Neumann TLM 107 Mic review

[Ty Ford]

Hi,

Here you go. I even have links for a long track of my Martin baritone using different patterns and roll offs. (which will rattle your average computer speakers) and a flute guitar duet. (with the TLM 107 on flute)

http://tinyurl.com/pzefo73

Regards,

Ty Ford

[Bob Womack]

Nice review, Ty! The Neumann guy was by a few weeks ago telling us about the 107. I can't wait to compare it to the 170 and 47.

Bob

[Ty Ford]

Thanks Bob,

As you may know. I really like the TLM 67 as well for its less hyped sound.
http://tinyurl.com/m6oehtq

I forget exactly what a TLM 170 sounds like, but I have a U 89 i and like it for its more natural sound. They are roughly based on the same technology.

I haven't heard a good 47 in a while. Last one was a tube and the owner had two tubes. One was very good. The other was "magic." The Selfnoise on the 47, however, is what it is. The TLM 107 is a lot quieter.

Regards,

Ty

[ukejon]

Which Neumann of that they make would you favor for solo Fingerstyle recording?

[Ty Ford]

I suppose it depends on what the guitar sounds like and the environment it's recorded in, UJ.

That and what you want it to sound like. Mics and preamps are like paints and brushes.

Regards,

Ty Ford

[ukejon]

Originally Posted by Ty Ford

I suppose it depends on what the guitar sounds like and the environment it's recorded in, UJ.

That and what you want it to sound like. Mics and preamps are like paints and brushes.

Regards,

Ty Ford

OK, Ty but suppose you are in a home studio in Wisconsin, recording in a room that is not great but not bad. Lets presume there are some nice 2' x 4' Rockwell filled home-made baffle panels to play with and you are recording a middle-aged solo fingerstyle player through a Apogee Duet 2. Which mic for that completely fictive scenario? (oh, and there is a cat named Humboldt who won't leave the room....)

[rick-slo]

Very nice and professional review Ty!


Ukejon:

Pete Huttlinger
Vintage Neumann KM-84 Pair (from the 70's)
(The originals, not the re-issue KM-184)
Vintage Newmann KM-254 Pair (from the 60's)


Ed Gerhard
Neumann KM140
Neumann TLM 193
Neumann KM 84

Laurence Juber
Neumann KM140 (live stage gear)

Among other mikes they might use.

I have gravitated towards Microtech Gefell microphones.

[Ty Ford]

Uj

Rick makes a compelling argument with a great list. My mic of choice at the moment for that is a Schoeps cmc641. If I had to pick a Neumann today for that job, it would probably be a TLM 67. I haven't had weeks of time with the TLM 107, but I like it's multiple patterns, roll offs and pads. You can hear how adjustable it is here: https://soundcloud.com/tyford/ty-for...n-baritone-tlm

Regards,

Ty Ford

[mesa]

Thank you, Ty. Very nice work and a lot of it!

[Ty Ford]

Thanks for noticing, Mesa.

Yes, a lot of work. It's a new direction. I wanted to reinvent the gear review.

For quite a few years, trade magazines defined equipment reviews. I was part of that system. Over the years as per capita advertisement revenue decreased for each magazine, they decreased the length of each review from 1300-1500 words to around 800 words - less content. As the Internet grew, I saw opportunities for audio and video links within reviews. Publishers and editors at the magazines refused to accept or deal with it.

Earlier this year, I received a "new contract" from New Bay Media, the group that now owns many of the magazines I've been writing for for almost 30 years. They wanted to own everything I had ever written for them and everything I might write for them in the future. And, if they commissioned me to write an article, then chose not to run it, they didn't have to pay me.

I was never an employee. I was always a contract writer with a "gentleman's agreement" that I would be paid additional fees when my articles were used more than for their "first north american serial rights." All of that slowly slid off the table. Had I been an employee, I would understand that, since I was an employee, the company would own the copyrights to any work I created. I, of course, would have a medical plan, paid vacations and probably some sort of pension. I'm not sure who or what was sucking up the profits, but it definitely wasn't the writers.

