Ribbon Mic Samples (Acoustic Guitar)

(been waiting to post this for a couple days, but here it be )
Howdy Howdy Howdy,

Here's some sound clips of acoustic guitar, with some different ribbon microphones.

Notes:

1. These are uncompressed 24-bit 44.1K aif files, the whole shebang is ~25 mB, you've been warned =)


2. These were recorded through the same mic pre as the drum samples, a custom api-like preamp, all at the same gain setting. These have been normalized so that you're not hearing large gain discrepencies.

First up, the stock 23 microphone:

http://www.shinybox.com/products/ribbonsamples/ac/23AC.aif

Next, the 23C microphone:

http://www.shinybox.com/products/ribbonsamples/ac/23CAC.aif

Next, the 23, with a Lundahl LL2911 output transformer

http://www.shinybox.com/products/ribbonsamples/ac/23LAC.aif

Next, the ShinyBox 46

http://www.shinybox.com/products/ribbonsamples/ac/46AC.aif

Next, a mystery ribbon microphone. :grin:

http://www.shinybox.com/products/ribbonsamples/ac/MMAC.aif


There you have it.

Hope this helps

Regards

ju

great sounding ribbon!!
i'm looking for a pair of new OH mics, really to pick up the entire drumkit.
not in a hifi way - more beatles, who, creation, small faces sounding.

could you by any chance record some drum samples for me and the others?
or have you already done?

Thanks man!!
That's what i needed. :thumb:

Now i just need to get off work so i can hear this on some studio monitors. Instead of these little computer speakers. :guinness:

Wow, these Shinybox mics really sound great. I'm impressed.

So, any clues as to what the mystery mic is?

It sounds as if it has a less natural frequency response to me.

Great stuff!

[quote author="cedric"]great sounding ribbon!!
i'm looking for a pair of new OH mics, really to pick up the entire drumkit.
not in a hifi way - more beatles, who, creation, small faces sounding.

could you by any chance record some drum samples for me and the others?
or have you already done?[/quote]

How about here :grin: :

http://www.groupdiy.com/index.php?topic=9168

Thanks for the samples!

the whole shebang is ~25 mB

Click to expand...

Next time you make mono files, OK? 25/2=12.5 :wink:

Or is my computer mad? They are 16 bit stereo here in Switzerland!

Samuel

Ya, they are stereo, I did this all at the same time as the drums (and in a rush no less), so didn't stop to think.

I'll update them, as my website can use the bandwidth reduction :grin:

EDIT:

All better now

ju

thanks

Are you guys kidding? They sound awful!! Boxy and brittle.

Well thanks for comin off all laid back and nonconfrontational there Henry. :roll:

That aside, it did get me thinking about how to compare them against something that someone else might already be familiar with.

So, here's the same guitar, same signal chain, only with a 414 EB P48 in figure 8.

Keep in mind, this microphone is many times the price of the microphones recorded above.

If it still sounds boxy and brittle, then at least you'll know that it's because I recorded it in a box, and I play brittley. =P

http://www.shinybox.com/products/ribbonsamples/ac/414.aif

Regards

ju

Much better sound, more open and less wooden sound but the limitation is maybe the guitar or room. Guitars with a big sound need pencil condenser as a general rule and vice versa for smaller guitars.

Thanks. This is a great test. It's nice to hear how the transformer quality effects the sound. The drums definetely benefits from the cinemag tx.

Okko

Hi Ju,

So, what sort of acoustic guitar is it?

My guess: Takamine, Ovation.....

I would be interested to find out - it has an interesting sound.

Henry,

Do you own a Ribbon Mic? Ever used an RCA or even a newer AEA ones, maybe even a Relso, or heck even an Octava? Do you even know what to look for in a Ribbon Mic or even what Ribbons sound like on various sources?

Anyone can just blurt out it sounds good or bad but this Forum unlike many others is about learning and sharing with others so in light of this I'd love you to substantiate your claim on it being awful with a little more info or analysis. It sounds awful compared to what your Coles? Maybe your Royer? What do you own in a similar batte class that you can compare it to, or know well enough to compare it to?

