Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

DPA PROVIDES SUPERIOR DYNAMIC RANGE FOR H.E.R.

04/08/2020

FOH and Monitor Engineers Call on d:facto 4018VL and 4099 CORE to Deliver Big, Warm Rhythmic Sound.

LOS ANGELES In Hip Hop and R&B, it can be difficult to find a microphone solution that allows the artists' natural talent to shine through, but that's exactly what H.E.R.'s Production Manager/Monitor Engineer William Chainey Harpe and FOH engineer Kevin Brown found in DPA Microphones' d:facto 4018VL Vocal Microphone. The duo have collectively worked with some of the biggest recording artists in these genres, including Toni Braxton, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Lil Wayne, Cody Simpson, Outkast and Chris Brown. So, they understand the pressure of delivering the best sound possible to sold-out stadiums, arenas and festivals. When they set out on the Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter's most recent tour, they found that DPA provided the unrivaled sound for which they were looking.

The pair chose the d:facto entirely as a result of Brown's experience using it with Toni Braxton. The fundamental of H.E.R.'s voice is the huge mid-range she has in the timbre of her voice, he explains. The linear response of the d:facto 4018VL capsule actually helps accentuate and pull out that mid-range. Normally, as an engineer, you think about the top-end and the upper mid-range to bring out the presence, but that's not the fundamental of her voice. For the DPA to capture that and give you this big, warm vocal through a PA in a huge arena says a lot about the capsule.

After hearing the 4018VL on H.E.R.'s vocals, Harpe found it to be the best choice he has used in the last couple of years. When Kevin decided to bring the 4018VL out on tour with H.E.R., it was the first time I actually had the opportunity to listen to it, mess with it and use it consistently, he says. It turned out to be a fantastic microphone. I noticed right away that DPA is very consistent even when you hit it hard.

Another strength, according to Brown, is the d:facto's ability to minimize proximity effect. H.E.R. has great mic technicality in pulling away from the capsule when she needs to and staying closer when she wants to, he adds. But the d:facto stays pretty tonally neutral across the spectrum. Supercardioid/hypercardiod mics versus cardioid mics; that's something we've been trying to figure out for years. This d:facto capsule captures it all. It really is the perfect solution for vocals.

The duo also finds that their workflow is smoother with the use of the DPA mics. For me, there is definitely less filtering, says Chainey. We have two very dynamic background singers who also use the d:facto sometimes to add more harmony to H.E.R's lead line, so we might have a lot more presence in the mix, whereas other times we don t. So, we end up with several mixes, with each one positioned differently. I usually set the gain structure and do minimal adjustments, but otherwise it really holds that consistency in the texture and timbre from song to song. It's unlike any other capsule I have ever used.

Brown, meanwhile, is always cutting and speeding up annoying frequencies in competitor capsules. With the DPAs, I can run with just a high-pass and a low-pass, and maybe a boost, and I m okay. I loosen the top-end because it's so linear and I let the vocals do the rest of the work. It's really that simple.

In addition to the d:facto vocal mic, the duo also utilizes DPA's 4099 CORE instrument mics on H.E.R.'s touring drum kit. A lot of times when I m mixing other mics on drums, I go back and forth moving and testing, says Chainey. The 4099 CORE mics sound so natural. I noticed that if we have them in a good position, we're pretty much set to go. There is never a lot of phasing or cross pattern between the drums; I really enjoy the sound we get.

Brown and Chainey aren't the only ones to become DPA believers. The day following H.E.R.'s Grammy performance, she appeared on The Ellen Show. We took the DPA mics over to the show in hopes of using them for that performance as well, adds Brown. Ellen's long-time in-house audio team were reluctant to swap out their mic, but ultimately agreed to let us use DPA. At the conclusion of the show, Ellen's broadcast engineer stated that the DPA's were the best mics he had ever heard.

Performance isn't everything for Brown and Chainey. For me it's also about customer service, says Brown. It's one thing to get a great technical product, it's another to be able to call a rep and, within 24 hours, have someone from the company drive to your rehearsals to drop off the capsule or gear you need. When world-class products are matched by world-class customer service, its noticed. Everyone at DPA has been exceptional.
LINK: https://www.dpamicrophones.com/news/dpa-provides-superior-dynamic-rang...
See more stories from dpa

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

04/07/2026

Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in Dolby Cinemas Across Japan, Presented in Dolby Atmos and Dolby ...

