Tag: wireless mic

Wireless Mic Dropping Out…

Last week at the fair my good wireless mic system stopped working and I was using my back up wireless mic system. When I used it the first day it was intermittently cutting out, so I switched to the sound company’s wireless handheld and that was doing the same thing. That told me it wasn’t a hardware issue and I finished the day using their wired handheld mic.

Overnight the sound tech did some research and learned that vertical metal poles (especially aluminum poles) can affect how wireless mics work. At the stage the wireless receivers were on the other side of a stage wall that was made up of vertical poles!

magic show audio

We moved my wireless receiver to the stage side of the poles and everything worked perfectly! I’m glad that he did some extra research to figure out why it was doing that and now we both know how to solve the problem in the future!

-Louie

Backstage Props!

When I’m performing a formal show where my show is set up onstage when the audience arrives, I have a backstage set up as well.

stage magic props

These are all the props that end up on my person when I walk on stage. I don’t put these things on until about 15 mins before I need to be onstage. Here’s what you’re seeing:

  • Wireless mic with transmitter
  • Mic tape
  • Glasses with no lenses
  • Two Promystic receivers (one is a back up)
  • Deck of cards
  • Marker
  • Music remote control

Sure I could set up and keep all this stuff on me, but I don’t. I’m worried I’ll accidentally turn on my mic, or play music. The other worry is that something will fall out of my pocket or I’ll use the pen and forget to put it back in my pocket.

For me, having all this stuff on a stool or table, then putting it all where it goes at the same time is the most sure fire way (for me) to not forget or lose anything!

-Louie

Simple Audio Set Up

In my attempt to have all of my different shows as self contained units, I’m working on having separate sets of audio equipment for some of the shows. My kid show that I’m doing for summer camps has just gotten it’s own sound set up.

MAGIC SHOW audio

The only thing not dedicated to this show is the speaker. Here’s the gear list:

Watch Out For Yourself…

While at the showcase last week, all off the other variety acts has problems with their vocal mics. In the three showcases prior to mine all of the headset mics cut out multiple times. I notice this and didn’t want it to happen to me. The first thing I did when I went into sound … Continue reading “Watch Out For Yourself…”

While at the showcase last week, all off the other variety acts has problems with their vocal mics. In the three showcases prior to mine all of the headset mics cut out multiple times. I notice this and didn’t want it to happen to me.


The first thing I did when I went into sound check was scan for a free channel while the band that I was sharing the showcase with was doing their sound check. In theory they are going to have all of their wireless packs on, so my pack will find a channel they aren’t using.


The second thing I did was insist on using my mic pack and not theirs. I didn’t initially do this, I just assumed they’d be using mine. When it came time to tech me, they told me they’d prefer that I use their mic and pack and that all of the other acts used theirs. That told me that the problem was with their system, as that’s the thing all of the other acts had in common, using the sound company’s gear.


When my showcase came around, I used my audio gear and it went great. Nothing cut out, and my vocals went flawlessly! If you notice a problem with other acts audio, try to solve it before it’s your turn!