Topic: Studio Project mics question

[kstanya]

Has anyone heard of this company?  How are their products?  In particular the C4s were reccomended to me and I was wondering if they were any good.  Anyone have any experience?

[creekfreak]

I have had them recommended a few times myself, not heard much about, seen a few comments on this board about not liking them much

[jnorman34]

if you are on a restricted budget, i'd recommend that you consider saving up for some thing  like gefell m300s or AT 4051s (either can be had for around $600 pr used, and you will not lose any money if you resell them).   at the very least, perhaps akg c391b's (something like $350 pr used).  the little C4s are SP's first attempt at SD condensers. and while they have been as well received as their LD model, the C1, or their tube version, the T3, the C4 is useable on some applications in the studio, but it is not perhaps the best choice as a main stereo pair for diffuse field work.

[tfrench]

My brother picked up these mics for our setup.  We put them to use for the first time about two weeks ago.  The recording came out great!  Sweet mics for the price.  Check out the website for our setup:

http://warped-galaxy.com/articals/001_my-recording-rig/001_my-recording-rig.htm

[jpschust]

if you are on a restricted budget, i'd recommend that you consider saving up for some thing  like gefell m300s or AT 4051s (either can be had for around $600 pr used, and you will not lose any money if you resell them).   at the very least, perhaps akg c391b's (something like $350 pr used).  the little C4s are SP's first attempt at SD condensers. and while they have been as well received as their LD model, the C1, or their tube version, the T3, the C4 is useable on some applications in the studio, but it is not perhaps the best choice as a main stereo pair for diffuse field work.

i would disagree with you here.  first off, i think these are significantly better mics than you make them seem.  I just got a brand new pair at an incredible price.  You getan unreal setup for a great deal, not to mention a mic that at least compares with the akg 391s. if not outdoes them imho.  If you shop around you aren't going to lose any money on a pair when you sell them.  At least no more than you'd lose on any pair of mics you would buy new.

Something to remember- these mics come with 2 sets of caps, they come factory matched, with shock mounts (good ones taboot) and screens (which i need to replace... they just are cheap screens like all screens that come with mics).

The fq response on these mics is really really nice, and I got the opportunity to play with them live last week as well as in the studio.  I would argue that these are pretty nice mics for field work, especially at the price.

[jnorman34]

jpsc - sorry if i am sounding elitist or something, and my comments only come from my own personal experience.  i ran neumann km184s for several years and while they are fine mics, and did some things in the studio very well, i never liked them as a main stereo pair.   it wasnt until i finally invested in some schoeps that i realized that certain mics are designed for diffuse field work and that in general, most SD mics are designed for near field applications, resulting in rahter thin bright results when used for diffuse applications.  at the same time, while the schoeps are phenomenal as a main pair, they are rather boomy when used in the near field.  since my experience has shown that the 480s, and the at4051s are designed somewhere in the middle, they function pretty well in both near field and diffuse situations.  i can tell from the curve on the SP mics that they are crafted more toward near field applications, and that for diffuse field work, they may not be the best choice - that doenst mean that they wont deliver nice results when used properly and matched with the appropriate preamp.  one of the nice things about most of the taper crowd is that they generally invest in nice preamps, unlie so many project studio owners who try to get away with with truly crummy preamps.   all of that said, i do think that alan hyatt really tries hard to deliver good affordable products as well as responsive customer service - SP is a good solid company.  take care.

[jpschust]

for sure, sorry if i came off sounding a touch harsh, didn't mean to.  I see what you are saying about the plots and the near field use, however i think if you look at that plot in comparison to many of the other sd mics being used for diffuse situations you will see a nicely comprable curve.  im still working with them in a stereo pair to figure out what config is best for them.  as i continue to experiment ill let you know.  
i also see what you are saying about the crummy preamps thing- who wants to run any mic through a behringer pre?  its gonna come out sounding crummy- even the best of mics.

[kstanya]

I am probably going to pick these up, as they seem like a great deal for someone just starting out.  But a question- what type of wind screens do you reccomend if not the ones they come with?

[jpschust]

the dpa screens are nice- the ones that it comes with will get you by initially, but any screen to fit a small diaphragm mic will work

[tfrench]

Review of mics have been posted:

http://www.taperssection.com/yabbse/index.php?board=3;action=display;threadid=16111

[Sharky]

Me and my brother, tfrench(above), just recorded our second show friday night and were very pleased with the results. I am running C4 > PS2 > AD20 > JB3. I have a sample track available for download at my web site for anyone interested in what the C4's sound like.

http://warped-galaxy.com/live_music/live_music.htm

You may have to right click and "save target as" if your connection is too slow to stream it.

[Jason B]

I am probably going to pick these up, as they seem like a great deal for someone just starting out.  But a question- what type of wind screens do you reccomend if not the ones they come with?

have you thought about the C1? I have personal experience with this mic and it is an excellent choice for the money.