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anonymous 2 February 2003

Hey all-

I recently got a BLUE Baby Bottle, and for the life of me, the only thing I can do to get it to sound un-boxy is to start screwing around with the midrange either on my joemeek VC1Qcs (mic preamp/comp/EQ) or after tracking. I feel the boxiness leaving it when I'm cutting about 3-6dB anywhere between 1.6k and 2.2k, and that just doesn't seem right to me.

Before I bought it, I read review after review on this and never heard that as a complaint. Recently I've heard that some not-wildly-expensive 1" condensers suffer from this boxiness. I wouldn't think that this fell into the Chinese capsule category (seeing as it's not).

Prior to the BLUE I used an SM-57 for vocals which sounded (surprisingly) not that bad except for a sort of harshness that could never be EQ'ed out without deadening the vocals themselves. I'm glad not to have that problem anymore, which is definitely the worse of the two.

With the BLUE, if I pump a little 4-6k into it (on top of the aforementioned mid cut) I have a nice track. Is this just normal EQ, or should I expect a mic (a $500 mic, that is) to sound close to perfect without any EQ?

Thanks-
.nick

Comments

audiowkstation Sun, 02/02/2003 - 17:00

Topic is fine here!

I never track with EQ except full scale classical works, then I bump 35hZ up a shade.

On the otherhand, even my trusty B&K 3529 system needs post eq because mics in generall have a sweet spot for prox and room and dB levels so eq is a factor. If you compare raw midi sounds flat to a flat mic, the mic will be dull and lifeless in many cases or you will hear a peak or dip. This said, microphone dynamics VS FQ response is non linear meaning a compressor helps folks EQ for a given level..but then again..matter of taste. The reason the 57 sounded the way you describe was either due to the mic pre or not being close enough. They behave at 1 inch to source at 90dB! Nothing I can think of musically maintains 90dB or should be miced at an inch!!

Whoa..losing my voice here...but food for thought..keep it coming..!!

PS..my inner spinner has about spun down for tonight..long day, short weekend...damnit..My brain has more energy than my body.....

anonymous Mon, 02/03/2003 - 08:59

Thanks, Guru ;)

Knowing this will help me trust my mic (and myself) more in the future.

I recorded the vocals for "Million" on that damn 57 (with my daughters tights stretched over a hanger for a popstopper.) Mattie was practically eating that mic. (Tights?)

I know 57's are primarily used for snares and close micing speaker cabs, but it was my first mic from several years ago that I got to be cheap and all-purpose.

I'll also lay off the tracking EQ from now on. It's only going to save hassles on down the line. I've done it in the past mainly to make myself feel better about the sound of take. (Bad Nick!)

U-da.

.nick

anonymous Wed, 02/05/2003 - 14:54

Hey,

I have a Blue Dragonfly, and a Blueberry and I know from reviews and my own use that they need time finding the perfect working distance and angle. I'd imagine the Baby Bottle is similar in that regard. Take your time and really try out angles from like 30 degrees one way to another, and work it from like 3 inches to like maybe as much as 8 inches. Another thing to consider is the angle that it faces to you, like is it pointing somewhat to your chest or head. All these will really effect how you sound. Finally, consider the room, the mic might be picking up something about your room that your ears arent. After all these mics are hypercardioid and your ears are like a matched stereo pair of omnis. Look for bad reflection sources in your room or try moving the mic around in the room looking for the best spots.

later

anonymous Thu, 02/06/2003 - 10:25

Hey,

Another thing to think about is that maybe the mic and preamp are not a good match for each other. I know I've read on various boards on the internet where people talk about specific mics being great but poor matches for specific pre amps. I know but the Meek and the Baby Bottle go out if there way to have a lot of character built into their sounds, this may be a problem. Maybe try the mic through a more transparent preamp, and see if that gets the sound you want.

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