YOU are a pro DJ. YOU get to your event 4 hours before it starts for set up for the “just in case” rule. YOU always expect the best but plan for the worst. YOU have insurance, back up gear, a back up hard drive, the local police station on speed dial in case you need back up. YOU have invested in quality gear to ensure that your customers will have a life changing experience as you play them into the night. YOU have done everything right. You mic up the officiant of the ceremony with your high end wireless mic, set your levels, run a test, take your place and you are off to the races. The opening music goes flawlessly, here comes the the precious flower girl and darling ring bearer, followed by the bridesmaids in their “flattering” aqua marine dresses, and then the Pièce de résistance…Here Comes The Bride. Cameras flash, birds fly, the tears flow like rain…it’s freagin’ beautiful. The bride nears the “anxious” husband to be, you fade the music, unmute the officiant, and then…

“Ladies & G____leman…. We are g____ ___re to witness the joi____ of these two wond_____ people in the s_c_ed ritual of holy ______mony.

NOOOOOOOOO! Your wireless mic has just decided to pull a Linda Blair and go all demon possessed on you. You frantically try and find a remedy, but your hands are tied… You pick up the receiver in desperation you strike your best John Cusack “Say Anything” pose holding it over your head as if your are offering it up to the wireless gods for sacrifice, hoping that your efforts will somehow miraculously create a clearer signal for your wireless mic. You manage somehow to salvage the rest of the ceremony but not without a few more “hiccups” in the sound.

What could you have done to prevent this event that just made you question your decision to become a professional DJ? Take a deep breath and grab a roll of duct tape, a clothes pin and a pineapple and let’s get to work! Here are a few helpful tips and emergency strategies to make sure you are doing everything you can to make goodness happen when using wireless mics.

1. Check the stinkin’ batteries! No power, no sound. Pretty simple right? …you’d be surprised. I’m not a huge fan of rechargeable batteries but if that floats your boat then go for it! My rule of thumb is to swap out the existing batteries in my wireless unit before each gig. Everytime. I take the “used” batteries out and put them in a box at home where they wind up in a remote control or other battery operated devices. Better they go dead in a roomba than while a keynote speaker is revving a crowd up.

2. Line of Sight. A general rule to maximize range when using a wireless mic is to keep it within your line of sight. Meaning, if you can see the receiver and it’s anteni, then you lessen your chance of any kind of interference or drop out of sound.

3. Choose the right Mic. Every application for the use of a wireless mic will most likely be a unique one. Study your mics to know which do what and which are best for your use. It is probably wise to look at a headworn or a lavalier mic for someone like an officiant at a wedding or a speaker of any kind who is not using a podium. Handheld wireless mics are great for toasts at a wedding, or on a mic stand, on a stage, during the walk-for-whatever event. The right mic makes all the difference in the world.

4. Teach your children well. If at all possible, try and teach the people who are going to be using the mics, how to use them. I know it sounds silly but, seriously, talk to them like you are talking to middle schoolers. Slow, small words and mimic holding an ice cream cone…for real…it works! Keep in mind that they don’t do this for a living and think as long as you are holding a mic your voice is magically transported into it… so teach them how to hold it, to speak clearly and to let you control the volume so they don’t need to yell or whisper. Just talk.

5. Mic Check 1-2, 1-2. Check your mic(s)…and by check your mic I don’t mean tap on the mic as hard as you can…(I’m usually not a violent person, but somebody in Montana tapped on my mic once and now I’m not allowed in the state) Set your system and walk the room with your mic talking the whole time. See if there are any “dead zones”. A well placed steel beam, or a network hub are amazing wireless frequency killers. Get comfortable with your volume settings. These settings will more than likely need to adjust as the room fills with people. If at all possible, have the presenter, officiant, speaker, the janitor to talk into the mic too. Get a feel for their voice so you can spend less time adjusting your board when they grab the mic.

6. Have a back up wireless ready to go. If the budget allows…and if it doesn’t start saving now…this will save your behind! Say by some stroke of misfortune, you forget to swap out your batteries…say….for the last 3 gigs. Your speaker is in the middle of a presentation, and BOOM…dead battery. If you have a back up ready to go, you’re only down as long as it takes you to hurdle your mixer, leapfrog Gertrude in the 3rd row and and hand it to the presenter.

7. What’s the Frequency Kenneth? If you are using a wireless mic system with multiple channels, it is a good idea to do a quick scan of the channels during your set up. In most units, this will find the best, clearest channel. This will, in theory, give you the best possible chance to NOT encounter interference while in use. Know your frequency. The FCC is constantly taking bandwidth away and there are many UHF/VHF wireless units that are in use today that would be considered an illegal activity because they share a frequency owned by the FCC. You can go to your local pro-audio shop or call one of us reps to help you determine whether or not using your wireless system will land you in the pokey.

8. Upgrade to Digital. The future of wireless is leaning more and more to the digital format everyday. It’s more reliable, less drop outs (if any) and it is much more user friendly. Most digital wireless systems are very comparable in price to your mid to high-end UHF/VHF wireless systems. They don’t work on “channels” per say, but in the magical realm of 2.4 ghz. This means you no longer have to “sync” your transmitter to the receiver after searching for a clear channel. A quality digital wireless mic will have levels of diversity that work together to create the best possible assurance of clear communication. These levels of diversity live in the antennas keeping an open line of communication between one another, if one loses a signal the other has already found the next best one, and shoved it to the front of the line… and you didn’t hear any of it. From experience I can attest to their near flawless record of clarity with no drop outs. Best wireless purchase I ever made!

9. Protect your investment. Get a hard case, molded bag, a cardboard box with packing peanuts…just keep it safe! Don’t wind the lavalier cord like an extension cord. Don’t use the receiver to balance your speaker stand. And if I can convince you to do anything in this…please…please…carry disinfectant/sanitizer and clean your mics. Have you ever seen the inside of a mic windscreen after years without being cleaned…uh…you don’t. A clean mic will last much longer and bring much more joy throughout the world. Well maybe not that last part but the guy who just sneezed into your handheld wireless bothers you less now that you were prepared.

Now get out there and make good sounds happen. Wirelessly. Do it!

Justin Rose – Manufacturers Representative. Justin comes to us from one of our Oregon Dealer/Contractors. Combined with his experience Managing a major retail music store in the Bay Area, and his love of music, makes him a great fit. Not to mention, Justin is an accomplished Pro DJ … he is available for weddings.