Mini mic
Hi Greg
I am looking for some kind of a mini mic (with a size comparable to the ones you fix on a shirt) which I could fully 'envelop' together with my harmonica in my hands. My intend with such mic is to better capture the full sound of the harp es well as the results of handtechniques such as Wah-wah.
Would you be able to advise me such type of a good-quality mic, which ideally is connectable to an amp with a (mini-)jacket
Thanks in advance for your answer
Joris
Hi Greg
Sorry for the late answer but thank you for your elaborate and very learnful feedback,
In the meanwhile I have googled about your bulletini, and I am really excited to buy such one.
Only is it not fully clear to me how to best order this and ship to my address being in Belgium.
Could you point me to the right procedure?
I also am planning to buy a 'regular' vocal mic, like SM58. Question I have here is if there may be other such regular mics which may have a more bluesier (this is not so clear) sound, or is this really the best 'regular-mic' choice for a blues player?
Thanks much for all your help
Joris
Hi Greg
Sorry for the late answer but thank you for your elaborate and very learnful feedback,
In the meanwhile I have googled about your bulletini, and I am really excited to buy such one.
Only is it not fully clear to me how to best order this and ship to my address being in Belgium.
Could you point me to the right procedure?
I also am planning to buy a 'regular' vocal mic, like SM58. Question I have here is if there may be other such regular mics which may have a more bluesier (this is not so clear) sound, or is this really the best 'regular-mic' choice for a blues player?
Thanks much for all your help
Joris
Hi, JorisTo order a mic you just need emal me with which model and which accessories you need - and I will send you a PayPal invoice. My email address is greg@blowsmeaway.com
To answer your question about vocal mics, we really need to define what kind of tone you're looking for, and what kind of amplification system you'll be using. Usually, a vocal mic is connected to a PA - both are clean and give clear vocals. You can play harp through this setup - but it will be a fairly clean "acoustic" sound. You also have to be very careful - if a mic is set up for vocals, sung a few inches from the mic - and you then cup the mic for harp, it will be PAINFULLY loud. (This is the reason I developed the Ultimate 58 microphone, which adds a volume control to an SM58 AND makes it more comfortable to hand hold. The volume control lets you choose a volume setting appropriate for harp and another for vocals. )
Conversely, if you play through a guitar/harp-style amplifier set up for blues, a mic like the 58 will indeed sound a little "fatter" and dirtier that it does through the PA, but the vocals will become muddy.
If you really want clean vocals and dirty harp from the same mic, your best bet is to use a mic that is clean enough for vocals, but with a broader tonal range (between cupped and uncupped) like an SM57 or 545, through a pedal that can add the overdrive and tone control you want for blues and then into the PA. Switch the pedal off for vocals. This can be a little complicated as effects pedals are almost all high imepdance and an SM58 and the PA are low impedance. Lone Wolf Blues Company makes a pedal called "Frontman" which solves this problem nicely for you - letting you run the mic to the PA with a standard low impedance (XLR to XLR) connection, but providing a high impedance "effects loop" into which you can insert one or more effects pedals - and switch the entire loop in and out with a foot switch.
Unless you need to travel very light - I recommend separating your vocal amplification system from your blues harp amplification system. The former is just a standard SM57 or SM58 (or Ultimate 57 or 58) connected to the PA (and you can still play "acoustic" harp through this mic) - and a Bulletini or other more blues-oriented mic through an amplifier set up for blues.
There is a a way to do anything! But every approach has tradeoffs!
P.S. - in my experiece, one of the most elusive skills for harp players is learning how to use a vocal mic for both vocals and blues, without any of the aids I describe above. I know of almost NOBODY - even among professionals - who does it well. But if you want to see someone who DOES do it beautifully, watch Kenny Neal. He has mastered this. The key is that he is able to play harp with great energy while playing it VERY, VERY quietly, under GREAT control. Easy to say. Much, much harder to do.
OK Greg
To try to answer the question wich tone I am after, perhaps I can point you to a recent recording I made and uploaded to the Share page of this website, namely Boogie Heat (under my alias name DEJ). I have made this recording using a Shure Green bullet connected to a Roland 40XL. Of course I obtained the bluesy sound by playing with the features of the Roland, but anyway it gives a good example of which sound I really like in playing blues.
You also can find the track at Youtube --> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr_dgBb_e7k
Anyway, after interpreting all the info I guess I would choose for the Ultimate 57, as I understand this is a mic which has a good balance of provding clear vocal as well as rough blues sound, and also has volume control, right?
I wait for your answer on thism, but independent of this I already want to order the bulletini, and will further communicate for this topic using your mailing address.
Many thanks
Joris
The recoding sounds good! Now I would ask you - what does it sound like if you sing through that mic and amp exactly as it was set up for your harp? Do you like the sound? The point I'm trying to make is that you can't just plug a bullet mic into an amp. seet it up for harp and get a good clear vocal tone out of it. Yes, the Ultimate 57 is about the best bet in order to try. And I think the Bulletini will really help you get a fuller tone from harp.
