IN EAR MONITORS--QUERY

[Rick K.]

Please sound off your opinions and experiences with in ear monitoring. I'm looking to simplify my set up and lower my stage volume in clubs. I'd sure like your opinions on brands/models, too...

[audiofreek]

I have very little experience with in-ear monitoring(none),but if you intend on doing much live recording this is"THE WAY"to go. The phase cancellation from monitor bleed into mics is very tough to get rid of once it is recorded onto a track.

[videoeditor1]

[quote]Originally posted by rickkreuzer: [b]Please sound off your opinions and experiences with in ear monitoring. I'm looking to simplify my set up and lower my stage volume in clubs. I'd sure like your opinions on brands/models, too...[/b][/quote] I use the Shure PSM700, each of my "acts" have the custom fit from FSI - [url=http://www.futuresonics.com]www.futuresonics.com[/url] The in-ears take a bit of getting accustomed to. One of my clients had concerns about where to put it - she eventually resorted to wearing belts to hang the body pack off.. With a proper mix - allowing some ambient sounds, you won't feel "clogged up" like you're cut off from the outside world. Another of my acts likes to hang one of the "ears" off, getting a mix of ear & monitors. You'll run out of mixes quickly, cuz most want to KEEP the floor monitors in conjunction with the in ear mixes....or maybe not. I save a lot on truck/trailer weight (monitors, eq rack, amps, processors), setup time, outboard equipment, and room acoustics corrections. It has gotten to a point, where if all the vocals, and all the "electronics" (keyboards etc) are on the "ears", those require the least amount of tweaking etc. Care must be taken when using these in some countries. I know that UHF is used pretty heavy in Japan, and I do believe use of certain UHF frequencies there are restricted. So far, I've damaged three of the Shure E-5 biamped ears, they appear to be fragile, I haven't killed any of the custom ears (yaaah!) or any of the Shure E-1. There are other players in t he game for sure (Ultimate ears - [url=http://www.ultimateears.com/ultimate1.html]www.ultimateears.com/ultimate1.html[/url] but the things I mentioned are those I use..... Hope this helps - NYC Drew This message has been edited by NYC Drew on 08-23-2001 at 06:31 PM

[fantasticsound]

I was just out with the Wilkinsons, endorsers of the Shure PSM600 in-ears. They use Ultimate Ears UE-5's as well as the Shure E5's. The molds needed replacing for the kids. Ear canals changing as they grew. (They're 19 and 17 now, the molds are a few years old.) They warned me that they play with the ears onstage, and I shouldn't think anything of it unless they signaled me. The rest of the band is currently divided up between traditional monitors and wired ears. 2 Shure wired 600 systems, and the drummer wears ported headphones. The monitors onstage are; guitar, steel (opposite sides of the stage) butt fill for the drummer (bass & kick only) and right side for the Dad (his voice only.) This makes for a very simple setup. Less time (read none most days) tweaking EQ because feedback is basically a non-issue, and the units sound good with little/no EQ. I was very impressed with the Shure E5's with the E*A*R earplug type sleeves. (yellow) They isolated outside noise while coupling the low end relatively well. With the plastic inserts they sucked. I couldn't get any size to properly fit in my ear and couple the drivers to the air mass in my ear canal. (Any leakage and the bass response DISAPPEARS.) The bass player used a different set of plastic inserts that have 3 successively smaller surfaces to plug your ear. Like the ear plugs with the metal baffle inside a rubber sleeve. Can't remember the name... He claimed they work well. Based on the fact he's playing bass direct with no amp whatsoever, monitoring only through the ears. I trust he's getting ample bass response. One nice side effect, for bands with amps onstage with ear monitors. You can blend stage volume for some instruments with accurate control over vocal or your instrument level, through the ears. My favorite advantage to in-ears: Ease of setup/teardown. I had a 5 channel snake between 5 outputs and the wireless ear rack, and another, long 3 channel snake with 3 25' extension XLR's to plug in keys, drum headset, and bass player's ears. This brings up the fact that a stereo field MOVES with you. The field is in your head, not emanating from stationary wedges. Cool stuff. If you can afford it, ear monitors can make a substantial difference in the quality of you monitor mixes. ------------------ Neil [b]Reality[/b]: [i]A few moments of lucidity surrounded by insanity.[/i]