Just thought I'd share how well the F1's worked at my conference this week. The venue was a gym with 4 x basketball courts (though we were only using half). From past experience I knew that gyms are notoriously bad for echo so I wanted something with a flat dispersion to avoid throwing sound up into the ceiling. My first thought was my L1 Model 2's but in this case we were using 6 x wireless mics & condenser lectern mic at once so I was worried about feedback given the L1's 180 degree dispersion. I decided to go with the F1's. They worked great! I had tons of gain & no feedback issues even though the speakers were behind the stage (off to sides). The amount of echo was minimal & you could clearly hear from the far wall. I'm finding the F1's very good for gain at each event I've done so far.
Cool story, I do sound for speeches in a gym like this and in the past I have had a lot of feedback issues using the L1 as FOH. I think I would have had less issues if I could put the L1 towers on the back wall, but a row of people sit along the back wall... so that's a no go. I am excited to use the F1 812 tops at this annual gig... in fact it was the feedback issues I had at the last on that caused me to pull the pin on the F1 system.
I'm Joseph, a school teacher and motivational speaker. I've 2 subs and 2 F1 Model 812s. I'm planning a small meeting, but I have to use our school gym because of the social distancing rules. How many mics did you use? Is there a general rule for mics placement in a gym (size for 700 people; with a huge amount of echo)?
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How many different persons will be speaking? Will it be a lecture format, or discussion format? Having a designated location for the person speaking is definitely easier than trying to accommodate all participants with a mic for a discussion.
By small, do you mean less than 20 people? With recommended social distancing you will need to cover 800 to 1000 sq. Ft. for 20 to 25 participants.
If the need is to reinforce spoken word, I would not use the subs.
The more open mics that are used, the more paths you will have to create feedback.
The general rules for mic placement would be as close to the source you wish to amplify as is possible, and not directly in the dispersion pattern of the speaker. Those are rules that are broken nearly every time a PA is used, so it is most always a compromise.
I would suggest you set up the system prior to your meeting, with an assistant and time, to determine necessary volume levels and tolerance for mic and speaker placement.
If you provide more detail, or have specific questions we can talk more.
