|
Post by hadaja on Mar 11, 2021 23:10:43 GMT -6
Hey there dont be bashful please introduce yourself. I see we have a new advertiser. Who is Daria microphones?
|
|
|
Post by Ward on Mar 12, 2021 7:00:30 GMT -6
Well, the catch phrases from the Texas microphone company are:
"Designed for today's modern sound" "Cuts through a busy mix like a knife through butter" "The Modern Sound of Today" honestly, those could use a little work...
The advertised mic is their 251x - which looks absolutely fab. But they claim lineage to a famous Japanese mic but without the transformers or tube. Which is also kind of intriguing. So, a Sony-ish sound in an AKG/Telefunken-ish package? And only $299?
There was another microphone company from Texas on here a little while ago. Any connection? Give 'em a click, ask questions. I would love to read a review here!
|
|
|
Post by Vincent R. on Mar 12, 2021 7:24:14 GMT -6
My guess is very bright.....
|
|
|
Post by plinker on Mar 12, 2021 8:30:03 GMT -6
“ The circuit and capsule are tensioned with extreme care and detail.”
Tensioning the circuit? Must be how they got rid of the tube and tranny.
|
|
|
Post by Johnkenn on Mar 12, 2021 8:36:56 GMT -6
I’ll have a demo soon.
|
|
|
Post by levon on Mar 12, 2021 9:05:21 GMT -6
Really, their slogans are so bland and meaningless, they put me off this immediatley. Sounds like a gathering of politicians.
But I'm glad that John will put it through the paces. Maybe it's better than their marketing. I'm just tired of these useless phrases everywhere.
|
|
|
Post by Johnkenn on Mar 12, 2021 11:05:23 GMT -6
A non-harsh bright mic wouldn’t be a bad thing.
|
|
|
Post by dariamicrophones on Mar 12, 2021 11:06:29 GMT -6
First of all, thank you very much for your honest feedback. It is very much appreciated.
We are an extremely small company (5 people) and we do not have a big budget for marketing.
Def. don’t want to come across as politicians so we will get to working on that asap if that is how the site comes across. None of us are experts at marketing-I plan on doing this the old fashion way-sending a handful of mics out to people I respect and let them provide feedback.
The thing is, it is a crowded, competitive market and the way we can ultimately stand out is to emphasize what we are.
Honestly, our mics are not for everyone-they are voiced to be modern and bright. There are hundreds of other companies floating out u87 clones and vintage clones of the past and that is not who we want to be.
I do like vintage mics (I’ve owned multiple 87s) but I really favor the direction vocals are going in the mainstream world. I know lot of people complain about over compression, things getting too thin and too bright-I get that. When I hear modern vocals these days, I am blown away-I love modern radio processing. My heroes in the engineer field are Jaycen Joshua and Fabian Marascuillo.(he got me on the Dolby 740 and wow what a great piece of gear!)
I grew up listening to Warren Zevon, Aerosmith, The Beatles and Stevie Ray Vaughn-it was not about the processing with those guys-it was how the songs made you feel. The cream of the crop of the industry back then was more about the talent, nothing to do with gear or who had the best mixing engineer.
These days we all know the cream does not rise to the top- just look at modern country and modern hiphop. Lot of guys there with elementary performances/talent but with superstar engineers behind them and branding behind them.
I have owned two Sony c800g’s and love everything about them. But before I could afford them-way back I was just a kid starting out recording vocals at home. I think lots of us can relate. Think of your first mic or your first guitar-and compare that to the tools you have now.
I remember becoming fascinated with microphones-comparing them, contrasting them. I would record a whole song with my first microphone-a lowly Behringer XM8500(a dynamic that cost 20 dollars) then immediately re-recording with my second and third mics( Audix om5 and Sennheiser e835)
I took notes of the differences, I loved how the XM8500, it had this lo fi quality that I really liked on my voice. And then the Audix om5, it was like a laser beam-it had a hypercardioid pattern and huge SPL so I could get right on it and yell my vocals. Then my e835-it had this crispy, cutting sound that was perfect for some of the instrumentals I was using.
I started reading everything about microphones. I of course got the Sm7b then graduated to condensers. My first condenser was a lowly MXL 990 (How many of yall have been there before? Hahaha This was back in the day when they were everywhere at Guitar Center.
I actually was not too disappointed-this was before my ears matured and I learned the extreme nuances of what I liked and what I did not like.
Eventually, I wanted better and began reading and getting into microphone modifications. I thought this was the coolest thing ever.
There used to be a nice fellow by the name of Michael Joly who posted at a forum I belonged to. This guy was so informative for me-he discussed capsules, transformers, circuitry-you name it. He was also very accessible-I remember shooting him a message with questions and he responded back very graciously.
