Mic Shootout 1: Classic Large Diaphragm Condensers 

Bet its the monitor

Thanks and Indeed, +Magic97527 ! We've got some more of these roundups coming and it's great to hear such a wide variety of mics. The 57 even makes it into one of them.

Thanks +John Ubante - We've got plenty more coming!

Completely agree. When he started singing through it it was like Dorothy entering from a B&W into a technicolor world.

+Alf bab I'm a bit of a 414 nerd myself. I will say that its midrange sounded much different than all the others. It's probably the most clean and neutral in the mids of all of these, at least to my ear, and I like that about it. But a lot of folks really do like the extra little bit of mid push of the U67 and U87 style mics. I get why, and think it can be a great tone. You know what they say: There's no accounting for taste, and we've each got out own. As long as you're being honest, it's really impossible to be wrong about what flavor speaks to you.

@@JustinColletti I agree, the 414 is a great in the mix microphone. I wouldn’t use it in this situation and I never use large diaphragms on acoustic but yeh, the 414 is great for cutting through a mix.

+Mika Vesasto Please learn more about Wes Hutchinson's music at: weshutchinson.com degrawsound.com sonicscoop.com Mark S

That was a nice one, +1BigBucks1 A real beauty.

+Joe Shepard Hi Joe, reverb settings are the same for all clips. Just a tiny dab of the stock reverb in Pro Tools for a little bit more real-world context. You'll be happy to know that this audio is *after* iZotope RX. :) It's a brilliant plugin and made the audio a lot better than what was captured on set. Unfortunately, there was a ground loop somewhere that went unnoticed during the shoot, and we had to do quite a bit of work to get the noise levels within reason. RX did a lot to make this audio usable, but in the end, there's a tradeoff with any noise reduction plugin between amount of de-noising and amount of artifacts. A great reminder to always get it right the first time!

That's exactly right Kyle. Just a touch of reverb and nothing else. Glad you found one you're liking!

Correct! Just a touch of reverb. TLM 107....definite WOW! >Mark

I was almost set on buying a TLM 49 as my next mic, but now this test has me considering the 107. You couldn't have had the 49 in there too god damn it? lol Excellent video by the way.

Kyle Fryar i have a tlm 49 and it is a really dark tone microphone very good on women vocals if there singing soulfully and go to for drums this mic is a magnet for the low end sounds (frequencies)

Tyler Nicolo Because you're tone deaf.

Lol

+Ben G - Obviously it couldn't hurt to have a real studio. But very good results can be had at home in a spare bedroom or closet with a few basic accessories like the: Traditionally, acoustical treatments have been expensive propositions, requiring extensive testing and construction on various surfaces. With the advent of project and small satellite studios, innovative techniques have surfaced to deal with the economics and practicality of treating those acoustic situations. The Reflexion Filter PRO from sE-Electronics is one such unique product. A curved baffle made of six different layers (plus an air barrier); the filter is positioned behind any microphone by means of a variable-position, stand clamp assembly. This reduces the amount of acoustic energy hitting any untreated walls, in addition to which, less of the original source is reflected back to the microphone as unwanted room ambience. The unit is portable, allowing the user to bring their own acoustical treatment to any environment. The included mounting setup attaches to any microphone stand, and provides a sufficient degree of flexibility for adjusting both the position of the microphone and the filter. Recommendations for use include vocals, horns and reeds, guitar, voice-over, percussion and live location microphones. Construction Layers Punched aluminum for diffusing sound waves Sound-absorptive wool Aluminum foil for breaking up lower frequency wave-forms An air gap acting as an acoustic barrier Additional sound-absorptive wool Another layer of punched aluminum Four formed panels of state-of-the-art specialized acoustic absorptive material, separated from the main unit via a small air gap bhpho.to/1Jy6Zol Please contact us via e-mail if you have additional questions: askbh@bandh.com >Mark

+Ben G You need a performer this good to get this quality! :) But the mics and the studio sure help. A good mic will definitely sound a lot better in a great room, so when shopping for gear, be sure to set aside some budget for room treatment. When you invest in your room, it helps improve every mic in your locker. There are a lot of off-the-shelf and custom options available too.

Yes. It varies a bit depending on what you record and where, but the factors that impact the sound quality of recordings the most are (in the usual order of importance) : - Talent - Room's acoustic response and acoustic modes - Monitors - Instruments - Microphones - Preamps - Converters To upgrade your sound at any level, find and improve _the weakest link_ that you use the most often. And at some point beyond the _"Okay. I've spent $10K+ on gear, now what?"_ road sign , an hour spent in experimenting with the gear you have is going to be worth more to you than several days of comparing demos and impressions of gear that you don't have. TL;DR = Practice, practice, practice. No matter how good the tools are, when things don't turn out so hot a poor craftsman will believe "it's the tools' fault".

