# Source for plexiglass shields



## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

Hey guys, got some gigs coming up in the New Year and want to equip ourselves with shields for our microphones. 

What's everybody doing? Is there a source (online, music stores)? Have you made your own?


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

allthumbs56 said:


> Hey guys, got some gigs coming up in the New Year and want to equip ourselves with shields for our microphones.
> 
> What's everybody doing? Is there a source (online, music stores)? Have you made your own?


Is the shield between you and the microphone or the microphone and the audience? If it's the later something like this should be easy to make.








or this which does both jobs. Face mask is optional.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

allthumbs56 said:


> Hey guys, got some gigs coming up in the New Year and want to equip ourselves with shields for our microphones.
> 
> What's everybody doing? Is there a source (online, music stores)? Have you made your own?



I'm not sure what kind of shields you mean.

I've used plexi shields around drum kits or in front of guitar amps. What kind of shields are you looking for?


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## KapnKrunch (Jul 13, 2016)

Audio-Technica PRO 8HEx Hyper Cardioid Dynamic Headworn Microphone, XLR Connector, Black: Amazon.ca: Musical Instruments, Stage & Studio 









10 Pack Transparent Face Shield Suitable for Cycling Camping Travel for Kids Teens Men Women : Amazon.ca: Tools & Home Improvement


10 Pack Transparent Face Shield Suitable for Cycling Camping Travel for Kids Teens Men Women : Amazon.ca: Tools & Home Improvement



www.amazon.ca


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## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

Not sure where you are playing but usually those shields need to be supplied by the bar or the venue.


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

allthumbs56 said:


> Hey guys, got some gigs coming up in the New Year and want to equip ourselves with *shields for our microphones.*
> 
> What's everybody doing? Is there a source (online, music stores)? Have you made your own?


Our local music store is carrying them. There are various diameters available.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

greco said:


> Our local music store is carrying them. There are various diameters available.
> 
> View attachment 338671
> View attachment 338672


I like the look (and price) of that Clearsonic one. What store is that?


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

I built one for teaching that is also suitable for performance. The frame is made of 2"x3" and holds a 2'x4' sheet of plexiglas that I got at Home Depot.

__
http://instagr.am/p/CE7d58Fg8oN/

Usually the venue does provide them. 

I would worry that you might get some nasty reflections from the ones that mount on the mic stand. I would be curious to hear from someone who has used them. 
I've seen people use pop filters in front of the mic, but the visual is less appealing.


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

allthumbs56 said:


> What store is that?


Sorry...Sherwood Music in Kitchener


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

So this is a germ thing, not a sound thing? Because when we sing we project?


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

Milkman said:


> So this is a germ thing, not a sound thing? Because when we sing we project?


Correct - it's a Covid requirement for singers and horns/woodwinds.


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## KapnKrunch (Jul 13, 2016)

Optix is harder than plexiglass. Lexan even better. Scratch resistant. 

A whole sheet for a couple of bands if you DIY.





__





Optix .118" x 30" x 60" Clear Acrylic Sheet | Home Hardware


Get the Optix .118" x 30" x 60" Clear Acrylic Sheet at your local Home Hardware store. Buy online and get Free Shipping to any Home location!




www.homehardware.ca


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

allthumbs56 said:


> Correct - it's a Covid requirement for singers and horns/woodwinds.


Thanks, it kind of made sense, but I wasn't aware of the requirement.

It will be interesting to hear how it affects monitoring and just singing in general.

You should get quite a bit of reflected sound from that shield and it may also block floor wedges a wee bit.


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## boyscout (Feb 14, 2009)

From the Left Field Department, I was in a big commercial kitchen place (Nella Cutlery near Hwy 400 and Finch in Toronto) recently and they had a selection of self-supporting clear shields in various sizes and materials, most of them counter-top pieces. Put them on something in front of you, or cut them up to make something else?

I didn't note prices.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

Milkman said:


> Thanks, it kind of made sense, but I wasn't aware of the requirement.
> 
> It will be interesting to hear how it affects monitoring and just singing in general.
> 
> You should get quite a bit of reflected sound from that shield and it may also block floor wedges a wee bit.


Those Clearsonic ones were made before Covid specifically for sonic purposes. Just has an added benefit I guess.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

allthumbs56 said:


> Those Clearsonic ones were made before Covid specifically for sonic purposes. Just has an added benefit I guess.


