Ribbon mic recommendations for recording flute
- Thread starter Spinney Lainey
- Start date
Spinney Lainey
New member
Ummm, stil £89 here but everywhere else is £149
It's not in stock there. I got one of the only ones left and it was £140 but still super chuffed!
Not true at all for the SE X1R and a lot of the modern ribbons
Justsomeguy
Quiet is the new Loud
Ahh man, i was gonna email absolute on monday to ask about it but i may just have to shop elsewhere
after posting i did then see the big "available on request" rather than in stock msg 
Not true at all for the SE X1R and a lot of the modern ribbons
Which bit, the being fragile or needing a shed load of clean gain? Granted modern ribbons are more robust than older models but a lot of people are now so used to using an SM58 as a hammer or a C1000 as a door wedge that, by comparison, ribbon mics are still fragile. You can still snap a ribbon by blowing on it, moving it around without a cover, or drop kicking it. Tbf when i first got a ribbon mic i was petrified of breaking it, but the more i used it the more i realised that it wasn't as fragile as i thought it was, but i'm still never gonna use it to drive in nails
It's part of the reason that a lot of the cheaper ribbons have sooooooo much extra internal blast filtering/wire mesh; they know their market and don't want returns so do everything they can to protect the ribbon element. And, again, by comparison newer ribbon mics probably need less gain than older models thanks in part to up dated electronics etc, but apart from on the loudest of sources, it's still not uncommon to see preamps cranked to get decent working levels. Tbf one of the many reasons i still have my eyes on the sE X1R is it's "borrowed" technology from the Voodoo range which are awesome mics, and the extended high frequencies and updated electronics should make it out perform most ribbon mic's in the same price range
Spinney Lainey
New member
Which bit, the being fragile or needing a shed load of clean gain? Granted modern ribbons are more robust than older models but a lot of people are now so used to using an SM58 as a hammer or a C1000 as a door wedge that, by comparison, ribbon mics are still fragile. You can still snap a ribbon by blowing on it, moving it around without a cover, or drop kicking it. Tbf when i first got a ribbon mic i was petrified of breaking it, but the more i used it the more i realised that it wasn't as fragile as i thought it was, but i'm still never gonna use it to drive in nails
That's true but yes, the SE X1R seems to have more than enough gain and resilience for my purposes
but yeah, I guess it depends if you want to use it as a door wedge, or not. 
And yes, that's what attracted me to it and actually, I tried it out, along with the VR1 and actually preferred the X1R - for the flute, anyway!
Spinney Lainey
New member
I guess it varies from mic to mic. A lot of the modern ones, like the SE X1R do seem to be less fragile and not require preamps as much as the older ones. That's just what I've heard, anyway but as Justsomeguy said, it's relative, I guess.
PRHunt
I void warranties
The fragility lies, not in the bodies which are usually very robust, but in the ribbons which are a crinkled strip of foil just a few microns thick. These ribbons are fastened in place under a slight degree of tension which strongly influences their audio response.
Dropping the mic, shaking it vigorously, or puffing air into the ribbon can irreversibly stretch the ribbon and alter the sound.
Just treat the mic with respect. Some users insist that ribbon mics should be stored upright so that the ribbons do not lie in a sustained bow.
One of the members here, Xaudia (Stewart) is an expert in ribbon microphone repair and restoration. Perhaps he will chime in with some thoughts.
Paul
Dropping the mic, shaking it vigorously, or puffing air into the ribbon can irreversibly stretch the ribbon and alter the sound.
Just treat the mic with respect. Some users insist that ribbon mics should be stored upright so that the ribbons do not lie in a sustained bow.
One of the members here, Xaudia (Stewart) is an expert in ribbon microphone repair and restoration. Perhaps he will chime in with some thoughts.
Paul
Justsomeguy
Quiet is the new Loud
I guess it depends if you want to use it as a door wedge, or not.
Tbf C1000's aren't even that good for this as they're not heavy enough, and even as a paperweight they just roll off stuff
*in my best gangsta style voice* DAAMMMNN SONNN! DAT BE SA-WEEETT! Ok, i am gonna email absolute on monday fo' sho'
^^^Ne'er a finer word has been spoken^^^ If you even get up the courage/become mad enough to open up a ribbon and see the ribbon element for yourself you will see quite how tiny and fragile the working part of the mic really is! I've already said, although maybe not in this thread, that when i first opened up a ribbon to do a simple mod i was bricking it! Seriously, the element looks like a corrugated metal version of a silver rizzla/tracing paper!
