Cascade Fathead Ribbon?

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dmbfan1981

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Is anyone familiar with Cascade microphones? I saw an ad in the back of MIX magazine and decided to look up their side. The Fathead 1 and Fathead 2 models seem reasonable. I was considering purchasing their SDC also.

Anyone use their mics? Satisfied with them??
 
never used one myself, but i've seen several people here both on here and at gearslutz mention that they perform exceptionally well for the price

i'm probably going to snag one as well myself...but not until i get my hands on an sm-7 first
 
Yeah, based on the clips that I heard I think it will be my next mic purchase. I need a SDC so I will probably purchase that first and see how I like their build quility and dependability and then go for the fat head1 shortly thereafter. Thanks for your help.

what are you going to be using the sm-7 for? vocals?
 
your mxl 990 *is* a small diaph. cond.-- the capsule inside is not an ldc, as far as I have read on here.

Definitely get the fat head-- you'll really be able to do more with it: get a unique vocal sound, mic cabs, drum OH, have a room mic, etc. An sdc is more limited.

i bought the rsm-4, which is just the cascade with a nady brand on it, and i dig it. Here's a link to my comments:

https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=230648&highlight=manifesto+ribbon

OWz

p.s., Cascade does not manufacture the Fat Head, and might get their SDCs from a different maufacturer or factory in China, so you can't 100% predict a comprable value in build quality.
 
I thought they were all made by Alctron?

I have a Fathead II permanently propped up in front of my guitar cab, next to the RE20. Best guitar cab recording setup I've ever had in my house!
 
yeah, I know that the 990 is a smaller condenser. I wanted to get a omni directional pencil for instrument micing perhaps in tandem with the 990. I was thinking of maybe a naiant but then I came across this site and figured I might try theirs. I will probably DEFINATELY get the fathead though.
 
I had a LD cascade mic a while ago. I did not care for it much at all. It was a typical chinese harsh sounding condensor. It came free with another purcahse. The Fat Head however I have been very happy with given its cost. I still prefer my Royer but would rather not take it out to live shows anymore and will just take the Cascade instead. In fact, I may add a dozen or so Fat Heads to my live mic packs. They sound much better to me than an sm57, a sennhesier 602, and even a sennheiser 421. As far as the Fat Head 2 goes, sonically it is the exact same as the standard Fat Head with just some cosmetic and ancillary changes.
 
xstatic said:
I had a LD cascade mic a while ago. I did not care for it much at all. It was a typical chinese harsh sounding condensor. It came free with another purcahse. The Fat Head however I have been very happy with given its cost. I still prefer my Royer but would rather not take it out to live shows anymore and will just take the Cascade instead. In fact, I may add a dozen or so Fat Heads to my live mic packs. They sound much better to me than an sm57, a sennhesier 602, and even a sennheiser 421. As far as the Fat Head 2 goes, sonically it is the exact same as the standard Fat Head with just some cosmetic and ancillary changes.
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I am resurrecting this thread, because as Zenobi pointed out - a figure 8 live? I am curious how well this works :)
 
If you're putting it 3" from a guitar cab, the rear pickup would not be a concern.
 
Obi-Wan zenabI said:
Figure Eight? Live? I have much to learn...
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Obi, try one on DB for live sound. I use my Beyer M130 blended with a pickup. Absolutely huge sound. I actually get more rejection than with a dynamic mic with it by angling the mic up a little so the back is toawrds the floor with the nulls pointed at the drums and piano.

I don't want to use it on some gigs, so I'm thinking about getting a Fathead for live sound so the M130 can stay safe and only come out for recording.
 
mshilarious said:
Feedback is bleed. If you have an amp blaring at 120dB at the cone, then a stage level of 100dB is not a big concern. Except to your ears :eek:
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hehe good point. I ask because I was thinking of trying out the Cascade VIN-JET Im getting at a small coffee house gig that I am recording, and I thought it might also work for running the vocals through the PA - however, the figure 8 worried me a little. I suppose its always worth a try at setup time - I'll just be sure to bring a different mic for the vocals in case it woesn't work :)
 
cusebassman said:
hehe good point. I ask because I was thinking of trying out the Cascade VIN-JET Im getting at a small coffee house gig that I am recording, and I thought it might also work for running the vocals through the PA - however, the figure 8 worried me a little. I suppose its always worth a try at setup time - I'll just be sure to bring a different mic for the vocals in case it woesn't work :)
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Well it's all about gain before feedback, so you just need to ask yourself a few questions: where are the mains, where are the monitors, how close is your mouth to the mic, and how loud do you sing?

Hypercardioids are popular for live vocals because their rejection is 120 degrees, which is handy for aiming at floor wedges. Hypers are halfway between cardioid and figure 8, and they do have rear response. In a small, echo-y room, that could be a concern.

Figure 8s have about the deadest nulls you can get, but at 90 degrees. So if you can set up so that null coincides with your monitors, and you sing either loudly or closely enough to maximize signal-to-bleed, you should be OK if the room doesn't give you headaches by bouncing the mains back at you too hard.
 
Excellent points.

The room has an odd shape to it, essentially a large rectangle, but the two shorter walls are skewed - and the stage is set into one of the corners. The only PA cabs would be two FOH monitors on stands, facing out from me, and I would be set behind them in the stae area. So, I suppose its worth a shot. As the room isn't massive and its just me singing and playing guitar (plus electric piano on a few), the volume won't be huge. With a small pop filter directly in front of the mic, I should be able to get within 5" of the ribbon.

So - we'll see! It sounds like its doable, but as I said, I'll take a backup just in case :)
 
cusebassman said:
With a small pop filter directly in front of the mic, I should be able to get within 5" of the ribbon.
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I would think you'd want to get a windsock and get closer than that, unless you are a pretty loud singer. The real issue I see with ribbons live is proximity effect, which is great if you need it, but real bad if you don't.
 
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