Do you have questions about microphones? Send your questions to: testing123@audiomidi.com and have your questions answered by David Royer and Dusty Wakeman of Mojave Microphones. Questions and answers will be posted on this page about once a month.
How long should you warm up a tube microphone before you use it?
It's a good idea to let tube mics warm up for 30 minutes or so. You can turn it on and use right away if you're in a hurry, but the sound might change slightly as the tube stabilizes.
In what applications would I use a small diaphragm condenser instead a large diaphragm condenser?
The most obvious reason is a physical one - small-diaphragm mics are often easier to position than large-diaphragms. One example would be on snare drum - you can use a large-diaphragm on snare, but it may be too large to squeeze into the sweet spot.
Small-diaphragm mics tend to have a more consistent off-axis freq. response than large-diaphragms. Conversely, large-diaphragms tend to have a bump in the hi-end when you get directly in front of them. So if you’re capturing a wide sound field, like an orchestra, small-diaphragms would be a better choice. For an in-your-face vocal sound, a good large-diaphragm is likely to be a good bet. One common misconception is that large-diaphragms have a lower lo-freq. response than small-diaphragm mics - not true! All of this is dependent on which large- or small-diaphragm mics we're discussing.
If I use a tube microphone should I use a tube microphone preamp?
It really depends on which tube mic and which tube pre you're considering. The Mojave MA-200 uses a tube, but doesn't sound tubey. A tube can be used to achieve hi-fidelity or can be driven harder to achieve a 'tubey' effect. The MA-200 is often used with a good tube mic pre, like a UA or a Manley with great results, but if the mic sounds tubey and the pre sounds tubey, you probably won't get a satisfactory result.
Why would I use a condenser mic to record my guitar amp?
Good condenser mics have a much faster transient response than dynamics, which are typically used on amps, so you get a lot of attack. One of the best guitar sounds I've ever heard was one of our MA-100s coupled with a Royer 121 Ribbon mic. You get all that warm fatness from the ribbon and all the attack and presence from the condenser. When it's mixdown time, you can play with the balance between the two instead of reaching for eq. Our new MA-101fet is a killer on guitar amps - the louder the better!
I love the sound of my large diaphragm, tube mic that I record vocals with. Can I use it to perform live too?
Large-diaphragm tube mics are generally way too sensitive for live use - you'd never be able to get enough gain before feedback. Live mics are designed to have a very narrow pickup pattern and have a low sensitivity, making them able to withstand the high spls that are often encountered. It's always good to have the right tool for the job and there's some really good live mics out there.
Our solid-state condensers, the MA-201fet and the MA-101fet, are more suited for live use, like drum overheads and instrument mics, but for live vocals, find a good mic that's made for the job.
What features should I look for in a mic pre specifically for classic ribbon mics?
David's pretty crazy about Millennia pres. The main spec to look at is the input impedence. 1.5kohms is a minimum , 2.5-3k is mo better. Millennia is 6.75!
