A selection of DPA microphones is being used to amplify percussion and backing vocals on this extensive European tour.
As Scottish rock band Simple Minds embarks on its 47-date Acoustic Live tour of the UK and Europe, Front of House engineer Olivier (G g ') G rard has completely re-worked his live microphone list to capture the acoustic essence of these concerts.
At the heart of the new set-up are a selection of DPA d:screet Miniature, d:dicate Recording, d:facto Vocal and d:vote Instrument microphones, each chosen for their audio quality and natural, transparent sound. The fact that they also have great resistance to spill' and translate so well in the final mix is, says G g , a major bonus.
I've been working with Simple Minds since 2012, but this tour is different because the band is playing in an acoustic style, G g explains. They have worked with the concept and have delivered new life into the songs included on Acoustic, their most recent album. It's a new energy and a new experience through songs that were worldwide hits when they were originally released. Therefore, from a live point of view, it is quite a challenge.
To meet this challenge, G g decided to stick with the sound of the album which he describes as much more roots and raw'. He needed microphones that could capture the detail and nuances of an acoustic performance so he turned to DPA's Belgium distributor Amptec - a company he holds in high regard thanks to their extensive product knowledge for help and advice.
Amptec's Pro Audio Sales Manager, Dany Meeuwissen, suggested I try DPA microphones some years ago, but I was in the middle of a tour and I didn't want to change the mics at that stage because it can have an impact on the monitoring - it is very easy to get the routing out of balance just by changing one small thing, G g says. However, on this occasion I got Dany to look at my patch and he proposed miking the whole percussion set with DPA. I went for it because I know DPA microphones sound great and because I was going for inconspicuous microphones to complete the idea of the Acoustic' concept. I also needed superior sound and high SPL handling, which DPA was able to deliver.
The percussion line up now includes five d:vote 4099 Instrument Microphones on toms, hi-hat, snare bottom, chimes and bells; a d:screet 4061 Miniature Omnidirectional Microphone on the Caj n; a d:dicate 2011A Twin Diaphragm Cardioid Microphone on the bass drum and six d:dicate 2011C Compact Cardioid Microphones on the two snares, underheads and gong.
The first thing that drew my attention was the lack of spill, G g says. With other microphones I've tried, the more mics you open together the more mid-high harshness you get in the mix. When I opened all the DPA percussion mics together, everything was there I didn't have to incorporate any EQ because I could clearly hear the source of the sound.
G g adds that with DPA you hear what you get nothing more, nothing less. The sound is very transparent and natural, he says, and the dynamic is also really amazing as the sound does not disappear if the musician is taking it down. Cherisse (Osei on percussion, who has also worked with Mika, Bryan Ferry and Paloma Faith) uses a bass drum with a punch that is higher than you would expect but the d:dicate 2011A really renders it at its best. I also use a Kelly SHU kick drum microphone mounting system on the drum and the gong, and this really takes the sound to another level.
G g is also using four d:facto Vocal Microphones two wireless and two wired for backing and guest vocalists. These include Sarah Brown, who has previously worked as a backing singer for Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, George Michael and Simply Red.
The d:facto is absolutely great for her because she has very wide range and diversity in her sound, he explains. Most microphones would be great when she is giving it, but I would have had to jump on the Highpass when she became smoother and warmer. With the d:facto , the sound stands in the mix as naturally as the rest of the DPAs.
Although this is the first time G g has used DPA microphones for percussion, he is actually no stranger to the brand and has been using d:vote 4099 Instrument Microphones on strings for years.
I did two tours and an album with a string quartet using d:vote 4099s and I've also used them on them on string ensembles touring with Hooverphonic and Natalie Merchant, he says. Another DPA mic that I have used intensively is the d:screet 4091 Omnidirectional Microphone. Twelve years ago, on tour with a Jazz singer, I had that idea of putting an omni mic on top of the bass drum at the drummer's side. The 4091 looks more like an antenna then an actual mic, so it was very inconspicuous. I heavily compressed it with a smooth attack and a quick release and added the rest of the microphones to fill in. I was very happy with the results; I had a nice balance of all the drums sounds at that spot and the 4091 was easily able to take the loudest sound pressure levels. Now I always use it for dynamic drummers, where the dynamic of the drums is tricky on big PAs, because it gives you a steady base where you keep all the detail when it's well compressed.
The Simple Minds Acoustic Live tour is currently making its way around Europe and will reach the UK on May 17th. Summing up his experience with DPA, G g says: I am more than happy with the quality and the results. The d:dicate 2011C Microphone is amazing - the best snare mic ever, even for loud bands - while the 2011A on the kick drum is great because of its natural sound. Having DPA for the whole percussion set and the vocals helps with the legendary spill because it is no longer a problem leaving some channels open.
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
02/12/2025
Case Study: How Mid-Atlantic Sports Network Moved to All-IP Distribution in 60 D...
02/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Lee Corso, Coach, Commentator, FirebrandBy Ken Kerschbaumer
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 7:00 am
Print This Story | S...
02/12/2025
SVG All-Stars: Dan Nabors, Senior Director, Remote Engineering, TNT SportsThe veteran tech leader is helping guide Warner Bros. Discovery's at-home' re...
02/12/2025
National Lacrosse League Opens Season With New Cloud-Based Official Replay-Revie...
02/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: The Cinematic Look in Live Production - Bridging Aesthetic...
02/12/2025
SVG India Announces Advisory Board; JioStar's Prashant Khanna Named ChairmanBy Ken Kerschbaumer
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 11:15 am
Print This Story |...
02/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: New AI Production Tools Workshop' Features ESPN, F...
02/12/2025
Written and directed by Hailey Gates, Atropia won the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival....
02/12/2025
The lightweight and highly portable CORVUS-RAVEN, recently demonstrated at the V...
