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More info?)
I normally reserve them for piano as I have other small condensers for drum
overheads and acoustic guitar. But I think I've made a believer out of a
few people. Of course, it's not just in the mic, but placement, the quality
of the piano and what you do in processing, but I can say that I think I
know placement, a Steinway isn't usually shabby, and I have never had to EQ
these mics, either on the way in or on mixdown, so to me that makes for a
pretty reliable and good sounding mic.
And yes, I've used KM84s, 184s and 140s on Steinways so I have a point of
reference. Oh, I've also used Scott Dorsey's 441s and my MXL 990s on piano.
Only the 990s disappointed me, but I believe that was my fault in correct
positioning as just a tad of EQ corrected the very slight phase problem.
They made the Steinway a bit brighter than I like for jazz, but most people
wouldn't notice.
I'll have to give the 603s a try on acoustic when I get a good one over
here.
For the price I'd say get two pair, mod one, use both pairs on the same
recording and see what you think. Oh, I did get mine from Brent Casey when
he was with MXL, but he only did some close checking on consistency for me.
No mods.
--
Roger W. Norman
SirMusic Studio
http://blogs.salon.com/0004478/
<Mannr@uwaterloo.ca> wrote in message news:87ekbsdukv.fsf@uwaterloo.ca...
> "Roger W. Norman" <rnorman@starpower.net> writes:
>
> > I don't have a clue as to what you're talking about. My 603s have been
on
> > maybe 100 Steinway recordings without a single honk. Now Mike Rivers
did
> > seem to sense some noise at one point on a different setup, but I
believe it
> > was the Soundcraft, for certainly nothing has been untoward on my Crest,
and
> > like I said, 100 recordings don't lie.
> >
> > But I guess some people just HAVE to change things. Until I get proof
that
> > these mics need something different, I'll just keep using them as I have
and
> > enjoy the results. I do have examples.
> >
> > --
> >
> >
> > Roger W. Norman
> > SirMusic Studio
> > http://blogs.salon.com/0004478/
> > "Chris Cavell" <chriscavell@cavellstudios.com> wrote in message
> > news:1117237355.304415.196030@g43g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> > > They have a bit of a "honk" to them that can make tonal full range
> > > instruments, like piano, really ugly on specific notes. Swapping out
> > > several of the caps (all ceramic) to film or styrene tends to cure
this
> > > for the most part. BTW, the 990 and 991 are identical...the 990 just
> > > has a rather nifty mounting scheme for the small di capsule to make it
> > > side adress (and appear like a large di to anyone who doesn't look
> > > carefully). The circuits are identical and use the exact same
> > > componentry, but the number designations on the circuit boards change
> > > from one model to the next.
> > >
> > > Unofficial means that he basically doesn't want to catch any "gruff"
if
> > > their are errors...it's basically the standard schoeps circuit.
> > >
>
> To Chris: Thanks for the schematic. It looks like they're using a proper
> circuit.
>
> To Roger: So, are they that good? I was wondering more about the
> quality/consistency of the capsules than the electronics. Call me
> conservative, but if I needed a mic for (paying) recording gigs, I might
go
> for AKG, Audio Technica, etc. Or are those made in China too? The MXL
might
> be good for live sound though. At least you wouldn't worry about damage
or
> theft.
>
> Richard
>
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