PG Music Home Forums General Discussion Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production Some microphones that have twigged me recently.

yep any shure ive had was pretty indestructable.
built like a brick house.

talking of shure im checking out currently inexpensive mics that are like the shure 55 Elvis mic.
various manufacturers of such.
eg pyle/monoprice/and others.

heres some comparisons tween shure and monoprice and pyle re 55 elvis style. (lots of other you tube vids also.)



the latter are under 100 bucks.


what im also interested in also is mics with built in modelling dsp.
that emulate classic expensive microphones...eg...slate.



but outside my budget.

om

Modeling mics? Been there, done that. You record tracks then audition plug-ins to get it right. Sounds wonderful until you spend the time actually doing this. It gets very old really quickly.

I currently own both the Slate VMS ML-1 and the discontinued ML-1 Vintage Edition —same microphone in a larger, nickel plated housing. Both have cases, shock mounts, wind screens, the plug-ins and all the expansions. Contact me and make me an offer—neither has been used in years.

There used to be mic modeling preamps from Antares and Slate to make the process quicker. I owned both and since sold them. Both are long discontinued for good reasons.

I have the Antares mic modeling plug-ins. They still work but are no longer available separately. Nowadays, only available with a subscription to AutoTune Unlimited. Oh yea, haven’t engaged those in 20 years—surprised that my upgrades have been free and still work; won’t miss them when that changes.

I’d rather get the sound right the first time by finding the right microphone for the source and just using it. As one can imagine, I have a wide variety of microphones that I’ve accumulated over the last 60 years. I’ll talk about that in another post.

Mike.

re modelling mics.

i really cant disagree with you. all good points you make.

one of my concerns if i had a modelling mic is i would probably
agonise over which vintage mic model to use on my vocs in a song.
due to the many different models.

its the same with vst plugins for me.
i once went through what i call my 'plugin phase'.
ie i had loads of them.
but i found myself bewildered by the zillion settings available.
so i culled the plugin herd.
i found i was spending sooo much time experimenting with plugin
settings i wasnt finishing a song.
just too many options.
so i went back to the kiss concept.

i also remind myself always that loads of great songs have been done
over the decades without the use of plugins.
often i just use in bb or rb the pg suite of plugins.
and ive had no complaints from people listening to the songs.
in addition more than one very experienced music producer ive met
in my travels has said to me...
'in a song if one needs to use a ton of tracks and plugins..
then sometimes this is a clue that maybe the song concept isnt good.'

one prob i have often..as im sure many people do is...
and its not pg's fault is once ive done my chord sheet in bb,
and haveing tested it with a ton of styles i might end up with
lots of bed tracks/session musos i like for a song.
for example awhile back i had at least 40 i liked for a song.
thus its very difficult often to decide what the final pg rt's//rd's
etc etc to use cos of so many good options.

c'est la vie...lol.


All.

heres a vid with vocal examples comparing several affordeable
and popular microphones used by project studios.
frankly i had trouble picking the one i liked best...
but then this rocker is getting old...lol.
can anyone tell the difference if one puts oneself in the shoes of the 'normal music consumer' rather than a pro studio makeing comparisons ??
take the blind example test....lol.



ps ive always like 'lollipop' mics.
but these days im haveing trouble finding affordeable ones.
so speak up if anyone has found such for sm58 money.
it looks like pyle had one but its currently not available on amazon.
would like to test one out on my vocs.
(the vid above shows one...the yellow Neat mic.)

happiness.

om

Same can be said for having a locker full of actual mics - that's why I stick to what I know will always work. If I'm doing vocals for myself I grab the SM7B, or maybe the MD421 if I feel like a change. For someone else it's either of those or the AT4047.

Guitar recording is really where I go a little wild - I have a 2x12 cab I leave mic'd up with a half dozen mics (but I also use a dummy load with a DI so the mics don't often get used). The cab has a Greenback and a Vintage 30, so there's a quad of 57's in front (each speaker with Fredman setup) plus a 421 in back, and an MD609 hanging in front of the Greenback too. All these are left patched in so I just choose which channel(s) when recording, and often I'll record everything and blend them. I've also got a pair of Rode NT5's for acoustics.

