I need some new mics

Posted: Tue Feb 26, 2008 12:47 pm

My Beyerdynamic M500 is blown! Beyerdynamic claims parts are not available and will not fix it; and man do I miss it. So do I buy the M260 or what. I used the M500 on my vocals and really want to try to get as close as possible to that set up ( ribbon cardiod ) so I can use it live at moderate volumes. I was looking closely at the Cascade fathead with the Cinemag option but I think that's probably a studio only choice. And what about the Royer R121 stage?

Other mics that I want to try are the Heil PR-35 and Sennheiser MD421 II.

Any ideas?
thanks
gb

Posted: Mon Mar 03, 2008 10:14 pm

A soul out there?

Posted: Mon Mar 03, 2008 11:02 pm

I had one of those Beyers. The ribbon took a dive with it too. I think I sold the carcass as was.....I still miss that mic. Look into aftermarket companies for repair ..I'm sure theres some out there.

I dont think you're going to get all that close to the openness the M500 has with the lower budget ribbons.

The Royers are fantastic and durable. If you can foot the bill, then this is your best bet. They sound MUCH better than the M500 ever did.

I have not heard the Heil PR35.....I HAVE heard the PR40, PR30 and the PR20. The 20 is a deeper sounding version of an SM58...The 30 is as good as it gets for an instrument mic and the PR40 is a lot like an EV RE20 or an SM7 on steroids.

The MD421 is a mic that has many many uses....all great....I never liked them on vocals but thats just me... Most of it has to do with the awkward feel singing into it has for me. Theres nothing wrong with the sound.

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2008 3:30 am

We all miss our M500's don't we? Crying or Very sad

I tried an M260, wasn't impressed, and it isn't cheap. I'm going to have to try out that new Heil, I like my PR40. Great bang for the buck. Gee, for live vocals, the M500 was a pretty special mic. Most of the vox mics made today are just too harsh and sibilant compared to the 500. Definitely stay clear of the Beta line. I'd say try out a PR35...

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2008 10:52 am

Davedog, You always have great recommendations on cost effective mics. I'm surprised you didn't critique the FatHead he mentioned. I have a Royer R121 (not stage) and I absolutely love this Mic but the Fathead is right there to the finest detail. I defy anyone to A-B these and not come back to the Cascade Fathead II if based on money. (roughly a grand vs. $200). I haven't heard the Fathead but the Fathead II is a great mic period. These ribbons are still too dark for my tastes on vocals alone but great when used as a blend for warmth with a lg diaphragm mic for articulation. Outstanding on elec. guitar amps. I give the edge to Royer on a bass amp though.

I also (IMHO) wouldn't use too many ribbons for stage but I'm beta testing another great mic ($299) from Cascade right now called the ELROY. There are many inexpensive mics out there so I won't go off the deep end but they build them like little tanks and this one is not only reminiscent of the Blue family in body style but is has a great bite for rock attack on vocals. Not as much shimmer as the discontinued v55 (incredible mic for $499, I have a pair) but for 3 bills it's a quality build. The mic has great presence and the sound is very pleasing in the mix.

Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2008 7:04 pm

BDFitz....Thanx for the heads up. I have not had an oportunity to try out the Cascade mics. All the reviews I have read have recommneded them at the price point as a great buy, but I have used the Royer, both the R121 and the stereo one (R122???) .....kinda sold me easily... Embarassed

But to hear someone with a side to side comparison that is an owner prompts me to take a look at the Cascades. I can probably get a couple hunnerd together for that test...

"Honey, I NEED, a new.................HEY!!! THAT HURT!!!..............." Exclamation

She did buy half a Harley at Christmas, so dont think I'm not getting stuff!!

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 3:46 am

Davedog wrote:

BDFitz....Thanx for the heads up. I have not had an oportunity to try out the Cascade mics. All the reviews I have read have recommneded them at the price point as a great buy, but I have used the Royer, both the R121 and the stereo one (R122???) .....kinda sold me easily... Embarassed

But to hear someone with a side to side comparison that is an owner prompts me to take a look at the Cascades. I can probably get a couple hunnerd together for that test...

"Honey, I NEED, a new.................HEY!!! THAT HURT!!!..............." Exclamation

She did buy half a Harley at Christmas, so dont think I'm not getting stuff!!

Harley? How did you know? Crhis almighty you're good Dave!

