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Post by John Bell on Oct 18, 2014 9:30:29 GMT 1
I am looking at replacing my old AKG C1000s overheads in the studio. I will keep them for live gigs as they are built like a tank and have survived a few falls when the boom stands have taken a knock. Although they are not the best for the job, they are practical.
I was thinking of a pair of Rode NT1A's, as I like my NT2a for vocal recordings, but they are way too heavy for overheads at 860.00gm. The NT1a's are only 326.00gm, but I have not found a decent review of them being used a overheads.
A matched pair of NT5's would be even cheaper and only 101.00gm, but as good?
I haven't got a big budget, so that excludes most of the typical top studio mics.
Anyone have any views or other suggestions?
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Post by John Bell on Oct 20, 2014 12:26:48 GMT 1
After a lot of consideration regarding performance verses cost, I have ordered a matched pair of Rode NT5's from Thomann. Everywhere I have searched for mic comparisons and "shoot-out" videos, put the NT5's in at least second place. Everyone seems to be in agreement that the NT5's are easily better than my AKG C1000s when used as overheads. I also ordered 2x Rode SM4 shock mounts. Looking forward to less harsh cymbals in my recordings. www.thomann.de/gb/rode_nt_5.htmwww.thomann.de/gb/rode_sm4.htm
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Post by John Bell on Oct 31, 2014 11:04:50 GMT 1
Compared to my AKG C1000s mics, the Rode NT5 mics are quite small, but the SM4 shock mounts make them look the business. They will get their first work-out this week end, when I record 2 band rehearsals. I am the drummer for both bands (project and live), so it will be interesting to compare my mixes with the previous overheads recordings.
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Post by John Bell on Nov 2, 2014 9:48:33 GMT 1
Wow, what a difference. I will have to use these live as well. Great detail and clarity when used as A B overheads.
A straight down over the hi-hats and between the left crash and left crash/ride.
B straight down over the main crash/ride and between the central splash and right crash.
Good separation and no issues when mixed with the close drum mics.
When mixing the recordings, I gate both the top and bottom snare mics using IK Multimedia's White Channel Strip.
I could leave the Rode NT5's at full band-width, unlike the AKG C1000s which had to be seriously rolled-off by the EQ's.
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Post by John Bell on Nov 3, 2014 1:25:31 GMT 1
A big difference in today's recording session from yesterday's more gentle session. My live band guitarists like to play very loudly when rehearsing, so the vocal monitoring has to be just as loud. The 2x guitar combos are positioned either side and in front of the drums, facing sideways towards the guitarists, on top of 2x of my multicore drums, with the bass combo on the outer side, aimed at a large soft sofa. To enable more floor space, I rig the 2x 400w vocal monitors, head high, in the wall of PA cabs, either side of the playback rig, (2k of my PA rig, 2x 400w JBL MRX 512's and 2x SmartSound 650w 18" subs) behind the drums and opposite the rest of the band. As the new Rode NT5's have a cardioid polar pattern and are far more sensitve than the AKG C1000s, they caught a lot of the vocals. Scooping-out the muddy lower mids in the overheads and rolling off the lower end of the vocal tracks helped solve the problem in the recordings. Looks like I need to re-position the monitors, as unlike me, the rest of the band do not like wearing cans. I can't be in the room without them when a band is playing. The Beyerdynamic DT 250 Closed Back Dynamic Headphones have good ambient noise attenuation. I use Sennheiser HD280 head-phones when drumming, as they have even better isolation, but not as good for mixing.
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