Heiserman H251…..first impressions.
May 29, 2023 23:40:46 GMT -6
rob61, kcatthedog, and 10 more like this
Post by drbill on May 29, 2023 23:40:46 GMT -6
Since so many asked and because there is so much interest in 251's as of late...... (I'm really hoping that RGO will allow me to post up clips....Oops, had to shorten a couple, but made it!)
Apologies to those who have been asking for my impressions on the Heiserman 251 for well over a month now. I’m under a year (plus) long commitment to mix and master countless pieces - I can’t even count that high, and I’m just swamped. I’m so buried under that I can barely remember what a microphone even LOOKS like.
The Heiserman 251 arrived about 2 months ago with impeccable packaging, and the pelican case layout is just as good as the H47T - or maybe even better! A place for everything, and everything in its place. So nice to get a professional product that’s packaged accordingly! Just like my H47T, the attention to every minute detail is super obvious. The presentation is spectacular! Makes you feel good about dishing out - what for me at least - was some major coin.
As has been mentioned on several threads, the Heiserman version of its 251 is a literal 1:1 clone. Right down to the swivel mount, body, inner mechanicals, and of course, sonics. Many thanks to Eric, Matt and Dave for making this purchase a no brainer, and for “getting it 100%”. I really appreciate this kind of dedication in 2023 when it seems we live in the world of “close enough” and “disposable”. They really took the time to answer my questions, address my concerns, and make this a no brainer purchase for me. This mic is built to outlive me, and I have no doubts it will.
The machined brass (?) body and machined swivel stand mount make you feel like you’re holding history. Really cool. The Binder (?) connectors are as expected and awesome!! The Sommer cable is legit as expected, plenty of length, and the power supply is as expected as well. Beefy and classic looking.
I guess at this point, I should mention that although I’ve literally used and/or owned all the classics, the 251 is the SINGLE classic big boy that I’ve never used. So I was excited to see what all the fuss was about to say the least.
Everything about the package shouts attention to detail and no compromise.
So….on to the SOUND of the beast. It took over a month, but I was finally able to get a couple of friends over to sing - Zach and Kaley. Both young and modern styled voices, and one additional older bluesier style vocalist. We didn’t have or spend a lot of time, as everyone’s schedule was hectic. We slammed this stuff out, but I think it will give you a good idea.
I didn’t have another legit 251 to compare to, so I chose my Heiserman H47T which many (most?) people agree is one of, if not the, closest modern variation of U47. Should give a good A/B representation between legit 251’s and U47’s.
About the testing :
- For vocals, I ran both mics in adjacent proximity on a vertical plane so that I could do both “takes” on the different mics simultaneously. Yeah, yeah, I know there’s a lot of controversy on this, but doing it this was cut down on the time, and I was lucky to get singers anyway. It is what it is. I asked the vocalists to bring something in that they could sing that was short and representative of what they like. I wanted it to be fun - not heavy like making a record.
- Both mics were in run in Cardioid except for the tambourine and Shakers which were run in Omni. Vocalists chose their own sweet spot, but were told to sing right down the middle of the two mics. I pulled them off a little more than normal so that they would hit both capsules evenly - keep that in mind. I’d guess they averaged about 8-10 inches off the capsules - no pop screens, so it’s voice straight into the capsule. Proximity is a tad below what I would normally get (and usually roll off) with closer placement. Every A/B test has compromises, but I thought this was the best for the time.
- I used two Locomotive Weight Tank WT72 tube mic preamps (V72 clones) because : 1.) I love them., 2.) they are not heavy handed, 3.) I have two of them, 4.) I can gain stage them accurately, 5.) they are euphonic, tube based, but very nice and transparent without getting heavy and “in the way” of the microphones. What you hear is an accurate representation of the mic without heavy mic-pre coloration.
- mics, pre’s, pro tools was warmed up for 4+ hours before testing.
- There is no compression, no EQ, no processing of any kind, straight into AVID HDi/o’s @ 24/48k.