At this point, I was still trying to find out why certain microphones cost what they did and did that equate to a better sound? And what is a better sound really? Let’s be honest, if you have a great voice-a better mic by standards of nuance capture IS A BETTER mic, but if you have a not so great voice, then perhaps a dynamic mic is better for you, to tuck those flaws away! Haha
I was learning. But I wanted to test the heavy hitters, I wanted a Manley Reference, I wanted a u87, I wanted a Sony c800g. I wanted a Neve 1073. This is what all the high ends guys were raving about and I wanted to get my hands on these things too.
I purchased a Golden Age 73 OG, I started messing with cranking the output with lowering the output-getting all the different possible flavors going. I got my first, what I thought, high end microphone-I spent savings on an AT4047. I was mixing and matching mics with the pre. Then I got a solid state pre-a Grace 101. I wanted to combine transformer mics with solid state pres, then I wanted to switch it around. I got a TLM102 and put that through a Bae 1073.
I was lucky, I had a girlfriend then(who became my wife) who didn’t look down on my mic nerdom! I was soaking up everything I could on these forums and then I came across someone who truly inspired me.
A poster named ‘KidVybes’
This guy changed the game for me. He is the one who let me know you don’t need to spend thousands to get a thousand dollar sound. Look it all comes down to the room and the performance if we are all going to be honest here.
But he schooled me on components. He knew I was obsessing about saving up for the Sony c800g after I messaged him. He put me on a marvel of a mic-the Stellar CM6. It was super affordable and it sounded GREAT. I began learning what sound I personally liked and didn’t like-what tone I preferred and didn’t prefer. KidVybes was the man. He answered all of my messages with details-he was so gracious with his time and he was so passionate about audio.
Over the years you build a network of people you trust and who you respect. There are hundreds of PMs I still have from engineers and producers who were all so gracious to me and taught me so much along the way. All I had to do was ask.
I remember personally talking to Wade Goeke at Chandler, Dave Thomas at Advanced Audio,Cliff Maag at Maag-these are giants within the industry and they were still picking up the phone to talk shop years back.
Fast Forward to now, I’ve owned two c800gs, the Manley Reference and pretty much all the mics in between you can imagine. I love this stuff. My favorite pieces all time are the Clariphonic and the 1176. Audioscape is an amazing company too-they inspired me to do what I wanted to do for years, start my own microphone company. They are the epitome of great customer service and hands on passion with customers.
All of these experiences led me to forming Daria Microphones. I went through several prototypes and worked with multiple builders to form the 251X.
I am currently in talks with another very respected builder to perhaps offer a multiple voicing mic via switch although I am not sure we want to go in that direction yet. I want to stay at the 299 price point. I don’t plan on spendings tens of thousands on marketing(the quotes I got from some of these magazines for an ad is RIDICULOUS) only to jack up the price of the mic to cover that overhead. I want to be as grassroots as possible starting out.
I also want to design a 500 series converter interface as I want to be the first to put that on the market!
Also, I want to say that the website is at infancy stage. The website is far from finished. Right now I’m working with several artists to get clips and videos up. It will look more polished with specs over the coming weeks.
Anyways, sorry for the long winded story, I am a pretty high energy guy and one or two lines is not how I roll!
Thanks guys.
|
|
|
Post by mrholmes on Mar 12, 2021 11:51:45 GMT -6
Forum cms goes nuts
|
|
|
Post by drbill on Mar 12, 2021 12:14:08 GMT -6
First of all, thank you very much for your honest feedback. It is very much appreciated. Welcome to RGO. You asked, so here's my first, honest feedback without hearing the mic. Based on what your website says. "The 251X is inspired by a legendary Japanese microphone but with a twist. There is no transformers inside and no tubes."OK. No transformers, no tubes. That's OK. Not my preference, but OK. However, putting the number "251" on it with no tubes, and no transformers? IMO that's manipulative and it's extremely misleading to folks who have less knowledge than you or I. Even if it does sound similar to a 251. That's just my opinion. Cheers, and good luck with your company!!! PS - I like the "look" of the mic! Good job.
|
|
|
Post by dariamicrophones on Mar 12, 2021 12:18:20 GMT -6
First of all, thank you very much for your honest feedback. It is very much appreciated. Welcome to RGO. You asked, so here's my first, honest feedback without hearing the mic. Based on what your website says. "The 251X is inspired by a legendary Japanese microphone but with a twist. There is no transformers inside and no tubes."OK. No transformers, no tubes. That's OK. Not my preference, but OK. However, putting the number "251" on it with no tubes, and no transformers? IMO that's manipulative and it's extremely misleading to folks who have less knowledge than you or I. Even if it does sound similar to a 251. That's just my opinion. Cheers, and good luck with your company!!! PS - I like the "look" of the mic! Good job.
|
|
|
Post by dariamicrophones on Mar 12, 2021 12:23:02 GMT -6
Dr.Bill thank you so much for the honest feedback and warm welcome. I do not want to mislead anyone and the next batch will have a different name.
