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Sennheiser's MD 5235 Capsule Wins "The Singing Bee"

NBC's "The Singing Bee," a karaoke challenge hosted by former *NSYNC star Joey Fatone that requires contestants to be absolutely word perfect, was the highest rated and most watched summer series premier since the debut of "Dancing with the Stars" in 2005, according to the network. Bringing critical vocal intelligibility to each episode's six contestants and a roster of eleven professional singers is Sennheiser's SKM 5200 wireless handheld transmitter outfitted with the new MD 5235 dynamic capsule.

Show music mixer Paul Sandweiss, whose Sound Design Corporation also handles audio post-production chores for "The Singing Bee's broadcast, reports that the Sennheiser RF handheld is ideal for a show that focuses on the song lyrics as well as the vocal performance. "It's really critical, he adds, "that you hear all the words – that's what this contest is about, after all. It's not about being a great singer. It's about knowing the right words to the songs."

The directivity of the MD 5235 – which is the ninth capsule introduced for the SKM series of handhelds – features a narrow super-cardioid pattern at very high frequencies and wide cardioid pattern at lower frequencies while exhibiting a smooth cardioid characteristic in the critical frequencies for vocal reproduction. "There aren't any feedback issues, and it's a good-sounding microphone," says Sandweiss.

He notes that the polar pattern is a good match for the show's amateur singers. "With non-professionals, a hyper-cardioid head or a tight pattern doesn't really work. The contestants move around and aren't consistent. They'll attack a chorus but be really feeble on a verse. If you have a tight pattern a half-inch or inch of movement can mean 6dB of loss."

The MD 5235 capsule's relative insensitivity to handling and wind noise also solved some issues that he encountered on a previous show, according to Sandweiss. "We had some problems with amateur contestants on 'American Idol' with handling, popping and other issues." In addition to mixing the live performances on Fox's "American Idol," for the past three seasons, Sandweiss has mixed many of television's top awards shows, including the Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and VMAs, and many TV specials including Genius: A Night For Ray Charles (CBS), Celine Dion's "These Are Special Times" (CBS), Janet Jackson's "All For You" (HBO), America: A Tribute To Heroes (All Networks) and Tim McGraw's "Reflections" (NBC).

Contestants sing along to a brief extract from a popular song on "The Singing Bee," taking over from the house band, led by musical director Ray Chew. Anyone who fails to get the lyric exactly right is eliminated. The show is actually more complicated than it might seem, according to Sandweiss. "It's all computerized - all the musicians have the music on computer screens in front of them and the lyrics come up for the singers. The band has resident in their computers more than 500 songs." Eleven professional singers handle the wide variety of vocal styles. "Each of them has, say, a repertoire of fifty songs. There's a ramp where they jump on and off stage based on what song comes up. For example, the singer singing a Donna Summer song isn't likely to sing a Pat Benatar song."

The show is very energetic, he reports. "When you go through the final countdown at the end of the show with seven songs the dancers are dancing, the band is pounding, and the singers – and Joey – are jumping up and down! It's a fast-paced show."

"The Singing Bee" airs on NBC Tuesdays at 10:00 pm EST (9:00 pm CST).

In picure: Former *NSYNC star, Joey Fatone, host of NBC’s “The Singing Bee” relies on the Sennheiser SKM 5200 with MD 5235 capsule to capture vocal intelligibility for the show’s karaoke challenge © NBCU Photo Bank.

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Sennheiser's MD 5235 Capsule Wins "The Singing Bee"

19th November 2007

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