Topic: Stereo mics choice

[carpa]

I've got an Edirol R09HR which I use for recording my own piano and chamber classical music concerts and rehearsals. I've also a Naiant Littlebox plus a couple of Naiant's XX' little omni mics;  these mics are very good for the price and Littlebox is great, capable of delivering a very high quality with a lot of good microphones.

Unfortunately I often don't have time to deal with cables, batteries, placing mics 'cause most of the times I need to have a short rehearsal and don't bother with anything else. That's why most of the times I leave everythin home but my R09HR which I use with its internals or with a Sony ecm 907.  This is a mic I don't like and I don't trust so much over my recorder's internals but this is what I have. 
I'm looking for a better stereo mic to plug into my Edirol and go, leaving my littlebox for situations in which I have more time to experiment different mics or placements; I know that two mono are a better choice but if the result is leaving them home every other thing turns to be the way to go.

I selected two (maybe three) mics but I would like a suggestion from you:

AT 8022  -  features a good portability for size and lightweight, and it works with both battery and phantom so sometimes; I would mostly go with battery but I could also check the results with my littlebox when a cardioid is prefereable over omnis - i.e. a church or where I need to place some distance from the piano and mic. 
About the frequency range it shows a 20-15.000 htz; it looks strange because almost every other mic is 18.000/20.000 and also it's predecessor 822 had a freq.range up to 20.000- I wonder wether it is a real downside or this choice has a good reason.

Rode nt4 - more weight. This mic also works with both battery and phantom; it is more popular than AT maybe because 8022 it's new model...

Rode Stereo Video Mic - It's aimed to camcorders and it can't be phantom powered; nevertheless I wonder if it woud prove good enough considering a much lower price the the other two. Plus it is a super-cardioid and I would like to know how bigger the distance from the source it must be compared to an x-y card.

I've never had the possibility to try any of the mics above, so I'd like to know if some of you can tell me something about how they sound. If possible I'd like to chose the more natural sounding and less critical for positioning.
thanks a lot
c

[wheresjerry]

Happy Holidays!

The first mic I purchased was the rode nt-4 and have used it quite a bit in the past.  I do own a pair of akg's now, but still can't part with the nt-4.  I have captured quite a few decent sounding shows with it, and don't want to give it up for it's simplicity.  One cable to mess with, and basically point and shoot. You need'nt worry about spacing and direction because it is a fixed XY position. Depending on your deck, and phantom power, having the built in 9v battery is a plus as it won't drain down the decks battery.  I have been pleased with the purchase, and plan on keeping it in my bag.  Hope that helps!

k

[bgalizio]

I've been very impressed with my AT822. You could probably call Audio Technica's office in Ohio to see if they have any more... There's usually a bunch at their annual warehouse sale.

[12milluz]

I've been very impressed with my AT822. You could probably call Audio Technica's office in Ohio to see if they have any more... There's usually a bunch at their annual warehouse sale.

Iwent this year and even asked for them and they had none. I regret not buying one last year as they were pretty cheap.

[carpa]

Thank you.  Indeed if I had the possibility to get an AT 822 or better an AT825 I would have gone with no doubt. The new model 8022 is much more pricey and - in Italy at least- costs about the same money as the Rode nt4; that's why I'd like to get some reviews/comparisons between the two models.

Cheaper mics might be the Beyer 72 (but on the web lot of people complain about a lack of bass) or the Rode stereo video mic, but they botj don't have the phantom possibility as a plus.

[Will_S]

Thank you.  Indeed if I had the possibility to get an AT 822 or better an AT825 I would have gone with no doubt.

In that case maybe look into these AT822/825 knockoffs.  I have no direct experience with them, nor do I know what their price structure is like in Europe, but in the USA they'd be cheaper than any of the other options:

Nady CM-2S (AT822 knockoff, no phantom)  I've read many reports suggesting this sounds just like an AT822. But then there is this:  http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/48739-6-nady

Tascam TM-ST2 (AT822 knockoff, no phantom)

Tascam TM-STPRO (AT822 knockoff, battery or phantom, but note that it ships with only a balanced output cable)

Edit:  Going by spec sheets, the Tascams lack bass compared to the Audio Technica they are meant to copy.  Also, I was interested to see your mention of the MCE72 - I've always been curious about this mic, but don't know of anyone using it for music and in the US it is costlier than the AT822 was, so I never tried it out.  But if you'd be interested in trading an MCE72 for my used but in good condition AT822, let's talk.

[carpa]

There's quite a bit of mistery about specs and performances....a few reviews of the new AT8022 model talk about a lack of bass, while the spec says  20-15.000; nobosy complains about the top end which seems hi-cut according to specs.   The old 825 instead starts from 40/50 htz but no complaints about bass....
No surprise about the relation between specs and real performance, but a few things suggest the new model being something completely different from the old one. Don't know if better but if I could grab an old 825 for a few money I wouldn't think about it twice...

For what concerns the Nady the link posted by Will confirms it's not as good as the AT, as I've also read elsewhere, so I think it's a poor alternative.Something like the new (I think) superlux which is a clear imitation of rode nt4- same shape,  much less hot but much less cheaper.

I'll throw a glance at Tascam st-pro which offers coth battery and phantom powering; this also seems to be less hot than rode and maybe AT...