Kirk Kelsey, Creed's front-of-house engineer and co-producer of Weathered, chose a wide array of Audio-Technica microphones to help capture the band's signature sound. "I've been using Audio-Technica mics for years, both live and in the studio. When we were recording Weathered, we used AT4047s on clean guitars, AT4050s for the dirty guitar, ATM25s for the toms, AT4060s for overheads, and an AT3035 on kick. When it came time to hit the road, rather than mix and match a bunch of microphones, I wanted one company with the products and support that would cut it, and A-T is the one."
Currently, for Scott Phillips' drum kit, Kelsey is using an AE2500 on kick; AE3000 on toms: AT4033 for overheads; ATM35's for bottom snare and an ATM23HE on top snare. Guitarist Mark Tremonti uses an AT4054 for vocals while sideman/bassist Brett Hestla is using an AT4054 for backup vocals. All guitars are direct. "We were struggling to find the right wireless for Scott Stapp's vocals, but after doing a shootout with all the wireless units available, we're now using the ATW-7373x handheld wireless," stated Kelsey. "I've been trying to get a really big sound out of Scott's voice and the A-T wireless does the trick. It sounds really good."
In addition, Kelsey is utilizing the new Artist Elite AE2500 mic, which features A-T's unique dual-element design. The AE2500 combines condenser and dynamic capsules within a single housing, positioned in a perfect phase relationship - something that would be nearly impossible to accomplish with separate microphones. "The new AE2500 kick drum mic is just incredible," comments Kelsey. "I was using a combination of a boundary mic on the inside of the bass drum and an AT4050 a little further out. I was getting decent results, but when I put the AE2500 in there alone, it was just unbelievable. I was able to get the attack of the beater along with the tone of the bass drum shell - the system's techs noticed the sound difference right away."
(Lee Baldock)
