Help - Rode NT1a vibration problem

  • Thread starter Thread starter 5000Gorillas
  • Start date Start date
5

5000Gorillas

New member
Hi,

I'm using a Rode NT1a hooked up to a Marantz PMD661 to do some spoken word recordings, and I've got an issue with vibration noise.

The NT1a is in a shockmount, and I've even put the mic stand on a cushion to eliminate any vibrations from trucks/buses on a road nearby.

I still get a tiny bit of vibration noise when a heavy vehicle passes, but I can deal with that - it's only an occasional thing. The weird part is, I'm also getting the same kind of mic vibration in the background of some of the words - not in the gaps between the words, but it's as if my voice is sometimes causing some unpleasant-sounding mic vibration by itself.

I've got a relatively bassy voice. Not ultra-deep, but there's some resonance there. And in the background of some of the words on the recording, there's a metallic vibration, as if the mic shell is being shaken. I'd say it's there 10-20% of the time to some degree.

I've tried recording further away from the mic - over 12 inches - but this hasn't really solved it.

It's getting a bit frustrating trying to do noise-reduction and retakes to get it sounding clean (I'm doing some pretty long recording sessions, leaving me with a ton of editing to do).

Could it be that the mic is damaged in some way?

I'm tempted just to buy another mic as a first port of call - perhaps an AKG Perception 220, an AT2020, or a Rode NT3 just for a change (the latter two having a smaller diaphragm, which might be helpful, since I'm not in a totally soundproofed space).

But I'm still not quite sure what the vibration issue with the NT1a is. Any ideas anyone?

Cheers,

Ian
 
Last edited:
Hi Seidy,

I just recorded a short sample.

At moderate volume through speakers, it sounds acceptable. But if I play it a bit louder through earbud headphones, I can clearly hear an unpleasant vibration in the vowels - (in the "ur" of "turning" and the "ai" of "widening"), that I really don't think should be there.

And it's occasionally even worse than this sample, but I couldn't reproduce that just now.

I get the same issue sometimes even when I'm further away from the mic. The gain on the Marantz is always at a moderate to low setting (I'm not getting any red warnings on the levels meter), and I think it's nothing to do with the Marantz, because I've had the same issue when using a Presonus Inspire box with the NT1a.

Happy to hear any ideas!

Thanks,

Ian
 

Attachments

It could be your monitoring rather than your recording. I have some headphones that get peaky at particular frequencies and distort like crazy while others have no problem at all with the same source.

If you get the problem with multiple monitoring tools, I'd suggest starting with some mild EQ. Try boosting a very narrow band and sweeping the EQ over the phrase to identify the problem frequency. If you can find it, then turn the boost into a mild cut.
 
I don't think it's the earbuds - I can hear the same vibration on a pair of Senheisser HD555s.

Thanks for suggesting the frequency cut. I can't find a really narrow band that eliminates it, but doing a gentle cut between 8000hz-10000hz helps somewhat, although it muddies the overall sound a little too.

Do you think the NT1a is working normally then? Would there be any reason to think that another mic (in a similar price range) might produce a cleaner result?
 
Is your mic cable secured to the stand, or hanging to the floor?
 
Just a thought .....

Have you got your gain cranked right up?
 
Thanks for the different suggestions - I'm sure it's not a gain issue, the gain is generally set low. I'll make sure that the cable isn't in contact with the ground, and I may try a windscreen on the mic.

I also think there's something slightly wrong with the set up of the shockmount, so I may try tweaking that a little.

Anyhow, the help was appreciated - I'll see how I get on.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top