Vintage Mics

[YukonBG]

Hey, I'm just a beginner to the world of recording, so this is a really basic question. I currently am recording on a fostex 280 4-track and have become interested in old mics (like really old, say 40's/50's blues old). Now is it the mic or the recording device (ie. 4-track) that creates the sound of an old recording? Or is it a combination of the two? I've been looking to buy an old mic to get a dirty sound (to record acoustic guitar), so does anyone have any suggestions as to the best ones to check out? Thanks very much for any input.

[soundguy]

its the entire signal path.

certainly any part of the signal path you emulate will get you one step closer, but if you take an old RCA ribbon and plug it into something lie a focusrite preamp, you are going to have a much more modern sound than the likes of howlin' wolf ever recorded with.

dave

[ralph ed]

some of the older e/v mic.s have a distinct "old" sound, and aren't to expensive. i've got an e/v 911 high impedence crystal (?), that we've used
on mandolin and vocal. it is very high output, easily distorts, and has a defined, but musical eq.
several of the big chrome e/v's with large diaphragms, have a warm midrange that evokes early 60's country vocals.

try it, you'll like it!

[MisterMark]

yukon,

check out this site:

http://placidaudio.com

this might be something that puts you in the ball park of what you are looking for.

mark

[tiger vomitt]

that copperphone thing in the link above sounds exactly like a shure green bullet, but is 2.5x the price. not that either really makes anything sound old. unless crappy and low bandwith equate to old. cool maybe...

it'd probably do what you want for a while, and the rest of the time it would just be a cool groovy mic (either mic in question)


i guess it also depends on what you consider to be old. i think of metallica's black album to be "new metallica" even tho it's really pretty old. lol im an crusty old fart at 29

are you looking for like robert johnson old? beatles old? jane's addiction old?

[swingdoc]

I agree in a lot of ways with Dave,
I think "vintage" sounding recordings equate with not so much the signal chain, but the source material, mixdown, and mastering.
"New" recordings sound "new" cuz thats what we're listening to now.
"vintage" recordings are vintage, cuz they're Ella, and she's singing about hats and tomatoes.
Many "modern" recordings are done with RCA ribbon mics, Neve pre's, and Pultec EQ's to tape.
I'm convinced you could make a "vintage" sounding recording with a Soundelux mic, Avalon preamp, and Manley EQ on a ProTools rig.

So in short, it aint the gear.

Get gear that you dont have to fix up. ie a vintage mic to me means its old and crusty, sounds like piss, and someone has spilled beer on it several times, and you spent too much $$ on it, cuz its "vintage"

If I was going to try to make a "50's" sounding recording, a few things to consider. They tending to record multiple instruments on single mics. So the relative loudness is variable. Not too acceptable today, but common then. Some great recordings were done with a single MS technique. I wouldnt compress it hard for sure..
When mixing, dont use a huge stereo spread, stay more "mono" . Play with the EQ a bit. pull up a recording you want yours to sound like, and goof with your master bus EQ, and I'd bet with some funky EQ'ing (probably rolling off the bass a bunch and dialing up some high mids), you can get circa 1948.
Oh yah, you gotta be singing about a peach or a jacket. You cant use words like disarmament or oppression. It wont sound "vintage"
I gar-un-tee...

[I'm Painting Again]

use a wire recorder if you can find one in good shape.

http://www.videointerchange.com/wire_recorder1.htm

Usually they come with mics included too..not very expensive..they go on ebay from $30-$150..you can hear an excelent example of this used and contrasted on the STARS ON E.S.P. album from His Name Is Alive, the label is 4AD..and the album is very worth getting..not sure if its in print currently.

[joel hamilton]

Why doesnt anyone sing about hats OR tomatoes anymore?

I think the squirrel nut zippers tried to rock this kind of sound, but failed. It just sounds like a one mic recording in a modern recording studio.

Whatever.

Doo rag used to do it really well. They sounded like an old 78 rpm record LIVE!

Singing into a vacuum cleaner hose with a 57 on the floor(in the other end of the hose) and a bunch of other cool neat, inventive tricks.

[Professor]

I suppose you need to decide a little bit of what you consider to be 'old sound'. To some people it is limited frequency bands (rolled off highs and lows). To some people it is distant sounding instruments and voices without much dynamic range. To some people it is scratches and pops of old vinyl or even lacquer. Some of those sounds are easier to recreate than others. A crappy tape machine can take care of hiss, and a crystal mic can get you the limited bandwidth, but you might not think that is the 'old' sound you want. Some folks just use the 'telephone' setting on their effects processor.
Either way, if you must buy old gear, just remember that there is a difference between something that is 'vintage' and something that is just 'old'. Choose your purchases wisely.

-Jeremy

[eeldip]

here is a page of mics to drool over.
http://www.harmonicamasterclass.com/vin ... ection.htm

[joel hamilton]

I have one of those "specially made for recording" metallic brown bullets. It is just as crappy as you would expect. I think I am going to get one of those copperphone mics. They seem cool as hell. as someone said, "like a green bullet" but 2x more expensive. I think It is 4x cooler than having a green bullet, and has a weird mutant quality to it that I could see as a really useful flavor to add to the pallette.
I would never in a million years buy one of it was to be my only mic, or one of 3 I relied on for EVERYTHING.

I just emailed the guy who makes those copperphones. I am intrigued. Just like when the Stapes stuff first came out. I was early in line for those... and I will never regret it. I leave the earthworks on the shelf for certain things with those in my collection.

[joel hamilton]

http://www.harmonicamasterclass.com/micsby.htm


WOW. These are kicking my ass. totally weird!

[swingdoc]

""Fritz Hasenpusch""

no way

[joel hamilton]

I just bought one of those Placid Audio "copperphone" mic's.

Totally weird. I love Custom/one off/ odd gear like this. They look really nice.
I am excited to try this thing out!!!

The guy that makes them is super nice, That counts as well.

I am in the process of trying to get one of these as well:

http://www.davisound.com/1950.html


fully weird. really interesting. I cant wait to try one out. They are relatively cheap, too.

[rocksteady]

I dunno about that coppertone mic... pay $250 to sound like $25? There are tons of old crappy mics around if you want lo-fi.

Al