Harvey, V77 on female vocals?

[sunflute]

Hello Harvey,

I've enjoyed reading your many knowledgeable postings regarding the many interesting topics here at HR.com

I know you like the V77 on male voices, but have you used the V77 on female voices? and if so, what's your experience?

Thank you so much,

Peace

 

[Han]

Sorry, I'm not Harvey, but I'm almost of the same age and I do have a V77S as well.

I've used it on many vocals and many applications, plus I do have a Neumann M149.

Well, all I can say is that the V77 is an awesome microphone, nobody will regret buying it.

I used it on trombone lately, together with a ribbon (Beyer M260) and again it shined like a star.

A really great mic.

 

[sunflute]

Sorry, I'm not Harvey, but I'm almost of the same age and I do have a V77S as well.

Thank you Han,

The reason I asked is that I have an upcoming session where I will have to record both male and female voices and my mic collection is rather small. so I was wondering if the v77 (which I have and like very much) would also do fine with a female voice.

 

[Han]

Thank you Han,

The reason I asked is that I have an upcoming session where I will have to record both male and female voices and my mic collection is rather small. so I was wondering if the v77 (which I have and like very much) would also do fine with a female voice.

That will absolutely be no problem, I've used it on a number of female vocals and was happy all the time.

 

[Harvey Gerst]

I had the great pleasure of recording legendary blues artist Barbara Dane, almost exactly 40 years after my first recordings of her in the 60's. I started with an RCA 77DX, but it wasn't working for her voice. I switched to the V77 and that did it for me.

Everybody knows I can't seem to post mp3, but here's a sample of her singing thru a V77:

I don't think it will stream, so you might hafta download it first. Kinda big for dialup - 6.6 meg@192 Bitrate. If it works, and you want more info on the whole session, lemme know.

Her track was recorded dry, with a little bit of compression as I recall, no windscreen or pop filter, reverb added later. She was sitting in the control room, with the speakers going. She was about 6" from the V77.





She's 75 years old.

 

[sunflute]

Wow!!!

Wow Harvey, Thank you so much....

That recording sounds great, I specially love the lows on it.
I am now really excited because I am going to record a tango singer who has a dark voice (not as dark as the one on your recording).

Thank you so much...

Peace

 

[rpd]

It streamed for me!!
She has pretty low range for a female.
Do you remember what kind of mic pre you were using?

Thanks!

 

[whyseye]

Thanks so much Harvey!! I've been trying for months to find some samples of the V77 on a female voice in a lower register .... shoulda known you'd be the man!
Most of the samples I've heard are on acoustic guitar or female soprano-range voices. I'm a contralto, and although I have a pretty good range at the upper end, I really like playing around in the lower, bluesier area. Have been thinking V77 or V69 or Hamburg - finally a relevant sample!!

 

[Harvey Gerst]

It would have either been the Great River MP-2, or just directly into the Soundtrack Topaz board pre (more probable). Barbara has always had that sultry, low thing going on for her - even when she was in her early 30's.


Added:

I remember; it WAS the Topaz board pre amp.

 

[whyseye]

What element was missing with the RCA on her voice that sent you looking for another tool?

 

[kidvybes]

...the V77's show up used on ebay from time to time, but "new in the box" is pretty rare these days...so if you're looking for a GREAT $200. tube mic, keep an eye on this one (I'm only trying to help someone score a terrific mic...I've got 2!)...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=41466&item=7327824286&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

 

[Harvey Gerst]

What element was missing with the RCA on her voice that sent you looking for another tool?

That's kinda hard to explain in words.

When we set up that evening for the sessions, I thought the RCA 77DX would bring a lot of warmth and fullness to her voice, similar to her sound at Capitol Records in the 60's, but it didn't. The RCA sounded "okay", but not great. (Won't be the first time, or the last time, that my first guess is wrong.) I went back to the mic closet and the V77 happened to be right at the front of the shelf, so I grabbed it. Sometimes, that's how it really works in a studio.

We had worked for around 6 hours on a bunch of songs, and we were wrapping things up; it was around midnight. The drummer had left, Jeff Barnes (from Grammy winners, Brave Combo) was putting away his sax, and our bass player was starting to unplug.

Barbara was in the Control Room (with keyboardist Lee Tomboulian) and she asked him if he knew the song, "Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor"?

Lee asked, "What key?"; Barbara answered "A", and I just hit Record, without thinking twice. The reason the rest of the instruments come in later in the song is that they were unpacking the bass and sax as fast as they could.

I had been using the SM7 as the talkback mic in the studio, and Jeff just pulled it down close for his sax. It was unplanned, unrehearsed, and totally improvised - and, for me, magical.

There are moments that make being in the music business all worthwhile - this was one of them.

 

[whyseye]

Great story - sweet slice of music, too! And the way you describe it coming together creates the perfect ambience for the song....lovely all around. May we all be so hip at seventy five....

 

[rustyfingers]

Thank You !

My God !!

Mr. Gerst, I can't tell you how many times I have listened to this recording. Mrs Danes voice is like velvet rubbing the back of my neck and takes me to a place I rarely go with music anymore. Thank you SO much for posting this tune.

Dennis

 

[Robert D]

Loved it! What a great example of "music happens".

-RD

 

[kidvybes]

I've got 2 V77s, and they're great mics! (I followed Harvey's advice from his original posting a couple of years ago)...male vocals, female vocals, instrument miking...whatever...excellent mics (probably MXL's best ever!)...I'm currently testing out the new MXL V76T which is based on the original V77 design...I'll be posting my results once I've completed some tracks...

 

[PhilGood]

I've got 2 V77s, and they're great mics! (I followed Harvey's advice from his original posting a couple of years ago)...male vocals, female vocals, instrument miking...whatever...excellent mics (probably MXL's best ever!)...I'm currently testing out the new MXL V76T which is based on the original V77 design...I'll be posting my results once I've completed some tracks...

Dennis, you need to hurry up with those results! I can't seem to track down a 77 and I'm getting tired of wringing out the drool mop while salivating to hear if the 76t is close or not.

 

[Han]

If you want a new V77S I know some pimp who has twenty in stock.

 

[kidvybes]

Dennis, you need to hurry up with those results! I can't seem to track down a 77 and I'm getting tired of wringing out the drool mop while salivating to hear if the 76t is close or not.

Phil...I haven't run tracks yet with the V76t (I'm still burning in the OEM tube), but I did some preliminary voice tracks and compared the V76 and V77...they are very similar so far...no doubt the new version is also a very clean and neutral sounding mic...I will say that the build quality is the best I've seen from MXL...many of the caps are much larger and of Japanese origin rather than the generic Chinese variation...having a tube socket instead of a soldered tube will make upgrading the tube a breeze...the circuits are similar to the quality you see in the SE mics, who also use Japanese caps...anyway, so far, so good!...I'll be taking it into the studio Tues. and I hope to track some vocals for a project...I will update you then...in the meantime, Shreve Audio has been selling NOS V77s on Ebay for under $200...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=41466&item=7331914376&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW
...you can call their toll-free number and I'm pretty sure they have more available...but the V76t is looking pretty impressive so far...more results soon, I promise...

 

[bleyrad]

kidvybes, mic tubes don't need burning in, only warming up. I highly doubt you'll find the performance of the mic affected in any way, besides your brain playing tricks on you...

Anyway, any chance you could do a quick recording of the same source and performance (preferably vocal) through both mics, and post the files? That would probably be very useful (and appreciated) by a lot of folks. I can host if you'd like.