tmortonlove
New member
A few weeks ago I spent some time at a music store comparing 3 large diaphragm mics: the RODE NT1A, the AKG C3000B, and the Neumann TLM 103.
The Set –Up: A store salesperson set me up with the 3 mics in a quiet room. Each mic was mounted on the edge of the table in front of where I was seated, each with its own shockmount. Pre was a Focusrite TwinTrak Pro. I had to turn down the Preamp, unplug and replug a mic and turn the level back up each time I wanted to change. Maybe not the best set-up, but it’s the first one I’ve been able to do. And it was for free! I sat in a chair about 18-24 inches away from the mics. I played an acoustic guitar and sang, and alternated between doing both together and separately.
My Experience:
I’ve played acoustic guitar for about 30 years. I sing and play publicly about twice a month. Occasionally I still do a full concert – solo. I’ve had a Roland VS 880EX for over 4 years now, and have produced 1 CD and many, many takes of 10 more songs for another as-of-yet-unfinished CD. I own a Taylor 514CE, and have had a RODE NT1 and ART Tube MP for about 4 years also. Lately, I’ve been training my ears to listen purposefully to music… how the music sounds, whether good or illin’; what I like or do not like in sounds; and speculating and experimenting as to how I can get the sounds I like with the tools I already have.
The Short End of IT :
NT1A – From what I could tell, this sounded just like what I’m used to hearing at home in my studio with my NT1. Very sensitive…picks up anything and everything. Seems overly bright. Very clear, and not muddled at all. But in comparison with the TLM 103, it seems the low end wasn’t even there. (No wonder I’ve had nightmares with EQing my mixes! ) Also seems very quiet like advertised. When I played and sang, it seemed the mic favored the guitar over my voice, due perhaps to its sensitivity to higher frequencies– it was not a evenly balanced mix by any means.
AKG C3000B - Not quite as bright as the NT1A, but very close. Didn’t pick up as much transient noises as did the RODE. (Occasionally I’d hear in-house announcements on an overhead speaker from outside the room. These were more noticeable on the RODE.) Sounded more flat than the RODE (What’s more flat than a road?). But still noticed the mic wanted to accentuate the guitar in favor of my voice.
Neumann TLM 103 - Ah!
This is what a good quality condenser is supposed to sound like! Suffice to say, I could be content taking what I heard from this and burning it to a CD with no effect, EQ, etc., if I had to. The bottom end finally appeared on the audio spectrum. It sounded like what I thought a mic should sound like. The balance and blend of guitar to voice was perfectly natural. Mmm Mmm good. Now…
I need to hear some feedback about EQing mics… was the difference I heard between those mics simply a matter of an EQ fix? Such as with a 31 band graphic? I’ve read mic reviews before in EM magazine where the reviewer said he could make this mic sound like this one by adding 3db of 400hz etc. etc. and so on. Granted maybe he was reviewing dynamic mics. Also, I’ve read some reviews of mics where they talk of depth or spatiality in the audio field of the mic. Isn’t that just do to mic placement, or is it something else?
Any feedback would be great. Questions are welcome.
The Set –Up: A store salesperson set me up with the 3 mics in a quiet room. Each mic was mounted on the edge of the table in front of where I was seated, each with its own shockmount. Pre was a Focusrite TwinTrak Pro. I had to turn down the Preamp, unplug and replug a mic and turn the level back up each time I wanted to change. Maybe not the best set-up, but it’s the first one I’ve been able to do. And it was for free! I sat in a chair about 18-24 inches away from the mics. I played an acoustic guitar and sang, and alternated between doing both together and separately.
My Experience:
I’ve played acoustic guitar for about 30 years. I sing and play publicly about twice a month. Occasionally I still do a full concert – solo. I’ve had a Roland VS 880EX for over 4 years now, and have produced 1 CD and many, many takes of 10 more songs for another as-of-yet-unfinished CD. I own a Taylor 514CE, and have had a RODE NT1 and ART Tube MP for about 4 years also. Lately, I’ve been training my ears to listen purposefully to music… how the music sounds, whether good or illin’; what I like or do not like in sounds; and speculating and experimenting as to how I can get the sounds I like with the tools I already have.
The Short End of IT :
NT1A – From what I could tell, this sounded just like what I’m used to hearing at home in my studio with my NT1. Very sensitive…picks up anything and everything. Seems overly bright. Very clear, and not muddled at all. But in comparison with the TLM 103, it seems the low end wasn’t even there. (No wonder I’ve had nightmares with EQing my mixes! ) Also seems very quiet like advertised. When I played and sang, it seemed the mic favored the guitar over my voice, due perhaps to its sensitivity to higher frequencies– it was not a evenly balanced mix by any means.
AKG C3000B - Not quite as bright as the NT1A, but very close. Didn’t pick up as much transient noises as did the RODE. (Occasionally I’d hear in-house announcements on an overhead speaker from outside the room. These were more noticeable on the RODE.) Sounded more flat than the RODE (What’s more flat than a road?). But still noticed the mic wanted to accentuate the guitar in favor of my voice.
Neumann TLM 103 - Ah!
This is what a good quality condenser is supposed to sound like! Suffice to say, I could be content taking what I heard from this and burning it to a CD with no effect, EQ, etc., if I had to. The bottom end finally appeared on the audio spectrum. It sounded like what I thought a mic should sound like. The balance and blend of guitar to voice was perfectly natural. Mmm Mmm good. Now…I need to hear some feedback about EQing mics… was the difference I heard between those mics simply a matter of an EQ fix? Such as with a 31 band graphic? I’ve read mic reviews before in EM magazine where the reviewer said he could make this mic sound like this one by adding 3db of 400hz etc. etc. and so on. Granted maybe he was reviewing dynamic mics. Also, I’ve read some reviews of mics where they talk of depth or spatiality in the audio field of the mic. Isn’t that just do to mic placement, or is it something else?
Any feedback would be great. Questions are welcome.
