Topic: what are my AT853s? which of the mikes I own are best for stealthing?

[easyed]

Two questions.

1) what exactly are the AT853 mikes I own?  How about the Core Sounds?




2) which of the mikes I own would be best for stealth recording from the audience?  I like to position myself very close to a speaker stack for stealthing.

I record into my Sony D8, which had the preamps modified by Oade Brothers in 2004.  I own:
A) Oade Brothers Audio Binaural Micro Mics "high resolution stereo microphones for use with Sony DAT walkmans", purchased new from Oade Bros in 2004.  I believe they told me they were modified Panasonics?
B) Core Sound Binaural Stealth Mics.  Purchased used on ebay, seller described them as 'Core-Sound Binaural Stealth Stereo Mics', said he bought them from Core Sound before CS was offering any battery boxes, he bought a battery box from The Sound Professionals called 'The Sound Professionals Battery Module" which I got with the CS mikes.
C) Audio Technica AT853's.  Purchased #1 new from AT between 1982 and 1985.  Purchased #2 new from AT in the early 90's.

Thanks in advance for your replies,
Easy Ed

picture of the Oade mics

[Myco]

The AT853's are the bigger mics with no clips, the Core-Sounds are the smaller mics with the attached alligator clips. I can't tell from the picture you've supplied, but it looks like your AT's have a fixed permanent capsules, my capsules are interchangable. I can't really tell what caps are on those AT853's but they are probably cardioid caps.

The Core-Sound mics are binaural mics and are meant to reproduce the sound as heard in your "headspace" at the show as opposed to the general sound of the music in the room. They will reproduce what you are hearing in your space at the show, as opposed to the show overall. If you're in a great spot and you're hearing a great show then the recording will probably be great also.

The AT853's are generally considered the better of the two pair of mics as they are more directional. Alot depends on your positioning in the room, and how the room sounds overall though. Good recordings can be made with both types of mics used in the right circumstances. For stack taping I'd use the AT853's, and I own a pair of these also with the card & hyper capsules.

[easyed]

The AT853's are the bigger mics with no clips, the Core-Sounds are the smaller mics with the attached alligator clips. I can't tell from the picture you've supplied, but it looks like your AT's have a fixed permanent capsules, my capsules are interchangable. I can't really tell what caps are on those AT853's but they are probably cardioid caps.

The Core-Sound mics are binaural mics and are meant to reproduce the sound as heard in your "headspace" at the show as opposed to the general sound of the music in the room. They will reproduce what you are hearing in your space at the show, as opposed to the show overall. If you're in a great spot and you're hearing a great show then the recording will probably be great also.

The AT853's are generally considered the better of the two pair of mics as they are more directional. Alot depends on your positioning in the room, and how the room sounds overall though. Good recordings can be made with both types of mics used in the right circumstances. For stack taping I'd use the AT853's, and I own a pair of these also with the card & hyper capsules.

The capsules on the AT853's are removable.  The spec sheet that came with the older AT853 describes the mike as 'cardiod' not hyper.

Assuming the house mix is in mono, I like to get 10 or 20 feet from a speaker stack (or even closer in a smaller venue).

Given that I can change the AT853 capsules, how much of an improvement could I get for how much money with what other caps?

Thanks for the advice.

[illconditioned]

Warning: The top photo is of the *very* old AT853.  They are not compatable with the bulk of AT853 gear.  The middle one is the standard.  There are newer ones U853, backward compatable, bodies and caps may be interchanged.

Get rid of those old ones (maybe keep the power module though).  They have poor sound and high self noise.

The safest would be the Coresound.  Not because they are best, but because they are already wired properly for recording.  Save the others for experimentation offline...

  Richard

[Myco]

The AT853's are the bigger mics with no clips, the Core-Sounds are the smaller mics with the attached alligator clips. I can't tell from the picture you've supplied, but it looks like your AT's have a fixed permanent capsules, my capsules are interchangable. I can't really tell what caps are on those AT853's but they are probably cardioid caps.

The Core-Sound mics are binaural mics and are meant to reproduce the sound as heard in your "headspace" at the show as opposed to the general sound of the music in the room. They will reproduce what you are hearing in your space at the show, as opposed to the show overall. If you're in a great spot and you're hearing a great show then the recording will probably be great also.

The AT853's are generally considered the better of the two pair of mics as they are more directional. Alot depends on your positioning in the room, and how the room sounds overall though. Good recordings can be made with both types of mics used in the right circumstances. For stack taping I'd use the AT853's, and I own a pair of these also with the card & hyper capsules.

The capsules on the AT853's are removable.  The spec sheet that came with the older AT853 describes the mike as 'cardiod' not hyper.

Assuming the house mix is in mono, I like to get 10 or 20 feet from a speaker stack (or even closer in a smaller venue).

Given that I can change the AT853 capsules, how much of an improvement could I get for how much money with what other caps?

Thanks for the advice.

With the AT853 hyper caps and a good battery box or pre-amp you could push back to the middle of a room and still get a good recording. You can check here for new caps http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/category/320/mics
Call and talk to Chris the owner if you any compatibility questions with the gear you have. He will do mods to older equipment also, but I'd upgrade my equipment before I'd mod what you currently have. No dissing the gear by any means because i've been there, but if you have the extra cash and the initiative then an upgrade would really make you happy. If you are planning on an upgrade check out the Yard Sale section here on the board, plenty of good to great quality gear moving about in there at a discount nowadays if you are so inclined.

The previous post is correct also, if you want the easiest solution then the Core-Sounds are about as plug and go as you can get, but the results won't always be the best, or as good even as the AT853's.

[dorrcoq]

What the hell is that piece of coat hanger (or whatever it is) for?

[paulbaptiste]

As richard stated, the first 853 is old, the cap is removable but a different thread than the newer seriers and not interchangable-  I'd look on ebay for a single 853 to match what you already have- can be found for around 50 dollars.  Then just cut the cables shorter, put back on the mini xlr's, and get a Church Pre to run em. 

[illconditioned]

What the hell is that piece of coat hanger (or whatever it is) for?

Hanger for the mic.  One side twist on the hanging wire, the other points the mic...

  Richard

[Roger Gustavsson]

This is what the hanger does:



Roger

[(Evan)]

I had no idea they made AT853's in the early 80s!

[easyed]

Thank you Myco and Illconditioned for your replies.  You provided the info I was after.

Sounds like I should get another AT853 on ebay and then a Church Audio preamp (or would a Denecke PS2 be better or roughly equivalent?).  If I get a CA preamp I'll contact them to make sure I get the proper one.

May all your recordings be flawless and sweet!

[nameloc01]

The PS2 just supplies power...there's no adjustable gain unlike the preamp.