And good point about the limiters – if people tapping on the mic has you scared about speaker damage you are doing it wrong. The thing I was constantly fixing on the wireless betas was the battery connection under the rear cap, just got loose with enough jostling. Easy fix, though!

You’re paying a few hundred bucks for how indestructible they are, not for their fidelity, you goober.

Is this what really popularized this as a thing?  I’m not sure I agree with that.  Although if I find out someone has done a study on the popularity of mic dropping and compared against events and performances we’re going to have words about Life Priorities.

Then again, here I am posting about mic dropping when I could be at a soup kitchen, so who am I to judge…?

Oh damn they were wireless. See, this is why wired is just better! :)

Incidentally, there are some people on Slate declaiming this as a horrible sign of how awful the kids are etc etc because it might blow up the PA speakers. Dude, if you don’t have a limit compressor inline in your PA, you deserve to be run out of town on a rail!

While I’m ice skating uphill, the idea behind the mic drop is not “the servants will pick it up” but rather “I have finished saying everything that need be said, and did it with such panache that nobody needs to bother trying to follow me.”

And based on the Slow Jam The Newz segment, they had a lot of trouble convincing the President to do it at all, so you’re wrong on that account too.

And second, disrespecting Connie’s gear was disrespecting Connie – and she wasn’t going to take it from anyone. We all knew the gear was going to get worked hard – that’s its job – but intentionally f’ing with our gear was not going to stand, just on principle.

I understand that nouveau riche high status people do similar in India and Pakistan if something (food usually) is not to their satisfaction. Throw it on the floor; the servants will deal with it.

That the President of America considers this acceptable behaviour says nothing positive.

One time we had a young hip-hop act play, some locals, and at the end, the MC dropped our brand new Beta 58a wireless vocal mic onto the stage. I was at the mixing board with the stage manager who said, “No. He. Didn’t.” She stalked backstage at 100mph, grabbed this kid by the shirt and said, “Until you REALLY learn how to rap – you are in my world. And in my world you do NOT drop mics that are worth more than your sorry rhymes. Go. Pick. It. Up.”

Poor kid slunk back on stage, picked up the mic, and put it gently on the mic stand.