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So... what are you using for small diaphragm condensers?


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Large diaphragm condensers get all the glory, and there seems like there is a new one coming out every few weeks. I'm just curious about what everyone is using these days for the small guys - the small diaphragm condensers.

 

Please tell us what you think about the ones you're using too.

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i only have 1... a mojave ma100

 

haven't had it long but i really like it... i just used it this evening to record a snare with brushes

 

i also use it for acoustic guitars (sometimes with another mic.. sometimes not) and djembe/other percussion

 

keep in mind i'm only recording myself in my home studio... and my main drum sounds i get from a roland v drum kit triggering bfd2... which obviously changes my mic requirements

 

i usually use the mojave with an rnp, but tonight i tried it with a ua solo 610... i don't know if it's the done thing to record a tube mic through a tube pre, but i really liked the combination

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A pair of Octava 012s. I love them Drum OHs, spaced acoustic guitar micing, XY in a larger room. I just love their sound, not clinical at all, they do have a "sound" and yet they're invisible too if that makes sense.

 

Occasionally I'll borrow my buddy's Neumann KM 184s and... I always end up just using the Octavas.

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Modded Oktava 012s. They're great. I notice Oktavamod now is pushing modded MXL 603s because the Oktavas cost about twice is much as they used to.

 

I used a pair of Rode NT4 for years, and they aren't too shabby for the price. I also have a pair of those little Naiant MSH-1 omnis that are built into XLR plugs.

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i usually use the mojave with an rnp, but tonight i tried it with a ua solo 610... i don't know if it's the done thing to record a tube mic through a tube pre, but i really liked the combination

 

Once upon a time, everything was recorded that way - using tube mikes, tube preamps... heck, even tube electronics in the tape deck and mixing console...

 

If you like the way it sounds, I wouldn't worry too much about it. :)

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A pair of Octava 012s. I love them Drum OHs, spaced acoustic guitar micing, XY in a larger room. I just love their sound, not clinical at all, they do have a "sound" and yet they're invisible too if that makes sense.


Occasionally I'll borrow my buddy's Neumann KM 184s and... I always end up just using the Octavas.

 

 

If the Octavas would have had better quality control and distribution, and maybe a little less self-noise, they could have taken over the world. They really are nice sounding microphones IMO. I have three of them, along with a bunch of capsules - even one of those 33mm LOMO LDC capsules, which also has a surprisingly Neuman-esque sound quality to it. I always thought the MC012 sounded closer to the KM84 than it does to the KM184. In fact, marque name aside, I'd rather have a nice pair of MC012's than the KM184s, which I find to be a too bright for my tastes.

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I'm using the AKG C1000s, I like them quite a bit. I've used some Shure SM81's a good deal as well, but I'm not as crazy about them. They are accurate though. I also have some cool Karma mic's K-minis, the omni pattern is pretty cool and they sound nice on acoustic guitars.

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I bought 8 of those karmas when they were on sale. I used them for awhile on drums but they would distort a little.

I'm using a pair of Cad CM 217's right now that were from a drum mic kit and work fine for whatever I need to do.

I picked up some Audio Technica drum mics as well so I have almost a complete set of drum mics which sounds

allot better then using mixed and matched vocal mics like I had been. Thay sound more balanced.

 

the cads have a low end attenuator which is handy. It will cut out most of the Kick and tom frequencies and just leave the highs.

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I have a pair of Mojave MA-101fet, a pair of Rode NT5, and a pair of AKG C|430 small diaphragm condensors.

 

The Mojaves are good mics. I like them on acoustics, drum overheads, percussion ... just about anything I've used them on, really.

 

The Rodes are decent. They can get a little splatty on drums and other high-SPL sources. Using shockmounts with them seems to help this.

 

The AKGs are very bright. I actually keep them on the trailer with my PA gear to use for the rare instances where I need drum overheads or anything like that on stage. I've used them a couple of times to mic a ukulele. That sort of thing. Lots of treble in them but they do a pretty decent job on drum overheads if your main goal is to capture the cymbals.

