Counting more than 4m tickets sold for concerts in 35 countries, The Australian Pink Floyd Show have taken the ‘tribute band’ concept to an all-time high. Their faithful and meticulous delivery not only of the Pink Floyd music catalogue but of the accompanying stage show and visuals rival the band’s own.

Currently touring the globe over the course of five months, the band’s attention to equipment extends well beyond their choice of instruments and pedals – mic choice is an equally essential consideration.

‘We approach this show differently from most live shows, because to some degree we are taking a recording studio on tour,’ guitarist/vocalist Steve Mac. ‘With AKG microphones, we are able to recreate the sounds of a studio environment, while maintaining isolation and high feedback rejection.’

Having tried condenser microphones with larger polar patterns, Mac noticed they picked up the drums in the background, which introduced spill into the FOH mix. Dynamic microphones, on the other hand, don’t suffer as badly from drum spill, so after much experimentation, the band purchased an AKG D7 for each vocalist and the keyboardist/MC, which offers tremendous sound quality while meeting the band’s other criteria.

‘The D7 has great isolation, which not only keeps our monitor mixes tidy, but preserves our voices,’ he says. ‘Our keyboard player doubles as the MC and uses a chrome-plated D7 for a bit of fun and a touch of class.’

AKG C414, C518 and D40 microphones are used for the drums: ‘We use the AKG C414 microphones on the overhead and ride cymbal, because they just sound so natural. For the toms and Rototoms, we use AKG C518 mics because their small stature and stunning sound allows for more accurate positioning in tight spaces. We also use the AKG D40 on the lower floor tom and also on the gong to capture the rich bass,’ he adds

Mac uses AKG C451/CK1 microphones on his Fender Twin Reverb amps, which ‘really bring out the detail of the top end and capture the glassy bite of a Twin’. He also uses AKG C214 mics on his Hiwatt speaker cabinets, because ‘they have a large diaphragm and they capture the low end naturally and add ‘size’ to the guitar sounds’.

C518 mics with AKG radio packs are used for the tenor, alto and soprano saxophones. The baritone saxophone is captured by an AKG D40 large diaphragm ‘to bring out the warmth in the sound without the risk of feedback’, according to Mac.

Besides sounding the way vocalists want them to, AKG mics reckon to remain consistent in the face of tour punishment, so that the band can focus on their show.

‘The consistency is extremely important, because the audience is familiar with the sounds of original Pink Floyd songs,’ Mac agrees. ‘These microphones allow us to accurately maintain the amazing sounds of Pink Floyd’s albums, regardless of the venue and environment. That is why we have been using AKG microphones for 31 years in both studio recording and live music production.’

More: www.akg.com