- On the “Hurricane” vocal there is the tiniest touch of delay, and verb to make the reference vocal sit into the track a bit, as I know some prefer to hear the vocals in a track.
- the stringed instruments had well worn strings. No zingy-ness of new strings!
- All A/B tracks are RMS gain staged for fairness. I let peaks fall where they would, and gain staged to exact RMS levels in Pro Tools. It should be very very close.
***Oh, and as suggested, I’ll hold back on revealing which clips go to which mics for awhile.*** I’ll also post up some pics shortly.
As promised, some initial thoughts in no particular order.
- I was a bit surprised how much I loved the 251. I’ve always been (or so I thought) more of a Neumann kind of guy.
- I was surprised about “air, brightness, presence, weight and tube-i-ness” and how the two mics compared. After getting my initial bearings, I found myself….um…surprised several times during the process. What I thought to be “true” turned around on its head several times.
- my preconceived notions got shot down fairly often. What sounded “right” on one female Vox or other vocal sounded different to me on the next one. (Real life….)
- both mics are fantastic. I’m blessed to have both. And excited to get back to writing and recording after I finish this mess of mixing…..
- The shakers/rattles - and also the tambourine - really helped me define the sonic signatures of the mics. Almost moreso than the vocals. DON’T MISS OUT LISTENING TO THESE!!! I still think that the H47T still might be my favorite on shakers, but I could definitely see the H251 being used depending on the denseness of a track.
- I wouldn’t normally pick either a U47 or 251 for Acoustic Guitar or Dulcimer, but that’s what we were testing so that’s what I used. Interesting….and one of these mics is going to get put up next time for AcGtr!!! For sure.
- The vocalists liked both the U47 and 251, but I think they might have been favoring the 251 as their overall favorite - especially Zach, oddly…
- I didn’t play favorites, and my impressions have held pretty much the same coming back to these a week or 10 days since recording. I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY love the H251. As much as the H47T which I previously thought was the ultimate vocal mic for my uses. It will be interesting to see how things sit in a few years, but for now…..to flog the overused dead horse phrase…..
The H251 just sounds like a record to me. I’ll be interested to hear all your thoughts!
Apologies to those who have been asking for my impressions on the Heiserman 251 for well over a month now. I’m under a year (plus) long commitment to mix and master countless pieces - I can’t even count that high, and I’m just swamped. I’m so buried under that I can barely remember what a microphone even LOOKS like.
The Heiserman 251 arrived about 2 months ago with impeccable packaging, and the pelican case layout is just as good as the H47T - or maybe even better! A place for everything, and everything in its place. So nice to get a professional product that’s packaged accordingly! Just like my H47T, the attention to every minute detail is super obvious. The presentation is spectacular! Makes you feel good about dishing out - what for me at least - was some major coin.
As has been mentioned on several threads, the Heiserman version of its 251 is a literal 1:1 clone. Right down to the swivel mount, body, inner mechanicals, and of course, sonics. Many thanks to Eric, Matt and Dave for making this purchase a no brainer, and for “getting it 100%”. I really appreciate this kind of dedication in 2023 when it seems we live in the world of “close enough” and “disposable”. They really took the time to answer my questions, address my concerns, and make this a no brainer purchase for me. This mic is built to outlive me, and I have no doubts it will.
The machined brass (?) body and machined swivel stand mount make you feel like you’re holding history. Really cool. The Binder (?) connectors are as expected and awesome!! The Sommer cable is legit as expected, plenty of length, and the power supply is as expected as well. Beefy and classic looking.
I guess at this point, I should mention that although I’ve literally used and/or owned all the classics, the 251 is the SINGLE classic big boy that I’ve never used. So I was excited to see what all the fuss was about to say the least.
Everything about the package shouts attention to detail and no compromise.
So….on to the SOUND of the beast. It took over a month, but I was finally able to get a couple of friends over to sing - Zach and Kaley. Both young and modern styled voices, and one additional older bluesier style vocalist. We didn’t have or spend a lot of time, as everyone’s schedule was hectic. We slammed this stuff out, but I think it will give you a good idea.