02/12/2025
The lightweight, rugged Panther 2 tri-band VSAT delivers high-speed data communications for Internet, VPN connectivity and video transmission over commercial an...
02/12/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
02/12/2025
NGID volunteers in the United States
NGID volunteers in Mexico
NGID volunteers in India
NGID volunteers in Spain
NGID volunteers in Australia
NGID voluntee...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Media Bureau has issued a reminder that stations in DMAs 111 through 120 must implement its audio descrip...
02/12/2025
SAN DIEGO Sony Electronics today introduced the Alpha 7 V (ILCE-7M5), the fifth generation of its Alpha 7 full-frame mirrorless lineup, powered by the newly dev...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has opened a docket for comments on Nexstar Media Group's proposed $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna and se...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The National Association of Broadcasters has added a trio of media executives, Veronica Rodriguez, Matt Schnaars and Jeff Warshaw, to its board of di...
02/12/2025
MILAN, Italy Brightcove has released seven new features designed to expand global reach, improve audience engagement, enhance live-streaming quality and streaml...
02/12/2025
BCNEXXT, the developers of the advanced playout platform Vipe, today announced a new Service Provider Partner agreement with NPC Media, the Australian managed p...
02/12/2025
DPA Microphones today announces the immediate availability of its new N-Series Digital Wireless Microphone System for customers throughout the U.S. In addition ...
02/12/2025
Hiltron Communications reports a well attended and successful Space Tech Expo exhibition, held at the Messe Bremen from Tuesday November 18 through Thursday Nov...
02/12/2025
The beginning of September saw Riverfire by Australian Retirement Trust, in association with Channel 9 and Triple M, kick off the 2025 Brisbane Festival in spec...
02/12/2025
SGM Lighting is pleased to announce an exciting new partnership with ACT Entertainment, under which ACT will serve as the exclusive distributor for SGM's ne...
02/12/2025
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that Telia, the second largest telecom operator in Norway, is modernizing its broadband network with the company's i...
02/12/2025
European cloud data protection specialist Keepit is expanding its sales network in the DACH region and has gained TIM AG, one of the leading value-added distrib...
02/12/2025
Featured products at ISE 2026
This year s ISE 2026 theme "Push Beyond" reflects Calrec s direction of travel. The company is dedicated to supporting the AV an...
02/12/2025
Czech Television, the national public broadcaster, has deployed one of the largest LiveU live production projects in the region for live sports and news coverag...
02/12/2025
Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics, has announced the release of v8.2 software for its ZEN and ZEN-W Series, bringing advanced cinematic camera se...
02/12/2025
Global provider of video streaming software and services, Accedo, and OTT platform provider, Magine Pro, have signed a binding agreement to carve out and merge ...
02/12/2025
With proven success in broadcast, OTT, and content supply chains, K.S Avinash set to scale Skandha's service-first approach across APAC
Skandha Media Servi...
02/12/2025
AJA Video Systems has joined the RAVENNA community, a network of partners devoted to advancing the RAVENNA standard for distributing real-time audio over intern...
02/12/2025
HUNT VALLEY, Md. Sinclair and its wholly-owned subsidiary One Media Technologies have released a new report focused on how ATSC 3.0, the IP-based NextGen TV sta...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Media Bureau has issued a reminder that stations in DMAs 111 through 120 must implement its audio descrip...
02/12/2025
WASHINGTON Members of the Advanced Television Systems Committee have elected four industry veterans to three-year terms on the organization's board of direc...
02/12/2025
A new survey from S&P Global Market Intelligence Kagan highlights how important social media is for younger consumers, with Gen Z spending 5.1 hours a day on so...
02/12/2025
Faculty Notes: Fall/Winter 2025 Recent accomplishments, releases, and events by Berklee faculty.
December 1, 2025
By
Editorial Staff
The cast of Kind of M...
02/12/2025
Ring In The Holidays With Our Biggest Sale Ever On Ivory II Pianos!From now until December 31st, you can save 50% or more on every Ivory II piano and collection...
02/12/2025
Back to All News
Made in America: How Stranger Things' Electrified the US Economy
Entertainment
02 December 2025
GlobalUnited States
Link copied to cl...
02/12/2025
Back to All News
Culinary Class Wars' Season 2 Trailer Teases New Rules, R...
02/12/2025
--
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the International Telecommunication Unio...
02/12/2025
Harmonic's cOS Platform Will Redefine Subscribers' Quality of Experience, Lowering Churn SAN JOSE, Calif. - Dec. 2, 2025 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today...
02/12/2025
At AWS re:Invent, NVIDIA and Amazon Web Services expanded their strategic collab...
02/12/2025
S an Nollaig
Hollywood blockbusters The Banshees of Inisherin, Barbie and Oppenheimer make their Irish TV debut
Tune into the classics such as Love Actual...
02/12/2025
Showcasing fresh Irish storytelling and emerging talent Storyland 2025 signals a fantastic time for Irish drama
RT and F s ireann/Screen Ireland are proud to...
01/12/2025
L3Harris and PentenAmio formalise their teaming agreement at MilCIS 2025, streng...
01/12/2025
Artemis II is NASA's first crewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. The crew, from left: Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Vic...
01/12/2025
IRVINE, Calif. Wooden Camera has introduced its new Accessory Collection for the Canon EOS C50. The new lineup includes a low-profile, gimbal-ready cage, expand...
01/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for its Dec. 18 Open Commission Meeting that will include a vote on a report an...
01/12/2025
In most years, a graph of annual local TV ad spending is about as predictable as an electrocardiogram of a reasonably healthy patient in a doctor's office. ...
A selection of DPA microphones is being used to amplify percussion and backing vocals on this extensive European tour.
