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Author Topic: Mic Recommendations  (Read 4153 times)

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Offline BleedingMe

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Mic Recommendations
« on: August 13, 2017, 05:57:00 AM »
I'm looking to upgrade, well that's probably the wrong wording, buy some new mics with different charateristics I guess. I'm currently running CA-11's & CA-14's Cardioids with either PCM-M10 & Roland R-05 and a CA BatteryBox. I really only stealth tape with mics clipped under my collar or the CA-11's in croakies. I mostly attend shows at smaller clubs or theatres with the occasional arena show.

I don't want to break the bank, so I'm looking at the Sound Professionals mics which I like the sound of, but not sure on which ones would be the best fit for my purposes. I'm tossing up between either the SP-CMC-8 or the SP-CMC-4U (with mod of course), but most of the older posts where there are pictures comparing are long gone. What size and weight are the SP-CMC-4U compared to the CA-14's as these have been fine so far for stealthing, but much bigger and heavy would be an issue. Or should I just spend the extra $200 and go ahead and get the SP-CMC-8? And are these mics fine to plug straight into the recorder with PP? I know it's not ideal, but at bigger venues in Australia they wand and would probably ask questions if they found a Battery Box or Pre-amp. I've gone straight into the recorder with the CA-11's at a very loud Meshuggah show with no problems. And I've also run the CA-14's with no BB without any issues at all.

Cheers

Offline nulldogmas

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #1 on: August 13, 2017, 08:12:22 AM »
I can't speak the battery box question because I always use one, but when I've done tests on the SP-CMC-4U vs the CA-14 cards, the results have been indistinguishable. The 4Us are maybe the tiniest bit narrower because they don't have the built-in windscreens, but they're a smidge longer. They're great mics, but I don't know that I'd consider them a significant upgrade.

Lots of people love the SP-CMC-8s, but their sound is a little thin for my tastes. Like the others, they'd fit fine under a collar or clipped to a hat.

Offline BleedingMe

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #2 on: August 17, 2017, 05:54:21 AM »
Thanks for the reply.  :)

I see what you mean about the SP-CMC-8s. I've listened to a few shows recorded with them and although they seem very clear, the sound is wafer thin for my tastes as well. I'm pretty sure it would be easy to get a similar result if you rolled-off the bass in post with the SP-CMC-4U. Seeing as the SP-CMC-4U's are a lot cheaper and aren't too big, I might go with them. This way I can get one of their Battery Boxes as well. From what I have heard, there are a enough differences between the 4U's and the CA14's to warrant getting a pair.

Offline acidjack

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #3 on: August 17, 2017, 01:37:19 PM »
The SP-CMC-4 is arguably an upgrade to CA-14, but I really mean "arguably." I'd call them a lateral move.

Unless you want to go all-in with much better full-size mics that have "active" solutions, like Beyers or AKGs or something of that nature, then I think you should stick w/ what you've got.
Mics: Schoeps MK4V, MK41V, MK5, MK22> CMC6, KCY 250/5, KC5, NBob; MBHO MBP603/KA200N, AT 3031, DPA 4061 w/ d:vice, Naiant X-X, AT 853c, shotgun, Nak300
Pres/Power: Aerco MP2, tinybox v2  [KCY], CA-UBB
Decks: Sound Devices MixPre 6, Zoom F8, M10, D50

My recordings on nyctaper.com: http://www.nyctaper.com/?tag=acidjack | LMA: http://www.archive.org/bookmarks/acidjack | twitter: http://www.twitter.com/acidjacknyc | Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/acidjacknyc

Offline voltronic

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #4 on: August 17, 2017, 02:32:40 PM »
The SP-CMC-4 is arguably an upgrade to CA-14, but I really mean "arguably." I'd call them a lateral move.

Unless you want to go all-in with much better full-size mics that have "active" solutions, like Beyers or AKGs or something of that nature, then I think you should stick w/ what you've got.

For tiny size and quality, I can't imagine beating the DPA 4061.  Expensive new, but you can find them used all the time after professional theaters swap out for new ones.  You'll find them terminated to all different configurations depending on what wireless lav packs they were used with.  Ignore that, and just but a couple that look like they're in good shape.  Then, send them off to one of the cable builders here to terminate two of them to a miniplug so you could power them from your existing battery box (they require 8V, so a 9V source is just fine).

