Ear Trumpet Labs/Schoeps Comparison

[Doug Young]

Some who saw my recent video noticed I am trying out a new mic setup, a stereo pair from Ear Trumpet Labs. ETL's obvious appeal is the looks, but I've heard them used in a number of live settings and have been impressed, so I've been wanting to try them. The Evelyn is setup as an ORTF stereo pair, tho slightly wider than my understanding of ORTF. ORTF is usually designated to be 17cm apart, 110 degree angle, if I recall. 6.67 inches, and I'd measure that from the center of the capsules if I was setting up SDCs. The Evelyn is a large diaphragm mic, and I guess they've used that measurement as the space between them. Center to center, it measures about 8 inches. The mics swivel, so the angle can vary.

I thought the mic sounded good in isolation for the video I made, but I wanted to get a more direct comparison, so I checked it out in the studio, comparing against my Schoeps CMC6/MK41s and the AT4050ST mic I've been using for videos. I matched the ORTF spacing and angle with the Schoeps as well as I could - tho these are large mics, so there's going to be some placement variation. The AT mic is a single MS stereo mic, so I placed that in the middle, and decoded it to be a bit wide, which is said to be close to ORTF in the resulting image, tho inherently, it's going to be somewhat different.

Here's the setup:

IMG_2591.jpg

And here's how it sounds. I matched volumes with a test tone before recording, then fine tuned with Audition's Match Volume feature. The AT should be especially easy to hear, since the stereo image is different. Order is Schoeps, Ear Trumpet, Audio Technica. No EQ, processing, etc, just raw tracks other than the slight level adjustments to try to make them have the same volume. Track is downloadable if you want to hear it not-streamed from soundcloud.

[anton]

Very cool! I thought your video sounded good, these certainly look the part for a live performance or video. I'll give the comparison a listen on my studio monitors soon.

As I've mentioned to you, Ear Trumpet is right next to my office (back when I went into an office) here in Portland, Oregon. It was always fun listening to various bands through the wall come in and demo the mics. I once ran into Jerry Douglas and Tommy Emmanuel out in the hall.

They are nice folks and make good mics.

[AcousticDreams]

And absolutely amazing comparison! Thanks so much Doug for doing these great tests. Always revealing!

Sincerely, all three sound very good...I did notice one particular note in your lovely tune, that kind of just sticks out and is accentuated a bit too much by the Ear Trumpet. While the Ear trumpet is an amazing value and solves many live and even recording problems...I felt it limited a few notes that seemingly peaked= giving it a distortion type quality. Because of this I found it the least attractive sound wise. One bad note ruins the whole.

There is a definite difference as you said..in Stereo imaging between the Schoeps and AT's due to the difference in the AT's configuration. Honestly for this comparison, I could not say that the Schoeps was better....just different. The AT's different stereo imaging and larger capsules gave a wider body sound. Very pleasant. As where the Schoeps probably gave a more detailed-accurate sound. The AT's might have also accentuated?-elongated? a few notes here and there as compare to the Schoeps.

In reality, Either one of those two Mics sounded excellent and captured your tune well.

[Doug Young]

I don't hear the distortion myself, but there are definitely some differences in the waveforms, which is always interesting. Every time I compare mics, I notice differences in transients. You'd kind of expect with the same performance at the same volume that 2 mics would more or less agree on the waveform, but they never quite do. Just visually, you can see that there are different transients between each of the mics. Some of this may be due to mic placement. Because the ETLs are so big, the Schoeps and the ETL capsules are a good inch apart, more than enough to make a difference. It is LDs vs SDs as well. In any case, I suspect that's what you're hearing - some difference in transient response?

I do actually find myself preferring the sound of the AT mic over either of the others in this particular test. I don't usually record in ORTF these days, and I generally prefer the Schoeps as wider spaced pairs.

[ljguitar]

Boy Doug…

I could live with any of those!

