Sound and mic info from the I+E tour

[Edge_Orchestra]

A bit of sound and mic info from the I+E tour

All Access: U2 iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour 2015 | Mixonline

 

[Muad'zin]

Amazing that they just use basic regular mics, and not some fancy ribbon thing, or vintage stuff. Also, three guys to do separate monitor mixes?

 

[gareth brown]

That was a good read thanks for posting!

 

[Mack_Again]

But I remember that in studio while tracking No Line, Edge used Royer ribbon mic with some kind of regular dynamic mic. But I'm sure he is fine with using all kinds of regular Shure mic's, though

 

[Muad'zin]

Live rigs and studio rigs are not the same. In a studio a small setup is used that can be different for each song. Live Edge's rig basically has to reproduce 20+ different studio rigs. So if you use mic X for one song, and mic Y for another, you can't exchange mics for each song (although you could if you used the cab sim output of the Axe exclusively). And there's also U2's long and proud history of doing live outdoor concerts where basically any kind of weather can wreak havoc with expensive finicky mics, whereas you can take a regular Shure mic into a bar fight and come out with a bloodied but still working mic.

In short, best sounding mics in a studio, on the road the most reliable.

 

[Mack_Again]

I know that. I'm just surprised how Edge isn't so neurotic about the sound live when it comes to mic.

 

[Muad'zin]

You probably have to take into account that U2 has been gigging since the late 70's, and during the early years more often then not it was the house engineers who shoved their mics in front of the amp, not U2. So Edge is probably very much used to and comfortable with Shure mics as that is what you will get 99% of the time if you're gigging.

Also you'd be surprised how many guitarists who are utterly anal about every aspect of their guitar tone, from the strings and screws on their guitar, to the cables and pedals into their boutique amps, are utterly clueless to how their awesome setup gets miked up at a gig. More often then not a SM58. SM57 if lucky. It's like their thought process stops at the amp and they think 'my shit sounds awesome, job done'. The total process includes miking the amp with the right mics and knowing where your preferred sweet spot is. Then do what the pros do, mark that sweet spot with duct tape and list your preferred guitar mic(s) in the technical rider. And if its something really exotic, supply it yourself. If you ever get the chance to do an A/B test with different mics in a live venue, grab it!