Physical devices, placement of speakers, shields all can have fundamental impacts on sound. I love solving problems like that.

Have you tried one?


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## laristotle (Aug 29, 2019)

DIY with a coat hanger wrapped/taped around the mic stand and then shaped behind the mic.
Stretch a piece of saran wrap on that frame?
Doesn't have to be heavy duty, does it? You're only singing _moistly_.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

The buses out here use a thick poly as a curtain for the drivers. It's flexable, fairly cheap and you can cut it with a pair of scissors so it won't crack like plexi. You could use it with the laristotles frame or make your own much larger frame that could be rolled up when you're finished with it.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

laristotle said:


> DIY with a coat hanger wrapped/taped around the mic stand and then shaped behind the mic.
> Stretch a piece of saran wrap on that frame?
> Doesn't have to be heavy duty, does it? You're only singing _moistly_.
> View attachment 338692


Seems perfect for a punk band 😎


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

As we used to joke in Grade 6: "Thay it, don't thpray it".

I gather harmonies on a shared mic, à la George and Paul, or Patti and Miami Steve, are frowned upon at the present time.

Some interesting suggestions for alternates here, as well. But whether it's mic-guards, bus-driver barriers, or supermarket checkouts, kinda makes you wish you had invested in plexiglass companies earlier this year, don't it?


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## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

Can't snag the pic for some reason on this browser but I see a local place using something like a music stand raised to about the level of the mic but a bit above. It's probably not a music stand but that's what it looks like. Where the music sheets would go is clear plexi maybe 2 feet wide by18" - about 6" of the left and right sides are bent 45 degrees towards you. These are placed a good distance in front of the mic so less likely to effect sound like the ones that are attached to the mic stand and right in front of your face. These can be moved around independent of the mic stand location. You need to put painters tape on the corners so dumb asses don't walk into them.


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## Powdered Toast Man (Apr 6, 2006)

There's a fair amount of data to suggest that those plastic face shields are not effective when it comes to covid. I'm not sure what a circle of plastic the size of a pizza pan is supposed to do when you're raised a few feet above a crowd and shouting.


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## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

Powdered Toast Man said:


> I'm not sure what a circle of plastic the size of a pizza pan is supposed to do when you're raised a few feet above a crowd and shouting.


Improve lateral dispersion of the virus load and make it more inclusive ?


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

what kind of effect does using a Plexi shield have on my freedoms and liberties?


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## KapnKrunch (Jul 13, 2016)

Thats right @vadsy , we need more transparency.


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## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

I'm certain that if I had to appease the regulators of such things I would look at the commercially available options and make my own, erring on the side of caution for size, durability, and hopefully function. (In my lesson business I have a 4' x 5' clear screen framed in maple that I had set aside for picture frames, plus we mask, and are distanced. I feel okay singing if I want to.) 

I had a hell of a time last summer sourcing the necessary plexiglass or similar clear plastic (for lack of a better word) locally, but finally the local print shop with which I do regular business got me a roll. That shop does a lot of vinyl wraps, signs, and now plexi installations, so I shouldn't have been surprised when the owner came through for me. 

It struck me later, and I then checked and found I was right, that the Restore store might have had some large windows I could have repurposed much cheaper.


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

Powdered Toast Man said:


> There's a fair amount of data to suggest that those plastic face shields are not effective when it comes to covid. I'm not sure what a circle of plastic the size of a pizza pan is supposed to do when you're raised a few feet above a crowd and shouting.


People seem as unaware / misinformed about aerosol spray as they are about speaker dissipation. What appears obvious isn't always correct. Kinda the same as the world en masse giving a pass to the largest GHG producer while supposedly fighting climate change.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

Mooh said:


> ...
> It struck me later, and I then checked and found I was right, that the Restore store might have had some large windows I could have repurposed much cheaper.


I actually had the foresight to check the ReStore and they didn't have anything suitable. Murphy.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

Mooh said:


> I'm certain that if I had to appease the regulators of such things I would look at the commercially available options and make my own, erring on the side of caution for size, durability, and hopefully function. (In my lesson business I have a 4' x 5' clear screen framed in maple that I had set aside for picture frames, plus we mask, and are distanced. I feel okay singing if I want to.)
> 
> I had a hell of a time last summer sourcing the necessary plexiglass or similar clear plastic (for lack of a better word) locally, but finally the local print shop with which I do regular business got me a roll. That shop does a lot of vinyl wraps, signs, and now plexi installations, so I shouldn't have been surprised when the owner came through for me.
> 
> It struck me later, and I then checked and found I was right, that the Restore store might have had some large windows I could have repurposed much cheaper.