The writers didn't crash trade magazines. The Internet started the crash of trade magazines and the publishers' failure to respond did the rest. So, here I am, someone with a good ear and an ability to write about a technology that I'm really passionate about. Why not step outside the box, seize the day, tear it down and rebuild it!?

So far the reception has been surprisingly good. To my great surprise, the stats show I'm read all over the world! (The Internet may take away, but it also gives) Only one forum, Gearslutz, has a problem with me posting links to my reviews blog. I've been a member there for five years. At some point early on, they created a "protective policy" that forbids anyone from posting a link that will take a member away from the site. People do it anyway, but I seem to have caught their attention recently. It's not like I'm a threat. GearSlutz is a forum set up for people to talk to each other. I'm not interested in creating that kind of forum. I am in contact with the owner and we are trying to negotiate a settlement that will benefit both of us.

Probably TMI, but that's what's going on. Any thoughts anyone has along these lines, please let me know.

Regards,

Ty Ford

[alohachris]

Aloha Ty & Rick (Ukejon),

Ty, MUCH Mahalo's for the TLM-107 review. Your reviews always provide the most useful & practical info no matter what you are reviewing. Keep up the great work, Ty.

BTW, your great song, "Dead People in My Mouth" keeps flowing through my brain every now & then. Ha! It really is so subversive, & meaningful. I love how you played/recorded it w/ the half capo & the sparse style. It's a perfect combo of vocal & solo guitar - and controlled emotion. Bravo! It probably could've been a great soundtrack piece for Billy Bob Thornton's excellent film, Sling Blade. "Got dead people....dead people.... in my mouth." ..."ummm-hmmm!"

Rick, FWIW, I have auditioned just about all of the Neumann's on acoustic guitar over the last 50 years, including U47's/48's, 67's, 89's & 87's among the LDC's. The Neumann model that I prefer on guitar is unfortunately, the no-longer-made KM-84, which came out in the late 70's. The KM-84 has zero in common with its shrill-sounding KM-184 successor (a very accurate & detailed mic, just not as smooth or balanced as the KM-84, especially in the upper-mid's).

The KM-84 is a REALLY GREAT sounding SDC mic for acoustic instruments. You can often find matched sets or individual KM-84's at VintageKing. They're NOT cheap & it can be somewhat difficult to find one that's not taken quite a beating over the decades. I also really like the old KM-56's too. Vintage (early 70's) U-87's have long been my favorite Neumann LDC's on acoustic guitar (though Mojave MA-200's are pretty close, IMO, especially for strumming). I was extremely lucky to have found a pair in mint condition that were almost never used a dozen years back.

http://vintageking.com/used-and-vint...nufacturer=484

Like Ty, my favorite pair of matched condenser mics for recording acoustic guitar continues to be the Schoeps CMC641. They work great with a Duet interface. Of course, MANY condenser mic's work great for that application. For example, the Peluso P-28 tube condenser SDC is a sleeper mic on acoustic guitar that not many talk about. I love how smooth they are (used to own a pair). In a treated space, with mic placement experimentation, you can get a very good sound from almost every condenser. Just not the same richness & complexity of overtones & sound provided by the best mic's. IME, the KM-84 & CMC641 provide exceptional sound when recording acoustic guitar. So does the Microtech-Gefell M295.

A Hui Hou, gentleman. Keep on pickin'!

alohachris

[Ty Ford]

Chris,

Thanks for the flowers.

I wrote "Dead People" after the stock market crash when it was discovered how badly those working in the market behaved. Bad enough to make dead people begin to talk in my mouth about retribution. That was the inspiration. And yes, "Slingblade!" Thanks for the compliment. I'd be happy to be in that company.

Yes, the km84, if you can find one in good shape. The km 88, if you can find one at all. nickel membranes…….esoteric.

Regards,

Ty Ford