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chrislieck
« Great Sounding Tom Microphones »
Published on 09/25/12 at 08:53There are great things about these microphones if used and placed properly. They are proximity microphones and I ran a comparison at my studio, www.chrilieckstudios.com, and Remember I grew up as a professional engineer using 420 mics on toms only. The Sennheiser 420s are the best tom mic ever produced, however I must say that this microphone is the closest I have tested and at the price there is not a microphone for toms that is better.
They don't have the attack at 3.5K to 4.5K that I need, but that is a quick fix with a simple one band EQ boost. However if the drummer hits the toms hard (like you should have them do at all times) the mic will provide enough attack to cut through the mix. We test mics and gear all the time as my engineers work at The Guitar Center so we have gear at the studio all the time. They provide a good bump at about 200hz so if you like that bump (I don't I remove all the low mids on my toms) these mics will provide you a deep low mid tone.
OVERALL OPINION
I would not use this mic for snare except for in a live environment. They don't have the attack at 3.5K to 4.5K that I need, but that is a quick fix with a simple one band EQ boost. We test mics and gear all the time as my engineers work at The Guitar Center so we have gear at the studio all the time. I have been doing this for 30 years so I am aware of what microphones sound good. I say if you have a studio and you are looking for a Tom Tom Microphone, this is the only professional line of tom tom mics I would buy. I have a set of them on the toms now and have done 40 records with these mics. You will have limited uses of these microphones. They are not good for much else besides the tom toms. They do not do well in other application modes but if you want exclusive microphones for your tom toms, and you are on a limited budget.
They don't have the attack at 3.5K to 4.5K that I need, but that is a quick fix with a simple one band EQ boost. However if the drummer hits the toms hard (like you should have them do at all times) the mic will provide enough attack to cut through the mix. We test mics and gear all the time as my engineers work at The Guitar Center so we have gear at the studio all the time. They provide a good bump at about 200hz so if you like that bump (I don't I remove all the low mids on my toms) these mics will provide you a deep low mid tone.
OVERALL OPINION
I would not use this mic for snare except for in a live environment. They don't have the attack at 3.5K to 4.5K that I need, but that is a quick fix with a simple one band EQ boost. We test mics and gear all the time as my engineers work at The Guitar Center so we have gear at the studio all the time. I have been doing this for 30 years so I am aware of what microphones sound good. I say if you have a studio and you are looking for a Tom Tom Microphone, this is the only professional line of tom tom mics I would buy. I have a set of them on the toms now and have done 40 records with these mics. You will have limited uses of these microphones. They are not good for much else besides the tom toms. They do not do well in other application modes but if you want exclusive microphones for your tom toms, and you are on a limited budget.