Soliloqueen's k87(k67) and k47 capsules

[soliloqueen]

i have to hold some of these k47s back because some of them (like 4, to be clear) have this odd curve, not sure what's causing it yet:


it's the same curve as the flea 47 has on ATK, so i know it doesn't just happen to me:

 

[Drea]

Do you measure all the capsules that you sell before shipping?

 

[soliloqueen]

Do you measure all the capsules that you sell before shipping?

Yep! Every single one

 

[k brown]

I know we can discuss technique and personal experiences all day long, but I will agree with @EarthTone the piano can be difficult. It's not always so, but it can be. I've been recording classical/jazz music for 53 years, played by some wonderful, internationally renown musicians. I have seen players not live up to the instrument, the instrument not live up to the player and have heard a good piano become magical in the right hands. I've used a wide variety of techniques over the years and have learned getting a good piano sound is pretty straightforward. Getting a great sound, with the correct amount of hall, with the proper sonic perspective, with good detail and proper harmonic structure can be a challenge. Every instrument has its own personality and has to be approached with that in mind, as well as how it fits into the whole sonic picture.

It is obviously not impossible to make a great piano recording, but it is simplistic in my view to say it is Recording 101. It is a complex instrument and as such, like the pipe organ, the reason the approaches are so vast is because no one technique satisfies. If it did, that would be Recording 101.

At least for Classical, I also struggled for years to consistently get good piano sound until the 'Decca book' came out. Since employing their 'tail pair' approach, I'm smiling 95% of the time.

Slightly bright omnis (sometimes subcardioids) about 10-12" spacing, between 4 and 5 feet back from the tail and 5.5' to 6' high, looking along the 15 degree spine (of a Steinway D 'harp'). Small adjustments (usually in the horizontal position) to fine tune.

Most tone and imaging problems are caused bad combinations of lid and floor reflections; this placement gets the mics out of the way of the lid.

Works great for both solo and concerto; for the latter, often a little closer/lower and subcardioids. Ribbons can be great (usually a bit further back/higher), when the rear lobe isn't a problem.

 

[Drea]

@kbrown , You mean “practical guide in the Decca tradition” or an other?

 

[k brown]

@kbrown , You mean “practical guide in the Decca tradition” or an other?

Yes, that's it.

 

[Drea]

I read it also for months and months Good book.
There was something with one mic to the first demper and the second to the lowest c tone.

 

[ubxf]

I thought you were supposed to throw a 57 in , close the lid and press record

 

[Paul W]

Maybe this isn't the ideal thread for extended discussions of piano miking technique. Start another?

 

[k brown]

Maybe this isn't the ideal thread for extended discussions of piano miking technique. Start another?

Indeed, my apologies.

 

[Drea]

N arrived. Bothsides for fig8.

 

[soliloqueen]

N arrived. Bothsides for fig8.

Since you were curious

 

[Drea]

Great, thanks.

 

[soliloqueen]

Great, thanks.View attachment 134945

I do not believe that you need the black wire here. Electrical contact is made through the mount with the yellow wire

 

[Drea]

I have disconnected all wires because first it was connected to a OG k49. I put it up against Chinese m7 heiserm Hk 47 , and thiersc m7 to no the difference.

 

[soliloqueen]

I have disconnected all wires because first it was connected to a OG k49. I put it up against Chinese m7 heiserm Hk 47 , and thiersc m7 to no the difference.

thoughts and feedback are welcome, i'm always refining

 

[AdamFrisen]

@soliloqueen Will you display K87 graphs online as you have for K47 capsules?

 

[soliloqueen]

@soliloqueen Will you display K87 graphs online as you have for K47 capsules?

yes, of course, beginning with the next batch

 

[Whoops]

As for the Kölln Concert, I know that the story is there about the poorly tuned instrument, but I think we're still talking about a Steinway D - not exactly a piece of ****.

You're Wrong,
yes the piano was a piece of ****.


"At Jarrett's request, Brandes had selected a Bösendorfer 290 Imperial concert grand piano for the performance. However, there was some confusion by the opera house staff and instead they found another Bösendorfer piano backstage—a much smaller baby grand piano—and, assuming it was the one requested, placed it on the stage. The error was discovered too late for the correct Bösendorfer to be delivered to the venue in time for the evening's concert. The piano they had was intended for rehearsals only and was in poor condition and required several hours of tuning and adjustment to make it playable.[5][3] The instrument was tinny and thin in the upper registers and weak in the bass register, and the pedals did not work properly"

 

[Whoops]

Rookie question: I am curious - not being critical - I don't follow you on this. With some instruments, my hears something very different from what microphones capture - perhaps mainly because my ears and the microphones are not in the same place.

Read what I wrote, I never said that you were going to capture/recording the same exact sound as your Ears capture.

What I said is that if the sound that's coming out of the Piano and reaches your ears is good, then recording a good sound out of that Piano is Trivial.

"if what's coming out of the Piano and reaches your ears sounds good then it's pretty easy to record."

Given the size of the instrument and the number of places one might locate one or more microphones, it seems more complicated than Mr. Whoops suggests.

Getting a good sound out of a good sounding Piano is not complicated.

You can off course complicate your Life by trying microphones in a lot different places and even try weird places.

There's many ways to skin a Cat, but if a Piano produces a good sound then there's many different recording techniques that will yield a great sound, a great result. They will all capture a different sound, but can be all good anyway, then it's just a matter of choice.

I just said that recording a good Piano is easy, I never said that "making choices" between different sounds is easy.
Actually some people are not ever able to became good recording engineers because they have difficulties in making choices and deciding for a sound.