MXL V69 or SE z5600a or Apex 460 (modded)?

[monsterz]

Hello

I am about to splash out on a new tube mic and have narrowed it down to the above three which all fall within my budget of around £250 UK pounds. Has anyone had the chance to compare any of these mics?

Thank you!

[davenutz]

Compare, no, but the Z5600a is a very nice mic, expecially at the price point.

I own a number of other MXL mics, which i use all the time and enjoy the sound of. I cant imagine that the V69 would be anything but better than the solid state mics they make.

[AdamJay]

i think warren (warhead) is a dealer for all those brands. he should be able to give you a good comparison.

[warhead]

Hi Monsterz, you've got a pretty varied choice of mics there!

MXL V69: Thick midrange, can be somewhat cloudy at times on certain sources at certain SPL's. Bottom end isn't anything big or small, fairly balanced there. The top end of this mic is attenuated or "darker" than most condensor mics, so if you're looking for a thick mic that doesn't accent the top this one would be the best pick of the 3.

Z5600A: Very real sounding with a "better than real life" presence to it that is quite pleasing on most sources. It's not "bright", it's just more forward in a way that sits nicely in a mix on vocals, acoustic instruments, drums etc as it has an accentuated upper midrange sound. The midrange is clear, the bottom end is tight but there / solid. For a presence without being overly bright or essy, the Z5600A is a favorite of mine.

Apex 260 "modded": I've never heard a modded one, but can tell you that the Apex is pretty good on the low end of things. Overall it's pretty clear and clean, I have limited experience with this mic (we just took on the line, a customer and I shot it out against some other mics last week so I heard it on his voice and mine...my voice being pretty telling to me for judging mics as it's easy for me to hear what's going on this way for the most part). The high end would be the brightest out of all, a characteristic of many of the low cost Chinese mics, but not OVERLY so like some either.

Hope this helps, if you have a local dealer see if you can shoot them out. It all depends on what sound you're going for also, and by choosing only these 3 models and only tube you are eliminating a LOT of contenders in this price range that may better fill a sonic gap in your mic collection.

In other words, tell me exactly what you are looking to record, the sound you want, and what you already own, and what you don't dig about what you already own and I and others could probably assist you better than only playing the "tube mic" game on these 3.

War

[monsterz]

Hello and thanks for the replies.

War, mics which I already own are a

Rode NT2 (a little thin and bright, though I like the omni setting),

Oktava 219 (I like it a lot, but a very specific sound, not an allrounder, though I am considering getting Michael Joly to mod it),

Beyer Soundstar MK2 (My favourite all round for vocals and guitar amp)

Shure SM57 + 58 (Useful of course)

I guess that I am looking for more of a swiss army knife condenser that will sound good on a number of sources, which in my case will be mainly male and female vox, acoustic gtr, electric gtr and sax. Something warm and "old" sounding, the opposite to the NT2 I guess.

Cheers

Monsterz

[MadGuitrst]

Originally Posted by monsterz

Hello and thanks for the replies.

I guess that I am looking for more of a swiss army knife condenser that will sound good on a number of sources, which in my case will be mainly male and female vox, acoustic gtr, electric gtr and sax. Something warm and "old" sounding, the opposite to the NT2 I guess.

Cheers

Monsterz

This is a contradiction IMO.
Swiss army knife and warm, old sounding are nowhere close to the same thing.

A swiss army knife of a mic is a good description of the AT4050, I think.
On the cheap, Studio Projects B1 and B3 mics are kinda swiss army knives.
Maybe the most well traveled swiss army knife of mics are the C414 family.
The Shure KSM44 is also kinda swiss army-ish to me.

If you want warm, I think the V69ME does it well, although it has a bit of a strange peak at the very top which seems sort of disconnected to me. You may or may not notice it, depending on the source. It showed up a little bit on my voice but all in all I like the mic.


FWIW I have a MK319. I owned an NT2 for awhile and found it to be of vintage flavor. I think the Oktava MK219 and 319 are relatively dark mics. So, maybe what you really want is the swiss army knife.

Good luck with your pick.

[Bodoc]

Kel Audio HM-1. 99 bucks---a condenser with unhyped highs, rich, non-brittle. Buy two---it might just change your life. Cheaper than 200 losing lottery tickets!

[homestudioguy]

Is the CAD M9 Tube mic in that price range?
I just bought one and it is a very nice tube mic, especially for $299 U.S.
B