April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...

01/06/2026

Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026

January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026 Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Streaming Server Awarded Trusted Partner Network Gold Logo Certification

January 8, 2024 Colorfront (colorfront.com), a leader in high-performance, on-s...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Unleashes New Opportunities for Content Owners Plus Other Ground-Breaking Visual Experiences at Nab 2024

March 20, 2024 NAB 2024, Las Vegas - Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-awa...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Delivers Innovations for HDR Cinema at Cinemacon 2025

April 1, 2025 CINEMACON, APRIL 1, 2025 - Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-award-winning developer of high-performance dailies/transcoding/streaming syste...

07/05/2026

Colorfront to Showcase Advanced HDR Cinema Mastering Solutions at CineEurope 2025

June 15, 2025 Colorfront (colorfront.com), an Academy and Emmy Award-winning de...

07/05/2026

Colorfront at ICTA Barcelona Cinema Technology Summit

June 15, 2025 Colorfront participated in the ICTA Barcelona Cinema Technology Summit on Sunday, June 15, 2025. Held at The Phenomena Experience, the event feat...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Does IBC 2024 Live From Stockholm!

July 1, 2025 Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-award-winning developer of high-performance dailies/transcoding/streaming systems for motion pictures, OTT,...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Transkoder Delivers a Masterful Performance at Annapurna Studios

July 1, 2025 Passion and dedication will take you places. Come with us on a short trip to the heart of India, where Annapurna Studios is living-up to the inspi...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Opens a New Chapter in Color Tools For Cinema & Television

July 3, 2025 Colorfront (colorfront.com), the multi-award-winning developer of high-performance dailies/transcoding/streaming systems for motion pictures, OTT,...

07/05/2026

Colorfront at IBC 2025: Advanced Tools Make Easy Work of Critical Mastering Tasks and More!

September 1, 2025 IBC 2025, Amsterdam - Colorfront (colorfront.com) - the Acade...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Introduces Colorfront Immersive Utility, a New Mac App for Creating Apple Immersive Video

April 17, 2026 LOS ANGELES - April 17, 2026 - Colorfront today announced Colorf...

07/05/2026

Colorfront Delivers Even More AI Automation Power and Extends Technology Partnerships with Dolby Apple

April 23, 2026 NAB 2026, Las Vegas - the Academy and Emmy Award-winning develop...

07/05/2026

CNN Founder Ted Turner Dies at 87

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/05/2026

FCC Urges Appeals Court to Toss Challenges to Nexstar-Tegna Deal

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/05/2026

Carr Announces FCC Staff Promotions

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/05/2026

Recreating the 1974 Doctor Who Time Tunnel in After Effects

Recreating the 1974 Doctor Who Time Tunnel in After Effects Graham Quince May 6, 2026 0 Comments The Time Tunnel from Doctor Who titles is one of th...

06/05/2026

Wisycom RF Solutions Support Gravity Medias Live Cycling and Marathon Broadcasts

Gravity Media Chief RF Communications Engineer Glenn Willems uses Wisycom RF over Fiber and wireless solutions across major cycling events and international mar...

06/05/2026

Sennheiser Spectera Module Now Available in Bitfocus Companion and Buttons

A Sennheiser Spectera module is now available in Bitfocus Companion and Buttons, enabling direct integration of Spectera with the two software platforms. The mo...

06/05/2026

Ted Turner, Cable Television Pioneer, Sports Broadcasting Hall of Famer, Dead at 87

Ted Turner, the visionary media entrepreneur whose appetite for disruption helpe...

06/05/2026

FIFA World Cup 2026: Peacock Launches Visin de Campo (aka Pitchside Live), Will Stream All 104 Matches in Spanish

Peacock is going all-in on the beautiful game - streaming all 104 FIFA World Cup...

06/05/2026

NoiseWorks Audio launch VoiceAssist Basic, Standard & Advanced

New pricing tiers for vocal/dialogue restoration tool NoiseWorks Audio's AI-powered vocal and dialogue processing plug-in is now available in three diff...

06/05/2026

RME TotalMix FX 2 now available

Popular mixing & routing software overhauled Following a recent public beta test, RME have launched the final release version of the powerful mixing and rou...

06/05/2026

Focusrite: Designing The ISA C8X Audio Interface

New SOS Video Feature Focusrites ISA C8X is a milestone product that brings together the companys analogue heritage and their expertise in digital audio. Yo...

