Mojave MA100 Tube SDC review (Do Over)

[barryjohns]

Ok, the last one got out of hand and way off subject, and I'm partly to blame. It would be a good idea to start this over again and give the Mic a fair review.

So, if you’d like, please post your thoughts on the Mojave MA100.

[oldswirlo]

Mojave MA100 Tube SDC review

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For the last month or so some Mojave Demo Mics have been passed around in Austin.
I've had a chance to spend a little time with a pair of the small diaphragm tube MA-100's so I thought I'd post a report.

Quite simply, they kick ass.

On a well tuned Ayotte drum kit hit by a great drummer, they sounded perfect and required no eq in tracking or in the mix. The cymbal/snare bleed that was present was not a problem at all and sounded natural. No gating or trimming/muting tom tracks was necessary.

I used one on a double tracked acoustic guitar strumming part and it also sounded amazing. I'm extremely particular about what frequencies are present in the pick attack on acoustic guitars. The Mojave worked great in a very dense mix and when the guitars were more revealed in a break down. The picking was present but never overly bright or thin. The body of the guitar was also present without being boomy. It was a nice Taylor mic'd from about 12 inches pointed at about the sixth fret. I used a 100hz Hi-Pass on a Calrec pq15s, but no other eq was needed in tracking or in the mix.

I also used it on electric guitars. A Tele or a Les Paul through a 20 Watt Sewell (kind of Marshall like) into a TopHat 2x12 cab. I blended the close mic'd Mojave with a close 57 (painstakingly phase aligned) and a royer 121 for the room. It was awesome. The mojave was very aggressive sounding providing tons of bite with out being harsh. Great tones using the mic blend in the mix to tweek the sound. Also no eq needed.

Granted I had excellent sources to capture, but the Mojave met or exceeded my expectations in all three applications. All in all, a great mic! Highly recommended.