[jim1960]

Very interesting. I think Ear Trumpets Lab makes the absolute coolest looking mics in the industry and I eagerly listen to every shootout I come across because I'd love to have a reason to buy something from them. The Evelyn wins the visual aesthetic contest but in this case, the Schoeps is the winner by a long stretch; although, I liked the ETL better than the 4050.

I'm curious... the shockmount holding the 4050, is that a Rycote mount or is that the mount that came with the mic?

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by jim1960

I'm curious... the shockmount holding the 4050, is that a Rycote mount or is that the mount that came with the mic?

That's a Rycote.

[AcousticDreams]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

I don't hear the distortion myself, but there are definitely some differences in the waveforms, which is always interesting. Every time I compare mics, I notice differences in transients. You'd kind of expect with the same performance at the same volume that 2 mics would more or less agree on the waveform, but they never quite do. Just visually, you can see that there are different transients between each of the mics. Some of this may be due to mic placement. Because the ETLs are so big, the Schoeps and the ETL capsules are a good inch apart, more than enough to make a difference. It is LDs vs SDs as well. In any case, I suspect that's what you're hearing - some difference in transient response?

I do actually find myself preferring the sound of the AT mic over either of the others in this particular test. I don't usually record in ORTF these days, and I generally prefer the Schoeps as wider spaced pairs.

Yes, I think Transients would be a much better description. It was one note in particular that just seems to peak-stand out with the Ear Trumpets.

And I was afraid to say it in my first reply...since I just made my big purchase of Schoeps! ha ha and already Own a pair of 4050's.... But yeah in this test....the At's did sound preferable. Wider more open sound. I think a big key for the 4050 is having a treated room.

[Doug Young]

Originally Posted by Knives&Guitars

Yes, I think Transients would be a much better description. It was one note in particular that just seems to peak-stand out with the Ear Trumpets.

And I was afraid to say it in my first reply...since I just made my big purchase of Schoeps! ha ha and already Own a pair of 4050's.... But yeah in this test....the At's did sound preferable. Wider more open sound. I think a big key for the 4050 is having a treated room.

Interestingly, that's been the opposite of my take on the 4050s so far. I got it with the idea of having a single mic for videos - fewer stands, less clutter, and I've been happy with how it sounds on my videos in an untreated room. I've only tried it a few times in the studio, and while it was fine, I wasn't excited by it - probably because spaced pairs just sounds better to me, independent of the mics.

[alohachris]

Aloha Friends,

Another cool comparison from Doug Young. Thanks Braddah.

The Schoeps 641, in your hands, to my ears, is a completely different class of mic from the other two. Detailed, smooth, natural decay, refined, more balanced & more natural overall - in your hands.

The Evelyn is a good sounding mic that compares very well with others in its price range. Looks cool, almost like Seattle's abandoned gasworks (now a park). - Ha!

The 4050ST was a come-back revelation. I've been listening to the 4050 (not ST) for many years because my friends' studio favors that mic on everything. I never thought it was anything more than a cost-effective, hard-working, plodder, able to be put on many things, but never a first choice to me, especially on vocals. Your clip here raises my expectations for that mic again, at least on acoustic guitars/ the ST. But you could make a string with a coupla Quaker Oats cyclinders sound amazing, brah! Ha!

Doug, I swear, you have a quality that allows you to consolidate ALL the dynamics: guitar, original music, technique, mic's & signal chain, PLUS, dial in the perfect mic placement that makes everything you record or share here completely maximized & musical. But Maybe Not in your untreated garage though, Ha! And you're curious enough to do your own shoot-outs & so generous in sharing them.

You put it all together Doug, everytime & that is always so cool for us to listen to. You have so many gifts my friend. Was the guitar here your Kevin Ryan Grand Mission Concert Cedar/Koa beauty? FWIW, I had a Koa mill over on the Big Island in the late '70's/early 80's. We used to cut so many curly logs in the bright sunlight into instrument wood (maybe your set), that when we'd blink or try to sleep, all you could see was CHOKE Curly Koa everywhere. Great times & Great place. Keauhou Ranch above Volcano. Where da Koa stay.

The AT4050ST. Who knew? Very nice. But the Schoeps usually wins for my ears & that's the case here.

