Mic Examples

Hi All,
In response to an earlier post regarding suggestions for a decent affordable mic, I thought I'd do some quick examples of a few of the mics that I own. If you go here you'll find a zip file called mictests.zip. That zip file contains short spoken and sung snippits of some of my mics that you can drop in to Sonar and A/B to hear differences. The zip is pretty big (~54MB) but all the files are 24 bit 48Khz wav files so you can really hear what the different pieces sound like.

Mics I used:
MXL MCA SP1 (seemed to have gotten a lot of press around here lately)
Rode NT1A
Studio Projects C1
Blue Woodpecker Active Ribbon Mic
Neumann U87

and, just for comparison, I threw in a Shure Beta 58

All mics were recorded through a Great River MP-500NV and then through a MOTU 896HD (pres were bypassed) with an external clock. Preamp gain and output were consistant througout the takes (with the exception of the Beta 58) with the input gain fairly low to avoid excessive preamp coloration. No effects were added and volumes were left as is so you can get an idea of how "hot" each mic is in relation to others. All material was recorded in a treated room that is fairly dead.

Keep in mind, the room matters, so YMMV.

Pics of the room and mics:





Hope that helps, and if anyone has any other mics you can post examples of feel free to add!

Dean

Thanks for your efforts - I really appreciate these kinds of demo's.

The Studio projects C1 sounds surprisingly good for its price.

yes, thank you for the efford..
surprisingly I have to admit that I couldn't really hear too much difference between the mics..
when I directly compare my MCA SP1 with my SP C1 then the difference is very obvious, so I guess the room treatment must be a huge factor..
Somehow I really liked the Beta 58 - version..
I'll have to hear through the samples a couple of times just to train my ears..

you have a very nice voice btw.

I would sure love to try it on vocals. I do a lot of high tenor/alto stuff that I think that mic would sound great on. I will have to try one sometime

thanks for the effort putting this together. i never used to care about microphones much until we recorded our demo borrowing some really nice mics from a friend. ever since, i have been chasing that quality!

in these tests, i think the neumann really stands out, to the point where i would say there is no comparison (on your particular voice/setting). it just is very clear and not dull at all without ever sound bright, to my ears.

the ribbon was nice, but i prefer the Royer 122 we used on backing vocals in the demo (the only other ribbon mic i have ever heard!) it is nit-picking, but i found it a touch bright.

the Studio Projects C1 surprised me. out of these recordings i would probably put it in second place after the Neumann - depending of course on the kind of sound you want. but i am impressed with the clarity of it. i also felt like the proximity effect worked well for this song, countering the slight brightness (is just me?) of the mic at 12" away.

the MXL was very smooth sounding. maybe not as sensitive as the C1 but still pretty nice. very impressive considering it's price.

i thought the NT1A was very dull, which is a useful discovery since i was thinking about getting one!

the beta 58 also sounds good! when we are jamming/practicing i record a shure SM58 through the decent yamaha preamps and it always sounds pretty smooth and clear (i usually sing up close to the mic).

just my opinions. if you want to hear a Soundelux jFET7 (lead vocals) and the royer 122 (backing vocals) in action, check out the myspace below. the track "love in my mind" has some harmonies and ends with some a capella vocals.

thanks again

ORIGINAL: albert_kawmi
the ribbon was nice, but i prefer the Royer 122 we used on backing vocals in the demo (the only other ribbon mic i have ever heard!) it is nit-picking, but i found it a touch bright.

...

just my opinions. if you want to hear a Soundelux jFET7 (lead vocals) and the royer 122 (backing vocals) in action, check out the myspace below. the track "love in my mind" has some harmonies and ends with some a capella vocals.

thanks again

The Royer 122(v or otherwise) really does lend itself to backing vocals, doesn't it? In terms of it being a bit bright, I found that it tends to have a lot more of the sound in the mids and high mids compared to say a Coles 4038, where there is a bit more bass and a bit more of the highest frequencies, at least that what was my perception on drum demos. The AEA series seems more neutral than either to my ears and they all have great character.