VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Shock

I've had the pleasure to work with some great mics over the years, and have owned several including the Neumann U-89, Lawson L-47, and an old, beat-up U-87. When it comes down to it though, I think I like my RODE Classic II the best, and the NTK almost as much. I had to sell off the U-89 years ago and recently parted with my Lawson - a difficult day - and the 87 died moons ago and I sold it and prob'ly shouldn't have, lol.

Anyone else having good experiences with their RODE products? Please don't hesitate to say it if you think they're *crap* - as I have heard that from a certain few artists - mostly singers.
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~Shock
Voice Actor/Narration/Radio
*Who Did That Media*
www.whodidthatmedia.com

Mike Sommer · Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 8:21 pm Post subject:

Yeah you should have held on the to U87 and or the Lawson. Sold the U89 and the Rode and repaired the U87.

The U89 is a very neutral mic that brings very little to the party. As for the RODE ClassicII -- it depends on the voice, and certainly the room.

As far as mics go, RODE makes some darn good mics for the money; example the NT1A is a good mic.

The question to ask is, what are you not liking about the ClassicII?

Post some samples.
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Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

Frank F · Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 8:36 pm Post subject:

I like NT1A with the Mike Joly mod (mic: about $150.00 USD, mod about $385.00 USD). Once modded the mic has nice smooth sound which is a bit reminiscent of the U87 Classic.

Other than the NT1A with the mod,, most Rodes are nice intermediate microphones.

Again, my personal opinion only.

Frank F
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Shock · Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 8:40 pm Post subject: Nothing...

Maybe my post was confusing, there's actually nothing I don't like about the Classic II! For my voice it works the best. Right now it's back at RODE being refurbished, so I've got my NTK as the main mic for the moment.

The U-89 I sold way back in 1989, and the U-87 I sold in about '99. I do regret the LAWSON sale, but it wasn't the MP version - it was straight on fixed cardioid L47C - and I'd rather later go for the L-251 or at least the L-47MP.

I'm just curious if others have the Classic II or the NTK and if they like them or hate them, and why.

A friend of mine who's a singer just hates all things RODE for music, but he admits that spoken-voice recordings on the Classic II *rock*, so, matter of taste I suppose.
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~Shock
Voice Actor/Narration/Radio
*Who Did That Media*
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Shock · Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 8:47 pm Post subject: I have an NT1

Frank,

I actually have an NT1 - but not an NT1A, which I understand is better - so the quality is not as good. But surprisingly, a buddy of mine has my NT1 in his studio, and uses it for a couple of shows he does for XM Radio - for some reason he just loves the sound on it - VERY alive, very sensitive.
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~Shock
Voice Actor/Narration/Radio
*Who Did That Media*
www.whodidthatmedia.com

Frank F · Posted: Sat Jul 30, 2011 10:46 pm Post subject:

FYI - The mod can be done on either the NT-1 or the 1A. Here the link: http://www.oktavamodshop.com/product_info.php?products_id=145

Rode for the most part are a middle-of-the-road mic -- nothing stellar - except that they work OK. Once modded they can be marvelous.

Here is an NT1A on eBay - (as I write this it is $100.00 USD): http://cgi.ebay.com/Rode-NT1-A-NT1A-mic-microphone-/200626329750?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2eb642d896

I see Michael Joly will also upgrade the Classic.

Frank F
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Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

Jacob Ekstroem · Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 1:09 pm Post subject:

Can't comment on the Classic, but the NTK must be one of the most interesting tube mics ever built. No other mic seems to be so sensitive about the choice of tube, which again is why you hear so many stories about the NTK being a "harsh, bright mic".

I have owned an NTK for about seven years and it has never been bright.
I don't use it anymore, but I still haven't sold it. Here's why, you may find this interesting:

http://www.vo-bb.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=12820
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Jacob - Danish Voice Overs (try it... it sounds really funny, too!)

Shock · Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 5:02 pm Post subject: NTK tubes

Yeah, I've read about the different tubes you can put in the NTK that - according to some - change the character of the mic profundly. The tube I see mentioned the most is the Mullard E88CC. Of course, it's the costliest one - that I've looked up anyway.

Do you happen to know the part number for that Telefunken tube you have in yours?

I'm using the NTK for as long as the Classic II refurb takes, but I want to look around and see what other, maybe better, tubes I can locate, as the experience I've had with the JAN-6072 (Classic 2) tube is that they don't last very long at all. I replaced that tube three or four times over ten years, and there's gotta be something more robust and better sounding out there.
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~Shock
Voice Actor/Narration/Radio
*Who Did That Media*
www.whodidthatmedia.com

Shock · Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 7:18 pm Post subject: NTK quick samples

All this chat about this and that RODE, here are some quick, dry samples of my NTK and some copy produced recently. I'm *just a VO dude* and my agency has a Production Dept. who mixes and masters everything - all I do is VO and send it out dry with very little processing - just a bit of compression and/or eq, depending on what it is.

