MXL R144 ribbon mic pitch issue

[Arkofsax]

Hi all, I'm a woodwind player trying to record my sax and flute using an MXL R144 ribbon mic along with an M-Audio M-Track USB Interface to record on my laptop. While recording, I noticed that I sounded a lot sexier than usual because the recorded pitch was lower than the actual sound of my intruments. Is this normal for ribbon mics? I know poorly handled ribbons can stretch or warp, changing their ability to pick up sound, but I haven't had this mic for very long and have barely even touched it... Anyway, is there a way to compensate for this? Thanks!

 

[miroslav]

I noticed that I sounded a lot sexier than usual because the recorded pitch was lower than the actual sound of my intruments.

Did you mean "saxier".....


Ribbons tend to favor guitars and brass intruments, and yes, they do roll off the harshness and smooth things out, often beefing up the low-end in a good way.

I doubt the mic is changing the pitch....

 

[sjjohnston]

"Lower pitch" would mean the fundamental is a lower frequency as recorded than as played. It's virtually impossible that the mic is doing that.

"Bassier" or "more low end" would mean that, in the mix of sound (fundamental, harmonics, incidental sounds), the lower-frequency ones are being emphasized (or the higher rolled off, which is approximately the same thing). Some ribbon mics do that, at least to some extent. You can compensate for it with EQ.

 

[TimOBrien]

Or he had the interface set on 48k and the daw project on 44.1k...