Reader Robin Newman says: “It’s a maybe a bit specific / niche, but I would love to see how you rigged the DynaMount to control your EMT decay time!”
Let’s dive in! First of all, DynaMount makes these remote control microphone mounts that come in several versions. The one here is a no-longer-made V1 with a single axis movement (the V2-R is the current upgraded version, with a rotating mic mount). When I purchased a V1-R (dual axis) unit from them, I thought about what to do with the V1. The EMT 140 plate reverb unit we have is fantastic, but the original 240V remote control unit it came with was impossible to set up without drilling holes through the wall and stepping up the AC power. The remote controls simply turn an aluminum knob on top of the unit that will change the position of the internal damper, thus making the decay time shorter or longer.
I decided to hook the DynaMount v1 up to the knob in order to have remote control over the reverb time.
When looking for something to affix to the knob I noticed a cheap mic mount adapter would likely work, as it could clamp to the knob. A couple of cable ties help keep it in place.
From there, I knew I just needed a simple bar to connect the DynaMount to the bracket. Having an “arm” to pivot between these two was the simple solution, as the bracket moves in an arc as the knob is turned. I grabbed a piece of aluminum that was laying around, drilled two 5/8” holes in it, and slipped it on.
The DynaMount has phone and computer apps in order to control the mounts via W-Fi. This one above is installed on our Mac Studio and can control both the plate reverb and the X1-R from the control room.
In the video above, you can see the remote in action and hear the results. I’m sending a snare drum to the plate and increasing the decay time, then sliding it all the way back to the shortest setting. You can easily hear what happens. What was amazing about setting up this remote control situation is that by ear I never picked any of the old manual settings that I used to make (by walking into the room and turning the damper knob). That was a painful realization! I’ll never not have a remote control on an EMT 140 plate reverb ever again! Thanks Robin!
