DUBLIN — Singer songwriter David Gray used DPA Microphones’ new d:facto Vocal Microphone for his recent Sounding Out tour of Ireland. FOH engineer Graham Pattison added DPA’s d:facto into the musician’s arsenal of gear.
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“I’ve been a fan of DPA microphones for some time because they deliver such great sound quality,” says Pattison. “But, this was the first opportunity I had to use the new d:facto Vocal Microphone, and I was really impressed with the results we achieved. Right from the first syllable in rehearsals I knew we were onto a winner, but it wasn’t until the first show in Ireland a few days later that I really heard the vocal clarity and exceptional quality through a large venue sound system. There were no gain or feedback issues and even when left with a flat EQ it sounded exactly how I’m used to hearing David’s voice. What little EQ I did use was just to help the vocal sit in well with the instrumentation.”
Pattison adds that Gray didn’t question why his microphones had been changed. “He trusted my judgment and his own ears,” he explains. “We played 11 shows during the two-week tour, which was live streamed, and also filmed an ‘other voices’ show as well as a live on-air RTE radio show. Everyone came back to me with very positive feedback about the sound in general as well as his vocal performance.”
Pattison first began working with David Gray in 2007 and since then he has engineered all his live gigs. In 2011, Gray’s Lost and Found tour gave him the opportunity to experiment with a different technical approach and it was on that occasion that he began using DPA microphones.
“The Lost and Found tour was a more acoustic presentation of David’s songs, so we used different instrumentation,” Pattison explains. “We also added a couple of new musicians who could cover backing vocalist duties, so at times we had a five voice choir to back up David’s main vocal.”
Thanks to the acoustic nature of that tour, Pattison decided that DPA Microphones would also be the perfect way to capture the instruments on stage. After speaking with DPA’s U.K. distributor, Sound Network, about the tour’s requirements, Pattison settled on using two d:vote 4099 Instrument Microphones for the double bass and cello, two d:dicate 4011 Recording Microphones for the acoustic guitar and mandolin, two 4023 microphones for the grand piano and one d:vote 4099 Instrument Microphone for Gray’s trademark handpump harmonium.
“I chose DPA mics for their sound quality – it really was as simple as that,” Pattison says. “DPA microphones have always been regarded as the best you can buy, so when I had an opportunity to acquire some mics for my studio and for live shows, I knew that DPA was the way I wanted to go. Apart from their exceptional sound quality, I’ve also found them to be extremely versatile because they can be mounted in so many different ways, including directly onto the instrument.”
Pattison says that DPA microphones are now standard on all the tours he engineers because they are so rugged and reliable.“I did three tours last year, all with DPA, and I didn’t have any microphone failures,” he adds. “Even the miniature cardioid microphone I’ve been using on David’s harmonium is still going strong. The build quality, particularly of the d:dicate 4011 Recording Microphones, is fantastic. No matter where in the world I ship them, they always withstand the rigors of freighting and come out of their boxes working perfectly every time. Also, with David’s ever increasing vocal choir, I am now looking forward to getting my hands on some more DPA d:facto Vocal Microphones. With those, and the d:vote 4099 drum microphones, DPA will certainly be getting a good run in.”