What are your personal thoughts on mics with multiple voicing options via switch? Do you love the concept or consider it gimmicky? A builder I've talked to has expertise on this but before I put it out on the market I'm curious on what the demand would be.
|
|
|
Post by superwack on Mar 12, 2021 12:23:42 GMT -6
First of all, thank you very much for your honest feedback. It is very much appreciated. Welcome to RGO. You asked, so here's my first, honest feedback without hearing the mic. Based on what your website says. "The 251X is inspired by a legendary Japanese microphone but with a twist. There is no transformers inside and no tubes."OK. No transformers, no tubes. That's OK. Not my preference, but OK. However, putting the number "251" on it with no tubes, and no transformers? IMO that's manipulative and it's extremely misleading to folks who have less knowledge than you or I. Even if it does sound similar to a 251. That's just my opinion. Cheers, and good luck with your company!!! PS - I like the "look" of the mic! Good job. Agreed - maybe should have gone with the Gefell naming scheme and called it the 800-TT where TT logically denotes NO tube and NO transformer? 😂 Also to Daria - welcome! You may want to consider adding your intro story from here to your website. Seemed weird to me when I went there that there was nothing about who you are or why you are making this mic. I think your story is a good one and should be up there for people to get some backstory. Good luck! Looking forward to Johnkenn’s thoughts when he gets the mic
|
|
|
Post by dariamicrophones on Mar 12, 2021 12:26:36 GMT -6
Welcome to RGO. You asked, so here's my first, honest feedback without hearing the mic. Based on what your website says. "The 251X is inspired by a legendary Japanese microphone but with a twist. There is no transformers inside and no tubes."OK. No transformers, no tubes. That's OK. Not my preference, but OK. However, putting the number "251" on it with no tubes, and no transformers? IMO that's manipulative and it's extremely misleading to folks who have less knowledge than you or I. Even if it does sound similar to a 251. That's just my opinion. Cheers, and good luck with your company!!! PS - I like the "look" of the mic! Good job. Agreed - maybe should have gone with the Gefell naming scheme and called it the 800-TT where TT logically denotes NO tube and NO transformer? 😂 Also to Daria - welcome! You may want to consider adding your intro story from here to your website. Seemed weird to me when I went there that there was nothing about who you are or why you are making this mic. I think your story is a good one and should be up there for people to get some backstory. Good luck! Looking forward to Johnkenn’s thoughts when he gets the mic
|
|
|
Post by dariamicrophones on Mar 12, 2021 12:28:37 GMT -6
Duly noted! Will do-the website is in infancy stage for sure. It will greatly evolve over the next few months with engineer testimonials/sounds clips/ and videos. I love the feedback. I will take all of this input moving forward. Thank you!
|
|
|
Post by jcoutu1 on Mar 12, 2021 12:34:08 GMT -6
I was soaking up everything I could on these forums and then I came across someone who truly inspired me. A poster named ‘KidVybes’ This guy changed the game for me. He is the one who let me know you don’t need to spend thousands to get a thousand dollar sound. Look it all comes down to the room and the performance if we are all going to be honest here. But he schooled me on components. He knew I was obsessing about saving up for the Sony c800g after I messaged him. He put me on a marvel of a mic-the Stellar CM6. It was super affordable and it sounded GREAT. I began learning what sound I personally liked and didn’t like-what tone I preferred and didn’t prefer. KidVybes was the man. He answered all of my messages with details-he was so gracious with his time and he was so passionate about audio. Over the years you build a network of people you trust and who you respect. There are hundreds of PMs I still have from engineers and producers who were all so gracious to me and taught me so much along the way. All I had to do was ask. I remember personally talking to Wade Goeke at Chandler, Dave Thomas at Advanced Audio,Cliff Maag at Maag-these are giants within the industry and they were still picking up the phone to talk shop years back. Dennis 'Kidvybes' was a great dude. Probably miss him more than anyone that I've never actually met.
|
|
|
Post by srb on Mar 12, 2021 12:45:33 GMT -6
Welcome to RGO!
I'd like to make a recommendation: the website's grammar and syntax could use some cleaning up.
We get second chances on things, thankfully, but never a second chance to make a first impression.
