| My 609 doesn’t sound murky, it sounds flat and before I get accused of flaming I thought your samples were very useful. I been considering adding a 906 to my mic case any your samples made me decide to write the check.
I like flat. If I want a presence peak, I’ll put it there and I can pick where and how much. Same goes for roll-offs and other EQ. I like linear transducers.
It occurs to me that it might not be the mic itself but the preamp. All dynamic microphones are sensitive to loading by the preamp. They are all after all, a transducer with specific impedance loading requirements. Dynamic mics sound differently [to my ear] on transformer coupled inputs vs. transformer-less inputs. For that matter I hear subtle to gross effects from different brands of input transformers. I typically use my 609 on transformer-less preamps.
Blue has addressed the loading problem by placing a preamp in the “Ball” mics. The jury is still out on how effective this solution is. I think that part of the charm of dynamic element mics is its variable tonal “colors” into various preamps. Differences make horse races and good recordings.
I find the “ultimate combination” assertion humorous, ears are WAY too subjective. Shelly Yakus had an SM 57 that he carried around for snare drum recording. It was defective in a way that sounded good to Shelly…
And BTW: Dynamic mic elements and speakers [similar technology] DO wear out. Mylar gets brittle, rubber surrounds degrade, etc.
What puzzles me more, with the resurgence of ribbon mics that are notorious for their impedance sensitivity and high-gain preamp requirements, why more manufacturers [other than Royer] haven’t thought of putting preamps in their ribbons… hummm… |