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clarinet clip on mics

I think I'm posting this in the right place. My duo has been experimenting with mics and I want to use a clip on mic because I want to move around a lot (not be constrained with standing in one place by a stationary mic) and I am terrified of attaching a pic-up mic to my barrel (because I am assuming you have to drill into it to do that - if I'm wrong please tell me). I have looked up a lot of mics and I am actually pretty happy with the APEX 565 except there is one problem: the clarinet bell is too fat for the clip and it slowly starts to slide off. I had a solution to make it stay using a padded binder clip (so I wouldn't scratch my clarinet) but I don't like this Magiver solution since it looks pretty cheap. Anyone have any better clip-on solutions?
 
It's not the end of the world to use a barrel mounted pickup, and it remains more stable than the clip on for the very reasons that you have already described. Pick up another barrel from the manufacturer, have the pickup mounted, and wear the transmitter pack on your belt. You can always swap it out again when you don't want to use the amplification.

(Even if you are playing an obsolete instrument, the odds are very much in favor that the manufacturer will have a selection of barrels of the correct vintage to send out on trial. They do produce spare parts for the items that logically might call for replacement.)

But, I have to ask, why do you need to amplify your horn in a duo situation? Assuming that whatever the other member is playing is amplified, and further assuming that a duo plays in a somewhat intimate situation, wouldn't it be easier to dial down the gain on the keyboard/guitar/whatever amp?
 
For a barrel mounted pickup you have to drill the barrel. That is what I use mostly. I have a couple of clarinet specific clip-on mics and they do sound more natural, but I just don't bother, plus I often play with noisier bands and/or effect pedals so the difference isn't really important (plus some things I do wouldn't be possible with mics anyway).

the only situation I might not use the pickup is if I need a really "acoustic" sound i.e. same as without ampliciation but amplified, as much as possible. Even then, the main issue is the pickup picking up key noise and since I play mostly bass clarinet there is much more of it.

Re mounting, you can try to find (or have someone make you) a ring with an arm that the mic will clip onto that.
 
It's for larger school concerts that we want to use the amplification and also larger concert halls. We got a Bose L1 compact speaker and the tonematch mixer has built in reverb which is also great for really dry spaces. This sound system is so good - it doesn't distort the sound at all but it allows for people in the back row of an auditorium to hear the same volume and sound quality as those in the front row. It really is a perfect match for our instruments. I will try the old barrel method and see how it sounds.
 
It's for larger school concerts that we want to use the amplification and also larger concert halls. We got a Bose L1 compact speaker and the tonematch mixer has built in reverb which is also great for really dry spaces. This sound system is so good - it doesn't distort the sound at all but it allows for people in the back row of an auditorium to hear the same volume and sound quality as those in the front row. It really is a perfect match for our instruments. I will try the old barrel method and see how it sounds.

I also don't know what to do yet for my bass clarinet. I haven't even tried it yet with the sound system. I do some extremely fast switches between my Bb and bass in a lot of our pieces. I know I will need separate mics for each.
 
In that case it sounds like it would be best to simply solve the problem of the mic sliding off. Do you have a photo of the current attachment? Some type of round clamp around the clarinet that the mic will be attached to would most likely work.
 
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