Contemporary Music Instruction and Mentoring

  Products That Singers Need


MICROPHONE

Every vocalist should have their very own high quality microphone.  Don't rely on the sound man's stuff.  It's usually garbage.  Bring your own mic to every gig, and insist that you would prefer to use your own mic.

LINK HERE for a detailed discussion of various types of corded and cordless microphones, including which mic I think is the best affordable vocal mic for live performance on the planet, the Sennheiser E935 (below).  Read that link before you spend any money on any microphone!


MIC CORD

The mic cords that most musicians carry around sound fine... until they break.  And when they break, it is usually just before a gig, or worse, during a performance.

The very best mic cords I have found, that are really high professional quality, very durable, and surprisingly low priced, the EWI Starline microphone cords (below).  They are available only at audiopile.net.  These cords are great.  I have never had one fail yet.  They are offered in various lengths.  20' is the minimum, for small solo gigs.  For most gigs a 25' cord will be fine, but if you get a 30' you'll be better off on a large stage.



LINK HERE for a more details about mic cords also cordless microphone options.  Read that link before you spend any money on any mic cord, guitar cord, or speaker cord!

MIC STAND

The cheapest mic stand that gets 4.5 stars on Amazon is the Amazon Basics Tripod Boom mic stand for $23.  I have never used one so I cannot comment on its quality, but I'm sure it's low quality, so buy at your own risk.

In the low price range ($40) the best mic stand is the On-Stage MS7701B Euro, which I have no doubt is a step up from the Amazon stand.  On-Stage has a reputation for making inexpensive stage stuff that is decent.  They have deals where you can buy five of these stands in a package for less than the price of four individually.  I have a few of these stands and they have held up better than I expected.  I would say this stand is okay for around the house, but it will not hold up under the heavy use and abuse of gigging.  If someone overtightens one, it will either strip or break off.  If you perform a lot, in the long run you'll spend as much replacing it every year or two as you would have spent for a decent stand that will last for decades, and which will also be much more pleasurable to use.  Another consideration is that the legs are too short, and too easy to tip over, resulting in damaged microphones.

In the medium-low price range ($60) there are stands with more features, but none that will perform better or last longer than the On-Stage.  So I don't have a recommendation for a stand in this price range.

In the medium-high price range ($80) there are several stands in this price range that seem to get wonderful reviews, until you scroll to the bottom and see a whole bunch of one star reviews, and find out that yes, they last longer than the On-Stage, but no, they do not hold up in the long-run in professional gigging situations.  So I don't have a recommendation in this price range, either.

In the high price range ($100) there are two stands worth your consideration.  One of them is the K&M 210/9 (below) or 210/8 (the difference between them is the type of clutch screw).  These are considered the industry standard.  Five stars on Sweetwater and 4.9 stars on Amazon, with no complaints about them breaking.  They are lightweight, and solid.  K&M stands are made in Germany.  Five year warranty.  Good stuff.


The other one to consider is the Tama Iron Works Tour MS456BK (below).  This stand is not as well known, but people who own both the K&M and the Tama report that they like the Tama better.  It is heavier than the K&M, which is bad for hauling it around but good for stability on stage.  It has a die-cast zinc tilter and adjustment collar.  The thumb nuts have oversized knob screws.  The clutch pressure pads are also die cast zinc.  The boom holds the mic up even without tightening the knob hard.  The boom extension is solid core.  This is one solid piece of equipment!  I recently purchased three of these, and I love them.  They feel more solid, stable, and robust than K&M's.



I highly recommend the Tama for singers who play keyboard or drums, where long extensions and stability matter most.  For singers who play guitar or bass, either stand will do.  The choice is between stability and strength (Tama) versus light weight for convenience when hauling it around (K&M).

MUSIC STAND

Stay away from the Gator Frameworks GFW-MUS-0500.  It is a great looking stand for a good price.  Unfortunately, it is very weak where the music holder meets the stand.  I found this out when someone stuck something heavy on it in the back up my pickup truck, and it snapped like a pretzel.  It was nearly new, and Sweetwater warrantied it.  But if you read the reviews, this is a common problem, so I cannot recommend that stand.

The music stand that gets my vote is the On-Stage SM7211B.  It is a tripod design similar to the Gator, but without the weak connector, and it is only $8 more.



Another option is to buy a music holder that clips on to your mic stand.  This is what we use in my acoustic band.  It's a little less flexible in where it places your music (it's right in front of you, so it's blocking the audience's view of you) but it's easy to use.  The best ones are the Stagg MUS-ARM.  They make two sizes; the small will fit a single sheet of paper or an iPad, and the large is good for a 3 ring binder.

MUSIC STAND LIGHT

Something you don't think about until it happens: You're playing an outdoor gig in the evening, and then it starts to get dark, and suddenly it's too dark to see your charts.  If you are using paper charts and not an iPad, it is a really good idea to have in your gig bag an LED clip on lamp to snap onto your music stand so you can see your music.  The one I use is the predecessor of the Mighty Bright DuoFlex (mine uses AAA batteries, but the new one uses an internal lithium battery charged with a USB charger.)  But there are plenty of others out there.  Just make sure it lights your paper, not too terribly brightly, and that it doesn't shine light into the audience's faces.

