Anyone tried Sontronics mics?

celebritymusic · 18th July 2005

Hi

Just wondering if anyone has tried any mics in the Sontronics range. I'm trying to find out more about the STC-1.

THANKS!

Shaun

fredrik@mi7 · 21st July 2005

Hi there.

I got this from my colleague in Denmark yesterday.

One of my friends just tried 2 pcs. Sontronics STC-1 (the STC-1s was somewhere else) as stereo (cross-) miking on the brass section of a full bigband (a very good and professional bigband). He is also closemiking every single instrument but he likes very much to have a total stereo, and uses that more than the closemic's whenever it is possible. Anyway he has tried all kinds of different mic's for this purpose and he said the sound from the STC-1's is fantastic!

They are especially good in the low end so the trombones are sounding better than ever but in general the sound is fantastic. Furthermore he really like all the different things you can use the mic's for since there's the pad and the low cut. He also thought that it didn't matter so much that they weren't a matched stereo set since they were pretty much the same anyway.

I haven't had time to take the STC1 for a spin yet, but after reading this it feels like a have to make time to give them a go. I have used Omega and Orpheus, they are both fantastic mics.

junior · 9th December 2005

anyone else try these mics?

Soundog · 12th December 2005

I've tried them - thought they were.. ok. Nothing special. In other words, I didn't really like them. I had 2 weeks to play with them and did a little testing for myself. The different models are quite different sounding and seem to be trying to cover as many sonic bases as possible with just a few models.

I found :

STC-1 - bright and a bit sibilant on voices with ok detail. It was the model I liked best of the ones I tried. Very competent mic but a bit sizzly with on-axis vocals.

Helios - Very similar sounding to the STC-1 but costs quite a bit more.

Omega - Bland as anything.

Orpheus - Had this dark tubby muddy mid thing going. Sounded to me like their take on a U47 after it had been through a washing machine stuffed with greasy overalls.

( I could be confusing the Orpheus with the Helios - I cant' remember now which was the tubby one )

To be fair, I didn't play with them for very long and while they were built very well and finshed quite nicely, although competent, they were just not my thing. My preference is for bright-ish mics with exceptional clarity and detail. I just thought they sounded like they belonged with the "rest of the pack" ( except for the tubby dark one which was woeful ). I'm sure a lot of people would disagree with my opinions and I can see them being useful for things other than classical type vocals though.

Audiop · 12th October 2008

I'v heard some tunes recorded with Sigma (Blumlein and spot) and they sound very nice and natural.

/Peter

Vum · 12th October 2008

The Sigma is fantastic. A little dark to be overheads but great for room, amazing on vocals. Sounds cooool.

talkshowman · 12th October 2008

A thumbs up from me for the Sigma too, it's my one and only ribbon mic so have nothing to compare it to in that way, but everything I record with it sounds nice and smooth. Loving it on amps, cello, hand percussion, and drum room mic. Haven't used it for vocals yet as it hasn't seemed appropriate.

Plus, it has a 'wow' factor to it. I appreciate that function is the priority but there's nothing wrong with something that's aesthetically pleasing too. But YMMV

fastlane · 12th October 2008

I tried the sigma for a week mostly on a guitar cab, wasn't overly impressed. Then I tried the royer r121, the difference was huge. Granted there is a hefty price difference but the royer just sounded so natual on everything. The sigma went back, kept the royer and my credit card took yet another hit!

