open mike, there is a certain freedom or a back-to-the-basics feel to doing without the microphones, though, don't you think? I agree you have to play harder- but since I quit digging in so deep with my pick I don't seem to break strings anymore. For awhile I was breaking one almost every night.

Did you too notice a difference in the dancers' response to the no-miking vs fully amped? That's the part that actually bothers me. I suppose that a little pep talk on dance/caller etiquette might take care of most of it.

We're playing for a different dance tomorrow night and I expect we'll have the mikes. We have been talking about trying just one condensor mike and see how we like that.

Last night I asked the caller how it would have gone if there'd been twice as many dancers, and he said he would've waited for the cables to arrive, that he wouldn't have tried it otherwise.

This, by the way, is in Juneau Alaska