man, even without knowing that, the only people i trust for audio gear reviews are older people like this. i really don't mean that pejoratively. there's a lot of wisdom that comes with age, and generally the only oldheads doing this have been involved in the industry for a long time. youngblood reviews are literally just "i'm gonna switch back and forth between two audio sources and offer some really subjective opinions, if any" this man is a national treasure and must be protected.
Excellent video . Not too advanced, but not dumbed down either. This guy would make a great teacher. The re 320 sounds very nice. Especially for the price
Hi Sidney. Thanks for the compliment. Knowing the sound you're going for, as well as the charachteristics of your own voice are always considerations when choosing a mic. Not knowing what other models you're referring to, the RE20 is very neutral and flat. And with its Variable-D proximity conrol, you'll have a generous working range around the mic as I demonstrated. As mentioned, the RE20 is flatter and more controlled, and the RE320 is more lively and open sounding. Thanks again.
Thanks for your support of EV mics, MontanaCal. I'm sure you'll be pleased with the RE320. BTW, the NBC Today show just ran a feature story on March 23, 2013 covering Ryan Seacrest's "Seacrest Studios" where he's installed RE320's in each facility. Thanks again, Rick
In the amateur radio community the 20 and 27 have a great following. I will give the 320 a shot and see how it preforms now thanks to your vid,, Thanks
You gonna hear a lot more top end - tssss tssss tssss. You are just brilliant, sir! Best review ever. Thank you so much. Just ordered the re320 for my audio book production.
gotta love how that works, RE20 made for speech/voice, finds its way into a lot of instrument recordings (much like the MD421) so EV gives the newer model RE320 a special mode specifically tailored to kick drum and then the find out a lot of people like that setting for voice...
Great video comparison and perfect timing. I just purchased what I thought was the RE20 but I actually ordered the RE320 by accident and was going to return it immediately. However after watching this video I've decided that the RE320 may just be the better choice for me. I intend to use it for voice with my RU-vid review videos as well as possibly podcasting.
Dilemma: After almost a year of using the RE20 I decided to give the RE320 a try simply to add an option to my set-up. I have to say I had reservations because there is very few demos on the web with the RE320, especially when it comes to the spoken word. Update: I just demo'ed the 320 in my podcast studio and I have to say that I was quite impressed with its tonality. It's definitely brighter and more articulate, just like Rick's demo shows but what I found to be the most interesting, is that its much more flexible with my microphone preamplifier than my RE20. I'm using a Rupert Neve Porticol-II Channel mic pre so it doesn't really get much better than that. Moreover, I actually have to work harder to take off the warmness of the RE20 and drive it harder. Yes, sometimes its too warm for a given type of presentation. In short, I find that with the RE320 it's much 'easier' to achieve a greater range of adjustability with my microphone preamplifier than with my RE20. Summary: The 320 is definitely a keeper in my studio but so is the RE20. The combination of the two provides just the right amount of versatility I was hoping for so I'm quite happy. Recommendation: If you're debating between these two microphones then I would say it's hard to go wrong with either one. Still, the RE320 is going to be easier to drive in terms of gain, and depending on your microphone preamp it may offer more versatility. Perks n' Quirks: Owning both will cost you a lot more money. However, if you want your cake and eat it too, the RE320 and the RE20 share the same shock-mount so with a quarter-turn of the thumbscrew, you have a completely different sound.
Great review thanks for that. The RE320 seems to me to be missed by many people because it's new I suppose. Interesting that you find it more versatile. Cheers.
***** Hello Christopher, I just read your review comment with interest. I never tried the AT4040 but sounds like something that would be fun to test. While I'm still playing around with the RE320 I can say that I haven't encountered the problem with consistency but I'll keep at it and see what happens. In my review I don't touch upon the price of the product since I feel that's mixing apples with oranges, or at least to a point. I tend to evaluate based on performance and my own taste, and then I consider the cost versus value. I mean, if price was the main factor then I would be looking at the ATR2100 and be satisfied with that.
