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Gear / Technical Help => Microphones & Setup => Topic started by: BobW on December 23, 2003, 08:54:54 PM

Title: Blue Ball Mics
Post by: BobW on December 23, 2003, 08:54:54 PM
Anyone try these in a small club ?

http://www.bluemic.com/images_products/ball.htm
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: Jason B on December 23, 2003, 10:34:54 PM
To me it's more of an all purpose, SM-57 type mic. It's dynamic, which wouldn't make for good live recordings in my opinion.


-JB
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: King Crimson on December 23, 2003, 10:42:23 PM
Those mics always looked HELLA fragile to me.  Dont think I'd risk it.
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: hoobash on December 23, 2003, 11:50:18 PM
Trust me you dont want blue balls
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: sexymexi on December 24, 2003, 12:28:33 AM
hahaha too funny..  i wouldn't use them for live recording either.. lacking in frequency range for one, i'm sure it sounds good for a guitar cabinet or somthing. but yea...
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: dmonterisi on December 24, 2003, 12:55:16 AM
well, at least we found mics with a worse name than giant squids.
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: cpclark on December 24, 2003, 02:00:18 AM
i bet they actually would sound really good on a guitar amp, if i could get ahold of one i could try it out at our next practice
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: heath on December 24, 2003, 09:54:33 AM
I've got one, getting a second....Love em for studio use.  I've been real impressed as a guitar cab mic and also for certain vocal situations.  This mic is no wuss either...it's heavy and definitely Not fragile.  For the $ it can do sooooo much.  If anyone wants to borrow it and test it out, I might be willing to ship it out after the new year for a little while.

Heath
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: Jason B on December 24, 2003, 11:27:18 AM
it's heavy and definitely Not fragile.  

This is funny because in the review that Recording Magaizine did on this mic, they accidentally dropped it off of a chair to the studio floor and it broke. The internal wiring came loose. Blue had to overnight them a replacement I believe so they could finish the review!

-JB
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: heath on December 24, 2003, 11:34:48 AM
mine has yet to break--however, i wouldn't submit any mic to a drop test.  I mean it's no more fragile than a u89 or a 414.  Bottom line, don't drop mics and you'll be fine.  Unless you want to talk about 57's.  I've got some cool sound effects from driving down semoran blvd with a 57 being dragged 2 feet behind my truck (on purpose)>v2>p1.  also a few of it stuffed in the exhaust and also taped under the hood. oh yeah i also put it in a condom and threw it into a lake.  cool noises.  mics still worked until i decided to record it being run over by my truck a few times (surprisingly it took multiple passes to finally break the mic into a unworkable state).   :P

H

Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: Jason B on December 24, 2003, 11:35:43 AM
 :lol:

-JB
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: Brian on December 24, 2003, 12:26:44 PM
Nice heath! +T :lol:
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: heath on December 24, 2003, 02:16:41 PM
always trying to experiment...

+T back at cha
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: cpclark on December 25, 2003, 01:34:11 AM
very nice work heath, im gonna be picking up some 57's after the new year for guitar cabs and various drums
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: heath on December 25, 2003, 10:15:26 AM
i've heard some killer dead shows done with 421's.  Moke is right!  Don't underestimate the dynamic!!!
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: Lee on December 26, 2003, 11:58:39 AM
what about the dynamic mics makes them not good for our use?  Just curious, I know the electrical characteristics of dynamic vs. condenser but I'm curious as to the sonic differences of each.
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: jpschust on December 26, 2003, 12:11:03 PM
i actually got to run one of these in a studio recently, basically a wacky 57.  as far as fragility its pretty sturdy compared to what i thought it would be, but ill take a fully metal mic any day of the week over anything plastic.
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: DaryanLenz on December 26, 2003, 01:59:55 PM
They will survive a drop for sure.  They gurantee it will regardless.  The mic is reviewed in last month's recording magazine.  I would be more than happy to make a copy of the article if someone wants to read it.

D
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: BobW on December 27, 2003, 10:55:49 AM
Dynamics tend to drop off bass with distance, I think. So generally they'd be bad choice for tapersection distances. Sound reinforcement and the fact that these are biased dynamics raised the question.  
There's usually alot of sound to go around if you're near the mid-aud stack, and if the phantom makes these particularly sensitive dynamics, I guess it could work. Top end would likely be marginal at best.

They're cheap enough to keep as a pair to knock around with.

I do remember someone using an EV664 mixed with a Shure dynamic to get a half-decent 2track mono on a TCD-7......
Certainly not up to today's standards.
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: creekfreak on December 27, 2003, 04:08:10 PM
I still love the name...what do they do, make that almost perfect recording that you think is going to kill then comes up short?  ;D
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: Chanher on December 27, 2003, 08:56:49 PM
Hey Heath, sunday Jan. 4 through Friday the 9th my friend and I are laying down a bunch of tracks, I'd love to try it out if possible, but you don't have to trust a stranger with em.  :)
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: F.O.Bean on December 28, 2003, 03:23:43 AM
I still love the name...what do they do, make that almost perfect recording that you think is going to kill then comes up short?  ;D

hehehehe, best.........thread................ever!!!
Title: Re:Blue Ball Mics
Post by: heath on December 28, 2003, 11:38:41 AM
Hey Heath, sunday Jan. 4 through Friday the 9th my friend and I are laying down a bunch of tracks, I'd love to try it out if possible, but you don't have to trust a stranger with em.  :)

Chris,
    I'll be out of town until the 5th, but could possibly get it out then.  It sound nice on guitar cabs for sure.  Let me know if you'd still want to give it a whirl.

H