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Davedog 22 March 2011

Tonight I finally got to use the Avantone on some tracks. Lead female vocals and backing vocals. I used it with an ADK TT tube mic both through an ISA 428 mic preamp into Pro Tools. The outs on the pres were sent through the line ins on the Soundcraft so I could add some verb for the vibe for her vocal parts without printing the verbs.

Its a huge, thick, detailed sound, without a bunch of hyped unnatural upper end.

This ribbon is a bit brighter than some though not overly. A bit more natural would be my assessment as a lot of ribbons I've been able to use in the past were all a bit dark for my tastes. .other than the Royers. .This one is smooth and silky and combined with the tube-i-ness of the ADK TT, it meshed perfectly for this singer. She has a voice with a lot of chracter in it and these songs demand that to stand out. I attained excellent levels with around a 45 db gain setting on the pre and the HP filter was engaged. The ribbon seemed to sound best on the 'medium' impedance setting, which is 2400 ohms in this case.

Its a quiet mic despite the gain required.

Its a sturdy well built piece and the suspension mount is quite industrial and heavy. I have it in an ATUS stand right now but when I take delivery of a new roller boom, it will be the stand of choice for this as its quite substantial in weight.

I'll be tracking more over the spring break, including some acoustic and electric guitars and will let you know what I think as well as posting some pieces for listening.

So far, this is a bargain for the quality vs price point. Having heard some of the other inexpensive ribbon offerings, I will say that this one is better in every way. The sound is excellent, the build is quality, and the price is within most studios budgets.

Nice aluminum travel kit is included as well as the suspension and a very nice wood box for the mic.

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Comments

moonbaby Wed, 03/23/2011 - 08:53

DD:
I have been looking for an alternative to the AT4047 I have been using for the ladies. I am going to start a project with a vocalist with a strong pair of lungs and a Ronstadt-type of timbre (i.e., "You're No Good"). I love the 4047 on smokey jazz
chickies, but the 4047 is a wee bit grainy on this lady (hard to believe). Maybe this is the ticket...Thanks for the info!

Davedog Wed, 03/23/2011 - 11:05

I've heard the Cascades, the MXL, Royers, and the Shures (Crowley&Tripp)....as well as RCA's and another old ribbon. This Avantone seems to be a great buy. Its NOT at the level of the Crowley & Tripp's or the Royers, but its way better sounding than either of the the other similarly priced pieces I've had the pleasure to hear. I guess its 'modern' in its tone but it still has that 'ribbon' thing going on. The slightly dark detail I guess is the thing. We did backing vocals last night with the ribbon and the ADK in figure of 8 I sang in the back and she sang through the fronts. It was a nice blend. I'll use it solo today and get a real take on it.

Mooney, this is a very similar voice I'm working with here. Sheryl Crow/ Ronstadt/ Shawn Colvin....And , the U87 had too much grain! So the ribbon showed up as well as the ADK TT's. Both are great!

Shanesaw Wed, 03/30/2011 - 10:49

Looking forward to feedback from Davedog's Spring Break sessions. I am also hoping this would benefit guitar cabs as well as deep nasally voices on vocals (Mike Ness like from Social D, but deeper). I definately am working on my vocal skills, but hope this would smooth it out all around meanwhile... Thx.

Davedog Wed, 03/30/2011 - 13:28

Shanesaw, post: 367570 wrote: Looking forward to feedback from Davedog's Spring Break sessions. I am also hoping this would benefit guitar cabs as well as deep nasally voices on vocals (Mike Ness like from Social D, but deeper). I definately am working on my vocal skills, but hope this would smooth it out all around meanwhile... Thx.

I'm nasally and it works for me.....

I'm doing a cabinet soon. Still sorting out things from the upgrade last month.

BobRogers Wed, 03/30/2011 - 16:54

Shanesaw, post: 367570 wrote: Looking forward to feedback from Davedog's Spring Break sessions. I am also hoping this would benefit guitar cabs...

I'm a big fan of ribbons on guitar cabs. I have an AEA R84 that I use as much as possible for that job. But even the Cascade Fat Head sounds good of a guitar cab. [[url=http://[/URL]="http://recording.or…"]Here's a test[/]="http://recording.or…"]Here's a test[/] I made when I first got my pair. I don't recommend the Cascades if you can afford better, but I had a great time with mine. I'm glad I got them. They mostly get use at church on violins. (i don't want to risk more expensive mics with all the kids running around.) Very interested in doing a shootout with the Aventone.

Shanesaw Thu, 04/07/2011 - 20:15

Thanks for info on this, i ordered the Avantone yesterday as it sounds like its worth the $260 on a track i find suitable. However, my preamps are a bit neutral/dull on my Roland VSS2400 ( i know, need to upgrade to nicer preamp/interface and DAW, thats next after what im about to mention ). Any recomendation on a preamp with AD built in for say $400 used or new?. Figured i can use on my AKG C414xl mic too. Was looking at the UA 710 but noticed it didnt have the digital out like the 4-710...Thx

Shanesaw Tue, 04/12/2011 - 22:48

Just received today, tried a quick vocal take... Sounds very fat and smooth. I set it up with a AKG C414 and a CAD Trion 8000 just so i can get a general idea what its character is tracking with 3 different mics at the same time. Definately a quiet mic as i cranked the gain on my roland vs pres and got no noise compared to others when i crank the gain just before distortion... Cant wait to try on my Marshall 4x12 cab tomorow...

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