Countryman H7 Headset Mic
If you have a well-behaved, professionally tuned sound system, consider yourself lucky or blessed. Most of us are fighting one thing or another on a weekly basis. Whether it be bass build up, getting a good, balanced drum sound, or just the random changes that come from a rotation of different band members and singers on a week in/week out basis.
Flatirons Church, a multisite ministry based in Lafayette, CO just north of Denver, is no different.. While the main room at Flatiron’s main campus is “well-tuned,” according to Jason Cowart, the church’s ministry production coordinator, not all of the PA’s in the church could be described as such.
Cowart and Audio Director Bryce Boynton and recently spent some time testing the new Countryman H7 Headset Microphone in a variety of applications in at Flatirons.
Boynton found the microphone to be flexible and adaptable, noting that clarity was great in both rooms where the mic was tested, but the engineer added a little low end to warm up the sound in the main room with the well-behaved PA. “In the smaller room we added less low end. The H7 sounded really good without much work, and that’s in a space that can be challenging,” Boynton adds.
The Countyman H7 condenser mic, which has a cardioid pick up pattern, was introduced in January of this year.
Another important characteristic for Boynton is gain-before-feedback. If you’re a new sound engineer, or even an experienced sound engineer mixing in an unfamiliar environment --- a new room, using new equipment etc --- you want to know you have margin for error, or at least a bit of forgiveness when the presenter moves around on stage, or when you make changes in level or EQ from the mixing console. In this respect, Boynton gives the Countryman H7 high marks. “I would put it in any situation where you need high gain-before-feedback. It’s very forgiving. Besides pastor and main presenter, I would have no problem putting the H7 in a kid’s room where the PA may not be as refined and therefore more prone to feed back,” he says.
Boynton also says he found the cable on the H7 seems to be thicker and more durable than some other Countryman mics he’s used in the past. He says, “That sometimes made us nervous. Super skinny cables seem to kink more easily. I was happy to see this cable was a bit beefier.”
In addition to the obvious application as the microphone on the teaching pastor, the adaptability and durability lead both Cowart and Boynton to recommend the H7 for travelling presenters, for taking on mission trips or retreats or for children’s and teen ministries. “Countryman makes solid, durable equipment,” Boyton says. “The case is excellent. I like how the mic is secured in the case. I’d have no trouble throwing it in my luggage for a trip or even a tour,” Cowart adds.