***** Well, just based on the raw samplings from your SoundCloud clips I think your voice sounds really good from the MK4 regardless of how you tweaked it. In fact, it reminds me of my RE20 running through my Rupert Neve Porticol-2 Channel. Okay I'll admit it I've been lazy, so I'll be posting a few sound clips as well but with my particular preamp I can make most any mic sound halfway decent. Again, within reason ~ Dan
Thanks Rick, for making it easier to make a determination on which mic to purchase. It came down to these two the RE-20 & RE-320, and as demonstrated there is a clear difference. Thanks, it's the RE-320 that I've chosen.
Hi, Rick. Perfect. You are very professional, concise, complete and very personable. Your lighting and color is great. Love the hair light and the 2 to 1 key to fill light ratio as reflected in your eyes when you look into the camera. Thanks for doing this. I hope you are and have been able to make some money from it somehow.
Hi Marquinhos. In a studio, each will do great, but add different flavors to the sound: RE20 = flat and neutral, RE320 = more open and lively. In live performances on a crowded stage, the RE20 might be have a little more isolation, whereas if the performers are a little more separated, the extra air of the RE320 may be enjoyable. Nevertheless, either one will give your brass instrument a fantastic sound, and the Variable-D means you can move around the mic while playing. Thanks for your question
So I'm torn between the RE-20 and RE-320 I'm leaning towards the RE-320 at the moment because of the "personality switch" as some people call it and because of the price tag being lower. It's purely for voice over work and podcast style recording.
My RE320 is for fun and profit. For fun it is my HAM radio mic, For profit it’s is used for voice over and live sound, mainly for kick, and sometimes in a horn section.
With headphones I can hear the differences among them, both mics sound good, but the 320 is better because it has high frequencies producing a brightness in the voice.
The RE320 is a little too new to be seen in a lot of professional vocal applications, but I know that Joe Bonamassa has been using them for his guitar amps. As for the RE20, who hasn't sung through them? Johnny Cash, Stevie Wonder, Mick Jagger, Bob Dylan, the list goes on.
I have been an owner of E-V Mics since my first E-V 665's (the Buchanan 'hammer'?) back in June1961. Over the years I have added four 660A's, two PL/RE20's two RE55's and, more recently, two PL37's. I have only had trouble with the PL/RE20's when the foam degraded leaving me with a pair of baby rattles. I was able to source replacement foams in the UK and repair both microphones myself. My question is: do both RE320's and RE27ND's use this foam? I know my pair of E-V Sentry 100A Studio Monitors do - for I had to get them re-foamed about 12 rears ago. My only non-E-V microphone is a Calrec Soundfield SPS422 Studio System. (wonderful!) Looking forward to your studied reply! Michael Gamble, UK.
The RE320 sounds very similar to the RE20 with the kick drum curve engaged. Makes it sound flatter and fuller sound. Gets rid of the overly bright condenser sound of the RE320 without the switch. Could be kind of a cheat code to buy the cheaper RE320, but still have very similar sound to the RE20. Does anyone agree?
I prefer the RE-20, since I'm looking for that "radio" sound from spoken word. What is more difficult to decide between is the Electro-Voice RE-20 verses the Sure SM7B.
I just bought the 20. Have been using 320s for a multi-person podcast. Bought a SM7 just cuz I had to hear it. I like it for singing, but not for broadcast. Two dislikes - too "middy" & not robust on the low end and you really have to stay in one position once the gain is set. The variable D is for real and more forgiving when you're paying attention to conversation and not working the mic. Take the EV... Better broadcast sound and easier to just talk.
Excellent demo but as a vocalist I'm confused. I'm currently using several mics. The most expensive being an sb7b. It's not quite right for my voice. Condenser mic's work very well for my voice but pick up too much. I've long considered the RE20 but my ears like the RE320 more. I need to try them in person.
