A/B testing on pairs of mics - advice needed

[Chris F]

I'm looking to upgrade my grand piano mics on a budget, and will be testing mics in the next few days. Currently, I have three pairs of mics on loan from a local retailer*:

(2) M-Audio Novas
(2) M-Audio Lunas
(2) Blue 8 Balls

I have until Tuesday to return them.

I own two DMP3 pre boxes, so my idea at the moment is to set up two stereo pair at a time right next to each other in x/y configuration right outside the curved part of the piano body and record all four channels into DP4 through a MOTU 1224 interface, then compare the tracks without EQ or effects of any kind for tone quality.

My questions:

1) Should I set the gain on the pres differently to allow a uniform input level in DP, or should I set the pres all at the same level and then adjust the ouput levels in DP for a truer test?

2) Should I reverse the physical position of the pairs afterward and rerecord to make sure that I just didn't prefer the position of one pair of mics over the other?

Thoughts and suggestions are welcome.




* Right now, I'm using a B1 and a cheapo Superlux mic on the piano, and it sounds OK, but I can hear the difference. My current fave mic, the Solaris, is a bit out of my price range for a pair right now. Also, I prefer LDC's on this piano (reconditioned 1937 Baldwin 6'3" grand), as it's still a tad on the bright side.

 

[paddyponchero]

You need to adjust the levels to make them equal as the human ear tends to interpret louder as better. Does your local music shop stock CAD mics, at that price I'd definitely try out the M179s.

 

[Chris F]

You need to adjust the levels to make them equal as the human ear tends to interpret louder as better.

Right...but which levels? The gain settings on the DMP3's, or the output levels on the DP virtual mixer? My worry about not setting the DMP3 gain knobs exactly the same is that one pair of mics might pick up an edgier signal from a pre that was being pushed harder.

Does your local music shop stock CAD mics, at that price I'd definitely try out the M179s.

They do carry CADs, but unfortunately no M179s - I asked.

 

[Halion]

I wouldn't worry about it too much, but try to keep the gain not extremely high. You can always normalize without coloration in the digital domain.

 

[The Axis]

It has been my experience that the microphone is the biggest single contributor to the sound. Gain, pre, mike placement, etc, are subtle and secondary.
If you are determined to make an A/B comparison, get the gains and positions as close as possible, but don't worry about it too much. One of the mikes will show up as obviously preferred to your ear.
If there is any question, simply repeat with as many variations as you like.

 

[Chris F]

So true. It was a taste preference between the Lunas and Novas, with the Novas being brighter and "in your face", while the Lunas were more natural and transparent. I'm going with the Luna pair.

The pair of 8-balls was without question the worst sound I've ever heard from ANY condenser mic, period - thin, tinny, and with absolutely nothing going for it. The MXL 990 that the university bought for my office for $50 or whatever sounds much better by a factor of ten. Man, what a god-awful mic...it sounds as bad as it looks.

Anyway, the Lunas are nice, and I think I'll have a lot of work to do before I outgrow them.