Mojave, Clarion, Stellar? Mid level mics...

[jonnywalker]

For what its worth I recently just snatched up a cm6, and I was really, very impressed. This is by far one of the best mics I have heard on my voice. I typically have sibilance issues...but this mic makes my ess's sound nice. I had a lauten clarion, and I personally didn't care for it. Not bad...just not my cup of tea. I also have or had...
Tlm 103, sm7, at2035, 57, 58, beta58, Beyer 88, oktavamod nt1a, ksm 32, oktava 319...etc.
You simply won't know until you try them, but like I said...I really am quite surprised how nice the cm6 is.
The ksm 32 is a nice all a rounder. It works well on a lot of things, and voices.
That's my 2 cents!!

Sent from my Nexus S 4G using Gearslutz App

[kidvybes]

...the only mic I've used of those you listed was the CM-6, and I strongly concur with 'jonnywalker'...but I do have 2 (different vintage) Mojave MA200's, an original Rode NT Classic I, a BeesNeez Arabella GT, an Advanced Audio CM-47 and I've shot out the CM-6 with all of them as well as a Soundeluxe U99, Gefell UM70, and a Blackspade UM17...suffice to say, the CM-6 hangs (especially with an NOS E80F tube swap)...don't let the low price fool you...besides, I believe three of the mics you listed originate from the same factory, but that's another thread...

[Tommy D]

Was originally considering the MA-200 but read that it's sibilant, relative to the MA-201 FET

FWIW I have an MA-300 (similar to the 200) and an MA-201fet and I find the 201 more prone to sibilance than the 300. The 300 is quite smooth in the highs for me.

I had a Stellar CM6. It was good but it didn't slay me. I used it mostly on female voices, and I found it could be a bit harsh and strident on top when pushed. I tried a Mullard in it and it was marginally better. I lost that mike in a fire in October and suffice it to say I haven't felt compelled to replace it.

I have two KSM-32's as well and I would agree that they are pretty nice mikes for lots of sources.

My $.02......

[Lights]

Since you have an SM-7b, I thought this would be relevant:

Here's my vocal using the CM-6 - it was my first song with the CM-6 and I was still learning it: Control | Lights Fade Low

Here's a female vocal using the CM-6: Small | Lights Fade Low

This is the most interesting--here's female and my vocals using a blend of the SM7 and CM-6: Hurricane | Lights Fade Low

[nambams]

Thanks for the responses. I checked out the clips and the stellar seems to perform well on that type of softer vox. What was your vocal chain? I liked your music BTW.

I agree that the Stellar seems like very good value for money, I was just hoping that if I spent a bit more money that I could get something that sounds better that doesn't take me outside of my budget. The MA300 is unfortunately outside of that.

The fact that a lot of those mics come from the same factory also adds to the confusion...

[Lights]

Thanks.

For Small and Control, the vocal chain was Stellar directly into the ProFire2626 preamp with iZotope Nectar as the main vocal plugin. There were obviously other effects applied for... well, for effect, such as reverb, delay, phasing, but the core vocal sound was Nectar.

For the SM7/CM-6 combo, check this detailed post: Dual Mic for Vocals... how close in phase do they need to be?. Stellar was still using the stock 2626 preamp on that one, but if I had a second GAP73, I think that would be even better.

[cheu78]

Just to give you some more options there's Violet Design that has the Black Knight which is rather cheap but sounds great.. Or JZ Vintage 11 seems also a good candidate for your situation..
These are companies that are usually unspoken, but definitely deserve more attention for the product that they build.. original designs, no oem, made in Europe, attention to the details..
I never tried the ones mentioned by you personally, so can't really compare to these.. but having owned (still do) some Violets and JZ's, I wanted to share the love

I hope this helps you somehow,



Cheu

[kidvybes]

Originally Posted by nambams

I agree that the Stellar seems like very good value for money, I was just hoping that if I spent a bit more money that I could get something that sounds better that doesn't take me outside of my budget. The MA300 is unfortunately outside of that.

...the MA300 is just a multi-pattern version of the cardioid-only MA200 (the CM-6 is multi-pattern)...sounds better?...hear them for yourself:
Stellar CM-6 Vs Mojave MA-200

...or hear the CM-6 (and CM-5) compared to a Soundelux U99 and Gefell UM70:
Hundreds$ to Thousands$ Female Mic Shootout

...don't assume the CM-6's low price reflects lesser quality...

Originally Posted by cheu78

.. Or JZ Vintage 11 seems also a good candidate for your situation..
These are companies that are usually unspoken, but definitely deserve more attention for the product that they build.. original designs, no oem, made in Europe, attention to the details..
I never tried the ones mentioned by you personally, so can't really compare to these.. but having owned (still do) some Violets and JZ's, I wanted to share the love

...I currently have a JZ Vintage 11 in my home studio for evaluation...interesting mic...in initial voice-over comparison to the much less expensive, but similarly voiced KEL HM-2D, the Vintage 11 lacks just a bit of detail but has a bigger, smoother, more bass present tonality...the JZV11 seems as though it might be an excellent choice to smooth out and add some heft to a vocalist with a thinner, brighter and louder voice (rather like a more refined SM7) ...I hope to track some proper vocals on it this weekend, for a better overview of it's performance...

[nambams]

Thanks guys. I had listened to those MA-200 vs CM-6 samples earlier and while I liked what the CM-6 had to offer, I felt like the Mojave represented the low mids more dynamically. I'm not sure that I need to specifically have a *tube* condenser. Which is why I was initially drawn to the concept of the MA-201. I just heard a sample of the TLM-102 on YouTube and it didn't really do much for me.

If Stellar had a solid state mic I would check that out.

I'm not making a lesser price = lesser quality judgement on the Stellar. I'm just trying to get the best sounding mic (to my ears) I can for the budget.

Any other solid state suggestions in this ballpark?

I'll check out the Violet and the JZ and see if I can hear some samples.

[kidvybes]

Originally Posted by nambams

I'll check out the Violet and the JZ and see if I can hear some samples.

...I did some very quick impromptu comparisons for a female vocalist I'm currently working with, who has a very broad (and sometimes problematic) dynamic range, using the JZ Vintage 11 and the similarly voiced KEL HM-2D, as well as a selection of other mics...both of these 2 mics have very flat responses with HF rolloff eliminating the typical top-end hype found in many modern LDC microphones (which in most instances do not flatter this type of voice), the JZV11 having an additional low end bump at around 90Hz...the first 2 soundclips are raw files with no treatment at all...I added a 3rd soundfile as an example of the JZ11 clip with just a bit of volume automation, EQ and reverb...I did not have time to do a precise volume match: