Amplifying a harpsichord

[zilver]

Hello,

This question is not about recording, but i still hope some of you can give me some advice.
I have to amplify a harpsichord in a theatrical performance.

The lid will be removed.
I am planning to use two mini omni microphones (for unobtrusive-ness (is that english ?))

I might try placing them pzm-wise in the inside in "curve" of the instrument .
Or i can make two small goosenecks an place them over the strings.

What would be a good starting point. How far do the mics have to be from the strings to get a more or less even sound (remember i have to amplify, not record, so i need to be relatively close....).

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance,

Hans

[Yannick]

Many may respond that using mini omnis is a bad idea, but I think it is a very good one.

You can get very close, your idea of using them as PZMs is very good. You just need to find the right spot. Could also be on the soundboard somewhere, not too close to a string or the mechanics. I do this often with acoustic guitar, a mini omni on the soundboard just above the spot where the neck hits the body, not too close to the E string.

It can give a natural sound, no bass boost (proximity effect) and high gain before feedback because a. you're VERY close and b. off axis response of a mini omni has no lobing, which can and will trigger feedback with many directional mics.

Do not put them just above the strings, you will get too much string sound - the sound of the instrument is the strings, soundboard, everything basically.

[T.RayBullard]

I used my DPA 4061s spaced on Harpsichord many times with great results.

Various spaced omni pairs in the curve of the instrument has always done the trick for me.

[zilver]

Originally Posted by T.RayBullard

I used my DPA 4061s spaced on Harpsichord many times with great results.

Various spaced omni pairs in the curve of the instrument has always done the trick for me.

Do you mean inside the instrument or just above the side panel ?
This is a small instrument so if i mount them on the (curved) side panel they're only 3 cm's or so higher than the strings and about 15 cm away from the "bridge" that runs parallel with the curve.

And : won't i pick up to much of the high strings compared to the low strings ?

Hans

[T.RayBullard]

Above the side panel. It hasnt been the exact way every time, but I like spaced omnis for harpsichord more than anything else.

Originally Posted by zilver

Do you mean inside the instrument or just above the side panel ?
This is a small instrument so if i mount them on the (curved) side panel they're only 3 cm's or so higher than the strings and about 15 cm away from the "bridge" that runs parallel with the curve.

And : won't i pick up to much of the high strings compared to the low strings ?

Hans

[zilver]

Thanks you Yannick and T.RayBullard for the replies.
I'll experiment a bit.

Hans

[Jim vanBergen]

Great responses from people with good knowledge. I'll try and add something worthwhile.

Omnis are an excellent choice if you get enough gain before feedback. the key to the instrument (In MY opinion) is making it sound like it does from six feet away, not from six inches away. That's part of why the PZM concept is good, but the reality of spaced pair is really good for recording and really hard for reinforcement.

You are going to have to be very careful about your speaker placement AND your mic placement. Don't try and over-EQ unless it is to purely correct problems (like too much pluck, or a resonance.) You've got to be passive, subtle, and gentle. Good luck, let us know how your experiment goes. (By the way, I'd set up a nice omni pair no less than 6' from the source so you can A/B the mic setups in cans.)

Hope this helps!

Jim

[zilver]

Originally Posted by Jim vanBergen

Good luck, let us know how your experiment goes.

Hello,

the performances in which i had to amplify the harpsichord went very well.
After experimenting while listening through headphones i chose to put the mini omni's quite close above the "bridge", spaced so that the high and low register were pickud up as evenly as possible.

The speakers were suspended from the ceiling, hanging aprox. 3,5 meters above and 1,5 meters behind the instrument, spaced about 5 meters wide.

I used a little bit delay (14 ms ; for the Haas effect, worked good) and a lot high pass (160 Hz on the high register mic).

I was able to amplify the instrument sounding aprox. two times as loud without people noticing it was amplified.

If you muted the mics you could hear that the real instrument sounded a bit nicer, but without comparison it was hard to tell.



Thanks for the help,

Hans