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I have a pair of EV RE200 mics and a pair of Audix F15 mics. Love the RE mics and use them for all around needs like OH and acoustic guitar. The audix mics usually just stay in the drawer unless I want to spot mic something like a high hat or a ride, they really sound terrible in comparison (understandably so I suppose)

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Pair of Audio-Technica AT3031's. I don't do a lot of micing of things these days, pretty much just occasional acoustic guitar. I've used them in the past as drum overheads, and single cymbal and drum sample recording. Never in a decent acoustic environment, but I haven't been displeased with them on anything. They seem pretty neutral, although the only thing I can really use as a comparison is a crappy MXL LDC that is too harsh in the high end.

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I used to use AT4051s regularly for acoustic guitars and overheads, but have gravitated toward other microphones. Taste mostly, I suppose, since AT4051s are very good mics.

 

I began using Heil PR30s for overheads, although I just did a session where I used a single Lawson L251 right over the snare about forehead level. Beautiful.

 

I began using a Lawson L251 for acoustic guitars instead of one or two AT4051s because I liked the sound more. Fuller.

 

I've occasionally pulled the AT4051s out for odd sorts of applications...a bass cabinet when I ran out of other microphones (it did quite well, particularly since my AT4051s are modified and have a little more bass response), some percussion, and even a floor tom when I just wasn't getting what I wanted from a 421.

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These days it's usually a pair of Little Blondies and my Shure KSM32's, which are somewhere between SDC's and LDC's, technically. I do have a pair of Karma K10's that I used to use quite a bit untill I got the Blondies and the KSM32's. They still get my vote for best bang for the buck in that price range, but they can get pretty aggressive in the upper mids. Still won't sell them, though...

 

PS: Hello again everyone! This is my 1st post here in, probably, over a year. Been so busy in my studio that I haven't had time to pop in.

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Hi Jo - good to see you again! :wave:

 

I hadn't heard of the Little Blondies before, so I went off on a Google search. Very interesting little omnis! They seem to sound pretty good based on their demo videos too. You must have a pretty decent sounding tracking room if you're using omni mikes for your overheads. :)

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These days it's usually a pair of Little Blondies and my Shure KSM32's, which are somewhere between SDC's and LDC's, technically. I do have a pair of Karma K10's that I used to use quite a bit untill I got the Blondies and the KSM32's. They still get my vote for best bang for the buck in that price range, but they can get pretty aggressive in the upper mids. Still won't sell them, though...

 

 

I have a little blondie and a little woodie. Both are fantastic, with subtle differences. I've used them for drum overheads, acoustic and electric guitars. Still learning the best applications for them, and all my recording is pretty amateurish at this point. But I'm glad I got those.

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I bought 8 of those karmas when they were on sale. I used them for awhile on drums but they would distort a little.

 

It's been ages since I checked out their site, but IIRC, they were talking about doing a version with lower sensitivity so they could be used on high SPL sources without them overloading as readily - in fact, I believe that's why I put off getting a set - I was planning on waiting until the newer version was ready. Did they ever release those?

 

I'm using a pair of Cad CM 217's right now that were from a drum mic kit and work fine for whatever I need to do.

 

I think Musician's Friend sells sets of those (2 mikes) for $60. Again, I've never tried them, but have certainly been curious about them. The stated frequency response goes out to 13kHz and then slopes off pretty heavily to where it's about 20dB down at 20kHz. How "dark" do they sound? Are the highs still "there" when used as overheads?

 

the cads have a low end attenuator which is handy. It will cut out most of the Kick and tom frequencies and just leave the highs.

 

A good HPF can also be nice for spot mic use on ride cymbals and so forth...

 

So you like the CADs quite a bit? :)

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I'll just throw this thought out here: do people use SDCs less now because digital typically reacts much quicker than analog?

 

 

"Reacts"? Are you referring to transient response or something else Ken?

 

SDC's have certain advantages IMO, and certain disadvantages. They tend to suffer from greater self-noise than LDC's, but they also tend to have less issues with ring and overshoot, and less colored off-axis response. Transient response does tend to be very good, but that's true of most ribbon mikes too, and lots of people use and love the sound of those with digital recording. Some of the SDC's out there can be pretty bright, but in that respect I don't think they're all that different from many of the current crop of LDC's - there are a ton of LDC's out there with hyped high frequencies too. I used to use AKG 451EB's for overheads a lot back in the analog days, but I found them a bit too bright when tracking to digital. The KM184 is a pretty darned bright mic too IMHO, but its predecessor, the KM84, doesn't suffer from the same issue IMO.

 

It's an interesting question.

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