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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 28, 2021 15:02:27 GMT -6
G10/FR4 is far superior.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 28, 2021 14:54:41 GMT -6
You could always try a slower preamp. Graces can accentuate the high-frequency-ness you're describing. Something with transformers. Or try a mic that is less known for brightness.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 27, 2021 7:30:31 GMT -6
There is a well known, but sometimes debated issue of vintage Fender fiber eyelet boards taking on moisture and becoming conductive.
I was repairing a 1976 Fender Twin Reverb this week and ran into an odd issue of popping, crackling, and hissing. The usual suspects were addressed: plate resistors, tube sockets cleaned and retensioned, reflowed solder joints, recapped the entire board, and it still persisted. Oscilloscope showed the issue around the reverb driver area.
Chopsticking the board told the story. Pressing down on the board itself would cause things to worsen. Noticeable popping when the top board layer touched the bottom board.
This has been my first experience with this conductive eyelet board issue. It has been very hot and humid here in TN and the wax impregnation doesn’t seem to do enough to mitigate the problem. A few nylon spacers separating the two boards did the trick.
So, if you notice your old amplifier getting noisy during humid weather, have your amp tech consider this particular issue.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 22, 2021 21:43:51 GMT -6
I'd be curious to hear the raw tracks, both with and without.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 21, 2021 22:16:58 GMT -6
Otis, I applaud your experimentation, but I just can’t imagine enjoying playing music with a rockwool barrier between my face and guitar. The guitar and vocal might "sound" right, clinically, but are you having fun?
Have you tried using a phase alignment plugin?
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 9, 2021 10:17:39 GMT -6
I have a Sank-modded M260. It sounds good but has dismally low output. Good for loud guitar amps. Sounds good on mandolin too.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 8, 2021 22:06:12 GMT -6
The thing is that you can't trust the user to optimize interaction of several gain stages - so you run the risk of having sub-standard noise and distortion performance, depending on the user's xp level.. This why there's usually one unified gain control, and often a quite complicated one (V76, PV76, PQ1546 etc.) - the G9 solution is the best I could do on a available single-deck switch But if you are SURE on quality/xp of your users, the dual-control gives much more fine-grained control of the unit's sonics /Jakob E What do you think about something like this, Jakob? The NFB points can always be shifted one way or the other. (NFB is applied only to the first gain stage.)
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 8, 2021 19:40:15 GMT -6
Oh, yes...
And be mindful how frequencies from various sources interact with each other and create sonic artifacts. It can be helpful to make decisions when tracking about which things are gonna be bright and which things are gonna be pushed further away.
You know how not everything can be warm and fat at the same time without low frequencies building up and fighting. The same is true for high frequencies. You'll get that "itchy" intermodulation way up high when things are fighting.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 8, 2021 19:35:51 GMT -6
Gotta find the source of the "zingy." Is it in the room? Is it in the instrument/voice? Is it in the signal? Divide and conquer.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 8, 2021 17:34:46 GMT -6
I’ve been sold on Artur Fisher’s Bumblebee Pro RM-6 ribbon mics for fiddle. Blumlein pair on fiddle is my go-to these days. Dan, you just sold a few with this video. Excellent room and spacing. Great recording. Thats the recording sound we all look for. I'm still on the hunt for the sound we hear in the same room with a fiddle. Haven't came close yet on a recording. Let me know if you find it. Long time, no see, Cowboy! For whatever reason, it seems like miking a fiddle with Blumlein ribbons makes it sound like it's in a bigger room. Probably fewer bright reflections from a non-ideal room. I'll use that setup when recording in my small room at home.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 8, 2021 11:14:00 GMT -6
And it is unknown what folks are gonna plug into it.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 8, 2021 11:11:44 GMT -6
The thing is that you can't trust the user to optimize interaction of several gain stages - so you run the risk of having sub-standard noise and distortion performance, depending on the user's xp level.. This why there's usually one unified gain control, and often a quite complicated one (V76, PV76, PQ1546 etc.) - the G9 solution is the best I could do on a available single-deck switch But if you are SURE on quality/xp of your users, the dual-control gives much more fine-grained control of the unit's sonics /Jakob E This is what I’m thinking. I teach classes in audio and gain structure eludes even advanced students. Some of the subtle aspects of input gain staging have confounded me, even when designing and trying to get the input stage how it needed to be.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 8, 2021 11:02:39 GMT -6
