| User review | | Sound Quality | | 10 | | Ease of use | | 10 | | Features | | 10 | | Bang for buck | | 9 | |
Score: 98%
|
| Living up to the hype - a great all around mic
Before purchasing, I did a lot of research - talking to Sweetwater, reading reviews, visiting online forums, talking to a few owners. I even was able to get in touch with 2 people at Miktek who were intimately familiar with the mic from both a design and application standpoint. I wanted a studio workhorse that would enhance my rather modest mic locker, and so far, this mic is proving to live up to the promises about it. I have tried it on several sources and am sharing my findings below.
The Cliff Notes version - if you just want to get to the main points, here goes. you can read the other parts for more detail if you want. The mic has a nice bottom - full but not flabby. Its tight and smooth. Mid range feels open and natural, and there is a subtle presence that has a smooth character to it. The top end of the mic opens up nicely. On vocals, this mic seems to be very forgiving, with a large sweet spot, yet with acoustic guitar it responded with great sensitivity to very small changes in placement. Nothing about it is overhyped, no fizzle on the top and no flab on the bottom and no murky low mids, with presence that is smooth and not peaky. When compared to a more "budget friendly" mic in "solo" mode, I found the two very similar in tonal balance, but with the CV4 having a smoothness and richness that is hard to describe but that clearly outshined the other mic. Those differences became much more noticeable when auditioning the different tracks in a full band mix. The CV4 sat nicely in the mix without a hint of compression, eq, or effects - a nearly finished sound right out of the gate. The other mic sounded like what it was - a raw track that needed to be massaged in order to work it into the mix. I don't believe Miktek was aiming to make this sound like the classics whose names are always thrown around... 47, 67, 87, 251, c12, etc. Instead, it seems to have its own identity, but with characteristics that are found in several of the above mentioned mics. Overall its a big, dimensional sound with warmth and smoothness without being dull, and air without being brittle.
Acoustic guitar - I found this brought in some of the warmth of a ribbon mic, but with the mid range and high end detail of a small diaphram mic, all with a smooth top end. Very responsive to changes in placement. I particularly liked it as a "body mic" especially when in a figure 8 mode with my cedar wall a couple feet behind it - it really livened up the track. It also did exceptionally well in my situation in the over-the-shoulder mode. if not placed carefully, i could see it being a little too bright for SOME guitars in the traditional 12th fret position, but as an all around mic it was warm and smooth, with ridiculously good detail, and a light top end that is hard to describe...maybe a bit "creamy".
Electric guitar - used a couple feet back on a Matchless Chieftain in cardioid mode it nicely captured the amp sound with a splash of room. The detail in the amp reverb and a subtle delay effect came through with flying colors, and the music was full bodied with a bit of richness to it. I can't say that the mic did some amazing thing to the sound - it really just comes down to the fact that on playback over the monitors, it sounded like it did when it came from the amp but with a hint of "sweetness" that I'm not used to hearing when I record it.
Female vocal - on a teenage alto voice, the sound was very natural, with a subtle sweetness to it. The vocals had a nice presence while still somehow managing to be slightly softened. Sibilance performance seemed good, quite a bit better than I had expected, and the top end definitely felt more open and airy than I have been used to hearing on this singers voice. On past recordings I have used a hint of the 12k shelving on my Neve style preamps to try to open up the sound, but with this mic that sound was already there, and very smoothly done at that. When switching from cardioid to a more omni directional pattern, there is a very subtle increase in the "air" - after hearing this, I analyzed the audio and confirmed a bit more energy in the track in the 10-11k range. Up close, the mic was very rich and breathy, and captured intimate vocals with enough sex appeal to make you blush.
Male vocal - on a low tenor, the mic delivered good body and warmth, while maintaining very good definition. vocals were present but smooth and natural feeling, and the top end was again more airy and creamy than I am used to hearing. as with the female vocal, getting up on the mic yielded a great intimate sound, and when backing off and belting it out, it performed well also.
Sound = 10 - it sounds great, put it up and forget about it - boy, girl, acoustic, electric...it sounds pretty natural and had no obvious flaws in any of the uses I tried.
Ease of use = 10 - uhh...its a mic, put it on a stand, place it where you want it, and plug it in...
Features = 10 - normal mount and shockmount, carry case, 9 polar patterns....
Bang for the Buck = 9 - I think it is excellent bang for the buck, no doubt about it. I am not rating it a 9 because of anything against it, rather in recognition that there are some incredible deals to be had if you look around on bang for the buck mics. |
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