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[Kirby Yarbrough]

Looking for ideas on how to mic an 18-person acapella group.  I'm thinking of individual mics for the soloist, bass and beatboxer, then maybe four other mics covering the rest of the vocals.  Other ideas?

[Mark Cadwallader]

18 vocalists?  Is it a trio with 15 back-up singers, or an 18 person choir, with various solos?  Have you asked the act what they want/usually do, or is this a one-off performance?  Three solo mics and a couple of overhead choir mics seems like a reasonable approach in the absense of better information. Mark C.

[Kirby Yarbrough]

18 vocalists?

Good questions all.  It's an outdoor performance.  The group's rep said they're like an 18-person choir with some specific soloists.  He suggested three solo mics and one "area" mic for all the rest.  I don't think fifteen singers around an AT4033 will work out.

[Bill McIntosh]

Looking for ideas on how to mic an 18-person acapella group.  I'm thinking of individual mics for the soloist, bass and beatboxer, then maybe four other mics covering the rest of the vocals.  Other ideas?

+1 on Mark C's comments.

Are they singing in parts (SATB, TTBB, )  Your description implied there was only one bass vocalist.  I recommend the minimum number of solo mics and (maximum) of one group mic per section.  We cover a 50 voice 4 part choir with 4 overhead mics.

I have done a 10 voice women's ensemble at our church with individual mics, and it was no better sound than the two AKG C3000 LDC I usually use.  (Had to do with staging, they were spread out over a large area for dramatic effect).

Definitely ask what they have done before, and think about how to provide monitors without a feedback nightmare.

[Kirby Yarbrough]

Definitely ask what they have done before

Group's rep told me they've used three individual mics (soloist, bass, beatboxer) and one "area" mic.  Since it is an outdoor event, do you recommend putting mics on tall boom stands?

[Bill McIntosh]

Group's rep told me they've used three individual mics (soloist, bass, beatboxer) and one "area" mic.  Since it is an outdoor event, do you recommend putting mics on tall boom stands?

Our normal arrangement would have a few rows of singers on risers -- say 3 rows of 5.  I put the mic just above head height for the last row, with the middle row in the center of the mic pattern.  Ideal spacing puts the singers equidistant from the mic, with the mic a few feet from the front row. YMMV depending on how they stand and if you have risers available.

There is a lot of difference in the volume of the members of our ensembles; I try to place the stronger voices at the outer end of each row.

The solo mics I have either as just handheld or on lower stands, and further from the group.

[g'bye, Dick Rees]

I'd be ready with more than enough.  Here's my thinking:

Three individual mics as requested,, then 8 lines ready for "choir" mics. 

You can then go more or less as needed within the 8 lines.  Maximum would be 8 x SM58's to be shared two/mic.  Middle option would be something like 5 mics with generous patterns shared out by 3-4 voices each.  Minimum option would be four SDC's on all booms tucked into the group as needed, 3:1 rule applied as much as possible.

My guess with this group/style is that the soloists are out front and everyone else is in a single line behind them.  I've done a few things sort of like this and the best ones were arranged in multiples of quartets with one LDC/quartet.

Good luck. 

[Jason Raboin]

We do that with 4 wireless - one perc, one bass, and two soloists, plus a VP88 for the "block".

[John Rutirasiri]

I've done choirs on several Rode NT4 mics mounted on Ultimate Tour T stands (the really tall ones commonly used for drum overheads).  Sounded great, if not the best aesthetics.

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