06/05/2026

L3Harris to Boost Polish Navy Combat Power with Advanced Ship System

Polands Miecznik-class frigates are part of the largest contract in Polish shipbuilding history. (Image Credit: PGZ Stocznia Wojenna)...

06/05/2026

FCC's Anna Gomez Urges Rigorous Review of Paramount-WBD Merger

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

06/05/2026

Riedel Ups Marc Engroff to CFO, Shifts Frank Eischet to Group COO

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

06/05/2026

Amagi Launches In-Content Ads' to Attract More CTV Advertisers

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

06/05/2026

Riedel Expands Leadership Structure Appoints Marc Engroff...

Riedel Communications today announced the expansion of its leadership structure as part of a strategic initiative to strengthen both its operational management ...

06/05/2026

Production Sound Mixer Dirk Sciarrotta Delivers Camera Re...

For nearly three decades, Veteran Production Sound Mixer and Five-time Emmy Award Winner Dirk Sciarrotta has helped define the sonic identity of the long-runnin...

06/05/2026

ZEISS CinCraft LensCore: Cinema Lens Looks for Compositing

ZEISS CinCraft LensCore: Cinema Lens Looks for Compositing Brie Clayton May 6, 2026 0 Comments ZEISS announces the launch of CinCraft LensCore, a nove...

06/05/2026

Wisycom Solves Extreme RF Challenges Across Miles of Live Action for Gravity Media

Wisycom Solves Extreme RF Challenges Across Miles of Live Action for Gravity Med...

06/05/2026

NAB Launches Weekly Podcast on Local Broadcast Policy

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

06/05/2026

Mavis Launches Mavis Studio iPad For Media Production

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

06/05/2026

Narrative Entertainment partners with Encompass to provid...

Narrative Entertainment has partnered with Encompass to deliver high-quality subtitling of its Great! network content using the Altitude Intelligence AI assiste...

06/05/2026

SipRadius extends its seamless creation and connectivity...

SipRadius, widely recognized for making content processing and connectivity secure and seamless, is proud to launch a dramatic new approach to AI content creati...

06/05/2026

Big Blue Marble at ANGA COM - TV as a Service in the spot...

When the broadband and media industry gathers at ANGA COM in Cologne from May 19 to 21, Big Blue Marble will be at the forefront. The international broadcast an...

06/05/2026

Cinegy makes its MPTS debut with software-defined televis...

Cinegy GmbH, a leading developer of software-defined television technology, is proud to exhibit at MPTS for the first time. Visitors to the stand will discover ...

06/05/2026

Val Jeanty Receives 2026 Doris Duke Artist Award

Val Jeanty Receives 2026 Doris Duke Artist Award Jeanty, a composer, percussionist, and turntablist, is the fourth Berklee recipient of the prestigious award ...

06/05/2026

Zeiss Launches CinCraft LensCore

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

06/05/2026

Gomez Urges Rigorous FCC Review of Paramount-WBD Merger

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

06/05/2026

Wisycom Solves Extreme RF Challenges Across Miles of Live...

When live cycling races and international marathons stretch for miles across cities and countryside, there is no margin for RF failure in live broadcast. As Chi...

06/05/2026

ZEISS CinCraft LensCore - Cinema Lens Looks for Compositi...

Oberkochen/Germany, May 5, 2026 ZEISS announces the launch of CinCraft LensCore, a novel solution for creating physically based cinematic lens looks for visual...

06/05/2026

VEON's Kyivstar Authorized to Resell Starlink for Businesses & Enterprises in Ukraine

06 May 2026 VEON's Kyivstar Authorized to Resell Starlink for Businesses & ...

06/05/2026

UKTV Brings the Early Years of Neighbours to U in 420Episode Back Catalogue Deal

UKTV has secured the exclusive rights to the early back catalogue of iconic Australian drama series Neighbours, following a landmark content deal with Fremantle...

06/05/2026

Sky commissions feature documentary to mark 10th anniversary of Manchester Arena bomb

Wednesday 6 May 2026 Sky commissions feature documentary to mark 10th anniversa...

06/05/2026

Sky and Formula 1 agree long-term partnership across UK, Ireland and Italy

Wednesday 6 May 2026 Sky and Formula 1 agree long-term partnership across UK, Ireland and Italy Sky in the UK & Ireland to remain the home of Formula 1 until ...