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Tim McGraw Stays True to Sennheiser

With no signs of slowing, Tim McGraw has already earned a place in the pantheon of country music's legendary founders and enduring successes. The devotion of his fans has given him nine number one albums, scores of prestigious awards, and - together with his superstar wife Faith Hill - the top grossing country tour of all time. The duo set out to do it all again in ‘Soul2Soul Tour 2007’, and McGraw again relied on Sennheiser wireless and wired mics to reliably capture the emotion and impact of his performance with nuance and clarity. Although they are open to alternatives, McGraw and long-time FOH engineer John Ward find that nothing comes close to the balanced tonality of the Sennheiser evolution wireless SKM 565 G2 transmitter with the ME 865 capsule on McGraw's vocals. Except for a few stationary band members on wedges, everyone on stage uses Sennheiser ew 300 IEM G2 personal monitors. Ward cites Sennheiser's rock-solid RF stability and transparent sound for the choice.

With Hill joining her husband, the ‘Soul2Soul Tour 2007’ began its 22-truck mission in early June, delivering rockin' country and soulful duets to sold-out crowds in all of the major cities in the U.S. and Canada. Following the sage wisdom, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", Ward, along with monitoring engineer Johnnie Branham, again used the formula that both inspired and conveyed McGraw's emotional performances to packed stadiums with so much intimacy and nuance in past tours. They went with the proven RF stability and agility of industry-leading Sennheiser wireless microphones -

which is celebrating 50 years of RF excellence - and wireless personal monitor systems, in addition to pressing a bevy of classic, stage-ready Sennheiser evolution wired microphones to service.

Several years ago, McGraw and Ward searched systematically across all the most popular brands and models for a wireless vocal mic that would convey McGraw's controlled, yet effortless, delivery with a truthfulness that matched the honesty and emotion of his lyrics. Although price was no object, at that time they found that Sennheiser's affordable evolution series e 865 capsule dramatically outperformed the competition. "The e 865 super-cardioid capsule gave us the on-stage rejection that we needed along with the tonal nuances that best conveyed Tim's voice, particularly in the difficult to capture mid-range," Ward reported. While the rest of the band does backup vocals on wired e 865s and reinforces their instruments with Sennheiser's classic wired mics (MD 421 IIs, e 609 Silvers, etc.), McGraw now uses the Sennheiser evolution wireless SKM 565 G2, which features the ME 865 capsule inside a wireless transmitter, backed with the Sennheiser EM 500 G2 receiver, also from the evolution wireless line.

In addition to Hill and McGraw, all of the mobile members of his band – ‘The Dancehall Doctors’ - use Sennheiser ew 300 IEM G2 personal monitors. Because the tour travels with a massive, cross-shaped LCD-illuminated stage floor, which, as a side-effect, emits a host of unruly RF signals, they've come to rely on Sennheiser's rock-solid RF handling and user-friendly frequency agility. Said Branham, after years of mixing ear monitors, "I find the G2 series a great personal monitor system for clarity and stereo imaging."

The team's satisfaction with Sennheiser extends well beyond its first-rate technical performance. "Sennheiser's Global Relations team has really taken care of us," added Ward. "They go way above and beyond the standard of care that's typical in the pro audio industry. For instance, when we do TV shows, Sennheiser makes sure we have everything we need. We don't even have to make a phone call! Since those are almost always fly dates, finding that everything has been taken care of is a wonderful thing to discover. There's a lot that can go wrong on a big, 22-truck tour, but Sennheiser is always one step ahead, ensuring that everything is smooth sailing."

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Tim McGraw Stays True to Sennheiser

23rd August 2007

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