What's the latest gear you've acquired?

I decided to try my luck with some Joly-esque (or Shannon-esque?) MXL sdc mods.

I started with a sub-$80 pair of 991 mics, added a paper in oil cap between the capsule and FET, and replaced two ceramic 220n caps with larger 680n film caps in the audio path.  Then I disassembled the capsules, carved a shorter and more rounded shape in the capsule housing, then reassembled the capsules.  I intend to make blog post about it for other people to follow.

This is basically the same thing OktavaMod will do for you but they are asking $300 per mic, which in my mind, means skip the whole thing and buy a better mic, like a Beyer MC930 or something.  Used KM184, etc.  I love doing stuff like this though so I had to take a shot at it.  Also I just sold my KM184 so I needed something roughly similar to replace it.

They sort of remind me of the Oktava MK 012 I used to own once upon a time.  Pleasantly rounded tone, perhaps lacking that super clear detail of the more expensive mics like the Neumanns.  Just a tiny bit less resolution.  They almost sound "vintage" in a way.  Sort of a distinct midrange character.

They won't replace my favorite acoustic guitar microphones, might be a good option for too bright guitars, or guitars that need to sit in a big mix.  I got some great drum sounds in XY over my kit.  Cymbals are very clear but not hyped at all, even in a pretty bright room.

It's too early to pass a grand judgement on these.  But I can say stock, I found them almost unacceptable for use.  After the mods, they are doing some worthwhile stuff.  The mods open up the low end a lot, and drastically improve clarity.  I guess most of all, it was a really fun, and cheap project.  I guess I still am also on the market for a high end SDC pair.  It's hard to move from Neumann to MXL, even when tricked out.

Just pulled the trigger on a used RADAR V with controller & meterbridge from Don Larking Great deal from across the pond!

Sweet lamp!

ill let you know after the long weekend. first stops are snare and electric guitar. i stumbled on it local for a great price which NEVER happens to me. 

Interesting. Never heard of it. joelhamilton

It kind of reminds me of your avatars head!

The RTZ 9762 Dual Combo, based on Randge's recommendation, and man is it a nice preamp. My new personal favorite, as Randy said it would be. I know they still have the 500 series models available, but I think I scooped the last dual mono unit for a while. As soon as they pop up, give them a go. I also got an old Tube Tech LCA-2A that has had some slight mods done to it, which I love on BGVS, certain drum busses, and certain (typically more natural, slower, or acoustic sounding mixes), and even certain acoustic instruments with very subtle compression (guitar and cello is what I've tried so far). I think it's a great unit, and it's fast as all hell if I need it to be. On that note, I also picked up a Serpent Audio SB4001 in the last couple weeks I deciding on after posting on here, and that is awesome as well. Mix buss and drum buss for heavier or denser mix busses or drum busses, and Randy got great results on a piano of all things with it when I brought it over to his place. It had the boost side chain mode engaged, and a 2:1 ratio I believe. I've been gear binging as of late, haha.

I thought the features of the new Chameleon Labs 880 rack, 8 space lunchbox looked good, 8 spaces, rack ears and 4 blank panels included, on/off switch on the front, and 3 amps of power. Unfortunately after just a couple of weeks it is showing a LED fault with the -16V power. I guess now I see how good their tech support is. Maybe I should have stuck with a good standard like API. Anyone have any suggestions in case this one ends up not working out?

Yes I did an A/B comparison with different takes, unfortunately not the same take.  But the effect is obvious enough to hear.

The stock capsule just sounds a tiny bit closed in, and resonates very slightly at certain frequencies.  Sort of like cupping your hands loosely around your ears or mouth.  It sounds as if it's in the bottom of a small tube, which it is, almost 4 millimeters of material.

The modified capsule sounds wide open and spacious, with very accurate off axis response to my ears.  These mics have a very wide cardioid pattern so you can hear it pretty well.

At first I was nervous going into this mod step.  But then I thought, "hey these mics are worth less than $40 each" and I got brave and went for it.  It really wasn't that bad.  You just need to be careful not to contaminate the capsule while it's taken apart.

I would absolutely recommend the capsule mod with these mics, makes a significant gain.  My next step is to try the vent opening mods on either these or a second set of mics.  I like this enough I think I'll probably do two more the same way to have more mics in my locker.

Well, that's up to you.  Me, I like it pretty tight, so that's what I did.  I hear that this affects the volume of the air space in the capsule and can affect the output.

Two capi bt50 kits.
👊

WA-2a and a second WA76.  

Chilly outside but feeling pretty WARM in here....whah whah whah