EDIT:  I would say that this is only worth doing if you're going to use the battery box.  These probably won't perform great with the lower PIP voltage of the R-05.
« Last Edit: August 17, 2017, 02:34:41 PM by voltronic »
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Offline nulldogmas

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #5 on: August 17, 2017, 06:41:49 PM »
What Acidjack said. I've run CA-14s and AT-853s (aka SP-CMC-4Us) side-by-side, and been completely unable to tell the difference when I listen back.

And the DPA 4061s are great as well, but they only come as omnis, yes? So not really a good substitute for CA-14 cards in a performance space where you need to cut out crowd noise and/or room echo.

Offline edtyre

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #6 on: August 17, 2017, 07:08:23 PM »
What they all said, SP are a lateral move and omni's
are not well suited for your kinds of venues. Save your
cash and upgrade to AKG actives or my fav mics,Schoeps.
music>mics>pre>recorder

Offline voltronic

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #7 on: August 17, 2017, 09:41:01 PM »
And the DPA 4061s are great as well, but they only come as omnis, yes? So not really a good substitute for CA-14 cards in a performance space where you need to cut out crowd noise and/or room echo.

Yeah, they are omnis and they will pick up everything, even more so than other omnis.

I am hitting my head against the walls, but the walls are giving way.
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Acoustic Recording Techniques
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Offline BleedingMe

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #8 on: August 18, 2017, 06:06:02 AM »
The Australian dollar isn't quite what it was a few years ago, so you're adding another 20% on top of the asking price and shipping is also a killer. I only get to 5 or 6 shows a year, so throwing down big money on premium mics isn't really an option to be honest. I'm pretty adept and have no qualms in EQ'ing the shit out of something to make it sound better either.  :D

I basically just want some mics that have a nice crunchy midrange to them with still a bit of warmth. I'm pretty sure I've heard some examples of the Audio Technica mics fitting that bill, whether they were the soundpros or not is another thing. So yeah, maybe I'll only get that spending a bit of money.  :P

Here's a few of my better recordings on Dime with samples recorded with the Church Mics. They sound okay, but like I said, mids are a bit lacking.

http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=519819
http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=582238
http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=592199

Offline acidjack

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #9 on: August 18, 2017, 01:51:27 PM »
If midrange is what you're after, I'd spend more time and maybe money investing in being good at EQ. Generally the qualities lacking in a smaller and/or lower-quality mic are bass and detail. If you just want crunchy mids there are plenty of EQ methods and related plugins that can do what you want. It definitely doesn't sound like you'd benefit from buying more mics. I didn't intend to omit 4061s -- they're awesome, but they aren't going to necessarily be good for what you want.
Mics: Schoeps MK4V, MK41V, MK5, MK22> CMC6, KCY 250/5, KC5, NBob; MBHO MBP603/KA200N, AT 3031, DPA 4061 w/ d:vice, Naiant X-X, AT 853c, shotgun, Nak300
Pres/Power: Aerco MP2, tinybox v2  [KCY], CA-UBB
Decks: Sound Devices MixPre 6, Zoom F8, M10, D50

My recordings on nyctaper.com: http://www.nyctaper.com/?tag=acidjack | LMA: http://www.archive.org/bookmarks/acidjack | twitter: http://www.twitter.com/acidjacknyc | Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/acidjacknyc

Offline nak700s

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Re: Mic Recommendations
« Reply #10 on: August 18, 2017, 02:29:30 PM »
I happen to think the CA-14c is a fine mic for stealth situations.  Personally, I wear them in a hat to raise them out of the audience.  A collar recording will muffle them in the crowd.  I would be happy to advise on a hat set-up, but would imagine you know what to do.  If you are intent on an upgrade, make sure you get cardioids, that, in my opinion, is a make or break when stealthing in the middle of a crowd.  Especially a small venue.  Seek out a pair of chopped Nak 700's...they wrote the book on small quality mics, and will more than likely fit into your budget sooner than a comparable alternative.  Just my two-cents.
Normal: Nakamichi CM-700's >> SD 744T (or) Sony PCM-M10
Normal: Crown CM-700's >> SD 302 >> SD 744T
Fun times: 3 Crown CM-700's >> SD 302 >> SD744T + 2 Nakamichi CM-700's >> SD744T
Stealth: CA-14c >> CA 9200 >> Edirol R-09HR
Ultra stealth: AudioReality >> AudioReality battery box >> Edirol R-09HR
Simple & Sweet!

 

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