But seriously---cerealousy? I think I'll get get the Fathead and a/b 'em with a new Royer and a R-84. I never did like giveng up my wonderfully devalued American $ to the Euro.

Thanks for input, regardless------------ Thumbs Up

gb

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 4:06 am

moonbaby wrote:

We all miss our M500's don't we? Crying or Very sad

I tried an M260, wasn't impressed, and it isn't cheap. I'm going to have to try out that new Heil, I like my PR40. Great bang for the buck. Gee, for live vocals, the M500 was a pretty special mic. Most of the vox mics made today are just too harsh and sibilant compared to the 500. Definitely stay clear of the Beta line. I'd say try out a PR35...

Thanks mb, for the scratch, I think I will, I'll let you guys know if it get's low marks. I'm nearing the baritone range, in my old age, and everyone used to ask me about the M500 in the old days. If the PR-35 doesn't come near, I'll report back. It will be a while cause I'm on the road. What really pissed me about it all was that Beyerdynamic rieissued the M-500 about 10 years ago and then suddenly they disappeared off the market. Kinda like they just asssembled all their spares and dropped it right when they ran out. I woulda felt better if they had just gone out of business entirely!

thanks again, Davedog

gb

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 4:16 am

BDFitz wrote:

Davedog, You always have great recommendations on cost effective mics. I'm surprised you didn't critique the FatHead he mentioned. I have a Royer R121 (not stage) and I absolutely love this Mic but the Fathead is right there to the finest detail. I defy anyone to A-B these and not come back to the Cascade Fathead II if based on money. (roughly a grand vs. $200). I haven't heard the Fathead but the Fathead II is a great mic period. These ribbons are still too dark for my tastes on vocals alone but great when used as a blend for warmth with a lg diaphragm mic for articulation. Outstanding on elec. guitar amps. I give the edge to Royer on a bass amp though.

I also (IMHO) wouldn't use too many ribbons for stage but I'm beta testing another great mic ($299) from Cascade right now called the ELROY. There are many inexpensive mics out there so I won't go off the deep end but they build them like little tanks and this one is not only reminiscent of the Blue family in body style but is has a great bite for rock attack on vocals. Not as much shimmer as the discontinued v55 (incredible mic for $499, I have a pair) but for 3 bills it's a quality build. The mic has great presence and the sound is very pleasing in the mix.

So I get the Cascade Fat Head II and the Royer R-121 Stage and just mix 'em? Ok, I'll use these for recording together and then use the PR-35 for live vocals. I wanna hear what the Elroy's doing for you.

Thanks guys

gb

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 5:52 am

I love my M260! Mine was cheap: second-hand off ebay. Still going strong, despite regular use on stage..

Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 6:50 pm

Very funny Dave. I was one of the first to buy the Royer R121. Low serial number. Never regretted that purchase. At NAMM they offered to give it an upgrade (+5 db) and any clean up needed. I emailed support but never heard back. It was right after the 2007 show so no big. I actually like the fact that the mic needs a lot of pre to crank it up. It's really handy and safer when switching between sources (i.e., levels on guitar amp). It takes a lot to power them and the Fathead II is similar in that respect.

I have A-B'd them on several sources and you can use them as a stereo pair with no discernible difference. I've had the Royer since they came out. I've been careful but not anal about it. It's been bumped and there are times I've forgotten the pop screen on bass amps. No damage. Very solid. The Fathead looks great so far. Solid, almost rugged in design and easier to find the sweet spot.

The ELROY is great for my needs. Like the Cascade v55 it's yet another fairly unique sounding mic with great presence. For vocals I have a Neumann TLM103, a Vintage AKG 414, 2 v55's and 2 Rode NTK's. The ELROY is not as silky as the v55's and not as warm in the bottom end as the Neumann but $299 ???. I believe the Fathead II places the Lundhal transformer in the body, hence the bigger body style but I'm told they're sonically the same.

Here are a couple tips with these ribbons. I think they work best on amp sources about 1 foot away from just off center of the speaker cone pointed up at a 45 degree angle. This keeps the air from directly hitting the ribbon. A pop screen is always good. The interesting thing about the Royer is, they suggest turning it opposite the sound source (emblem out) to achieve a crisper sound with more top end. It actually works. If the sound is a little dull try this before EQing the track.

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