Ellie Goulding chooses DPA d:facto mic for live gigs

Ellie Goulding has switched to a DPA d:facto vocal microphone after trying it for the first time at the recent Chime for Change concert in London.

Currently touring in the USA to promote her second album, Halcyon, Goulding is now using the a wireless version of the d:facto for all of her concerts.

Goulding’s FOH engineer Oz Bagnall and monitor engineer James Neale were introduced to the mic by Dave Kay at Adlib Audio, who recommended it as an ideal replacement for the hardwired microphone she had been using on her previous European tour. DPA’s UK distributor Sound Network was able to arrange a demo just prior to the Chime for Change concert.

“During Ellie’s European tour we struggled with level and ambient spill on her vocal, so we used a mic that was discontinued several years ago and was only available as a hardwired version," said Bagnall. "From that point our search was on to find a modern microphone with similar rejection but hopefully with better quality sound. We tried out a lot of different microphones before demoing the DPA d:facto vocal microphone. Apart from sounding amazing, it was the only microphone that was able to deliver what we wanted in terms of rejection, plus it allowed us to go back to a wireless system which gives Ellie much more scope to move on stage.”

Goulding’s d:facto mic for Chime For Change, which also featured Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez and Florence and the Machine, was supplied by DPA’s UK distributor Sound Network via Adlib Audio.

“During the first sound check Ellie did find the change in tonality a little disconcerting because she wasn’t used to it, but we persuaded her to use it for the show and in the end she was very happy with the result,” Bagnall continued. “At FOH, the microphone was a huge success as I had all the level I needed and much improved audio quality and clarity. I especially like its flat response and virtually no low end proximity effect.”

Bagnall is now using the d:facto with his existing Sennheiser wireless system.

He added: “At Chime for Change our slot in the concert program put us on the side stage so that the main stage could be reset for Beyoncé. This meant that Ellie was in front of and in between the SL main and side PA hangs, which from a sound quality perspective is not an ideal position. However, thanks to the d:facto, the sound we got in the stadium was great.”

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