Hey jim1960, Ear Trumpet Labs does put out some really cool mic designs. But I think my old studio vocal LDC still wins in the visual department. The M-G UM 900 was also by far the best-sounding mic I ever put on my voice, live or studio. Exceptional mic that I'm guessing that no AGF guy has ever investigated (?). Check out this aesthetically-pleasing, art Deco LDC beauty:

https://www.rspeaudio.com/Microtech-...fell-um900.htm

What do you think?

Cheers,
alohachris

[jim1960]

Originally Posted by alohachris

Hey jim1960, Ear Trumpet Labs does put out some really cool mic designs. But I think my old studio vocal LDC still wins in the visual department. The M-G UM 900 was also by far the best-sounding mic I ever put on my voice, live or studio. Exceptional mic that I'm guessing that no AGF guy has ever investigated (?). Check out this aesthetically-pleasing, art Deco LDC beauty:

The UM900 is cool but the shape reminds me a bit of '60s era glass xmas tree ornaments. I've never used the mic but I've heard good things from multiple people about it. I have a friend who owned one for a brief period. He sold it to fund a second Flea 49 for his studio.

[Doug Young]

Hey Chris, thanks. I'm not surprised that the schoeps comes off better - they do cost about 3X as much, and are pretty hard to beat. They generally match or beat my Brauners, which are an additional big factor in price point. I think they'd really win if I moved them to spaced pairs, the way I usually use them. I'm not sure any of these mics were placed optimally, trying to fit them all in was kind of limiting. The Schoeps also used my Great River preamp, BTW, while the others used the Apogee Ensemble preamps. Very minor difference, but the Great River has been noticeably better to people in the past when I did preamp comparisons.

But I was just trying to get a sense of how well the ETL's stood up. They market these things as live mics, and not only do they have a cool visual, but I've heard them sound really impressive live. I saw a show in Austin before the lockdown, a duo both playing guitar and singing, with just one Ear Trumpet mic in front of them, and it sounded phenomenal. Picked up everything.

My thought was that they'd be nice for videos, like the one with the old Martin I posted in show and tell a few days ago. (https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=593951) As long as the sound is adequate, video is much more forgiving. So no real thought that I'd use them in the studio, I just wanted to get a sense of how much I was compromising. I shot that video without even doing a test run or comparison with them. I'd say they're more than close enough for you tube.

All the videos I've made in the last few years have used the 4050ST. There, the idea was to minimize the visual impact, even getting the mic entirely out of the picture if I could. I don't think I've ever recorded anything with the 4050ST in the studio, tho I have been using it for teaching online lessons and workshops - again, kind of nice to just have one mic to deal with, but still have stereo. So with the ETLs, as long as they sound good enough, the idea was that I could make the mics be part of the "story" rather than hiding them, and I could dedicate the 4050 to my streaming setup so I don't have to keep moving it between locations.

Oh, you asked about the guitar - that was my Tom Doerr Legacy. Just happened to be the closest guitar to grab when I tried this. Brazilian and some kind of spruce (Italian? I forget)

[KevWind]

Great comparison
With the disclaimer that I'm listening on ear buds on my Macbook air (which honestly has IMO a pretty mediocre sound card at best )

All three were excellent and really very nice recordings, and I would be completely satisfied with any of them. It did seem to me however that ETL's were perhaps ever so slightly hyped in the mids compared to the other two

[Methos1979]

Great comparison. I thought the AT was the clear winner. The Schoeps and ETL were a little mid-range forward and caused a bit of distortion in the first few seconds of the recorded piece on certain notes. The AT also seemed to have a depth and space to it that they others didn't, maybe from your deliberate decoding to make it a 'bit wide'? Regardless, to my admittedly untrained ears the AT was my favorite by far. And we use the ETL Edwina for our live streams but they are more of a performance mic than a recording mic.

[Wrighty]

Thanks for putting this together Doug - very interesting.

I like the clarity and precision sound of the Schoeps but they all sound very good to my ears.