Topic: core sound binaural mics vs sp-cmc4 or cmc8

[chico1610]

has someone any info about which of these mics are better for recording classical music and/or rock concerts? any other hints might be helpful as well! h.

[SmokinJoe]

I have CSB's and AT853's (aka SP-CMC4).  I think both provide comparable sound quality.  There is nothing wrong with the CMC8's, except they cost more and from the listening tests I've heard I prefer the sound of the AT853's.  Your mileage may vary.  I'll stop there before I induce a flame war.  Probably too late.

If you are planning to use them for open taping, the AT853's with card and omni caps will provide more options than CSB's with fixed omnis.

I like the CSB's for undercover rock shows.  I use them with the supplied battery box, and run it "Line in" my R09, with gain set to max. That connection between the mics and the battery box clips in solid, it's not going to come unplugged by accident.  CSB's are omnis, and the advantage to omnis is that you don't need to be quite as fussy about how you point (aka wear) them.  If it were something quieter than a loud rock show, it would need more gain.  My concern would be if you go to a classical symphony, I expect it's not nearly as loud as a rock show, and you would need to run "mic in" to your recorder, and probably apply quite a bit of gain.  A decent recorder like R09-HR or Sony M10 should be OK, if you get a cheap recorder it might not sound great with the gain cranked.

I also have AT853's but I've generally tended to run Card caps, and run them into a Church Audio preamp.  I like the way this sounds but my particular setup is a hassle for stealthing because I have 1/8" jacks in and out of my preamp, and they tend to come unplugged in my pocket.  I instead tend to use this rig for open taping when I don't want to bring 25 pounds of gear (ADK TL's > V3 > R4 + batteries).   You can run the AT's with omni caps and a battery box undercover, that's just not something I've done.

One of the other brands that are very popular here, but you didn't mention are the Church Audio mics, like the CA11 or CA14.  They offer good bang for the buck, and you see them lightly used in the yard sale fairly often.

If you get the SP-CMC4's keep in mind that you probably want the "low sensitivity mod".  Those mics where originally designed as a 3 wire mic with phantom adapters.  When wired into a stereo mini-plug they tend to clip/distort when the music gets pretty loud which includes most rock shows.  Chris Church found a way to add a resister to the wiring which prevents that.  He calls it the "4.7k mod" and that's what most people call it here, but SP calls it the "low sensitivity mod".  There is debate whether CMC8's need this mod as well, or don't need it, or it doesn't help...  Let's not do that flamewar here either.

[SmokinJoe]

http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=142463.0

Here is a pair of CA11 cards for $60.   I can't vouch for this particular pair, or the seller, but in general these pair of mics are comparable quality to the CSBs or AT853's.  A little different flavor, but in the ball park.

[Gutbucket]

My concern would be if you go to a classical symphony, I expect it's not nearly as loud as a rock show, and you would need to run "mic in" to your recorder, and probably apply quite a bit of gain.

Really depends on the program- a quiet string quartet will need much more gain (highest peaks will be applause), but some full symphonic material has incredibly loud peaks as well as super quiet sections, with the widest dynamic range of any recorded music..  far more overall dynamics than rock shows even if those loud peaks are generally less sustained.