One could say that I guess. But this mic is based on a design that dates back to 1965. The former C-38 FET was the the very first microphone that employed FET circuits and it used the same capsule and body as the venerable C-37 tube that was inspired by the Neumann studio microphones of the 1950's. The SONY C38 is multi-pattern, offering both cardioid and omnidirectional pick-up patterns. A rotary switch built into the XLR jack allows multiple low-frequency EQ settings: M - no EQ. M1 - 70Hz rolloff. V1 - 140Hz rolloff. V2 - 280Hz rolloff. Off - shuts off internal battery ( 9 volt if installed) Sony C-38B Professional Large-Diaphragm Condenser Microphone B&H # SOC38B: bhpho.to/3m9uLkH >Mark

We used: AKG C414 XLII, the Neumann U87ai, the Neumann TLM 107, a Soyuz SU-017, and a vintage (tube) Sony C37 >Mark

@@BandH Nice, thanks! So it's the tube one then 👍

Hi BS Vijay Anand, Thanks for reaching out. A lot of this comes down to budget, but if you want an all-around workhorse mic that sounds great in most situations and if you are on a budget, something like the Audio-Technica 2020 bit.ly/BH-Audio-Technica-AT2020 For just a bit more money, you could opt for the Audio-Technica 4040 bit.ly/Audio-Technica-at4040 with its larger diaphragm. These mics sound great on vocals and instruments. Keep in mind that these particular models have a fixed cardioid pattern, so if you're looking for other patterns like omnidirectional and figure-8, you should check out more options on our website. If you have any other questions, send us an email at: askbh@bandh.com . Thanks!

Thanks for the reply and suggestion :-)

Like a carpenter's toolbox, there is always the "right tool for the job" I'm afraid there is really no such thing as a "one size fits all"microphone. Please send us an e-mail and we will be happy to help you discover the best "tool" for your job, project or application. askbh@bandh.com >Mark

These are the two biggest 'rules' (which may be bent, and even sometimes broken) 1. Many mics can sound good on many sources, but no mic is better than all others are _on any and every source._ 2. No mic can deliver both "vibey vintage color" AND objective/neutral accuracy at the same time. For example, the Austrian Audio OC818 occupies a very desirable position in the mic market. It's an investment of $1000+ but not nearly as prohibitive as the so-called 'high end' can get. It's flexibility in capturing a huge range of sources in various pickup patterns is difficult to top at ANY price. It's one piece of gear (like the Grace m101 preamp) that never sounds 'wrong' and basically always sounds good-to-spectacular. Hand made by the same company that designs it, features 21st Century advances without being at all gimmick-y, etc... ...but it won't deliver even half of the 'color' vibe , or in some cases, the presence that some mics half the price can. Whether it's a Roswell miniK 67x or a Warm (any) - the OC818 isn't getting there, let alone getting near real-deal unicorn-tube'd vintage U67 or M251 territory. The 818 is relatively neutral; the Warm, Roswell and old Neumanns are...definitely _not._ Different tools for different jobs. A lot of bigger studios may pass on a OC818 because they don't need a jack-of-whatever when they've already got dozens of mics.

Thank you! @@shaft9000

I don't believe in matching the mic to the vocalist. If that were the case, you would have to have every mic made which is ridiculous. If a singer sucks they suck, and there is no mic that will make them a better singer. A very good mic that pretty much sounds like what you stick it in front of is what you want. mics like the U87 and the C414 have a bit of a presence peak which is good for bringing solo voices, or solo instruments to the front of the mix, but basically they are transparent. If you are old enough to remember, in the recording of "We Are The World", There were about 25 singers who shared the lead vocal one phrase at a time. they all used the same Neumann mic. Every singer, male or female sounded just like themselves, and the sound was great.

true

Luke West hi there I think you misread my post and I'm definitely old enough, I come from an analog world I did my first major mix on a neve 88r at 16 years old, i started tracking to 2 inch units spliced lots of tape 😊 I think you know, and then used ssl's api tridents and quite a bit of consoles that wanted to stamp themselves in the industry like the tapco stuff scorpion tascam etc.........a world I truly miss but anyway thank you for taking the time to reply and best wishes

Well, calling a comparison a 'shootout' when nobody is fighting to the death is a bit of a silly misnomer - but it narrows search results and, as ever - monkey see, monkey do. These examples are, at best, an approximation being made for listening to by any unspecific random listener. The only way to find out which is best for you is to buy or rent as many as you can and test them.

@@lukegowest A bit pointless after 7 years but i think they used the AKG C12 in "We are the World"

+B and H There is definitely a low frequency hum in the introduction. There is a low-mid hum in the interview with the engineers (on-camera mic?), and there is focusing noise from the camera during the first close-up of the 414 mic.

+Jeremy Hohertz - OK - thanks for that, Jeremy. This is coming from the lav and the camera and is not related to the actual shootout and demonstration. We will have our production team look into this and try to avoid this in the future. >Mark

+B and H Nice diplomatic response! I respect that.