Drums, I use the above plus an Opus 99 for kick, or an MD421 or SM7B depending on vibe.

Basically I'm saying I go by instinct and commit to the mic rather than giving myself decision paralysis later.

I used to have an ATL Audio PK-999 that I bought for a whopping 10 bucks. It was easily the worst sounding microphone I've ever used. Pay cheap money, get cheap product.

Simon.

yep i often go by instinct also.
but i dont think one can be rigorous about cheap gear..
and assume its no good until one tests the product.

cos for example on gearspace there are various hilarious threads blind testing cheap versus expensive gear.
in the process even some very experienced AE's get it wrong.

on sweetwater as another example are various audio examples of very cheap up to very expensive audio interfaces. most people i suggest would have trouble telling the diff.

a neat low end gear forum i like to peruse sometimes is on gearspace. lots of good interesting threads.
im not knocking high end gear...ive made songs with such....
studers/big name audio consoles/outboard etc etc...
but the reality is many of us have family responsibilities so we just do what we can re creating songs.

believe it or not some songs in my sig i used a really oddball mic for my vocs...really really old cheap mic that seems to suit me for reasons i cant fathom and ive had various likes so go figure. conversely some songs in my sig used a very very expensive mic. nobody seems to be able to tell the diff so far. once again like you i run on instinct often. and try test voc tracks with various mics.

happiness.

om

just a bit of fun.....

1..uk recreated 50's recording studio.
vid from the bbc.

https://www.bing.com/videos/rivervi...AF6A4FE485F8091687597D5E&FORM=VRDGAR

2..dunno how good this retro 55 style mic is.



i checked sold out apparently.

om

There's an old saying about travelling that fits quite well her ... "the quickest route between two places is the route you know best"

The philosophy applies to a great many things.

Gordon.

re tried and true.

sorry but i gotta disagree somewhat.
heres why as you are a brit like me.

fyi with respect i was educated by world class professors at university in the uk who taught me to always explore lots of things.

they literally took this at that time silly lad from a very very poor part of london and gave me a world class broad education.
(ie i was from an area in london as depicted in the tv comedy 'fools and horses'...lol....for lurkers see you tube....hilarious).

dont get me wrong i dont knock my london heritage and am very proud of it.
which is why i sometimes like do a song in the east london accent like a couple of songs in my sig ive done loads of em useing pg software.
(in those times growing up i saw so much kindness with poor people helping each other it was amazeing hence why im so proud.)
now im feeling nostalgic...lol.

also i wouldnt have met my lovely wife if i hadnt broadened my horizons and travelled to various countries and worked all over the world.

in conclusion its just loads of fun for me to locate new things and interesting gear.
wish i had have located the Higgs Boson...lol.

best to you Gordon.

for forum lurkers heres a microphone company that seems popular over the years with a range of microphones for various budgets.
(see you tube for tests etc and various threads on gearspace.com.)

https://mxlmics.com/products/

happiness.

om

You record the track first with the mic — although the claim is that they are neutral, the reality is that they’re lifeless and more sibilant than most cheapo Chinese mics. You then select the plug-in that gives the sound you want—that’s when the time wasting begins.

Chinese mics have gotten much better over the last decade. Those who made a living modifying the crap with upgraded components have either gotten out of it or just learned to build good mics from scratch.

I sold my U87s a few years ago and picked up a pair of UST Twin87 mics. These have twin analog circuits that switch between the sound of a vintage U87 and a modern U87Ai — no emulation, two complete circuits. For $600ea, it’s a hell of a deal and one of the best investments I’ve made. Not ideal for everything, though. I still have my Neumann TLM193 and BCM 104 plus other mics. When singing background, a Warm Audio WA47F sounds good on my voice but it lacks when doing VO work which is where the UT FET47 shines. Both are supposed to be accurate copies of the $3,500 Neumann U 47 fet i (the UT is closer). I was going to audition both and keep one but found I liked both for different uses. The first time I used a ribbon mic on an upright bass was the last time I considered using anything else.

If a $50 mic did what I needed, I’d buy it. For years, my secret weapon for drum overheads was a Realistic 33-1065, $18 at Radio Shack. I still have two of these though I’ve not used them in 30 years or so. Fun fact: these with the cables cut off were used as scanners, diagnostic devices and Tricorder props on many of the Star Trek series — I get a kick out of seeing them in Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and the various movies.

