British rock trio Muse, currently in the middle of their world tour of stadiums, arenas and major festivals, are taking the stage every evening with Sennheiser and Neumann microphones and Sennheiser wireless monitors.

Marc Carolan has been Muse’s FOH engineer for six years, and has been a Neumann fan for even longer. “We use Neumann KMS 104s and 105s on our vocals,” he explains. “But I’ve been using the Neumann 105 for about eight years now, and other models in the studio, of course. We’ve tried others but nothing comes close.”

When Muse became the first rock band to play at the rebuilt Wembley Stadium earlier this summer, an interesting addition to the band’s usual roster of equipment was the Neumann KU-100 Dummy Head binaural stereo mic, providing a spatially accurate recording of the occasion for a DVD at a later date.

“The dummy head was an experiment really,” continues Carolan. “Wembley is a fantastically spatial venue and I wanted to see if the binaural recording would capture some of that feel. It will be interesting to see how it works in the mix for the DVD. The dummy head definitely got some strange looks, especially when Sennheiser asked me to pose in front of the crowd with it for some photos.”

The Neumann microphones have long been an essential part of Muse’s live equipment. More recent arrivals were the band’s wireless monitoring systems. “We’ve been using the Sennheiser G2 300 series in-ears for around three months,” explains Muse’s long-term monitor engineer Adam Taylor. “Previous issues with the stereo imaging of other products have been resolved and I have all the band using the G2s now. The RF is very stable and flexible and the system is very user friendly. The band liked the small size of the beltpack too.”

“We have been using Sennheiser mics throughout the past few years in one form or another. And it goes without saying that the HD 25 headphone has always been my preferred choice of headphones. I’ve always found that Sennheiser has produced reliable and quality products. We’re also using the SKM 5200 wireless handheld radio mics with the Neumann KK 105 capsule. Again, the RF is very stable, even with passive antennas, and the sound quality is excellent.”

After the band’s two dates at Wembley Stadium, Muse journeyed to the continent for more high-profile stadium shows, including one at Paris’ famous Parc Des Princes. Throughout the summer, the band’s tour continues through Asia, and finishes in September with two weeks in North America.

The Sennheiser Group is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of microphones, headphones and wireless transmission systems. A family firm established in 1945 and based in Wedemark near Hanover, the company recorded sales of over 356 million euros in 2006, 82% of which was generated abroad. Sennheiser employs over 1,800 people worldwide, around 55% of whom are in Germany. The Group has manufacturing plants in Germany, Ireland and the USA and is represented worldwide by subsidiaries in France, the UK, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark (Nordic), Russia, Hong Kong, India, Singapore, Canada, Mexico and the USA, as well as through trading partners in other countries. Also part of the Sennheiser Group are Georg Neumann GmbH, Berlin (studio microphones), K + H Vertriebs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (Klein + Hummel studio monitors, installed sound) and the joint venture Sennheiser Communications A/S (headsets for PCs, offices and call centers).

Download Press Release:
Press_release_Muse.zip (4,79 MB)

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Greg Beebe
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