Sound colouration..........when is too little too much.....blah blah?

  • Thread starter Thread starter ausrock
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ausrock

ausrock

Well-known member
Different mics have their own individual characteristics which impart varying degrees of colouration to the original sound.

Points open for discussion;

1; is this desirable or should mic manufacturers be aiming to produce mics that are TRUE?

2; if it is desirable, in what way. (warm, cold, toppy, bottom heavy, transparent, etc)?

Any further ideas?

Peace...........ChrisO :cool:
 
I don't think it can be generalized about too much one way or the other.
Some people want to "capture" a sound that is already pretty good, therefore accuracy and transparency become desireable goals.
Others deliberately want to ad some sort of coloration for effect or enhancement. Hence the varying opinions about mikes.

I think it is better to just get all the info out as clearly as possible, then the user can make an informed decision. My own personal preference is accuracy and transparency, and since that seems like a more difficult goal to achieve, there may be some appearance of thinking that is generally "better". But I don't really think of it that way. Whatever sounds good is good.

Some people like clean guitars, others like saturated distortion. There is no "better", but there are certain classics that seem to consistently bring about good results.

Peace,
Rick
 
It's what ever fits the sound of the song. If you compare a Shure -57 to a Neumann U87, which one will sound better for vocals? Give up, nither, it's all about what will fit the song. Yes the U87 will sound more cleaner and "professional", but many top notch recording artists use or used a 57 on their vocals just for a different feel to the vocals.

I'd still take the U87 over the 57...

Umm...
 
The subject matter is very difficult to address. Every manufacture attempts to acheive the best sound they can, but it is done and voiced to their standards. Some like Earthworks, are after accuracy, which applies in some cases, some want smooth, some bright, some warm, and on and on.....

When we did the Studio Projects, we used six high profile recording studios to voice our mics. We felt our decision may not be the only one to be considered, so we went to the user to finsih the mics tone. The reason we have spent such a long time on the VT-1 is it's ability to get a single mic to provide almost all the tonality you need, from crisp, to tube smooth.

Anyway, look around you next time your driving on the highway. There are lots of colors of cars. One color can't suit everybody, and it's just like mics. Hopefully no one insults other drivers car colors along the way.
 
Variation in mics/pres keeps you from haveing the same sonic fingerprint on all your tracks.It gives you a larger soundscape
to make your final mix from.Then if all goes well...EQ to make things sit and not to shape.Thats my take.


Don
 
"Hopefully no one insults other drivers car colors along the way"

well, except for those new green VW bugs.
 
Whatever coloration I like is "warm" and "vibrant". The stuff you like is "muffled", "boxey". and "nasaly".

But that is only because I have better taste than you.


:)

Peace,
Rick
 
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