I received the TLM 103 today.
First off, the case is superbly crafted and is much nicer than the jewel case my TLM 170 came in. Go figure. When you reverse the foam compartment on the right side, it produces a nice fitted compartment, suitable for a second mic.
I ran it through several pres and it definately has a lot of output, so I found myself backing off my favorite pre settings. The first thing that struck me is that it has a dark sonic quality to it, just like the U87, along with a flat response, except for the bump near 5 kHz. Uncolored sound is the best way to describe this mic, with a solid bottom, and nothing to wild on the top end.
For me, it sounds very much like a U87 in cardiod, but without the extras. It's a very smooth mic and the highs are somewhat controlled, which probably accounts for its darker sonic quality. This is a good thing, though it's too early to draw conclusions.
So far, I like what I hear.
First off, the case is superbly crafted and is much nicer than the jewel case my TLM 170 came in. Go figure. When you reverse the foam compartment on the right side, it produces a nice fitted compartment, suitable for a second mic.
I ran it through several pres and it definately has a lot of output, so I found myself backing off my favorite pre settings. The first thing that struck me is that it has a dark sonic quality to it, just like the U87, along with a flat response, except for the bump near 5 kHz. Uncolored sound is the best way to describe this mic, with a solid bottom, and nothing to wild on the top end.
For me, it sounds very much like a U87 in cardiod, but without the extras. It's a very smooth mic and the highs are somewhat controlled, which probably accounts for its darker sonic quality. This is a good thing, though it's too early to draw conclusions.
So far, I like what I hear.