I came here searching for information on the Tbone RB 500, since I'm considering buying it. Left with some additional knowledge on microphones and the reassurance that it sounds great for the price. Thanks for the video!
Came here for the same reason :) Very nice review(s). R1 is the winner for my ears. Sounds like best of both worlds - ribbon and dynamic, in one package and I've never heard it before. RB500 sounds like a cheaper version of it.
Wanted to say thank you for this video. I was a late bloomer to the Ribbon mic guitar mid sound. Then when i was researching i found alot of information to not be helpful. But then i came across this video on a random youtube search of Ribbon mics. The fact you have so many paired up playing the same riff and fantastic quality made me less anxious about a choice. I truly mean there is so much miss information and not a whole lot of helpful videos. But you do the mics justice and gave a great explanation before intro-ing what they were. I grabbed a T bone and fell in love with the cost and tone haha. Closet and quality for the buck. Keep being amazing bruv.
I really love using ribbon mics to record bass amps and smaller guitar combos in studio. They just capture something so great I can't begin to describe, but most of the time I'll stick to using a sm57 for guitar amps
Hey Budda, thanks a lot man. Came here for completely different topic but happy to watched your video. Very clear explanation. I will definitely check your other videos as well. Have a great day man!
Thank you for this video, it really made clear the differences between the mic types, and put in a historical context like you did, it really makes sense to use ribbon mics today! On your examples I liked the R1 and the Tbone the best, actually. They took some mids, and exaggerated the highs, yes, but I think they could do double duties on acoustic guitars and vocals as well, while the others might be more special depending on the source. I normally use an SM58 off center, pointing towards the cone to get my sound, but I can imagine supplementing with a ribbon as center mic about a meter away as well. I am also looking at ribbons for vocals, and particularly interested in the new Royer R10, perhaps compared to the SE R1 (about the same price bracket). I could even consider picking up some Tbone’s after your video. Thanks Budda, I love your show!
Im a sucker for ribbon mics, old or new, they are all fantastic! I also have the R1 and AEA ku5a in my kit, they are probably the furthest apart in sound characteristic that I can hear. This comparison makes me want to try the R1 on mic cab, as I found it too dull on most sources, but it worked really well here. I bought a Tierra Audio 'New Twenties' Condenser for guitar and guitar amps, If the guitar tone is prominent in a track, I love almost any 2 mics to get that field and depth. But to both my amazement and disappointment, I just got a great result from my interface D.I. recently.... Thanks for this video!!
On this end of the spectrum, the SM57 won to my ear. Maybe because it is familiar... idk. A few sounded similar to the SM57 and I liked those also. The others lacked mid clarity and dynamics. That might be why most use the SM.
The SM7 doesn’t sound natural at all but it usually fits the mix better. The ribbon usually has too much bass so it needs either to be eq’d or to be set further from the source, except for the m160.
@@BuddaGuedes I have several guitars. American Tele and Strat. Tokai Les Paul. Taylor Accoustic. I play through a dsl15h into a 4x12 Marshal cab. Mostly at bedroom volumes. Not a great player. But I go by what I hear live vs what I hear on the tube. There are so may variable and like you said in the video, it is all subjective. To each his/her own. Maybe after eq'd it those would sound better and the mids and highs would pop with dynamic tone. Hard to judge without actually hearing it. Never mixed so I don't know what other affects eq'ing might have on the tone. But when I start, Like you, I will be trying to get it to sound just like it does in the room. Thanks for the vid.
Just getting a listen to this with good headphones. I found Beyer M160 the most versatile capturing a clear sound with good range. Lovely warm sound. The rest I found limited in one way or another. Sontronic D I thought sounded quite thin. Just after a first listen though!
Very cool comparison! Hard to beat the m160 for me. But Se electronic sound very cool. I own a Aea r92 wich is fantastic. Still want an m160 at some point.
Thanks a lot. A nice video! I think the sounds were not at the same level so I may be biased, but for me the R1 was a very nice combination of the sm57 in your face sound withe natural character of the ribbon sound.
Just ordered by first ever ribbon mic Royer R20 going to be using it on my mesa boogie mark five 25 with a 1-12 P12N Jensen speaker cab, I think I'll use it with the 57 I'm super excited to try it out.... I tried different kinds of Mike's to Mic the guitar amp didn't sound anything like the guitar amp...lol so I tried mixing in the box even worse... The mesa boogie has a built-in cabs sim which to it's credit is not bad... I've also got a ART stereo tube preamp so I'm super excited to see how close I can get to the amp sound maybe a nice warm punchy clean would be the icing on the cake..... I'm surprised you didn't use the Royer 121 in your test.... great video....