I have both mics.. the RE20 and the RE320.. For my voice I think the RE320 works great. I still love my RE20 for almost everything but finding the RE320 easier to eq and sits better in the mix for me and my voice. When I record females the RE20 seems a sniffle better... but that's just my opinion - Here's a song that i'm using the RE320 for vocals - www.southwest-live.com/benjamin/i-was-alive/ Here's another song using the RE20 for vocals - www.southwest-live.com/benjamin/around-the-block/
I like "Around the block" a lot -- excellent composition and arrangement. I see what you mean though, the vocals seem to have less presence than on "I was alive". You might thicken them up with double tracking the vocals and offsetting them like classic ADT. I was surprised you got such good results from Superior Drummer 2.0. I'm using the same and was considering purchasing Slate SDD and trigger. I have to get a new drum module as my old dm5 finally bit the dust. Looking into that. Anyway, thanks for sharing -- you really gave me some perspective!
I'm looking to upgrade my mic and have been looking at these two. I love the sound of the RE20. I have a lower tenor voice, but a fair amount of sibilance. Am I correct in thinking the RE20 would be better to help curb my sibilance? I still us a de-esser but it get through that too.
The RE320 colors the tone due to the lack of linearity. And to be frank, it fails miserably on sources like trumpets, trombones, snare. and a variety of vocal performances. The lack of treble resolution leads to tone to appear harsh while the underwhelming amount of low frequencies will make the tone to appear brittle. On top of that, the tracks never really seem to fit into the context of a mix as there is too much distortion present in the signal and too little pressure coming from the low end. If you don't take advantage of the proximity effect, there wouldn't be a single application left.
Hello Rick, I am thinking to buy RE 20 , but I saw that on some of the microphones it says variable-D and some of them do not have it. I would like to know if there is any difference between those microphones? The one that I am interested is made in Burnsville, Minnesota and it doesn't say variable-D on it.
Great demo! In the beginning I certainly preferred the RE20 vs. the RE27 but towards the end I wasn't so sure. To make the process even more interesting, I watched your comparison between the RE20 and the RE320. Seemingly, the RE320 appealed to me a tad more than the RE27. I had to keep flipping between this video and the one including the RE320. I think it would be helpful to have a comparison demonstration between the RE27 and the RE320 to better discern the nuances between the two.
Nice video and all but Its really annoying when you are talking about the frequency response you dont put the graphs on screen, if you did that that would be great, thanks!
Great channel! Question: Does anyone knows how to open a EV 320 mic? My doesn’t work, need to see if there’s anything loose or broken inside this thing. ty
If I'd have known about the RE320 earlier this year I would have bought that instead of buying both the AT2035 and the AKG D7, both of which I found disappointing.
sorry my keyboard was not to good my question is nothing to do with the RE20 this video at 1.50 seconds he is talking about the diffrent capsules between the RE320 AND RE27ND as you can see one has a red outer coil with no dome on the top then about 1.57 second he will show you another capsule with a gold outer coil and a gold diaphram dome on top but this video has myself and others wondering what capsule is the 320 s and watt is the rRE27NDS s I ASK THIS because its not made clear and also the RE27ND PRICE TAG IS 3 TIMES MORE ???? THIS QUESTION HAS NEVER BEEN ASKED AND WILL GET PEOPLE THINKING ????? ILL WAIT YOUR REPLY RIC THANKYOU
please can someone tell me on this video time 1 min 50 seconds its not made clear he talks about what makes the capsule diffrent from re320 to re27 is a dome at the top also i see one capsule gas a gold coil the other is more a res colour please tell me watt capsule belongs to what regarding re 320 an re 27nd ???????? david
Hey Rick Jeans, thanks for letting all mommies know why the RE320 is so much more high and tight than the RE20. Does this explain why Bart Chrysler is so fat? Any brown you can share on this would be totally amaze!
Hello Carlos, Frankly, I'll be surprised if Rick responds to your question as it may not be politically correct to comment on a competing brand/model. However, since I'm just an average Joe with the first name of Dan, I can easily respond since I have experience with all three. First up, the PR40 sounds great so it's no wonder that it's among the most popular podcast microphones in existence. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that it's the de facto standard by which others' are measured. I found the PR40 to be more of a hyper-cardioid and somewhat overly bright for my particular voice. Comparatively speaking, the RE320 is softer with a slightly fuller tone and not near as bright. In fact, when I first tested the RE20 I immediately stopped using my PR40. If I may use the example of the three little bears I would say; The PR40 is super-bright, the RE320 is kind of bright, and the RE20 is as warm as a bug in a rug.
