Ableton Forum

OK, so this is probably a no-brainer, but I'm trying to figure out how to set up a mic for use in my live show in a way that doesn't create feedback. Is it a matter of positioning the mic/monitors or a particular routing configuration that enables me to add live mic input that doesn't just get picked back up and cycled through the system. Advice? Thanks.

Usually it is due to positioning of the monitors and having a directional mic (cardioid, super cardioid).

However a trick you could try is to insert a pitch shifting plug in the mic track and shift the pitch a tiny amount.

Never tried the last one, but any amount of pitch shifting is said to prevent feeback.

I think u can put a gate to cut some level. When you are not playing the mic is cuted.



i hope it is useful

Use a directional dynamic mic (Shure SM58 is a good place to start), work it close & use eq to filter the problem frequencies out.

If your not using the mic to monitor and only for the house, try turning the track monitoring off for the mic track. You wont hear it in your monitor but you'll kill the feedback. (as long as your not in front of you house speaker.

It's all in the ratio between the mic Gain in the mixer and the level of the monitor... (and the eq for the monitor...)
When you get to a venue- adjust your volumes then cut 100 hz and down in your monitor eq (only for the mic)... then start checking the other frequencies and cut only the ones who are causing FB.( each venue has different resonant frequencies so you need to do a different eq ).an experienced engineer should be able to hear and identify the freqs that are causing the problem on the monitor in less than 2 minutes.....
if you have a 31 band eq , just talk to the mic and gently boost each freq to identify if it is causing feedback if it does then cut it ,
if you don't have an outboard eq a good trick is to have the mic go into two tracks in the mixer, one going to the PA and one for the monitors, that way you can use a different eq for each... just make a 1 female to 2 male Xlr cable .make a couple - they're HANDY!
Use a good cardroid mic...
oh- and this probably goes without saying but - do NOT use a compressor ON THE CHANNEL GOING TO THE MONITORS ONLY COMPRESS THE MIC GOING TO THE PA (gently...).

Hope this helps....
peace.

I have excellent results with Behringer Shark DSP110. It can "learn" the feedback situation and avoid it.
Works really great.

IMO, it's all about mic and loudspeaker placement, and proper mic selection and use. Feedback destroyers, EQ, pitch shifting, etc cure the effect rather than the cause.

I'd avoid feedback-destroyers at all costs. They don't know what feedback is. They react to any long, continous tone and kill that frequency with a notch filter. Any 'music' in that frequency band will be attenuated, too. I learned this the hard way when a mic was accidently stuck in front of a speaker, a huge frequency band was attenuated, and I was too stupid to figure out what had just happened!