KINGSTON, RI – Miking an acoustic piano is never easy, particularly for live sound performances, with ambient noise from the crowd, the stage, surrounding instruments and bumped mic stands affecting the sound. That's why Andrew McMahon, pianist and lead vocalist for Jack's Mannequin, opted to take Earthworks PM40 PianoMic system on tour.
Originally hailing from Orange County, California, Jack's Mannequin is a rock band that was formed in 2004. The band began as a side project for McMahon, frontman for Something Corporate. Other band members include guitarist Bobby Anderson, bassist Jon Sullivan and drummer Jay McMillan.
Having recently finished a headlining tour in the U.S. and a few one-offs, the band recently made stops in Kingston, R.I., Oneonta, N.Y., and Kutztown, Penn. McMahon is also continuing with Something Corporate, with whom he performed at the Bamboozle East in East Rutherford, N.J., Bamboozle Midwest in Chicago. McMahon also made a solo appearance at the Hoodwink Festival, also in East Rutherford, N.J.
With a schedule this hectic, McMahon was searching for a means of miking the piano that would provide greater consistency of sound while being easy to implement. He noted that since February, when he started using the PM40, the challenge of getting the right piano sound has become far more manageable.
"I've been traveling with uprights and grand pianos for nearly 10 years," McMahon said. "It has always been a struggle to find quality miking solutions for the piano-especially considering regular nightclub gigs where the backline (supporting instruments/equipment) tends to be fairly close to the piano."
In addition to a sound that evenly presents the piano from the lower octaves all the way through the highest notes, McMahon credited the PM40's telescoping bar, which spans the piano over the strings and is supported at the ends by the piano case, for its convenience and performance. "The ease of installation is huge," he said. "The PM40's ability to really capture the true nature of the piano is without equal.
"We use a combination of miking elements as well as MIDI to create the entire piano sound," McMahon added. "With that said, it was the final addition of the Earthworks PM40 that really left me and my sound crew feeling like we'd finally tamed the beast."
McMahon's FOH engineer, Tim "Quake" Mark, also credited the PM40 PianoMic system. "The fact that the PM40 really doesn't require tech support may be the best compliment of all," Quake said. "The system couldn't be easier to install and, once you angle the two mics the way you want them, you're pretty much done. If you want, you can close the lid for better isolation and, if you need to move the piano around on stage, you don't have to mess around re-positioning mic stands – because there are none. The PM40 is a great sounding, easy-to-use piano miking system that never gets in the way."
For more information, please visit www.earthworksaudio.com .
