DPA MICROPHONES LEADS ELLEN’S DESIGN CHALLENGE

Furniture building isn’t the only demanding aspect of Ellen’s Design Challenge, a four-week-long HGTV reality show produced by Ellen DeGeneres, which began airing on January 26. In addition to the six competitors who are trying to make it to the end – using saws, drills and welders, among other noisy tools, to complete the weekly tasks – the audio team faced the daunting task of providing clear, crisp audio that is not interrupted by the hum of the machines. The solution was found with DPA d:screet™ 4061 Omnidirectional Miniature Microphones.

Selected by the show’s sound supervisor, Daniel McCoy, CAS, a longtime DPA supporter, the d:screet 4061s are used by the entire 16-member cast, which includes a host and three judges as well as six designers and the carpenters with whom they are partnered. “I’ve had a lot of experience doing build shows,” he explains. “I’ve been around enough shops to know that I needed mics that could handle extreme SPL – whether from saws, CNC machines, drills or welding. In fact, one of the builders is a blacksmith and she used an electronic anvil power hammer that would shake the building. To make matters worse, we had to film in the heart of downtown LA, so the RF was insane. But, the DPA mics paired with the Wisycom transmitters really saved the day.”