How to Mic a Bluegrass Band with Ear Trumpet Labs & Man About a Horse

[@justinbrooksmusic]

One of the most informative micing videos I’ve ever seen. Thank you.

[@johnross2763]

The reason the old bluegrass bands used only one microphone is that they were only given one microphone! Microphones were expensive, and mixers were almost unknown! ... They learned to do their best with limited resources. The vocalists would lean in for the harmonies, the mandolin and guitar players would raise their instrument high on their chests and push up to the microphone for their solos, the fiddle player muscled in and hunched down, the banjo player... well, he was pretty loud anyway. But it is those old-time performance and recording scenarios that have created the theatre of Bluegrass: the choreography of a Bluegrass band, and who would be without it! But as for sound quality, it's another story. It is a matter of what you want to create, and in what environment. The 'old-school' single microphone technique works well in a 'friendly' acoustic environment, for example, a concert in a venue designed for acoustics with a quiet and attentive audience. Musicians need to know exactly what they are doing and do their own mixing on stage, because the sound man can do bugger all except turn them up or down, and then only to a limited degree before feedback. You will notice in the video that the lead vocals are often over-present and the poor old fiddler hardly gets a look-in. It looks and sounds OK, but you wouldn't put it on a record. In more difficult environments, like pubs, clubs, dance-halls and other noisy venues, close-miking is the best option. Where there is significant background noise, sound quality comes down to maximising the primary input into the microphone (the musician), minimising background noise and avoiding feedback - that means close-miking. Microphones, whatever their technology, are not magical: they do not know that you, the musician, are more important than the background noise that also impacts upon their diaphragms. I recently watched again the Woodstock movie. I think you could call that a difficult acoustic environment, although it was outdoors, such a huge crowd and a system that would not quite be up to today's standards. There was only one microphone (I mean lots of them) used at Woodstock - the Shure SM565. It was used for everything. Close-miked. The near-identical Shure SM58 has been an industry standard for over 50 years, with good reason. There is no doubt about the excellent quality of Ear Trumpet's products, but there are horses for courses, and musicians and sound people should bear that in mind.

[@ScottMcCulloughBmax419]

Thanks for this comprehensive tutorial. I'm in two bands that use Ear Trumpet mics. One band is a 4-piece bluegrass combo using a single Louise, with all the ducking and weaving involved. The other is a 5-piece jugband using a pair of Josephines. It takes time to find the best techniques to achieve the desired dynamics, but once everybody is tuned into what's needed the results are thrilling, sonically and visually. My goal in both bands is to sound as full and dynamically balanced as artists like Sierra Ferrell or the Wood Brothers when they use ETL condenser mics. We're not there yet, but we're getting close. This video helps.

[@grahamhughes2025]

great info. I have just got my hands on an Edwina down here at the bottom of the earth nearly......a dream for me.......been on my list. Nice to be a part of a huge family....this has been great learning for me around use. Thank you.

[@NemoNepersonne]

Wow! So helpful! I’m going to get some of these. Perfect for the way my amateur bluegrass band of retired guys plays.

[@colbycarlock720]

Awesome video. And they may have a new fan now too.

[@jampakbluesngrassneighborh4325]

So much to learn now that we have Myrtle! Than ks for such a great presentation!

[@rewIndustry]

you did not mention a stereo pair of mains.. is there any use for this? given the band's concern about standing in a line on the stage, rather than in a circle around a single main, and also given the need to focus in a little on the bass and the guitar, would it not make sense to put two mics in front of this band? one centered on the bass, and one on the guitar? i have no experience of in house mixes, don't know how this would work, are they mono or stereo, in the first place? but two mics would make sense to me, in a recording situation, and i would like to know who that sounds..

[@bowtieguy6870]

Great mics but you have to know what you’re doing and the sound guys need to be VERY familiar with this type of setup or your performance will suffer severely out front. Great video and band!

[@mrphillipwest]

I loved the video and the excellent band of musicians in it. All microphone techniques used, sounded great!

[@musique-in-aspik]

Amazing Music and great Sound! Could there be phasing issues, when using more mics? Are the channels processed in any way or just plain? Do you pan in the mix?

[@Eartrumpetlabs]

Thanks! To avoid phase issues with multiple mics, you want to make sure each sound source is closer to one mic than another. The general rule is that if one sound source is 3x louder in one mic than the other, there won't be any phase issues. In this specific, the processing was very minimal. Typically live you wouldn't use any reverb or stereo panning when distance micing like this. Compression typically makes feedback worse. Hope this helps!

[@smallbatchsessions6892]

Thanks for this response. I could see mic-ing two people left on a mic , two right and the bass mic center with pencil mic ? Any suggestions on that setup with two large diaphragm mics

[@maxswingingstroke]

Thanks for the explanation and the little concert. I am thinking of testing this setup with my Jazz Trio. We would use additional in-ear monitors, or does that not make sense with this configuration?

[@Eartrumpetlabs]

In-ear monitors can be a very useful addition to a live condenser mic set-up! Can definitely help get more monitoring and more gain out the mics.

[@acousticguitarcanada]

Great video...

[@djblackjackshellac]

Hi ... jazz vocalist/acoustic archtop guitarist here. My guitar already has a pickup and it's own unique processing, but I DO like that it seems I wouldn't have to stand super close to the mic for vocals. My voice, however, has processing to enable a group "shoutout" effect every now and then. Will my guitar pick this up from the Myrtle? Thanks.

[@Eartrumpetlabs]

Thanks for your interest! There will be some acoustic sound from the guitar picked up if you're using one of our mics from a moderate distance. One thing to consider, if you're using vocal processing you need to make sure the processor provides phantom power for the microphone, or use a phantom supply unit between the mic and the processor.

[@ULIGH]

this is so good thank you

[@Fuzzheimer]

Nicely done

[@p_lawls]

@ear trumpet labs do you know if the guys use a preamp between your mic(s) and the mixer? Thanks for posting -- this is super helpful!

[@Eartrumpetlabs]

We're not totally sure, but we think they were just using the built-in pre-amp on the interface, nothing special. Glad you found it helpful!

[@paulpearson5283]

You got a mic on the bass need to turn it up

[@BelleAffaireChansonNouvelle]

Probably I missed it when you talked through all the instruments, how is the bass amplified in this video?

[@Eartrumpetlabs]

The bass is amplified with our Nadine for upright bass-- an easy-to-mount condenser mic that goes on the strings below the bridge and on the tailpiece. Hope this helps! www.eartrumpetlabs.com/products/microphones/nadine

[@BelleAffaireChansonNouvelle]

@@Eartrumpetlabs thank, that helps - one more: through an amp or directly to the PA?

[@Eartrumpetlabs]

@@BelleAffaireChansonNouvelle In this case it was directly to the PA, but some people send to their amp or blend with a pickup for stage sound.

[@dolinman]

that's really helpful

[@DornAndGrant]

Hi guys about a horse - love this. And we got a Louise and a couple of gigs in It’s working well

[@stormselah]

Great - at 12:42 - Can't hear the fiddle. wtf.

[@rewIndustry]

you really need to focus on how much your gear creaks and pops - for example the banjo strap is making a terrible noise - and there needs to be a focus on quiet clothing, footwear, and everthing else. on top of that, any breathing or other human noises will come through as well. please be aware of this - condensers are WAY more personal than dynamics. a dynamic microphone is essentially an instrument, you actually play it, by proximity and angle, whereas a condenser is basically camera, and it is going to pick up everything, all your warts and all. just saying.