MIAMI, JUNE 20, 2016 – Front of House Sound Engineer Gabriel Fajardo takes pride in providing his artists with pristine and natural vocal sounds. When Grammy award-winning reggaeton artist Nicky Jam takes the stage to sold-out crowds across the world, Fajardo relies on the d:facto Handheld Microphone from DPA Microphones.
Fajardo’s first experience with DPA Microphones was about four years ago while working on a project with Colombian Airlines. He was working with DPA’s d:fine 88 Directional Headset Microphone, and was blown away by its frequency response and dynamic range. At the end of 2015, Fajardo was talking with his friend and colleague John Buitrago about which microphone would be the best option to use for a vocalist who has a habit of covering the capsule with his hand. Buitrago put Fajardo in touch with DPA to facilitate a mic demo and Fajardo was immediately drawn to the fantastic audio quality of the d:facto.
“I was curious to see how the DPA microphone would perform when covered and made the decision to try the d:facto with Nicky Jam at the Vina del Mar festival in Chile,” says Fajardo. “I was thrilled with the excellent performance of the microphone, despite it being covered by Nicky’s hand during the entire show.”
Following the successful test at the Vina del Mar festival, Fajardo has relied on the d:facto for all of Nicky Jam’s performances. “DPA mics are fantastic,” adds Fajardo. “During Nicky’s first official U.S. tour, dubbed ‘The Fenix Tour,’ the d:facto has provided a clearer and more natural sounding vocal performance, and it does not distort. It has a very flat yet warm response, especially at high frequencies, which I have never found in any other mic. Its supercardioid polar pattern is incredible and helps eliminate the ambient noise that is usually picked up by a lead vocalist’s mic.”
Additionally, Fajardo plans to use DPA mics on percussion and electric guitar on the ‘The Fenix Tour’ moving forward. The idea is to use d:vote Instrument Microphones on congas, timbales and Djembe, the d:dicate 2011C Cardioid Microphone on the Djembe bottom, overhead, jam blocks and electric guitar amplifiers, and complete the set with d:facto Handheld Microphones for background vocals.
“After trying several brands, you can hear that DPA mics have the most natural frequency response,” concludes Fajardo. “The mics are incredibly versatile and provide everything a sound engineer is looking for in a single solution. My biggest concern when using a handheld vocal microphone is what happens when the capsule is covered by the artist’s hand and DPA’s d:facto maintains an excellent response in this instance. I have become a believer and look forward to using DPA microphones on all of our upcoming performances.”
ABOUT DPA MICROPHONES:
DPA Microphones is the leading Danish Professional Audio manufacturer of high-quality condenser microphone solutions for professional applications. DPA’s ultimate goal is to always provide its customers with the absolute finest possible microphone solutions for all its markets, which include live sound, installation, recording, theatre and broadcast. When it comes to the design process, DPA takes no shortcuts. Nor does the company compromise on its manufacturing process, which is done at the DPA factory in Denmark. As a result, DPA’s products are globally praised for their exceptional clarity and transparency, unparalleled specifications, supreme reliability and, above all, pure, uncolored and undistorted sound.
For more information on DPA Microphones, please visit www.dpamicrophones.com
