Lend Me Your Golden Ears, OK?

crawdad

crawdad

Dammit, Jim, Shut Up!
This is a favor. I am trying to figure out which mic I like the best on my own voice. I did a controlled tracking session using four mics at once on one vocal--same preamps (mackie). I adjusted the overall levels to match and did a fine adjustment in software so all levels were identical.

I strung together the four takes--each with a different mic, so you just hear one mic at a time. The mics used were the v67, V93, ADK 51, and the AT 4033. I'll tell you the order in a few days, but not yet. Its not that I'm trying to make this a guess the mic game, because I'm not. If I tell you now, you might be swayed by bias. Let me know what take sounds best to you. Thanks!

Its: Mic test

http://www.nowhereradio.com/artists/?aid=1522/singles.shtml

here's what the mic array looked like
 

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I rather the v67 first and then the v93......


oh damn, i guess i better listen first:D The house is sleeping right now so i better not crank up the monitors....gotta keep mama happy :)





i PM'ed you back about what we discussed.......
 
typing while listening...


the first one seemed a little midrangy...and thin...for the negative terms...

the second one was very similar to me....maybe a little crispier and more detailed.

the third one was immediately too thin sounding to me...

the last one seemed best...

BUT...ya know...to ME...they all sounded waaaay too close to be called really different on YOUR voice. But then....my ears are 50 years old today!!

I'd try a dynamic...like a RE20 next, if it were me.
 
Important things first--HAPPY BIRTHDAY Mixmkr!! 50 is a milestone. Very glad you're here! Thank you for the reply. Exactly what I was looking for. I'll spill the beans on the mics in a couple days. They all sounded pretty close to me on MY voice. The ADK is a new trial, so I am of course, leaning to that one at the moment. Which is precisely why I'm not telling anybody whats what yet. I want the blind comments--just to see what other ears prefer--not to test anybody!

Gidge--my God! Do not wake the family! I'll check the PM for sure!
 
Hey Crawdad,
They all sound pretty good to me, but if I had to choose ,I would choose # 3 or #4.Those 2 just seemed to capture every nuance of your voice a little better than the first two.
 
"Golden Ears?" More like "Olden Ears," but you're more than welcome to them, lol.

I didn't read the responses, b/c I wanted to make sure that I looked good and stupid.

I like mic #4 best for you for one reason...seems to have softer "sss's"... I fight sibilance a lot, and now I really listen for it on just about everything...none of the mics were harsh by any means, but to my ear, the fourth one did the best job on the sss's..., without being mushy at all.

I wish I had your problems...you and your damned pictures, lol.
 
Your voice would sound good through a pair coffee cans and a string. I'm on an untrustworthy computer so I can't listen for ya 'til tonight after work. But how does a SP C1 sound on you? Have you tried?
 
I prefered #1. To me it just seemed to fill out better. The other felt thinner to me. But I'm also suffering from sleep deprivation so a game of "Find Your Foot" is a bit challenging right now.
 
they all sounded very close to me. so close that i can't pick one. there wasn't one that clearly stood out from the rest to me.
 
I agree with Erich. They are all very similar. I'm guessing #2 was the ADK. And as mentioned..... you could sound good singing through coffee cans.

I'd choose #2 or #4
 
Mic1 sounds like 'the standard Crawdad vocal sound'. I like it, despite the abundance of mids and lack of highs. Since everyone (including me, sometimes) is always nagging about the lack of highs in your vocal recordings, perhaps switching to Mic4 would make them happier. It sounds 'MP3 clinic-friendly'. But you're the boss here... ;)
 
sorry for the lack of help but they all sound the same, lol.....id guess 3 and 4 sound the best to me......

#1 - ADK
#2 - 4033
#3 - v93
#4 - v67
 
well...I'm glad I am not the only one that thinks they pretty much sound the same. I especially think if you walked out of the room...back in...then had to guess, it'd be really hard to point out differences. The A/B setup makes it much easier. Listening to it in a 'less than ideal' scenario... (car), would really even out things. I almost think the closeness to the mic in this case would be more profound than actually the mic itself.
 
Thanks for listening, everybody. Now I know for sure--they really don't sound much different at all. At least not enough to warrant buying another of similar flavor. Just for the curious, heres the order of mics in the 4 samples:

1. AT 4033
2. ADK A 51
3. MXL V93
4. MXL V67

I personally really like the ADK a lot. I used it on my raw HRC vocal last night. But, I like them all, really.

SluiCe--I never tried the C1. I'm waiting for a situation to try one at a studio sometime.

Gidge--you just about got that order right!

Everybody--thanks for the comments and ideas. How exactly would I interface a coffee can into my DAW? :D
 
Without reading the other replies, here are my first reactions:

1 - a little nasal, honky, warm but too much in the mids
2 - natural, lighter - very listenable, the most "hairs on the back of the neck"
3 - neutral but lacking character, not enough strength or "body"
4 - very similar to 2, very clear, but maybe not quite as intimate

Nice singing, BTW.

Cheers

AB
 
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