I love the way the m160 preserves a lot of the natural mid features, I really think that’s the key to fitting in a mix right. That SE Electronics R1 sounds killer too, but some of those mids are polished out a bit. To me the the big surprise is the TBone RB500, that sounds quite good especially considering the price point. Beyerdynamic m160 for the win, but I do say they all would have their use in a studio. Love the video, thanks for the good content like always.
Tank you so much for your comment and your support. I really love the m160 too. Although the other mics were not too favored because they would benefit from a little more distance to the source, to tame that proximity effect. But then it wouldn't be a fare comparison.
Great episode! Cool that you explained what's actually mechanically happening in the different types of mics and thus the tonal differences between them! I am not a guitarist but I have to say I am impressed with how good the Thomann sounds for 99 bucks. Maybe all the guitarists are questioning my sanity now, I dont know haha but as I said, I'm not a guitarist nor a recording engineer so I'm kinda numb to small differences in sound. I felt it didn't show as much of a difference to the sm57 as the others did but I think for 99 Euros that sound is definitely something someone getting into home recording with a small budget could easily get started with! Cool to see it here in the comparison with the more expensive mics. Cheers from Germany! :)
You're right. that's why i've put it there. It was my first ribbon mic and I have 3. I use it all the time in the studio on toms and kick drum. I actually prefere it to more expensive mics. they sound really cool. For the guitar I have my favorite beyerdynamic m160, but the AEA KU5A really blew my mind too. But the m160 always sounds as my guitar!!! That's what I use live too.
The SE R1 sounds the best, I dont own but have the M160, which comes in second to the R1 in this test. Too bad they dont make the R1 anymore, I wonder how the RNR1 compares to the R1?
If I am honest the T.bone and the Bayerdynamic 160 sound pretty damn close, so I might give the t.bone a chance. Its so cheap, it's a pretty good start I guess if you want to experiment.....
THANK YOU ! THAT'S HOW CREATIVE ENGINEERING IS MADE BY UNDERSTANDING TOOLS FOR EFFECT YOU WANT. Good teacher is not the one who knows but the one who know how to explain it.. my father used to said if you want to remember something in engineering you need to understand it.. then you don't need to remember it , will always make sense.
The Beyer M160 sounded best on that particular cab to my ears and would likely sound even better a tiny bit further away from the cab. They all sound good in their own way but i was a little surprised by the AEA KU5A. I expected it to sound better and maybe it would in a different position. It kind of sounded like it wanted more gain which is odd considering I'm comparing it to the Beyer M160 and it was on a guitar cab.
Nit-picking maybe but it's not really fair to put the mics in exactly the same position - take the M160 and the M130 for example, the latter has a much more prominent proximity effect and is deliberately voiced darker for the M/S pair they were designed to make. It would sound much better a few inches off the grille. I do love the M160 though, always sounds good!
I liked the Beyer m160. But think I was surprised to like the SE R1 almost as much - dirtier, but in a good way. The Sontronics Delta was good too, Sigma was a tad dark. I found the m130 much too dark. Most interesting was that I think I preferred the TBone RB500 to the Shure SM57. And that's not because the SM57 sounded bad, it sounded good - just didn't have that nice bass. Hard to tell with the AEA, the volume was a lot less - so it was hard to compare - did have nice detail though. Overall, 1. m160, 2. SE R1, 3. Sonitronics Delta, 4. TBone RB500, 5. Shure SM57 [except the last blues rhythm part where SM57 sounded really good]. Be interested to here Royer R10. And interested to here a Sennheiser MD421-II compared to an SM57 (or SM7b).
i was looking for SE VR1 or VR2, nice review and good work, i think the best way to record a guitar is to use 2 mics, so they complete each other and get a full sound, for example, sure sm 57 and ribbon, i think R121, or sigma is amazing, also i can expect Se VR1 will be good, RB 500 is the best money vs performance, but it misses a lot of low end.
That's was a good video. Ribbon mics range so greatly in price, it's hard to find enough good comparison videos. But the Beyerdynamic M160 and SE R1 both sounded great there. I'm curious what the Bayer M130 would sound like paired with a 57.
