Topic: Omni mic choices for open rigs....

[OOK]

I have used a the following omni's:
AT853 omni's loved them....these were the older version.
MBHO Omnis..loved these as well...still have them a tad bright but I like a little crispiness.
RODE NT2000 these would bass you face.....they would literally suck every last drop of bass out of the air...  I wasn't real crazy about them...always had to roll it off a little.
Senns k6 omni's.....to much high end emphesis which I normally like but I don't like this line of senns.
Avenson STO's....probably my favorite...super linear... these too are bass hogs but in a good way... fabulous up close...treble drops off a little further back...but not much.
DPA 4060's....great mic stealth or open..... haven't made a bad recording yet with these.

A friend uses Neveton's mce400...its one of the best little omnis I have heard....I might like them better then my DPA's but I try and talk myself out of it just so I don't have to buy a set.  these recently went up in price.

Same friend uses Gefells...270...these a real nice too...but you need big bucks for these..

All this to tell you my favorite is probably the avenson STO's...

But that could change.....

Good luck in your quest.....mics are like icecream... so many flavors.... all really good if you like the flavor.... if not, its still icecream...

peace OOK

[stevetoney]

Go to the archive and search on a show I did of Toubab Krewe in 2009 (search Toubab and Tonedeaf, you should find it).  From the sweet spot, I ran CA-14 ($150 new) side-by-side with a pair of U89s ($6400 new).  You'll be amazed how good the CA-14's sound compared to the u89's.  I suggest that you save the anxiety and money and keep your CA-14 omni's.  These are great mics and when it comes to omni's, as others have already commented it's as much about mic placement and the general environment as it is about the mic, so you could have ummmm 42 times what you have invested in your mics, but they might not sound any better than your CA-14's if the conditions aren't right.

[adrianf74]

Go to the archive and search on a show I did of Toubab Krewe in 2009 (search Toubab and Tonedeaf, you should find it).  From the sweet spot, I ran CA-14 ($150 new) side-by-side with a pair of U89s ($6400 new).  You'll be amazed how good the CA-14's sound compared to the u89's.  I suggest that you save the anxiety and money and keep your CA-14 omni's.  These are great mics and when it comes to omni's, as others have already commented it's as much about mic placement and the general environment as it is about the mic, so you could have ummmm 42 times what you have invested in your mics, but they might not sound any better than your CA-14's if the conditions aren't right.

@tonedeaf: I know exactly what you're thinking.   I just ran the CA-14 omnis about 100' from the stage (soundboard area) a couple of weekends back and got another great capture.  I'm still waiting to hear my friend's capture who used his AKG 480 C's.  Conversely, and rewinding in time, I used the CA-14/c + RAT-14 > ST-9100 Pre > M10 and ran the CA-14/o > CA-UBB > friend's M10.  He used the AKG 480 HC's > DR-680 flying at about 10 feet with mine about 1' lower.  My recordings were both unusable with the omnis sound distant and the cards sounding extremely artificial.  His recording sounded great that time around.  Last week, I did a capture of a well-known local band show at a club I had been to back in July.  At the July "rock" show, I couldn't get anywhere near the stage so I used my cards while standing next to the board.  At last week's show, I used my omnis standing about 10-15 feet from the stage and the recording was quite nice; bass was pretty dominant but it's always easier to roll off in post than to not have it to begin with.   I was VERY happy with the capture this time out except for some issues at the board during the first two songs.  That said, I will fully agree with this (and I've said spending 10-50x the money isn't going to net you a 10-50x better sounding capture.
 
@OOK: It's funny, the first pseudo-omni mics I rolled with were Core Sound Binaurals back in the early-to-mid '90s.   When I got back into taping in 2002, I was strapped for cash so I picked up a pair of "Giant Squid Audio Labs" omni mics.  These were used for about 25-30 shows I went to and I got some pretty sweet captures including a few shows by an artist who despises his shows being circulated that managed to get pressed to silver CDs several times over (without my consent).  I then switched to SP-CMC-8's (AT-933/c) which netted me interesting/mixed results.  Two years back, I picked up the CAFS-Omni and last year I picked up my CA-14's with the preamp.   I must admit, I'm quite happy with the CA-14 omnis.  I'm not so sold on the cards as I find they're a little more artificial sounding but compared to the SP-CMC-8's I owned, these are better.   Right now, I'm leaning towards the Nevaton MCE400's or the Countryman B3's if I can find them cheap enough.  Thinking that it's easier to travel "light," I was thinking about the B3's and getting them terminated at 1/8" so I can use the ST-9100 to power them -- I believe I read that I can't do this with the MCE400's because there is some stuff in the XLR connector that the mic requires (correct me if I'm wrong).  That said, if I see some used B3's come up, I might just buy those and then dump my CAFS and CA-14 omnis and run the one set exclusively. 

Ultimately, I'm leaning towards trying to find a pair of used CK62 caps that I can use with my friends 480's.  I think that will be the ultimate open solution with little investment.   I'm just trying to figure out the other side now (for the not so open situations).   

[Myco]

I have used a the following omni's:
AT853 omni's loved them....these were the older version.
MBHO Omnis..loved these as well...still have them a tad bright but I like a little crispiness.
RODE NT2000 these would bass you face.....they would literally suck every last drop of bass out of the air...  I wasn't real crazy about them...always had to roll it off a little.
Senns k6 omni's.....to much high end emphesis which I normally like but I don't like this line of senns.
Avenson STO's....probably my favorite...super linear... these too are bass hogs but in a good way... fabulous up close...treble drops off a little further back...but not much.
DPA 4060's....great mic stealth or open..... haven't made a bad recording yet with these.

A friend uses Neveton's mce400...its one of the best little omnis I have heard....I might like them better then my DPA's but I try and talk myself out of it just so I don't have to buy a set.  these recently went up in price.

Same friend uses Gefells...270...these a real nice too...but you need big bucks for these..

All this to tell you my favorite is probably the avenson STO's...

But that could change.....

Good luck in your quest.....mics are like icecream... so many flavors.... all really good if you like the flavor.... if not, its still icecream...

peace OOK

I agree with these statements 100%. I run the Gefell 270's in open situations, and the Nevaton MCE400's in stealth situations.

[F.O.Bean]

Go to the archive and search on a show I did of Toubab Krewe in 2009 (search Toubab and Tonedeaf, you should find it).  From the sweet spot, I ran CA-14 ($150 new) side-by-side with a pair of U89s ($6400 new).  You'll be amazed how good the CA-14's sound compared to the u89's.  I suggest that you save the anxiety and money and keep your CA-14 omni's.  These are great mics and when it comes to omni's, as others have already commented it's as much about mic placement and the general environment as it is about the mic, so you could have ummmm 42 times what you have invested in your mics, but they might not sound any better than your CA-14's if the conditions aren't right.

So true. I'm going to release the TV On The Radio set from Moe,.Down, Steve! Its my mk41>lemosax + CA-14 Cards>SP BB>R09. You'll all be amazed at how good the CA14 sounds, at least IMO!