How do ribbon mics compare to the modern day mics like all the shure SMs and what not.

I hear that they can give a great amount of warmth and depth to vocals and when micing up amps.

They can, but almost never sound good on a guitar cab as the only mic.

Most ribbon mics are cantankerous... they're sensitive to vibration, easy to break, they don't like real loud noise, they have NO high end and they require massive amounts of preamp gain to get anything out of them.

Some modern ribbons, like the big-buck Royer mics, are really made for knock-around service, and have more output than old-school ribbons, but you'll still need s pre-amp that can really crank... most console pre's need not apply (hell, most console pre's won't drive an SM7!).

In a survey that came out in MIX Magazine this month, when asked how many ribbon mics they owned, something like 65% of all recording engineers answered, "0."

Are you thinking of buying one?

Ribbon microphones were once delicate, and expensive, but modern materials make certain present-day ribbon mics very durable and may be used for loud rock music and stage use.

They are prized for their ability to capture high-frequency detail, comparing very favorably with condenser microphones, which can often sound subjectively "aggressive" or "brittle" in the high end of the frequency spectrum.

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I was thinking about buying one since i thought they offered a very different dimension to the traditional normal vocals mic/condenser mic.

Has anyone got any comparisons?

That's what it says on Wikipedia.

But in use, that famous "smooth" high end could just as easily be descibed as "very little" high end. Ribbons sound "warm" because the highs are blunted, and they can lack a lot of high-end detail. Plus, a boatload of inexpensive ribbon mics are being sold now... as a result, "ribbon" is becoming a marketing word like "tube" or "Class A."

Now, I think the Royers and AEAs are amazing. But there are dozens of ribbon mics on the market that don't sound like those. A $99 MXL ribbon is likely going to be dark, muddy and low output.

Ah yes but would you prefer to use one of those ribbon mics over a well known regular mic like a shure sm58 or sm57?

I like the Sennheiser e609s myself for mic'ing amps and the SM58 for vocals. The flatness design of the Senn makes it easy to drape over the top of your amp and get good position.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/E609Silver

A lot like the Cascade FAT HEAD Ribbon microphones.

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Not instead of, but WITH an SM57, or a EV RE-20. Yeah, I'd love to have a Royer, but I'm not in a position to justify spending $1,300 on a specialty mic.

Good ribbon mics are not cheap though. I would like to have one but the cost of good ones!!!! more then 99.00 AEA's are nice

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So are you guys saying that the normal mics (Like sm57/58) are better to go with unless your getting one of the insanely good ribbon mics?

I just use the Sm58 and 57 at the moment

Well, I guess this is what I'm saying, a variation on that thing I say all the time:

Yes, if you record at some big-time studio, some big-time producer might open his big-time ic locker and hang a Royer 121 in front of your cabinet, along with a 57 near the grille, a LCD behind the cabinet (phase reversed with the 57) and another way out in the room someplace. He might use as many as 6 or 7 mics on two separate amps to get your "sound," as they do with Brad Paisley (taking half a day or more just to dial in the position of mics on his Dr. Z/VOX AC-30 rig).

BUT... if Bob Rock had to get a good guitar sound out of your Hot Rod Deluxe and one SM57... he'd do it.

I would learn to get a satisfying guitar sound with the mics you've got.

Way back in the day, when I was still gathering gear for what would become my current job, Musical Instrument Industry Braniac Mitch Gallagher was my sales rep at Sweetwater (and later my editor at EQ magazine). I was unhappy with my mixes, and told MItch so, mentioning that I'd read about this amazing new all-in-one box from TC called a FInalizer. It cost a pantload for the day, but I was willing to spend the bucks to give my mixes the sparkle they lacked. So I asked Mitch, "Hey, Mitch, do I need a TC FInalizer to get that slick sound?"

And Mitch, who worked on commission I might add, says, "Naw, man... you don't need a Finalizer. Your gear is good. You just need to learn how to use it." (BTW, you will not ever hear this kind of response form a Sweetwater sales "engineer" ever again, so don't go looking for it.)

So, that's what I'm saying... you need to figure out how to get a good sound from the mics you've got before you plunk down a zillion-point-three on a ribbon mic. If you can't get a decent guitar sound with a 57, you're not going to get a great one with anything else.

SlapChop nails it in the previous post!


I was asking some of the guys at the jam last night about condenser mics and from what I understand, Rode's NT1-A is selling for about $225 and is a complete redesign of their NT1.

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alright, i thought i might be missing out on something here.

also is there any advantage in using condenser mics or anything other then the regular mic (Like the sm58s) for vocals?

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Absolutely.

I'll use a small dynamic on a vocal as an effect, but most of the big, clean vocals get recorded through a large-diaphragm condenser. Fortunately, the Chinese guys force the existing mic companies to build some really good but so expensive condenser... the AT's are great (my 40033 is great on male rock vocals and I still haven't tried anything that sounded this good on woodwinds), the Shures are awesome (my KSM32 sounds great on everything, I haven't used them but here very good things about the CAD and Rode mics. You can actually buy an LCD for two bills that's worth owning these days.

This is an interesting read and a great education about Ribbon Mics, by none other than the expert, Michael Joly :

http://recordinghacks.com/2008/11/01/ch ... e-designs/

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!