Using one mic for both vocals and amplified blues harp, without using a clean amp system and a foot switchable effects loop as I described above (to provide signal level adjustment, equalization and any other effect you might want such as delay or reverb) is probably not going to satisfy you. But with the Bulletini and Ultimate 57 you will have excellent tools to try!
thanks for all your inputs; on a most basic level, would the best harp/mic/vocal mic compromise be; a high impedance mic (such as a behringer xm8500 or a vocal mic SM57 run through the "harp attack" pedal and then to the amp?
i guess i would have to switch off the pedal when singing,right?
life is all about compromises, isnt it? :)
your advise would be much appreciated
adrian
Hi, Adrian
First, impedance has nothing to do with tone - only convenience. But yes, an SM57 (which is a low impedance mic, by the way) through a pedal like the Harp Attack is a good way to use the same mic for both jobs. However, NOT to a typical harp amp which will be very old-school/dirty sounding for your vocals. If you want good modern sounding clean vocals you really need to connect this to a PA (wh ich is essentially a very clean amplifier.) You WILL have to switch the pedal off when you sing.
If you're going from a low impedance mic to a pedal like the Harp Attack which only has high impedance inputs, you must use an impedance matching transformer. You will need to pick up the mic and cup it to get the fattest harp sound. If you do this it will be a lot louder than when you sing, so you're going to want to set the pedal and PA up in anticipation of this, and you'll probably want a volume control on the mic as well.
Shameless self-promotion department: Now you have TWO reasons to buy an Ultimate 57 intead of a stock Shure SM57! You can order it set up for high imepdance so no external impedance matching transformer is required, AND it has a built in volume control. You will still need to convert the output of the pedal to low impedance for the PA. For that, you need a "DI" box. Sound guys usually have them - as that is the way they connect keyboards, basses and acoustic guitars to the PA.
I don't know too many bands that perform without some sort of PA. Adding a good vocal mic like an SM58 is not terribly expensive - often there's already one there. So you can always sing and play acoustic through THAT - and resign yourself to using a DIFFERENT mic + amp for your harp work. Then you don't have to compromise for vocals in order to get the harp tone you want.Because of all the compromises/considerations mentioned above, that IS what most people do.
I hope that helps - but I understand it is a lot to absorb. If you still have questions - fire away!
Hey Greg. Do you offer your ultimate 57 in high impedance with a female 1/4 jack on it? That way I could stick my Boss WL-20L in the end and go to the amp wirelessly with gear I already have.
Hi, ACThere isn't room for a 1/4" jack inside the Ultimate. No worries though - just order it with the screw-on connector and add a Switchcraft 332 screw-on to 1/4" adpter to acommodate your wireless transmitter. 
Hi, Joris
I understand your desire to capture the "wah" and be able to cup your harp easily. On the surface, holding a small lapel mic inside your grip sounds like it would be just the thing. If you want to try it - buy yourself a lapel mic and try. But I had exactly the same thought many years ago and I DID try it. I didn't like it, and, knowing what I know now, I this it is the wrong answer.
First, I found it awkward and uncomfortable. Second, those mics are called "electret condenser" mics and they have a couple drawbacks. First, they don't tolerate high sound pressure levels well, and the character of their distortion is not pleasing to the ear. Sound pressure levels inside your cup are much higher than a normal microphone is exosed to. Second, they require a power source, so you're going to have to wear a battery pack on your belt. That means if you want to put the mic down, it is still attached to your hip and it is simply inconvenient.
I'm not sure what tone you're after. If you're after an acoustic clean sound, then you can get it AND get very deep wahs simply by playing into a regular vocal mic like an SM58. Leave the mic on the stand. The rear of your cup should be very close to the mic. It takes practice! Volume control is very important - if a mic adjusted to pick up that sound (which would be weaker than for someone singing right into it) is picked up and cupped? It will be so loud it can hurt peoples' ears. If you need a vocal mic to do double duty, adding a volume control to it is very handy.
If you're after a bluesier sound, then you need to learn to hold a mic in the rear of your cup, and get everything sealed properly. That takes practice too! My Bulletini mics ARE much smaller than traditional bullets, are very easy to cup and have great tone. I don't expect you to take my word for that - but it is easily verified by googling or reading the customer comments on the Bulletini Mics page of my web site.
I don't know what your skill level is, but I can tell you that a good acoustic wah is more elusive than it looks. Getting there requires mastering exactly the same principle as getting good cupped amplified tone. Air pressure must not be escaping, both between hands and the rear of the harp, AND out the unplayed holes on the FRONT of the harp. Many people don't understand this latter point. A huge amount of sound pressure normally escapes out the front of the harp. Prove this to yourself by placing a piece of masking tape over the entire rear of the harp and playing. Getting a really deep wah, whether acoustic or amplified, means attaining a near-full mute when your hands are in the closed position, and that requires sealing off ALL escape paths.
If you're taking lessons from Dave Barrett, he can absolutely and positively help you with all of this.