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If you have 6 microphones open on stage (all having the same gain) this means: 7dB = 10
log 5 mic's. So we will lose 7dB of Gain Before Feedback.
So when that folk-band arrives with 15 musicians and they say that 10 of them will do some
backing vocals at some time or another, and you are in a small hall with lousy acoustics
and you don't have some Apex dBG-8's, you know you are in deep trouble since all the
audience will ask to get it louder and that dreadful feedback monster is smiling in your face.
The cheap solution is of course to tell the band you only have 4 microphones.
So another reason to use a gate is to keep the number of open microphones at any given
times as small as possible. The 'Mute' button on your mixing console does the same of
course, but in case of the 15 headed folk band you will have to choose if you want to be a
sound mixer or a piano player.
Setting the gates correctly will prevent that the backing vocal microphones are open all the
time, thus reducing your gain before feedback.The same goes of course if you have to mix
a debate or conference with 15 speakers. And in the event they all start shouting at the
same time, you better turn off the sound system and go have lunch, since nobody will be
listening.
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