Topic: Best affordable true presssure omnis?

[jnorman34]

i am in need of a pair of affordable true pressure omnis to use as room/ambient mics in my studio.  i would like to stay away from mics with very small diaprhagms due to self noise issues.  i was thinking akg se300/ck62s, c460/ck92, or maybe AT4049s, but i might consider some of the newer mics if they are good enough, such as the avantone ck1s, or even SP-C4s.  what do youse guys say - what is the best deal in a true pressure omni?  thanks.

[J.T.L]

The best is decided by your ears and I have found my ears like Avenson Audio STO-2 ...

http://www.avensonaudio.com/sto2.php

...I don't own a pair but a few here have run them.

[jnorman34]

thanks jtl - i have looked at those, and also the DPA 4090s, but those are two of the models i worry about because of self noise/small capsule size.  i have not yet ruled them out, though...

[dallman]

I have to confess that most of my recording is not done in a controlled environment, but in that situation I have been really impressed with the AT 3035's which are very reasonable price wise. They really are impressive on string instruments like the cello, and have good overall range and presence.

[jnorman34]

hiya dalman - i know several people like the 3035 ( a cardoid pattern mic), but i was asking about omnis, specifically true pressure omnis (schoeps mk2, dpa 4006, etc), as opposed to dual membrane mics that create an omni pattern by combining the output of two diaprhagms (ie, U87, AT4050s, etc).  thanks.

[JD]

I'm really happy with the recordings I get from my Avenson STO2's. Great mics for the money.

I've only use them for outdoor concert recording, not sure how they would do in a studio environment.

[dallman]

hiya dalman - i know several people like the 3035 ( a cardoid pattern mic), but i was asking about omnis, specifically true pressure omnis (schoeps mk2, dpa 4006, etc), as opposed to dual membrane mics that create an omni pattern by combining the output of two diaprhagms (ie, U87, AT4050s, etc).  thanks.

Sorry about the dylexia.

[ambo]

AT3032's are nice and quiet too. About 8db according to tests done by the folks at Naturerecordists.org.  I use them usually in a Jecklin Disc setup for soundscape recordings and small acoustic ensembles as well as marimba and drumset. I also have a pair of Peluso CEMC 6's with card caps. Is anyone familiar with the omni or wide card caps for the Peluso's? The cards sound very nice and also quiet - about 14db. The Avensons, like the Earthworks mics have a very small diaphram and are noisier but are quite highly regarded sound wise.

[muj]

i am in need of a pair of affordable true pressure omnis to use as room/ambient mics in my studio.  i would like to stay away from mics with very small diaprhagms due to self noise issues.  i was thinking akg se300/ck62s, c460/ck92, or maybe AT4049s, but i might consider some of the newer mics if they are good enough, such as the avantone ck1s, or even SP-C4s.  what do youse guys say - what is the best deal in a true pressure omni?  thanks.

if you got the $$$ the josephson c617 might be a good idea....IF $$$ is restricted http://www.bswa-tech.com/pdf/SM4000.pdf

[RebelRebel]

i am in need of a pair of affordable true pressure omnis to use as room/ambient mics in my studio.  i would like to stay away from mics with very small diaprhagms due to self noise issues.  i was thinking akg se300/ck62s, c460/ck92, or maybe AT4049s, but i might consider some of the newer mics if they are good enough, such as the avantone ck1s, or even SP-C4s.  what do youse guys say - what is the best deal in a true pressure omni?  thanks.

if you got the $$$ the josephson c617 might be a good idea....IF $$$ is restricted http://www.bswa-tech.com/pdf/SM4000.pdf

erm..he was asking about affordable, Muj.    Never even heard of bswa,..man, ima say this again...you come up with some off the wall stuff, bro!   


Jnorman,

I dont know if you are aware of Tony Faulkner and his reputation, but he has said some good things about Rode Microphones.

http://www.rodemic.com/microphone.php?product=NT55

(per Tony, below)

My favourite small diaphragm omni is the Rode most probably.  There's a surprise.  They do an omni capsule for the NT5, NT55 and NT6 - it's very good and very omni.  If you want something more politically correct and less omni (i.e. more directional, which can be useful in the real world) I'ld suggest the Schoeps MK2H or DPA4003.


Tony is amazing, been in the business for long time, gazillion grammys working with the best classical musicians in the world, etc etc...

[jnorman34]

thanks to all you guys - so, no love for the avantones, i see.  nobody even sticking up for 460/480 with ck92.  i had a pair of nt5s once, which i thought were very similar to my km184s - okay for acoustic guitar and some piano applications, but thin as a main pair.  i could not find a freq response graph for the nt55 omni capsule - anybody got one?

[Church-Audio]

thanks jtl - i have looked at those, and also the DPA 4090s, but those are two of the models i worry about because of self noise/small capsule size.  i have not yet ruled them out, though...

I have the DPA 4007 Omni mic and I have compared it to the DPA 4090 and the 4090 came out pretty good. If you are concerned about noise you definitely want the 4090 over the 4091. I think for the money the 4090 is very hard to beat. And they are very natural sounding mics.

Chris

[RebelRebel]

thanks to all you guys - so, no love for the avantones, i see.  nobody even sticking up for 460/480 with ck92.  i had a pair of nt5s once, which i thought were very similar to my km184s - okay for acoustic guitar and some piano applications, but thin as a main pair.  i could not find a freq response graph for the nt55 omni capsule - anybody got one?

http://www.rodemic.com/downloads/nt55/nt55_product_manual.pdf


polar plots and freq response both are there.

When Tony talks, I listen. He is a giant among engineers.

[RebelRebel]

thanks to all you guys - so, no love for the avantones, i see.  nobody even sticking up for 460/480 with ck92.  i had a pair of nt5s once, which i thought were very similar to my km184s - okay for acoustic guitar and some piano applications, but thin as a main pair.  i could not find a freq response graph for the nt55 omni capsule - anybody got one?

Avantones avensons  :Pin my experience are very, very noisy. Similar to earthworks in that they are both very open/clean but for acoustic sources, unusable due to the high self noise.

[easy jim]

nobody even sticking up for 460/480 with ck92.

I think you mean the AKG ck62 with the 460/480, right?  The ck92 is the omni cap. for the blueline (390) series.

Of the AKG omnis, I like the 19mm ck22/ck2 with the 451/452 series better than the 21mm ck62 w/ the 460/480.  The ck22/ck2 also sounds nice with a reducer ring/460, but I still prefer 'em with the 45_ series mic bodies.