Valor Hits all the Right Notes with Audio-Technica's Artist Elite® Series Wireless Systems and Microphones
Audio-Technica
Posted 2005-08-23
Valor, one of gospel music’s up-and-coming groups, is packing the houses on its current tour. The Huntsville, Alabama-based Christian performers have been working together for five years, and have found an ideal sonic match with the Audio-Technica Artist Elite® 4000 Series UHF Wireless System and the acclaimed AEW-T3300 and AEW-T5400 cardioid condenser handheld transmitters. “The search for the perfect wireless microphone was a long one but worth it,” says Paul Kennamer, Sr., Valor’s manager. “We needed a microphone that could handle low frequencies well. At one point, Paul David, who sings bass, reaches a note four octaves below middle C. Audio-Technica has the only wireless we have found that can handle that.”
Each vocalist in Valor has high praise for how well the A-T 4000 Series Wireless System and Artist Elite microphones perform. “We go into a number of situations where available UHF frequencies have to be found quickly, and the Artist Elite Series does it beautifully, making set-up a breeze,” comments singer and engineer John Laws. “One of the main things that has impressed me about the 4000 Series wireless mics is that they’ll handle a gutsy scream right up against the mic and a whisper at a distance, and everything in between.”
Bass singer Paul David Kennamer, Jr. is equally effusive. “In our particular genre, so much of the time our voices actually become the instrument, and Valor’s approach to music stylistically puts an even greater amount of emphasis on vocals,” he explains. “We’ll really put a mic through its paces, testing the full range of performance from high tenor to low bass. We’ve tried a number of wireless microphones and found what we needed at both ends of the spectrum with the Audio-Technica 3300 and 5400 handheld microphones. Conventional wisdom used to hold that if you were going to sing bass, a hard-wired mic was an absolute must. The Audio-Technica 5400 makes this notion obsolete. We have found no other wireless mic that can touch it for performance. It has an incredible ability to handle low frequencies.”
Vocalist Ben Dixon weights in, adding, “The Artist Elite Series mics handle dynamics inherent in delivering a high quality performance. They meet the challenge unlike any other mic I’ve experienced.”
Valor is also a fan of Audio-Technica in the studio. On their recordings they use the AT4050 as their premier vocal microphone. “I’m very impressed with not just the sensitivity of the AT4050, but its ability to handle high SPL, as well,” says John Laws. “Its sensitivity, clarity and sound are things that I expect to find in much more expensive mics. It’s an amazing amount of microphone for the money.” Paul David Kennamer, Jr. expounds, “Valor’s sound involves the lead singer surrounded by full, warm vocals, not just singing over the top of an instrumental track. With this intense focus on the voice, microphone capability becomes vitally important. We want to fully and accurately reproduce every detail of what we’re doing. I use the AT4050 exclusively for recording our projects. Its performance in the studio gives us everything we want.”
Photo Caption: Shown (L-R) are John Laws, Ben Dixon, Paul David Kennamer — members of gospel group Valor — performing using the Audio-Technica Artist Elite® 4000 Series UHF Wireless System. Photo by Alden Ho. (This photo is the property of Alden Ho and may be used by the press only for the purpose of one-time reproduction. Unauthorized use, alteration or reproduction of this photograph is strictly prohibited.)