18th July 2005	#1
celebritymusic Gear addict Joined: Jun 2005 Location: AUSTRALIA Posts: 397 Thread Starter	Anyone tried Sontronics mics? Hi Just wondering if anyone has tried any mics in the Sontronics range. I'm trying to find out more about the STC-1. THANKS! Shaun

21st July 2005	#2
fredrik@mi7 Gear nut Joined: Jan 2005 Location: Malmoe, Sweden Posts: 92	Hi there. I got this from my colleague in Denmark yesterday. One of my friends just tried 2 pcs. Sontronics STC-1 (the STC-1s was somewhere else) as stereo (cross-) miking on the brass section of a full bigband (a very good and professional bigband). He is also closemiking every single instrument but he likes very much to have a total stereo, and uses that more than the closemic's whenever it is possible. Anyway he has tried all kinds of different mic's for this purpose and he said the sound from the STC-1's is fantastic! They are especially good in the low end so the trombones are sounding better than ever but in general the sound is fantastic. Furthermore he really like all the different things you can use the mic's for since there's the pad and the low cut. He also thought that it didn't matter so much that they weren't a matched stereo set since they were pretty much the same anyway. I haven't had time to take the STC1 for a spin yet, but after reading this it feels like a have to make time to give them a go. I have used Omega and Orpheus, they are both fantastic mics. __________________ Kind regards Fredrik Svensson MI7 HQ Malmoe, Sweden http://www.mi7.com

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Sontronics Mics	parissound	Low End Theory	32	4th April 2012 02:10 AM
condensor mics vs dynamic mics for rap vocals	ozramidi	Rap + Hip Hop engineering & production	3	24th July 2006 10:35 PM
Sontronics ribbon mic	fredrik@mi7	So much gear, so little time!	34	23rd May 2006 04:50 PM
sontronics	borut	So much gear, so little time!	3	25th April 2006 11:25 PM

9th December 2005	#3
junior Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2005 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 2,078	anyone else try these mics?

12th December 2005	#4
Soundog Gear nut Joined: Feb 2005 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 117	I've tried them - thought they were.. ok. Nothing special. In other words, I didn't really like them. I had 2 weeks to play with them and did a little testing for myself. The different models are quite different sounding and seem to be trying to cover as many sonic bases as possible with just a few models. I found : STC-1 - bright and a bit sibilant on voices with ok detail. It was the model I liked best of the ones I tried. Very competent mic but a bit sizzly with on-axis vocals. Helios - Very similar sounding to the STC-1 but costs quite a bit more. Omega - Bland as anything. Orpheus - Had this dark tubby muddy mid thing going. Sounded to me like their take on a U47 after it had been through a washing machine stuffed with greasy overalls. ( I could be confusing the Orpheus with the Helios - I cant' remember now which was the tubby one ) To be fair, I didn't play with them for very long and while they were built very well and finshed quite nicely, although competent, they were just not my thing. My preference is for bright-ish mics with exceptional clarity and detail. I just thought they sounded like they belonged with the "rest of the pack" ( except for the tubby dark one which was woeful ). I'm sure a lot of people would disagree with my opinions and I can see them being useful for things other than classical type vocals though.

12th October 2008	#5
Audiop Lives for gear Joined: Mar 2008 Location: Sweden Posts: 3,960	I'v heard some tunes recorded with Sigma (Blumlein and spot) and they sound very nice and natural. /Peter

12th October 2008	#6
Vum Lives for gear Joined: Dec 2006 Location: Dallas Posts: 1,045	The Sigma is fantastic. A little dark to be overheads but great for room, amazing on vocals. Sounds cooool.

12th October 2008	#7
talkshowman Gear maniac Joined: Sep 2008 Location: Belfast Posts: 162	A thumbs up from me for the Sigma too, it's my one and only ribbon mic so have nothing to compare it to in that way, but everything I record with it sounds nice and smooth. Loving it on amps, cello, hand percussion, and drum room mic. Haven't used it for vocals yet as it hasn't seemed appropriate. Plus, it has a 'wow' factor to it. I appreciate that function is the priority but there's nothing wrong with something that's aesthetically pleasing too. But YMMV

12th October 2008	#8
fastlane Lives for gear Joined: Oct 2005 Location: ireland Posts: 892	I tried the sigma for a week mostly on a guitar cab, wasn't overly impressed. Then I tried the royer r121, the difference was huge. Granted there is a hefty price difference but the royer just sounded so natual on everything. The sigma went back, kept the royer and my credit card took yet another hit!