[alohachris]

Aloha Friends,

Very, very interesting debate here among friends. Love the depth.

Ah, digital samples, digital samples. Even 'line-level matched' digital comparison samples. And we listen to those compressed files through what? Often it's through our computer speakers with, Wo! Maybe even a subwoofer? Now that's some sonic quality for discerning ears, I'll tell ya. MP3 files: the wave of the ......past, like 1930's sonic quality. So much progress in audio!

We all know what that means: It is almost impossible to hear gear critical differences, as Fran always provides evidence for, or to gauge the, as Doug said, "build quality & functionality" of any mic - solely by listening to online mic samples. Can't be done. As Kev said, he uses the online samples & shoot-outs only to narrow the field to those worth investigating. Me too.

There is only one way to audition a microphone to full satisfaction: listen to them LIVE IN REAL TIME with your ears through your rig or through a rig similar to yours. That is the only way! And preferrably in a treated space so you can really hear the details.

I'll give ya a glaring example, from experience a few years back. I have given Peluso mic's more than a cursory look for many reasons & eventually chose the P-28 tube S/D's because they are just excellent for cross-picking styles on many sizes & wood combo's of acoustic guitars. The Peluso 2247 LE is also a very nice mic on many types of voices (especially male voices, like mine), IMO.

When I was first investigating them, I really loved the sound of the affordable CEMC6 S/D's. A pair then was only about $600 from Soundpure & indeed, I believed it to be the best sounding S/D available for under $1K.

I rented a pair from a West Coast high-end store (at a low-end price) for a weekend, & put the CEMC6's through their paces for an extra day. I'm so glad I did. Because the self-noise issues (as sdelsolray had warned me) of that mic slowly made itself known - TO MY EARS - on rudimentary PTLE recordings I did. Prohibitively so.

Now, I'd loved the first-impression sound (through my Pendulum/Daedalus live rig) & the online samples I'd heard of the CEMC6. But I knew I had to return those mic's because of the noise issue (on my PTLE/003 recordings of it) & also because frankly, I did not like the build quality. It did not feel solid to me. And sometimes, me being a fogey too, I drop stuff! Gotta be solid! That's why I invested in some heavier, rollable mic stands for around my studio area. Ha!

I trusted my ears, eyes & touch on that pair of S/D's & was so glad that I did. Online samples of it had sounded great. My first impression was WOW! But it took some hands-on experimenting with placement in recording, & some listening on my rig to really get the information I needed to make a decision on that mic. Sent them back right away.

The Peluso P-28's are a much different animal. I knew they were for me very quickly. They sound just "killer" through the A-Designs Pacifica preamp. I hope players here will check them out, especially you bluegrassers & cross-pickers. (that's cross-pickers, not cross-dressers). Ha!

The moral to my Friday night tome here is obvious & one that everyone here keeps coming back to: Trust Your Ears Only When Choosing Mic's & Gear. Put an ear on the gear, not online samples.

You don't have to buy mic's just to audition them. Ya just gotta get creative as to how to put an ear on 'em to get the information you need to make a decision. It's appropriate to move away from the keyboard every once in awhile in that pursuit.

But ya just gotta love microphones on their own. They are SO beautiful & functional, even magical. And best of all, mic's are inspiring tools that spawn our creativity. Mic's can truly help bring people together in this divisive world rather than separating us (another topic).

A Hui Hou!
alohachris

BTW: Scott, I really liked your clip on the 121 & TM-1 in M-S. For me, I tend to like slower guitar movements (Fran's, Doug's & Ty's are great!) in order to hear the VERY revealing space between the notes through mic's. But your clip was very cool, sounded great, & was very well played. Bravo! -alohachris-