Handheld microphones rental

What is a handheld microphone?

The handheld microphone is the classic microphone that you hold and bring up to your mouth. It is the most recognisable form of sound reinforcement and at the same time one of the most versatile. Everyone intuitively understands how it works, and that makes it ideal for situations where the microphone passes from hand to hand or where the speaker has no time or inclination to set anything up. You pick it up, and it does its job.

Handheld microphones come in a wireless and a wired version. The wireless variant sends the signal to the receiver over a radio connection, so the speaker can move freely. The wired variant runs via a cable to the mixer and is thereby completely immune to wireless interference. Microphones also differ in character: one is aimed at clear speech, another at vocals. HuurAV chooses the version that suits what is happening at your event, and makes sure the sound comes across rugged and reliable.

What do you use a handheld microphone for?

The handheld microphone is the workhorse of almost every event with speakers. At a presentation or conference a speaker reaches for the handheld microphone for a short introduction, or it goes around during a panel discussion where several participants have their say. Its ruggedness and ease make it ideal when switching quickly between people.

The handheld microphone also plays a big role at a wedding. Speeches from family and friends, a quiz or a spontaneous word: the microphone goes around the tables and everyone can speak audibly straight away. At a corporate event the handheld microphone is indispensable for a host, an award ceremony or questions from the audience. And for vocals, at a live performance or a karaoke at a party, a good vocal microphone is exactly what you need. It is always about directness: pick it up and speak or sing.

Questions from the audience

A specific use is capturing questions from the audience. In an interactive session you want the questioner to be heard just as well as the speaker on stage. For this we deploy one or more separate handheld microphones in the room, passed around by hosts or standing on stands near the aisles. That way the conversation stays easy to follow for everyone, including those at the back or watching a recording.

The technology behind handheld microphones

With wireless handheld microphones it all comes down to frequency coordination. Each wireless microphone transmits on its own frequency, and if you use several at once they must not get in each other’s way. In an urban environment like Amsterdam the airwaves are moreover full of other wireless traffic. HuurAV finds the free frequencies in advance, assigns each microphone its own channel and checks them at the location, so no noise, dropouts or interference occur during the event.

HuurAV also pays attention to the characteristic of the microphone. A good speech microphone suppresses ambient sound and mainly picks up the voice standing right in front of it, which helps against feedback. For vocals you choose a microphone with a warmer tone instead. We also set the level per microphone on the mixer, because a soft speaker and a loud speaker call for a different setting. You can read more about our wider approach on the page about sound.

Preventing feedback

Feedback, that sharp whistle when a microphone picks up its own amplified sound, is the classic pitfall with handheld microphones. It arises when the microphone gets too close to a speaker or is set too loud. We prevent it by placing the speakers well, carefully setting the microphones and flattening the sensitive frequencies. During the test we walk through the room to check that it stays stable everywhere, including when a speaker moves with the microphone.

Batteries and spares

A wireless handheld microphone runs on batteries, and it is precisely that simple dependency that is a point often underestimated. A dead battery in the middle of a speech is a painful but easily prevented problem. HuurAV therefore always puts fresh batteries in the microphones at the start and keeps an eye on the battery status via the receiver, which shows how much is left. For a long programme we lay out spare batteries and, where needed, keep a spare microphone on hand, so a speaker can switch over without interruption if a problem arises. With a wired handheld microphone this does not come up, which is one of the reasons to choose wired for a fixed position such as a lectern. That way we make reliability a deliberate choice rather than something to hope for.

Setup, testing and operation by HuurAV

At HuurAV you rarely rent handheld microphones in isolation. We think along about how many microphones you need, whether they should be wireless or wired and how they fit into your programme. On the day itself we coordinate the frequencies, connect everything to the mixer and test each microphone separately, from battery level to sound quality. We make sure spare batteries and, where needed, a spare microphone are ready.

For a simple programme you can operate the system yourself after the test; we set the levels in advance and explain how it works. For a programme with several speakers, quick switches or vocals we recommend a technician who keeps the microphones balanced live and steps in immediately if there are problems. That way HuurAV handles the advice, the setup, the testing and the operation, while rental without support is possible through SpeakerVerhuur.nl. HuurAV is part of Speaker Verhuur Amsterdam. Request a no-obligation quote.