Oh, there are lots of good reasons to not go the quickest route.

Mike.

wow re sibilance thanks for the info.
great info in your post.
yep ive heard from various sources that the chinese mics have improved.

gotta love those UT mics...and reasonable prices if one compares to big studio mics.
loved the vocals on you tube done with those UT mics.
now ive got gear lust...lol.

trouble is i cant really justify the expense of 600 bucks given anyone of us posting our original songs on the net these days are lucky to get a few hundred plays sadly...no matter how good the song.

ive heard some great songs from a myriad number of pg users that should be all over the air waves and radio stations of the world but arent.
crying shame the state of things.
i wont even go into what i think of what i hear on the radio these days...sigh.
so much talent on these forums that should get a chance to be heard on the world stage imho. the music biz is nuts imho.

re realistic mics. your right Mike...ive heard from many people over the years that they like certain models. very underestimated ive heard.

heres another mic brand i came across.
(various endorsees who have worked with big name artists.)

https://adkmic.com/

note some products with swappable capsules if i remember.

but way outside my budget cept for this adk lollipop mic.
yummy look lol.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/CLOL12FX--adk-c-lol-12-fx-large-diaphragm-condenser-microphone


for tech details heres more info from adk web site.

https://adkmic.com/shop/c-lol-251-tl

toodles/happiness to all.

om

Except when you're getting paid by the job not by the hour, which is more what I was talking about.

Speaking of good mics that are much less expensive than their name-brand counterparts, Advanced Audio mics are often "clones" of vintage/expensive mics, and I've had the pleasure of using most of their models side by side vs the "original" - in many cases the AA was the better mic. I also love that they're another small British Columbia company, and the company founder Dave Thomas is one of the friendliest guys out there (and actually answers emails)!

We could not agree more regarding the clones. And great to hear about Dave Thomas. Thanks for the info.

Bud

Good discussion.

its nice to see another BC company doing well with advanced products.

i came across this interesting tape op article re Advanced Audio.
as well the points made re clones in the article might be of interest.
(for any lurkers tape op has lots of articles re studio gear.)

https://tapeop.com/reviews/gear/121/cm-48t-large-diaphragm-tube-mic/

heres a video re Advanced Audio....various instrumentation plus vocs.



its mind boggling how many mic manufacturers there are.


om

re Ribbon Mics.

well heres a turn up for the books.

for anyone interested in ribbon mics...
called no hype microphones.
i love the name.

various positive comments by studios on gearspace.
a lot of heavy hitters on GS.

heres the companies web site...

https://nohypeaudio.com/nhaproducts.htm

lots of audio examples on the link above as well as links to users.

hope this helps someone into ribbons.

om

Michael Joly's article Chinese Ribbon Mics

I have some of Michael's mod'ed mics and they're pretty good but I've not used them in years. He was the one who pointed out that cheap mics were getting better when he got out of the business in 2018.

As to inexpensive Chinese ribbons, I sell the NADY RSM-5 and it's ok. I like my 60 year old Shure 315 better — my go-to on upright bass. For best results with a passive ribbon, a variable impedance mic pre or a Cloudlifter CL-Z is an absolute must. You can make your own with a FETHead and a homemade variable resistor box but being able to change the frequency response and transient sensitivity with a twist of a dial makes all the difference.

Mike.

you know your stuff.

1..the prices of all the nady mic range are so reasonable that
even a band starting out in a basement with no money would be
off to the races practicing songs etc.
2..re variable impedence circuits...im baffled why one doesnt
see on all mixers or sound interfaces they offer such for dynamic mics.
i know some ART and Audient products do.

3..im kinda knocked out how good these isk mics sound given
their extremely low price.
heres a sound sample isk pearl..acoustic gtr.



and isk gem mic...amazing..female vocs and piano and other instruments.
a very nice religious song. superb vocals.
i would be amazed if anyone wasnt impressed given the very low price of the mic around 50 bucks.
give it a listen...knocked my socks off....fantastic climatic ending.




happiness.

om