random comments on feedback, chromatics, and earplugs

[James Hanson <HANSONJA@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Musings on the days topics:

If your Shaker mic feeds back on the second "stop" of the volume
control, the easy solution is to change the order of your adjustments! 
Don't set your amp or PA volume, EQ, etc. with the mic volume turned to
its LOWEST setting.  Instead, adjust your volume, EQ, etc. with the mic at
or near its HIGHEST setting.  The "feedback level" effectively limits how
loud you can get, and since you have that volume control on the mic, it
may as well be useful instead of just an "ON-OFF" switch!  As mentioned
by others, all of the other adjustments (EQ, gain-volume, etc) can have
an effect on how loud you get before feedback starts.  (I've found that
some effects boxes will change the feedback level as well, although not
always predictably since I haven't looked into it seriously.  I did find that
with chorus it is possible to make feedback sound "musical"  -  a subject
that came up a while ago.  If the feedback frequency isn't ear-piercingly
high in pitch, the chorus adds a singing, vibrato quality to it.  Since
cupping or covering the mic can vary the frequency and level of
feedback, this can make eerie "singing" noises - played with it while
practicing but never worked out a use for it.)

How far out of tune are those 4/5 and 8/9 blows on the Chromatic?  I
have an old Hohner Chromonica (c. 1965) given to me by a friend - I don't
really play Chromatic seriously but occasionally play with it for fun. 
When I got it the wood comb had dried and separated, making holes 5
and 6 unusable.  Sent it back to Hohner and they repaired it for $22. 
(Very much a bargain).  In the intervening year or so, I noticed the 8/9
blows drifted out of tune, but just barely.  If played together, they
generate "beats" - variation in volume over time, like a tremolo.  I don't
think it was like this when it was first returned, so the pitch of the reeds
has changed some.  In the same "gift package" as contained the
Chromonica, I also got a "Goliath" - a very large tremolo tuned harp
designed to do this.  Our band has been working up some Rolling Stones
music recently, and I'm working on mastering this harp to reproduce the
choral intro to "You Can't Always Get What You Want".  It's not there yet,
but I think it will sound great when I figure it out.  So far, since I just
started working on it, the harp is so big - and no markings for the holes! -
that I don't always start in the same place....

I use the disposable foam earplugs because they're cheap and
convenient.  They are a little bit "adjustable" from my experience - how
deeply they are inserted into the ear canal changes the attenuation. 
When our band practices, I often find that very minimal insertion provides
enough attenuation so that I don't appear to have any aftereffects - no
humming or buzzing in my ears.  But I can still hear well enough to know
what's going on.  If I insert them too far, I can't always hear the other
instruments.  I'm no expert on ears, though, and maybe I'm exposing
myself to too much noise.  I also do some of the singing, and I find I need
to hear the band at a reasonable level or my pitch suffers.  I may look into
the other, more expensive plugs in the future.  I have a cousin who is an
audiologist - she works in the office of a doctor who treats hearing
problems and does the actual testing and fitting for hearing aids and
stuff.  (So maybe I can get a good deal on expensive plugs as
well....hmmm)  I was visiting her last summer, and a car drove by with
extremely loud music pouring out of the windows - annoying the rest of
the world with booming bass and thumping drums.  (Those kids!)  My
cousin smiled at me and said "That never bothers me - I just think of them
as future customers."  Yikes.

JH