I love this video! Fascinated by the M160 and the 57 Rocks! I’ve been aspiring to get a Sontronics mic, because they look gorgeous, but again they sound like a downer... I’ll keep trying putting hope in them. Also disappointed by the AEA, with all the respect I have for that brand. Have you tried a Mesanovic? And where did you get that Cali Tweed cabinet?!? 😊
@@BuddaGuedes Oh okay, not really hearable with my shitty computer speakers right now but it seemed brighter than some of the other mic tho. Did not realise it was not pleasing anyway.
Nice sound and play! The AEA sounds small and weak... The SE R1 although it's a bit aggressive in the mids sounds really good. So i would say M160, Se R1 and Sm57.
any other angle/position that make AEA KU5A work? or Does this mic only suit for vocal & can't work to mic cab? still surprised with its sound compared in vocal department
I love it on vocals too. For this episode I tried to use the mics in the same position but it’s not flattering for all. Some mics like distance specially ribbons
great vid... do you use ribbons for vocal recordings? if so...i'm sure you use a good preamp? i'm always afraid to use my vintage 1950s rca ribbon mic its still has the original ribbon ...but i'm afraid of loud sources ...and damage the ribbon....do i just need a decent preamp?
Yes i use ribbons for vocals and for pretty much anything. Usually ribbon mics have less output so good mic pres are needed. There’s a Triton audio Fethead which I use a lot.
Chloe DuBeau don’t feed it phantom power, and don’t blow air into the mic, or put it close to a very loud source. Don’t put it in front of a hole on a kickdrum’s front head, because there’s a lot of air blasting out there. Put it at a 45 degree angle to the drum head and you will be good.
thank,s a lot for this video . but i still need more help :))) i decided to use two or three mic to reccord electric guitar and i want ribbon mic to combine with SM57 or E906 to have some room sound and smooth tone . wich one is you,r Advice????
I use the m160 combined with a bright mic like the sontronics Halo, sm57 or audix i5 For room sounds a ribbon is also great. The abone is a cheap good choice
Que cena, desconhecia esta faceta de youtuber fixe...curto dos vossos projetos, prefiro os budda power blues...Boas dicas que das aqui, ando a ver se compro um Ribbon mas o guito nao da pra tudo. Questao: 1- conheces os DIY da Bumblebee??? 2- valem a pena??? parecem clones dos Royer Labs R-121...um grande abraço e continua o bom trabalho
bro I'm wondering how close can I get the M160 to a cranked guitar amps without risking to harm the ribbon? I'm currently rocking a 22 watts deluxe reverb, I want to use it as a close mic to pair it up with 57, but I read everywhere that the moving air from cranked guitar amps could possible harm the ribbon. could you give me some enlightment regarding this topic as I never have an experience with ribbon mics before. Thanks in advance!
Grande Budda! Andava tentado em experimentar um ribbon, mas não queria estar a gastar muito dinheiro. Pelo que ouvi, penso que o t.Bone tem uma excelente clareza e definição, sem ser excessivamente grave. Achas que para além da guitarra, seria uma boa opção para gravar vozes? Particularmente ao estilo hard/heavy/glam dos 80s. Parabéns pelo excelente vídeo!
Boas. Para esse género não será o mais adequado, mas as vozes são sempre muito particulares e dependem de muitos factores. Não seria a minha escolha no entanto. Acho que um SM58 ou Beta 57 farão melhor serviço.
@@BuddaGuedes Obrigado! Sempre preferi o Beta 58 para a voz, acho que soa mais rico e mais dinâmico com o meu timbre e estilo, especialmente em temas mais agressivos. Mas acho que vou ter que matar o bichinho dos micros de fita com o RB500, mesmo que não sirva para a voz, ou pelo menos, que não tenha a resposta apropriada para o estilo, é sempre uma ferramenta que fica, deve ser óptimo para gravar acústicas ou para gravar os backing vocals para as power ballads. Vou experimentar! Já tenho dois outros dos gajos, um MB85 Beta que uso para ensaios e que neste momento até é o meu preferido e um de condensador, o SC 600, deste último já não gosto tanto...
Alguma recomendação para um setup com dois microfones, para rock, para quem quiser começar a gravar alguma coisa em casa, sem ir a falência claro ;) abraços
As a word of advice, don't wait 11 minutes to get into the actual shootout. Yes people are ADD and its not your fault, but its still good advice. Save the majority of the speaking section for last. Trust me.
Thanks for the tip, although I’m not pretending to do a simple review or demo. The goal here is to debate and discuss the subject, and share my point of view and opinion. Not just show you the results. Thanks a lot for your support