Sheppell Adds d:facto™ Vocal Microphone to Live Concert Inventory
As FOH engineer for some of the biggest recording artists of all time, Bill Sheppell has made his mark during his three decades in the industry. With an incredible résumé that includes Prince, Michael Jackson, ZZ Top, Jennifer Lopez, Ministry, Korn, Green Day and most recently Bon Jovi, Sheppell is passionate about live audio. With a reputation for delivering pristine, unrivaled sound quality, Sheppell has added DPA Microphones’
d:facto™ Vocal Microphone to his touring inventory.
Sheppell was led to DPA by his friend and peer Brad Divens, who mixes Enrique Iglesias. “Brad has been using DPA for some time and even though I wasn’t trying to fix anything in particular, I wanted to see if the DPA mics would be an improvement or add a different flavor in certain applications,” says Sheppell. “I started using DPA this past summer.”
Sheppell decided to try DPA’s d:facto Vocal Microphone this fall during rehearsals on Bon Jovi’s promo tour for the band’s new album. “
The d:facto™ worked out really well on Jon’s (Bon Jovi) vocals,” adds Sheppell. “I was impressed with how natural Jon’s voice sounded through the d:facto™. The other thing that helps is that Bon Jovi drummer Tico Torres hits the drums and cymbals extremely hard and Jon’s normal position is in front of Tico. The cymbals that are picked up from behind Jon sound natural and smooth, so the bleed from there is not an issue like I have noticed in the past. It makes riding the vocal mic up and down in the mix seem smoother to me. I also noticed that Jon seems really happy with how his voice sounds in his ear monitors.”
In addition, multi-tracks of every 2017 Bon Jovi concert that have been mixed for web sale have come out extremely well. “Since using the
d:facto™, I have noticed that we are able to use less EQ than normal. The d:facto has exceeded my expectations and I am excited to implement it into my projects moving forward.”
Photo Credit: David Bergman