Let me be honest: In my humble beginnings I started DJing with only a wired mic, as I’m sure most DJs do. I didn’t start off DJing weddings, so for a long time a wired mic was all I needed. But after being a wedding DJ for years, I now know the importance in having two different types of wireless mics:
- Handheld
- Lavalier (Lav)
Wireless Handheld Microphones
A wireless handheld mic requires no cable being attached to it. This is essential for weddings because some times the DJ has to set up his booth far away from where the toasts will be given. That’s just one scenario where someone will want to have the freedom to roam around without being attached to a mixer. The last thing you want is a long cable stretching across the entire reception, with lots of people in the room. Not only is it inconvenient and a tripping hazard, it looks bad too.
We typically use the Shure SM58 with a Sennheiser Wireless Transmitter
attached to it.
Wireless Lavalier Microphones
A wireless lav differs from a wireless handheld mic in two significant ways:
- It frees up your hands so you can talk hands-free. This is great for officiants who want to hold a Bible or papers in their hands during a wedding ceremony instead of holding a mic.
- Wireless lavs usually have a different pickup pattern than handheld mics. The omni-directional pickup pattern commonly found on lavs is different from the uni-directional pickup pattern on handheld mics. Omni-directional means it picks up audio from all directions, instead of only picking up audio from one direction and rejecting noise from all other directions like typical handheld mics do.
The downside to a lav mic is it’s hard to transfer the mic from one person to the next. The mic has to be placed somewhere on each person, which takes a minute to set up. Another downside to consider is some times people aren’t wearing clothes appropriate for holding a lav mic. With weddings, placing a lav mic on the groom is easy. And because of the pickup pattern, it will also pick up some of the bride’s voice. How much of the bride’s voice is picked up depends on a few things:
- How close the bride and groom are together
- How loud the bride speaks
- The particular brand and model of mic being used
A good sound guy will also realize the bride’s voice is going to be less loud than the groom and will adjust the gain of the mic to compensate for the difference. We typically use the Sennheiser EW 100 ENG G3 with an upgraded Countryman B3 Microphone. The Sennheiser wireless system is the industry standard because of its reliability, but upgraded the mic that comes with it to the Countryman B3 makes a big difference in sound quality! I even find it picks up the brides’ voices better too.
If you have any questions or would like a free quote, please feel free to contact us for more information.