I also almost punched my singer recently for blowing on my ribbon mic after i told him not to (granted it had a heavy duty pop shield in front of it so there wasn't a huge risk but still, what a knob!). I then realised he's a 6' 4" northern built like a small tank/rugby player, whereas i'm a 5' 6" southern built like a dungeon master, so instead i just did my best "disappointed dad" impression. He got the hint.
I'm also in the camp of storing the mic vertically. Again, this may be overkill but for the sake of just making sure the box is the right way up it seems like a daft risk to take not to imo
kip4
Well-known member
I also advocate storing it upright.
Take a look at this if you want to see what your ribbon is made of
Ribbon Microphone - Ribbon Thickness Test.avi - YouTube
Seriously i've said it before and i'll say it again despite manufacurers putting in more blast protection.
Put a bag on it when moving it. I use an old camera lens bag. when moving the mic about dont swing round fast and expose it to a big blast , hence the bag.
Avoid slamming the door shut on the studio and blowing on the ribbon.
Phantom power might not be too good either.
look here
Crowley and Tripp Roswellite (tm) Ribbon Microphone Material - YouTube
this too
Ribbon Microphone Care Tips
hope this helps
Rich
Take a look at this if you want to see what your ribbon is made of
Ribbon Microphone - Ribbon Thickness Test.avi - YouTube
Seriously i've said it before and i'll say it again despite manufacurers putting in more blast protection.
Put a bag on it when moving it. I use an old camera lens bag. when moving the mic about dont swing round fast and expose it to a big blast , hence the bag.
Avoid slamming the door shut on the studio and blowing on the ribbon.
Phantom power might not be too good either.
look here
Crowley and Tripp Roswellite (tm) Ribbon Microphone Material - YouTube
this too
Ribbon Microphone Care Tips
hope this helps
Rich
Spinney Lainey
New member
Mic is now stored upright and I will continue to handle it with care
Spinney Lainey
New member
Oh, and already bought a pop shield as well, just in case.
kip4
Well-known member
Cool I always use a pop filter even infront of a guitar amp for my ribbon. its surprising how much air a speaker will push.
Spinney Lainey
New member
Unfortunately, a pop shield wasn't used when I went to test it but I wasn't standing very close to it with my flute and I always line the mic up off-centre from the air stream, so hopefully was ok.
Justsomeguy
Quiet is the new Loud
I don't always use a pop filter but i always cover the mic (i use an old plastic dynamic mic wallet) and do what i call the "blast test". i put my back of my hand towards the sound source and feel for blasts of air. Any blasts, pop filter goes up. I'm always surprised how much air an amp can shift!
This is also a good read;
Royer Labs - using a ribbon mic
PRHunt
I void warranties
Pure gold! Next time, disappointed dad might just need to follow up with a docked allowance and 9pm curfew.
Thinking about Rugby, our local boys received a bit of a butt-whooping from the touring British and Irish Lions last night. <<grumble, mutter>> Never fun losing to the Poms!
Paul
Justsomeguy
Quiet is the new Loud
I don't need to man, his wife already does that! The amount of gigs we played where he had an "allowance" for the nights. I mean, ffs, the guys 31; he's old enough and ugly enough to be able to spend/waste his money however he see's fit! Apart from the night where my three bands mates went to a strip club and spent not only all the money we'd made for the gig, but our bass player also spent £300 of his own cash in "the back room", and i didn't see a penny of the gig takings or any scantily clad women because i was the designated driver and had all the gear in my car so went straight home and unloaded everything by myself.
As a brit i can only apologise. Normally we're rubbish at sports so when we win at ANYTHING our media go crazy about it. I mean, christ, they gave Bradley "wiggo" Wiggins a flippin' knighthood for being good at riding a bike! I wouldn't worry too much man, we're bound to lose next time
xaudia
New member
Well, I think you guys have all of the main bits covered. The only thing I would add is 'don't be scared of them'. I just serviced an old Melodium ribbon that was date stamped 1940. And the ribbon was still there and still working, just needed a clean.
Ribbons are fragile, but also comparatively cheap and easy to replace - in fact they used to be considered a service item. So if things go wrong, get it fixed and carry on.
BTW, here's my 'new' ribbon mic.
Carry on!
Ribbons are fragile, but also comparatively cheap and easy to replace - in fact they used to be considered a service item. So if things go wrong, get it fixed and carry on.
BTW, here's my 'new' ribbon mic.
Carry on!
Justsomeguy
Quiet is the new Loud
That looks awesome! It does kinda make me wanna go and play Bioshock 2