will not need feedback, eliminating the need for feeback supressors. They are a poor fix for poor engineering standards, I don't know any good engineers that use them.

Regards


Roland

AMEN!!!
thumbsupthumbsupthumbsupthumbsupthumbsup

If you HAVE to use any tool, I would suggest you choose a great parametric EQ like a Meyer CP10, or a digital EQ like an XTA DP202 or 224 that can give you extremely narrow filter sets without inducing phase shift. While an FBX might help solve your issue, you have to use it VERY sparingly- and as Roland pointed out, it's MUCH better to solve this by using the laws of physics before all else.

JvB