Ribbon mics are great for drum overheads, capturing cymbals without the tizzy hype. An R88 deployed at a reasonable distance on drum overheads delivers a beautiful stereo image of the entire drum kit that can be combined with a kick drum mic for a highly effective, minimalist drum kit recording technique.
Are ribbon mics good for vocals?
Ribbon microphones usually give you the most accurate sound reproduction when compared with dynamic and condenser mics, but it comes at a cost They are regarding for their accuracy and warmth, and work great for vocals, guitars, drums, horns, and more.
What can you not do with a ribbon mic?
Don’t expose the microphone to wind or blasts of air
Corrugated ribbon material is thin and wide and can grab air like a sail. Excessive wind can stretch the corrugations or tear the ribbon, rendering the microphone inoperative until it’s re-ribboned.
Are ribbon mics noisy?
When paired with a standard preamp, a ribbon mic may produce excessive noise that makes it difficult to record more quiet sources like vocals, acoustic guitars, and strings.
Are ribbon mics good room mics?
In most instances, we recommend far-field ribbon mics when picking a room mic because they retain a solid bass response at distances of over 10 feet from the source. This allows greater flexibility when positioning your mic in the room.
What type of microphone is best for vocals?
cardioid dynamic microphone
In my experience, and most musicians and sound engineers’ experience, the best microphone type for live vocals is a cardioid dynamic microphone. It’s preferred if this microphone also has a boost in the presence range of its frequency response as well as a low and high-end roll-off.
Why are ribbon mics fragile?
When not in use, keep the ribbon mic covered.
Over time, this fine, dust-like metal can build up sufficiently in the magnetic gap to rub against the ribbon causing distortion, electrical shorts or tearing of the ribbon.
Why are ribbon mics Figure 8?
Unless designed otherwise, all ribbon mics are naturally bidirectional, giving them a figure-8 polar pattern. The reason for this is that sound waves arriving from the side of the thin ribbon element won’t cause it to move at all, since the pressure on both sides of the ribbon is identical.
How much gain do ribbon mics need?
How much gain do ribbon microphones need? Ribbon microphones need at least 65dB of gain to work. Unlike standard dynamic microphones, ribbon mics require a more significant amount of gain to operate. This is because they are low-output devices.
Are ribbon mics passive?
In the beginning, ribbons were created as passive microphones. Very simple at its core; a ribbon mic is composed of a ribbon, two magnets, and a transformer. Passive ribbon mics have an incredible sound but also have specific requirements to allow them to reach their full potential.
Do ribbon mics need a preamp?
Preamplifier Input Impedance
A ribbon microphone needs to be paired with a preamplifier that has high enough input impedance that it won’t load down the microphone.The output of the mic will also be reduced, requiring more preamp gain, which in turn adds more noise to the recording.
Do ribbon mics need phantom?
The ribbon elements in some vintage ribbon microphones can be harmed or even destroyed by the presence of phantom power. For this reason, it is commonly recommended that phantom power be turned off when using ribbon microphones.They require phantom power to operate and obviously will not be damaged by phantom power.
What are the advantages of a dynamic mic?
Key advantages to a dynamic microphone:
- Rugged and able to handle high sound pressure levels, like those delivered by a kick drum.
- Provide good sound quality in all areas of microphone performance.
- They do not require a power source to run.
- They are relatively cheap.
What is the difference between condenser ribbon and dynamic microphones?
The main difference between dynamic, condenser and ribbon mics is the way they convert sound to audio. As transducers, dynamic and ribbon mics rely on electromagnetic induction while condensers work on electrostatic principles. The transducer elements (diaphragms and capsules) are vastly different.
What is an active ribbon mic?
An active ribbon microphone combines a ribbon motor (traditionally a low-output device that requires high levels of gain in the preamp circuit) with active electronics, namely an onboard preamp. Such mics require phantom power.
What microphone does Billie Eilish use?
Audio-Technica AT2020 Cardioid Condenser Microphone.
What mic does Beyonce use?
Beyonce: vintage AKG C24
Also like most stars, she prefers to track vocals with large-diaphragm condenser microphone. For her album 4, she sang into an AKG C24, a stereo condenser.
What mic does Drake use?
For keeping his vocals soft and vulnerable, Drake uses a Neumann TLM 103 microphone.
Are ribbon mics expensive?
Ribbon mics are DAMN expensive. Most are $1000 and up. But for someone who has never even used a ribbon mic before that’s a tough sell, isn’t it? Lucky for us, there’s the Avantone Audio CR-14.
Which type of microphone has the best frequency response?
A microphone with a frequency response range of around 80 Hz to 15 kHz would make a good choice for a vocal mic. However for miking snares and toms, you would look for a range that starts lower, at around 50 Hz, and for a bass drum mic, you will want a low end of 40 Hz or even lower, down to 30 Hz.
Is Figure 8 a stereo?
Recording in stereo
There are several stereo recording techniques that involve Figure 8 mics. One of the most popular is something called the mid-side technique.Another figure 8 stereo technique is called a Blumlein Array, where you cross two Figure 8 mics.
Contents