I’ve been sold on Artur Fisher’s Bumblebee Pro RM-6 ribbon mics for fiddle. Blumlein pair on fiddle is my go-to these days.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 7, 2021 19:10:57 GMT -6
To reiterate what I said a while back, you gotta hand it to a company like Soyuz for doing their own thing and owning that thing. Beautiful craftsmanship, cool designs, and their mics sound very good. I’ve tried a few and have been impressed.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 7, 2021 19:02:29 GMT -6
I'm no expert here, but are the particular virtues of the KM84 not reproducable in a modern SDC? Honest and flattering response and gracious off axis pickup? There are several very nice SDCs made today. We have a pair of Sennheiser MKH 8040s that are very high quality yet clinical sounding. I really like Soyuz’s branding. I use one of John Peluso’s P28s religiously for stereo miking banjo neck joint with a U87 on body. There’s something about the midrange of a KM84 that nothing else does in the same way. The resolution is unmatched and the instruments mix themselves.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 7, 2021 18:55:13 GMT -6
Yes. I did some comparisons. Shannon Rhoades convinced me to put nickel capsules in them. Sold them. We observed that a KM84 and KM184 sounded much more similar to each other than the Lulu FET. It didn’t sound like it had anything to do with the Neumanns.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 7, 2021 14:35:30 GMT -6
Doug knows his tube gear. The RCA manuals called for “unloaded” input transformer secondaries. This is one big reason why those old passive ribbons really shine with old tube preamps.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 6, 2021 21:23:54 GMT -6
Unsolicited advice but it may be confusing to some people to put the mid frequencies to the left of the mid frequency gain knob because you have chosen to do decimals so at a quick/distant glance they all seem like low frequencies (i.e. it looks like the dial goes from 21 - 72) That is a very good idea. I was pondering this myself earlier. Consider it done!
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jul 6, 2021 20:40:29 GMT -6
Howdy, Working on my latest design and I need help deciding how to configure gain staging in a most user-friendly way. We've got two tube gain stages with a basic rotary switch attenuator between them. The first tube stage seems to work very well with up to 18dB of NFB as a gain control. Thus allowing condenser mics to be used on the input without "having" to pad it down. Of course, there is still a typical -20dB switchable pad if needed. I now have some options to consider with the engineer in mind: Option 1: Two rotary switches (similar to attached photos). "Input" adjusts the NFB to reduce the first gain stage. "Gain" or "Level" or "Atten" is the between stage. Option 2: One rotary "gain" switch, combination mid-stage attenuator and NFB adjust. For example, max gain would have no NFB for full 60dB gain. The lowest gain would have the most NFB. This could be similar to the Gyraf G9 where part of the switch covers attenuation while the other positions adjust NFB. Biggest drawbacks: Option 1. Users may overdrive the front end without realizing it. This could be helped by making the -6dB NFB actually be centered at "0" (see picture). Option 2. It takes the power to shape harmonics and saturation out of the user's hand. Curious to know what everyone thinks.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jun 30, 2021 22:33:45 GMT -6
The computer and I/O interface stuff can hang me up quick.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jun 30, 2021 12:57:37 GMT -6
I'm still a little ways from selling them. My "real" job at the university has been keeping me on my toes.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jun 30, 2021 11:04:45 GMT -6
Thanks for the feedback, everyone. Not sure how many more folks will chime in, so here are the results:
Sample 1 = tube preamp with Crimson A-10 input transformer, with Zobel on secondary Sample 2 = tube preamp with Crimson A-10 input transformer, no Zobel on secondary (has a 2dB "ring" around 20kHz) Sample 3 = tube preamp with Cinemag CMMI-10 input transformer Sample 4 = Seventh Circle Audio C84 (Millennia-style preamp)
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jun 28, 2021 22:10:29 GMT -6
Soyuz is to be applauded for not trying to copy other mic models. It gets exhausting hearing so-and-so’s new “84,” “47,” etc. Kudos to them.
...and the KM84 slays it.
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jun 28, 2021 21:12:58 GMT -6
Just step up and do it!
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Post by bluegrassdan on Jun 28, 2021 20:09:32 GMT -6
Narrowing down input transformers on my tube preamp. Since you guys listen more intently than most, y'all wanna help listen? You know the drill. There are four blind samples. I'll reveal once enough people have chimed in. All were recorded just a moment ago. Neumann U47 --> preamp --> Metric Halo Lio8 @24/96k. No compression or effects. Thanks in advance! NOTE: For a control, one of the samples is not my preamp. FILES: Professor Dan, Input Transformer Samples
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