Not that it counts for much but here were my own personal observations on first listen:

23: Solid sound, with scooped mids, shimmering highs
23C: Warm low end, even mids, not overly bright highs
23L: Rounded low end, low mid bumps, silky highs
46: Punchy Low end, low mid bump, bright highs
Mystery: Washy Low End, Flat/Scooped mids, bright highs

I wholeheartedly agree that it is hard to make a conclusive decision on how this mic sounds based purely on these samples but I for one and most grateful that Fum took the time to make them available to us. I don't know what guitar was used and the room def. played a role in the 'EQ' of the mics.

There are other posters who have found their mics to be most helpful and useful, esp. for the money including guys like Soundguy Dave who's opinions I greatly respect. Their comments on the mic can be found in this post: http://www.groupdiy.com/index.php?topic=9034

I don't own one of these, yet, but I just wanted to let me voice be heard on this issue. I am not a confrontational person, which is why I love this board, as it filled with people who share my sentiments and are both giving and receiving in knowledge, free of the crap that goes on in other forums.

Lastly by pencil condensers I assume you mean small diaphragm condensers (SDC), unless there is a new mic I need to hear. I wonder if the HB or 2B leaded one sounds better?

Cheers

Matt

For the rest of the details, this is a Martin acoustic. This particular guitar projects well, and there are certainly limitations on the room.

Again, I did these quick, to give people a feel for what differences exist, not to create the "world class, kick ass acoustic recordings"

Hope this helps

Regards

ju

I don't think it sounds boxy at all. I think any top end issues are the guitar. By chance are you using Elixir strings?

I have to agree with Matta here.

Henry, there is no need to be rude about these mic comparisons. You also need to have a little more tact.

I don't think anyone cares if you think that pencil condensers are better for "big" sounding acoustics. This is a ribbon microphone comparison. Ribbon microphones are frequently used for recording natural sounding acoustics.

Having listened to the AKG C414, I think it is clear what the original source sounds like in its acoustic context.

I am very pleased to hear how good the high-end extension is on these mics. I sometimes find that older ribbons don't have enough high end extension.

I'm still interested about the "mystery ribbon". Having completely guessed the acoustic brand wrongly, I will try again for the mystery microphone.

Is it a short ribbon? A Beyer M500?

There is something interesting going on with the sound of this one - it sounds kind of chorus-like to me.

Hey there.

Strings on the guitar are Martin(I've been through virtually every acoustic string imaginable, and these strings truly sound best for this guitar).

Any limitations to the sound of the guitar are truly that it was a rush job by me, as I really like this acoustic =).

When I go for the "stellar" examples, I'll book some time in a studio(or at least get an engineer out here), as I hate wearing a path back and forth between the control room and main room.


As to the mystery ribbon, it's not anything on the market at present. It's a prototype I'd just gotten in, and thought I'd throw in for laughs.

Something doesn't seem right about it, I'll have to tear it down to have a look see. =)


ju

I think we should distinguish between testing and recording. Acoustic guitar is an excellent test signal for any microphone. I personally don't use a ribbon on acoustic guitar, except maybe if I want a very special darkish sound. Figure eight is pretty narrow and the proximity effect is very pronounced. That's two things that aren't very good for capturing the natural tone of an acoustic guitar. Also, ribbons tend to roll off the treble a bit whereas condensers usually have some treble boost. A ribbon will never sound as bright as a condenser. But that's why we use ribbons in the first place. I love ribbons on vocals. Voices sound full yet natural, not a trace of harshness. On vocals these budget ribbons sound much better than most budget condensers.

But, as I said, acoustic guitar is an excellent test signal. But you have to know how ribbons sound on acoustic guitar in order to appreciate the files Fum posted. So thanks for that.

My favorite was the Lundahl transformer 23, second was the regular 23.

I hope the mystery ribbon is not the lollipop ribbon I saw at the Frankfurt fair, is it?

Rossi, Have you ever tried an old Beyer M160 on acoustic?

I think it is very nice. Not too dark either.

I agree about ribbons being a bit too dark sometimes though.