Good luck on the venture!
|
|
|
Post by christopher on Mar 12, 2021 12:54:35 GMT -6
Congratulations on the startup! It looks like the target market is the podcast/DIY singers. A good mic is a good mic, so if you broaden the target market, it might help. I personally won’t buy a mic with a giant logo and lettering on it. It’s too genre specific: I think of shopping malls, youth, hats, T-shirts= electronic / hip hop/ pop/ podcaster
you might want to offer a “pro” version with a transformer, no words or logo. Your color scheme is unique, so that might be your branding.
|
|
|
Post by dariamicrophones on Mar 12, 2021 13:01:15 GMT -6
All of this is such great feedback. I appreciate it guys. This is basically my market consulting-right here with each of your opinions.
Can any of you chime in on your views of mics with multiple voice switchings? Do you consider that something of interest or do you consider it gimmicky?
|
|
|
Post by jcoutu1 on Mar 12, 2021 13:09:38 GMT -6
All of this is such great feedback. I appreciate it guys. This is basically my market consulting-right here with each of your opinions. Can any of you chime in on your views of mics with multiple voice switchings? Do you consider that something of interest or do you consider it gimmicky? The Chandler TG has all that switching going on. Something like 21 combinations. Personally, not something I'm interested in. I prefer something with a specific sound where I know what to expect. I know others like the switching though.
|
|
|
Post by dariamicrophones on Mar 12, 2021 13:17:31 GMT -6
I owned the TG at one point. So if I put out a mic with switching, there will be not be 21 possible combos! It would most likely be two options, max 3.
|
|
|
Post by ragan on Mar 12, 2021 13:34:19 GMT -6
All of this is such great feedback. I appreciate it guys. This is basically my market consulting-right here with each of your opinions. Can any of you chime in on your views of mics with multiple voice switchings? Do you consider that something of interest or do you consider it gimmicky? Welcome to RGO and good luck on your venture. I like the multiple voicings on my 3U Warblers. You got acquainted with Dennis (RIP) and so I'm sure you're familiar with Guosheng Zhuang. I'd be somewhat surprised if that's not where you're getting at least your capsules. His C800 inspired cap should be quite nice for a bright voicing. I would say too that, particularly when dealing with bright mics, the LPF options are a plus. A lot of buyers will be scared off by an unabashedly bright mic for $299. The ability to tame the high end at the mic might alleviate some of that concern. I assume you've tried out Guosheng's transformerless CM series (edge-terminated Teal CM-1 and center-terminated Black CM-1)? Edit: and just to offer some more feedback having checked out your site, I second the notion that cleaning up grammar/wording will put a better foot forward. Little stuff like "Designed for todays modern sound"...that "todays" should be a possessive "today's". "There is no transformers inside" should be "There are no transformers inside". Especially with a new company, you don't want things coming off as amateurish. I'd clean all that language up. Also, why is it called a 251 if it's "inspired by a legendary Japanese microphone"? Again, you want this outfit to seem professional and well thought-out, not haphazard or sloppy. A Japanese-inspired mic called a 251 is nonsensical. It's great that you can take critique and feedback without getting defensive. That will serve you well!
|
|
|
Post by drumsound on Mar 12, 2021 13:48:49 GMT -6
A non-harsh bright mic wouldn’t be a bad thing. If done well, at that price, yes. Dr.Bill thank you so much for the honest feedback and warm welcome. I do not want to mislead anyone and the next batch will have a different name. What are your personal thoughts on mics with multiple voicing options via switch? Do you love the concept or consider it gimmicky? A builder I've talked to has expertise on this but before I put it out on the market I'm curious on what the demand would be. 2 voicings, if really done well, and are fairly 'obvious' isn't gimmicky. Welcome and good luck!
|
|
ericn
Temp
Balance Engineer
Posts: 14,934
|
Post by ericn on Mar 12, 2021 14:02:28 GMT -6
Dr.Bill thank you so much for the honest feedback and warm welcome. I do not want to mislead anyone and the next batch will have a different name. What are your personal thoughts on mics with multiple voicing options via switch? Do you love the concept or consider it gimmicky? A builder I've talked to has expertise on this but before I put it out on the market I'm curious on what the demand would be. The Mic looks great, having sold as many mics as just about anybody out there forget the mult voicing via switches. The customer your going to get at your price point is only going to end up using one setting, if they do experiment they will think something is wrong if a “I” setting works better than the “V” setting on their voice. In about 5-6 years your going to have all kinds of complaints about that noisy switch, not because the switch is really crap but because it hasn’t moved in all those years. Yeah the multiple voices might win the occasional battle of the spec sheets, but it’s not worth the support costs. Unless a mic uses the same type of Diagphram Transformer and amplifier stay away from the model numbers of the classics, otherwise even if you managed to nail the tone you will not be taken seriously.
|
|
|
Post by drbill on Mar 12, 2021 14:09:37 GMT -6
I prefer one voicing on the mic as well.
|
|