Build a Microphone Cabinet on any Budget

Sep 1, 2000 12:00 PM, BRIAN KNAVE AND MYLES BOISEN

           
 

No Compromises Deluxe (no price limit)

By Myles Boisen

(1) Sennheiser E602 ($319)
(1) beyerdynamic TG-X 50 ($249)
(1) Shure SM 57 ($146)
(2) Sennheiser E604 ($249 each)
(1) Electro-Voice N/D 468 ($278)
(1) Sennheiser MD 421 II ($485)
(1) Electro-Voice RE20 ($748)
(1) AEA R44CX ($2,795)
(1) DPA 4011 ($2,190)
(2) Earthworks QTC1 ($2,000 for matched pair)
(2) Neumann KM 140 ($2,650 for SKM stereo set) with AK 20 ($975), AK 30 ($775), AK 31 ($975), and AK 43 ($775) capsules (two each, with accessories included)
(1) Neumann U 87 AI/SET Z ($3,200)
(1) BLUE Bottle Mic ($4,500) with B0, B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, and B7 capsules ($750 each, except for B4 at $1,500)

Oops, I got carried away on this one. But I can use all these mics - really! The only drum-mic change is the addition of the RE20, a large-diaphragm dynamic equally at home with kick drum, floor tom, trombone, electric guitar, or bass cabinet.

The R44CX is a replica of the famed RCA 44BX, the "Big Daddy" of ribbon mics. Formerly made by Bruel & Kjaer, the 4011 cardioid small-diaphragm condenser will handle an SPL of 158 dB. That ought to work as a hi-hat mic!

Earthworks offers several amazing mics that look like surgical implements and sound closer to reality than any transducers I've heard. The QTC1 is an omnidirectional condenser available as a matched stereo pair with high-end response out to 40 kHz.

The KM 140 set features compact microphone bodies with interchangeable small-diaphragm capsules to cover every imaginable recording task. I needed a stereo pair of these, but I showed restraint by picking only five of the seven available capsule types. With the BLUE Bottle tube mic, I'm afraid I had to go for a full set of all eight interchangeable capsules - everything from large-diaphragm vocal capsules to the Perspex Sphere omnidirectional.

A few other last-minute "impulse items" that I just couldn't live without for my No Compromises deluxe cabinet would include a Lawson L47MP ($1,995); a vintage Neumann U 47, the one with the long body and chrome top (about $8,000 used); a Manley Reference Stereo Gold mic ($8,000); and a Fentone high-impedance crystal mic ($100 to $200 used).