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audiokid 9 April 2017

Mesanovic 2

I love the sound of this mic. I first heard it on an acoustic guitar and had to look for more examples.

 

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DonnyThompson Tue, 04/11/2017 - 04:49

From what I'm hearing here, it sure sounds great to me. I love the midrange response. In that way it's actually similar to an ELAM 250, and that's certainly not a negative comparison.
( I was listening through studio mons in a treated room). The clarity and detail is beautiful, ultra smooth mids, with a nice low end that doesn't get muddy.

Also, the price is right. $1000 for a great sounding condenser, that has properties similar to those "holy grail" classics is a very fair price.

I see it being popular in both mid level production facilities and uber pro rooms alike. The majority of those home recordist who are currently happy with their $60 AT2020's or $80 Behringer condensers wouldn't be a target, nor would the bulk of those budget studios ever think about dropping a grand on one mic alone, anyway.

Time will tell but this mic might be a serious player in the next crop of pro mics under $1500.
IMO

DonnyThompson Tue, 04/11/2017 - 06:48

pcrecord, post: 449436, member: 46460 wrote: Aren't they ribbons ??

Yeah, Mon Ami' ....that was a stupid typo on my part, pal... I was down a few too many quarts of coffee this morning when I wrote my post.

But, I was serious when I said that it does have some qualities that make it similar to a few old condensers - as mentioned, particularly in the mids... I think it sounds very "ELAM -ish" in the mid-range.
It also has the rich bottom end, similar to a U47 Tube.

( Just so guys know, I'm making the comparison based on experience - I have had the luxury of working with both those classic mics a few times over the years - but always at someone elses' studio, I could never afford them myself.)

My memory is still very vivid, of the first time I ever worked with an ELAM 250 - The guy that owned it had a dumpy little studio in Youngstown, Ohio - actually, he had two that he purchased from an auction of gear that Capitol Records was selling off back in the late 70's... IIRC, I think he mentioned that he paid like $400 each for them ( bastard! LOL) although one of the power supplies was cooked, so he couldn't use them together - the two mics worked fine, but the power supply for one was toasted).

I'm not saying that the Mesanovic sounds just like a Telefunken ELAM - but in the mid-range it sure does, or at least from what I can tell from the links that Chris posted here. ( audiokid ).
That was the very first thing I noticed about it, actually.

At some point, I'd kinda like to hear a full comparison between an ELAM and this Mesanovic mic - I realize that the mic types are totally different, apples/oranges, but that mid-range on the Mesanovic is very similar to the Telefunkens I've used in the past, at least to my ears, anyway.

IMHO of course.

pcrecord Tue, 04/11/2017 - 07:11

DonnyThompson, post: 449439, member: 46114 wrote: I was serious when I said that it does have some qualities that make it similar to a few old condensers - as mentioned, particularly in the mids... I think it sounds very "ELAM -ish" in the mid-range.
It also has the rich bottom end, similar to a U47 Tube.

No doubt.
I'm so much into the U47 flavor that if the USD exchange rate wasn't so high and I'had the money, I would order this kit :
https://microphone-…
 

DonnyThompson, post: 449439, member: 46114 wrote: I think he mentioned that he paid like $400 each for them ( bastard! LOL)

400$ ?? OMG !!!

DonnyThompson Tue, 04/11/2017 - 07:39

pcrecord, post: 449442, member: 46460 wrote: No doubt.
I'm so much into the U47 flavor that if the USD exchange rate wasn't so high and I'had the money, I would order this kit :
https://microphone-…

400$ ?? OMG !!!

Yeah, I know. It kinda made me throw up in my mouth a little when he told me that. :sick:

So, the kit that you just built several months ago... wasn't it a U47-ish thing... ? Or am I mistaken on that?

DonnyThompson Tue, 04/11/2017 - 07:41

audiokid, post: 449441, member: 1 wrote: Indeed. The mid range in these examples sound stellar. That was the first thing I noticed. Wow.

It's also the first thing I notice on cheap mics, too... only I notice how bad the mids sound. LOL.

It seems to be - in my own experience - that getting lows and highs seems to be easier for mic manufacturers to get right, but it's always the upper mids that presents the most difficulty.... or am I wrong on that?

audiokid Tue, 04/11/2017 - 07:53

DonnyThompson, post: 449449, member: 46114 wrote: It seems to be - in my own experience - that getting lows and highs seems to be easier for mic manufacturers to get right, but it's always the upper mids that presents the most difficulty.... or am I wrong on that?

Precisely my thinking too.
the uppers are where human ears are most sensitive but I would say all mids are equally important, just some are more noticeable to humans.
Good mid-range makes all the difference. Adding top and bottom end freq can be pushed with EQ but honky savage mids just suck no matter which way the EQ goes.

audiokid Tue, 04/11/2017 - 08:25

DonnyThompson, post: 449449, member: 46114 wrote: It seems to be - in my own experience - that getting lows and highs seems to be easier for mic manufacturers to get right, but it's always the upper mids that presents the most difficulty.... or am I wrong on that?

To add more, this was the first thing I noticed with the better ADDA converters. It shed light on discovering how mid range became a domino effect meaning, if I hear mids in detail, the DAW can easily shape the top and bottom curves, especially on the master buss.

This is another reason why I've migrated towards 2 DAWs, second DAW to master. DAW1 prepares mid focus and DAW 2 polishes. The analog gear in the middle is where dedicated mid range spacial processing shines most.

The older I seem to get, my ears seems to crave more refined mids. I think when we are younger, and have the ability to hear top end more, we are also more prone to be distracted from midrange detail. Since I don't have the ability to hear as well, mid range that is culttered, is really cluttered to me now. Thus why I am so focused on everything quality mid related. Avatones, MEQ-5, Taylor 714ce , good converters etc etc etc, These microphones now too...

Its addicting lol. Or better said, really important for me because I understand how crap mids effect a mix... you have to fuck everything up around it. One bad apple spoils the batch.

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