Let me know what you think of the sound...

https://sites.google.com/site/shockthevoice/ntksamples

P.S. I just set up the Google site about five minutes ago - lol - please excuse its extreme sparseness! And, also let me know if you have any problems accessing the file - I may need to do something different...
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~Shock
Voice Actor/Narration/Radio
*Who Did That Media*
www.whodidthatmedia.com

Mushmelon · Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 11:24 pm Post subject:

I am quite happy with my Rode K2.
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Mike Sommer · Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2011 11:24 pm Post subject:

Good lord man, you sound like a young Art Ferguson, aka "Charley Tuna."

It also sounds like your right on top of the mic, let that mic breath, give yourself 10 to 12 inches between you and the mic. I think by being too close your big voice is driving that tube into compression on the lower end.

I'm also hearing all sorts of clicks- it could be mouth noise.

Then there is the echo of the room, sounds cavernous. Either it's a large room or you have plaster walls, and not drywall. Either way you need to get a handle on that.

If there was one mic I would suggest for you, it would be the Brauner Phantom C.

You can spend a lot of time and money rolling tubes to find the right one. And at the end of the day you're only going to be a fraction to the left or right of where you are now. And in a month you'll forget there ever was a difference. Believe me I've spent a lot of money on tubes. ( Though there is a difference from NOS and the new chinese tubes) If you want a good tube get a 6922 Amperex Holland and call it a day. It's spendy, but it's a damn good tube.
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The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

Shock · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 7:18 am Post subject: NTK

First off, thanks for taking the time to review, it's appreciated. 10-12" away? LOL. I don't think I've ever mic'd that far away from any mic in any situation ever unless I was creating sfx or something. I'm working at about 4". The room is rather small and concrete block walls - very low ceiling - guess I could use some deadening. My nearfield monitors are in storage (I just moved and just started in this location) and so I don't have *good* reference except for headphones and very small computer speakers, but I haven't heard any complaints from the agency as of yet, or clients. The agy chief took my samples from here and said *don't change a thing*

Hmmm. Gotta break the Active's out and take a loud listen, I s'pose.

P.S. "Clicks" - yeah, working at 4" gives them to me, clearly, but usually I can micro-edit them out.
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~Shock
Voice Actor/Narration/Radio
*Who Did That Media*
www.whodidthatmedia.com

Tom Test · DC Joined: 23 Jan 2007 Posts: 629 Location: Chicago, IL

I've had a Rode NTK since very early in my home studio experience. I probably bought it around 2005. I've always liked it very much, for MY voice, in MY environment.

I've upgraded it significantly over the years. First, I bought an Amperex NOS tube from "Bowie," whose real name escapes me at the moment (he has a very good reputation as a tube dealer). It made a significant improvement to my sound.

Then about a year ago, I paid $100 to a mic upgrader I found on eBay who had done very nice things to my AKG 200 for $45, a man by the name of John Bonnell. When I got the mic back, it sounded so different that at first I was unhappy. I think it was just the shock of how different it sounded. But I quickly realized that his mods really clarified the sound, got rid of the boom and the mud, while taming the harsh top end of the stock mic.

If you click here, http://www.box.net/shared/ja7elzs1yrvbzgj3al2m
you can listen to an MP3 of the stock mic reading a short clip, then the current upgraded mic reading the same clips as well as three other different reads. If you want, go over to my thread "Mic preamp shootout" and listen to the second read in every clip - that was me reading the same scripts through the same preamp (dbx286A w no processing), so you can compare my Rode NTK to my Gefell M930. I do have WAV versions if you want to hear those, by the way.

Disclaimer - that clip of the "original" Rode NTK was read through a different preamp (probably a Mackie Onyx, which has very nice pres) in the same sound booth, but my booth did not have any bass traps at that time like it does now. So this is not exactly a true scientific A/B comparison.
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Tom Test
"The Voice You Trust"
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Jacob Ekstroem · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 1:52 am Post subject: Re: NTK tubes

jasbart · Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 7:30 am Post subject:

I've used a Rode NTK as my #1 studio mic for, jeez, 7-8 years? I originally bought it as my #2 mic (for visiting voices) and liked it so much it replaced my then #1 mic, an AT-4050. I like the NTK's bottom end, and the little sizzle on top. So do my clients.

Jim
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Barton Voice & Sound
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