[Harp-L] Recommended PA Settings

["John F. Potts" <hvyj@xxxxxxx>]

	I'm not a sound tech, but this is what I've learned from my own  
experience playing harp through PA boards with low impedance non- 
bullet style mics: The most important controls are volume, gain  
(sometimes called pad or trim) and midrange.  Typically a harp player  
will roll,off some treble and pump the bass up a bit.  But the most  
interesting and helpful variations over tone control for harp are a  
product of  where you set the gain relative to the volume and how  
much or little you pump the midrange. Paying attention to the bass  
and treble settings, is, of course, important, but that's not where  
the action is--real control comes from the relationship between the  
gain setting and volume setting and where you put the midrange,  Btw,  
don't assume all feedback problems are treble related--too high a  
bass setting can cause feedback, too. Also, too much bass can make  
your tone muddy, and too little treble may take away "cut"  and also  
result in a muddled tone. Much of this depends on the particular mic  
that is being used. Considerations for bullet mics are different, but  
I'm not a bullet mic guy.   BE CAREFUL when you turn up the gain, it  
can cause immediate feedback and keep in mind that a little increase  
in gain goes a long way. When you turn up the gain,  you must lower  
the volume control to compensate because increasing the gain gives  
you a "hotter" and also louder signal.  The mic will be more  
sensitive with the gain turned up and therefore more responsive to  
hand and breath technique, which may or may not be a good thing  
depending upon whether  the player knows what he is doing.
	I hope this made sense
	JP