MUSIC STAND CLIPS

Another thing you don't think about until it happens: You're playing and outdoor gig, and suddenly the wind kicks up and blows your charts all over the stage.  Again, if you are using paper charts and not an iPad, the solution is two clips.  You can get clips at Harbor Freight for super cheap.



MIC WIND SOCK

One last thing you won't realize you need until it happens: When the wind kicks up, after you clip down your music, you notice that the wind is making a horrible blast furnace noise in the PA system, as it blows into the mics.  The solution is super cheap.  Just look on EBay for "microphone wind sock" and you'll find you can buy 5 of them for $7.  They just slip one onto the ball of each mic, and it cuts down the wind noise a lot.  I recommend the black ones unless you want to look like a bouquet of flowers on stage.

HERBAL TEAS

Every singer should have one or both of these two herbal teas on hand.  These products are amazing.  Since I discovered them, I have sung at a number of gigs when I had laryngitis and could hardly speak.  In the past I would not have been able to sing at all, but with these products I have been able to sing at about 70-80% of normal.  Even when I don't have a sore throat I usually sip on one or the other of these teas before every gig.  They especially help if you your voice is tired.  Both of them have licorice root, slippery elm bark, wild cherry bark, cinnamon bark, and orange peel, which are the most important herbs for the throat.  Traditional Medicinals Throat Coat (below left) also has marshmallow root and bitter fennel fruit.  Yogi Throat Comfort (below right) also has fennel seed, cardamom pod, ginger root, mullein leaf, clove bud, and black pepper.  They don't necessarily taste great, but they taste better than most herbal teas.  If you don't like the taste, use them anyway.  Add some honey if that helps.

       


LOZENGES/DROPS

There are several lozenge drops that I have personally found to be excellent.

Throat Coat Lemon Ginger Echniacia Pectin Throat Drops (below) are reasonably priced and work well at relieving inflammation of the mucous membranes in the throat by forming a protective film.  Made in Switzerland.






Wedderspoon's Manuka Honey Ginger Drops (below) are more expensive.  They have manuka honey which is an antibacterial and helps with healing wounds; ginger which helps with inflammation; and echinacea which helps your immune system.  Some professional singers swear by them.  Made in New Zealand.



A third excellent lozenge is VOCAL EZE Throat Lozenges.  It is also on the expensive side, but it gets great reviews; people who buy them rave about them.  They come in three flavors, all of which include Manuka Honey:
  • Strawberry with Menthol (below);
  • Lemon with Menthol;
  • Black Licorice with Aniseed
The highest rated seem to be the Black Licorice with Aniseed and the Strawberry with Menthol.  Made in the USA.



Grether’s Pastilles for Throat and Voice (below) is a hard-gummy type drop specially formulated for when you have a tired or hoarse voice.  It has glycerin which calms and soothes strained vocal cords.  It is moisture retaining and creates a film to protect strained vocal cords and mucous membranes.  The blackcurrent soothes irritated throats and is high in vitamin C and carotene.  I haven't personally found this product to be as effective as the others, but some professional singers swear by them.  Made in Switzerland.



If you have a really sore throat, one final product that I recommend and that receives positive reviews is Gelo Revoice (below).  For a long time it was not available in the USA, but it is finally available on Amazon, and I recently bought some.  It is super expensive, so I only use it when I have a sore throat I'm trying to get over but I still have to use my voice.  It dissolves into foam that coats and comforts the throat better than any other product, and it seems to last a long time.  Made in Germany.



SUPPLEMENTS

Bromelain
is an enzyme from pineapple that is great for reducing inflammation and swelling.  It is offered by various health supplement manufacturers.  Some have an enteric coating, which means slow release.  That's great for normal use, but if you're headed to a gig you may want one without the coating to give you quicker results.  Search "Bromelain" on Chrome and click on the "shopping" tab at the top of the page and you'll find several brands that offer 120 capsules with 850-1500mg each for around $15.


SPRAYS
I have tried all of the vocal sprays on the market.  Some tasted good, some bad.  Some helped my voice, some didn't help at all, and one almost choked me and made it so I couldn't sing at all.  There is one clear winner: VOCAL EZE Natural Throat Spray (below).  Don't hesitate on this one, just buy it.  It is 100% natural, with no chemicals or artificial anything.  It has echinacea root, marshmallow root, aloe vera, honey, osha root, propolis, ginger root, and of course licorice root.  Unlike some throat sprays, this one is okay to slowly inhale while spraying it into your throat, so it actually goes onto the vocal cords and folds.  It really works!  It may seem expensive for such a small bottle, but if you only use it at gigs, one bottle will last a long time.  I use this as my "secret weapon" even when I don't have a sore throat.  Made in the USA.



CANDY

Pure licorice is a secret of Broadway singers.  When they need some blood sugar in a hurry, or when their voices are tired between acts, rather than drinking pop or eating candy, they suck on pure real licorice candy.  Not Red Vines or Twizzlers!  REAL licorice, made with the root of the licorice plant.  I recommend Panda All Natural Soft Licorice (below).  The only ingredients are molasses, wheat flour, licorice extract, and aniseed oil.  Even if you don't like "black licorice", try sucking on one of these.  It is a very different flavor from common artificial black licorice candy!  I think they taste great!  I take these to every gig that is an hour long or more.  I bought four bags on Ebay years ago, and I still have two bags left, because I ONLY use them for gigs.  Made in Finland.