I didn’t have another legit 251 to compare to, so I chose my Heiserman H47T which many (most?) people agree is one of, if not the, closest modern variation of U47. Should give a good A/B representation between legit 251’s and U47’s.
About the testing :
- For vocals, I ran both mics in adjacent proximity on a vertical plane so that I could do both “takes” on the different mics simultaneously. Yeah, yeah, I know there’s a lot of controversy on this, but doing it this was cut down on the time, and I was lucky to get singers anyway. It is what it is. I asked the vocalists to bring something in that they could sing that was short and representative of what they like. I wanted it to be fun - not heavy like making a record.
- Both mics were in run in Cardioid except for the tambourine and Shakers which were run in Omni. Vocalists chose their own sweet spot, but were told to sing right down the middle of the two mics. I pulled them off a little more than normal so that they would hit both capsules evenly - keep that in mind. I’d guess they averaged about 8-10 inches off the capsules - no pop screens, so it’s voice straight into the capsule. Proximity is a tad below what I would normally get (and usually roll off) with closer placement. Every A/B test has compromises, but I thought this was the best for the time.
- I used two Locomotive Weight Tank WT72 tube mic preamps (V72 clones) because : 1.) I love them., 2.) they are not heavy handed, 3.) I have two of them, 4.) I can gain stage them accurately, 5.) they are euphonic, tube based, but very nice and transparent without getting heavy and “in the way” of the microphones. What you hear is an accurate representation of the mic without heavy mic-pre coloration.
- mics, pre’s, pro tools was warmed up for 4+ hours before testing.
- There is no compression, no EQ, no processing of any kind, straight into AVID HDi/o’s @ 24/48k.
- On the “Hurricane” vocal there is the tiniest touch of delay, and verb to make the reference vocal sit into the track a bit, as I know some prefer to hear the vocals in a track.
- the stringed instruments had well worn strings. No zingy-ness of new strings!
- All A/B tracks are RMS gain staged for fairness. I let peaks fall where they would, and gain staged to exact RMS levels in Pro Tools. It should be very very close.
***Oh, and as suggested, I’ll hold back on revealing which clips go to which mics for awhile.*** I’ll also post up some pics shortly.
As promised, some initial thoughts in no particular order.
- I was a bit surprised how much I loved the 251. I’ve always been (or so I thought) more of a Neumann kind of guy.
- I was surprised about “air, brightness, presence, weight and tube-i-ness” and how the two mics compared. After getting my initial bearings, I found myself….um…surprised several times during the process. What I thought to be “true” turned around on its head several times.
- my preconceived notions got shot down fairly often. What sounded “right” on one female Vox or other vocal sounded different to me on the next one. (Real life….)
- both mics are fantastic. I’m blessed to have both. And excited to get back to writing and recording after I finish this mess of mixing…..
- The shakers/rattles - and also the tambourine - really helped me define the sonic signatures of the mics. Almost moreso than the vocals. DON’T MISS OUT LISTENING TO THESE!!! I still think that the H47T still might be my favorite on shakers, but I could definitely see the H251 being used depending on the denseness of a track.
- I wouldn’t normally pick either a U47 or 251 for Acoustic Guitar or Dulcimer, but that’s what we were testing so that’s what I used. Interesting….and one of these mics is going to get put up next time for AcGtr!!! For sure.
- The vocalists liked both the U47 and 251, but I think they might have been favoring the 251 as their overall favorite - especially Zach, oddly…
- I didn’t play favorites, and my impressions have held pretty much the same coming back to these a week or 10 days since recording. I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY love the H251. As much as the H47T which I previously thought was the ultimate vocal mic for my uses. It will be interesting to see how things sit in a few years, but for now…..to flog the overused dead horse phrase…..
The H251 just sounds like a record to me. I’ll be interested to hear all your thoughts!
