Did I kill my ribbon mic?

  • Thread starter Thread starter maestro_dmc
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maestro_dmc

maestro_dmc

Uses Paramedic EQ
I have an old Shure ribbon mic that someone gave me a few years ago. It doesn't sound particularly good or bad, but it has a very low output, and high self noise. Is this normal? I wish I had the mic handy because I don't remember the model number. It has some small switches on it, which I have tried changing to see if it made any difference, but still it has a low output!

I was going to try recording a violin with it, I had heard that ribbon mics are good for bowed instruments, but when it came down to the actual session, we ended up using a SDC that I had handy, because the self noise made the mic unusable.

I wonder if phantom power may have damaged the element in the mic?:confused:

The mic is actually very classy looking, and in mint condition, but no more than a museum piece at this point.:(

Anyone?
 
Steve Sank can probably restore it to perfect condition for pretty cheap.
 
ribbon mics

What kind of pre are you using?
Ribbons are low output mics.
Ribbons need a lot of clean gain and a good impedance match.
You need a pre that can give you 60-70db of gain.
The Shures are a little noisy because of the transformers inside but are very useable.
Try a tube mic pre with a transformer input.
My 300 and SM 33 sound great through my old RCA tube console.
 
The Pre is an inexpensive (read cheap!:p) Bellari tube model, which I think has 60-70 db of gain, and I've tried changing the impedance setting(the mic has 3 positions) also, but I haven't gotten results that I like very much.

Maybe the impedance of the bellari is just a bad match, no matter the setting? I think the bellari has clean enough gain, at least on all the other mics I've tried. :confused:

It really sounds like I'm turning up the noise floor along with the mic signal.

Have you had phantom power run into your model 300, Prof?
 
yowza...$190 for my m160's?? I haven't ever heard any complaints however.
 
No, the one thing I always check before plugging in a ribbon of any type is that the phantom power is off.
Again, if everything is properly wired, phantom shouldn't hurt a ribbon but I don't take chances.
I have seen a ribbon blown by phantom but the cable was incorrectly wired.
The thing with your pre, it could have the required amount of gain but you need quiet gain such as a Great River provides.
Many pres that are acceptable at lower levels become very noisy at the high end of their range.
Harvey swears the VTB-1 sounded fab on his 77DX.
I run my ribbons thru that old RCA Console made about the same time they were.
 
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