I bought an 1/8th inch, 2 x 3 piece of plexi from the local glass store in the summer. It cost me 70 bucks. Demand is/was high.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

Does anyone know if there's a government site that actually details the specifics? Distances to patrons, shield sizes/placement, performance volume?

I've actually heard that there is a decibel limit of 75 from one local musician - that's pretty quiet!

** Edit **

Just found this:









COVID-19 Resources for the Live Music Industry - Canadian Live Music Association


The CLMA is attempting to colate all relevant information for the live music industry.




canadianlivemusic.ca





Maybe it has the answers .......................


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

allthumbs56 said:


> Does anyone know if there's a government site that actually details the specifics? Distances to patrons, shield sizes/placement, performance volume?
> 
> I've actually heard that there is a decibel limit of 75 from one local musician - that's pretty quiet!


Check with your local health unit - they are your best bet for accurate information.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

allthumbs56 said:


> Does anyone know if there's a government site that actually details the specifics? Distances to patrons, shield sizes/placement, performance volume?
> 
> I've actually heard that there is a decibel limit of 75 from one local musician - that's pretty quiet!
> 
> ...


For which province? They all seem to be different. Depends on the city you're playing in too, and where you're playing. I'd start with what the venue wants and go from there.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)




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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)




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## Powdered Toast Man (Apr 6, 2006)

We don't have to worry about this in Winnipeg. All our bars and venues are currently closed. 

They did have a db limit of 80 decibels before we went full lockdown. That meant rock or live bands were pretty much dead because the base noise level of a drum kit is 85 db. One of the local venues tested it and they said there was no way to function with that restriction in place.


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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

Vocals on their own (no mic) easily reach 86db.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

player99 said:


> Vocals on their own (no mic) easily reach 86db.


I'm hearing that, in our area at least, you're supposed to not exceed 60db - what they consider "conversation level". I'm assuming that's measured at the patron's tables and not at the front of the stage. I'd like to play our gigs, but you do need a certain energy level and we wish to include our drummer. We played out at the end of October. Our drummer put a pillow in his kick and used rods instead of sticks. Me and the bass player turned down as well and we were probably at about two thirds of our normal volume. The bar staff thought we were fine but the owner stuck his head in for a minute and said that we were still too loud.

It's a conundrum!


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## laristotle (Aug 29, 2019)

Set up/play in the back room and leave the door open a crack?


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

What does limiting the decibels have anything to do with anything???


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

sulphur said:


> What does limiting the decibels have anything to do with anything???


It keeps people from having to shout at each other when they talk. Goes for canned music and TV too. I think it only applies to restaurants and bars because people have their masks off when they eat and drink - concert halls are fine.


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## Powdered Toast Man (Apr 6, 2006)

allthumbs56 said:


> I'm hearing that, in our area at least, you're supposed to not exceed 60db - what they consider "conversation level". I'm assuming that's measured at the patron's tables and not at the front of the stage. I'd like to play our gigs, but you do need a certain energy level and we wish to include our drummer. We played out at the end of October. Our drummer put a pillow in his kick and used rods instead of sticks. Me and the bass player turned down as well and we were probably at about two thirds of our normal volume. The bar staff thought we were fine but the owner stuck his head in for a minute and said that we were still too loud.
> 
> It's a conundrum!


Basically your only option for gigging is an acoustic guitar played softly and unmiked vocals. You can't gig as a band.


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## allthumbs56 (Jul 24, 2006)

Powdered Toast Man said:


> Basically your only option for gigging is an acoustic guitar played softly and unmiked vocals. You can't gig as a band.


To be "safe" I agree. We "got away" with it last time but I have no desire to risk the ire and fines of our local bylaw folks for our future events.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

bw66 said:


> It keeps people from having to shout at each other when they talk. Goes for canned music and TV too. I think it only applies to restaurants and bars because people have their masks off when they eat and drink - concert halls are fine.


There is a problem with people shouting at each other when the talk in a bar.....happens all the time. You should worry when they are shouting at you. You would figure that people with masks on trying to talk to their neighbour while being on their phone at a concert would shout more.


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