now thats a shiny box

[mfdu]

just recieved my new shinybox ribbon mic from the US.

really eager to give it a try - it's the version with the cinemag output trannie which promises to be far more open than the standard unit (which i love to bits anyway). also promises a hotter output, which will be handy for ambient placement.

just wanted to share . . .

chris.

[chris p]

Chris

I really interested in how you rate it, both as a "classic" ribbon sound and the more open sound.

Especially compared to something is the same price ballpark, eg AEA R92.

Did you have any customs hassles?

[mfdu]

no customs hassles - but it was just one unit shipped over, and to a private residence.

in terms of price, the cinemag optioned #46 was $380 AUD delivered/insured. that aint even the same postcode as an REA is it?

the #46 is a physically compact body - allows great positioning and doesn't overbalance an extended boom, unlike what i've heard about REA's etc.

in terms of sound, the stock #46 is the only ribbon i've worked with directly.
but its sound has a similar dark compression characteristic to what i have heard of 'brand' ribbons on fav. recordings (weren't the horns on the Cat Empire 'two shoes' done on ribbons?)
yes, i'd call the stock #46 'classic' sounding. not muffled, but equally it aint brilliant, or sharp and toppy.
totally different transient response to a condensor (of course).

i'll post more on the differences b/w the stock and cinemag versions once i get a chance to put them in session.

for the moment, i'm just excited.

chris.

[Jason Dirckze]

Im wondering how they would stack up against say, a Royer R121. I have been looking to get the Royer, but it is a pricey mic.

The Shinybox might just be an option, cos my e-guitar recordings are needing some Ribbon magic

[davemc]

Chris,

Been thinkng of a 46C as well. With your other 46 how well did they handle Distorted guitars. I still have my SF12 and a M160. So maybe one more will do.

[mfdu]

ok ok ok

so put both ribbons up last night and just did a count-off to get a feel for them.

the cinemag model certainly is much more open in the top-end. there is less proximity effect but it feels like it has plenty of guts down low.
the basic model has much more bloom down low, and feels . . . well it just doesn't have as much air. using stavs hardness factor, i'd give the cinemag a 5 and the stock #46 a 3.

the stock unit will probably still be the drum overhead, but the cinemag version would retain the sparkle of an acoustic gtr's fretboard, you know?

so i'm sorry i can't say how either would stack up against royer or rea, but they are most definatly ribbons and sound like nothing else in my cupboard.

IMHO if you're interested, try one. if most of your mics are bright condensors and money is tight, then go the stock #46 for a totally different flavour. and they are cheap enough to get some ribbon-y goodness without breaking the bank.

well, i'm pretty happy anyway!

chris.

[mfdu]

dave

i have yet to try a 46C on distorted guitars. but you can see from (above) that i would probably swap between the two of them depending on the cab. a sharp solidstate would need the stock #46. . .

but the are both rated at max 165db spl.

i'd be happy to bring them both over (along with those 1176 and opto clones i built) so we can do some prpoer testing . . .

cop ya later

chris.

[davemc]

Cool when I get the Trident and 2" going come and have a play and we can meet eventually man :)

[mfdu]

i'll do anything to get a good wiff of that 2"/trident combo.

it'll give me a good idea of my own future as mfdu, cause that's totally my direction. as you know.

regards,

chris.

[harry]

hi chris,

hey where and how did u get the ribbon?

i think i need one...

my new friend (76 strat) is just sounding sooo nice through me olde silverface (who would think a strat sounding good through a fender twin?)
and i've been meaning to record some parts at home.

sorry to steer the thread, but how are the opto (fabio?) comps goin??

im still about a month or three off finishing renovations and then it is full steam ahead for the diy thing,

catch up eventually,

ps how many melcors did u build?

[harry]

hi chris,

hey where and how did u get the ribbon?

i think i need one...

my new friend (76 strat) is just sounding sooo nice through me olde silverface (who would think a strat sounding good through a fender twin?)
and i've been meaning to record some parts at home.

sorry to steer the thread, but how are the opto (fabio?) comps goin??

im still about a month or three off finishing renovations and then it is full steam ahead for the diy thing,

catch up eventually,

ps how many melcors did u build?

[harry]

hi chris,

hey where and how did u get the ribbon?

i think i need one...

my new friend (76 strat) is just sounding sooo nice through me olde silverface (who would think a strat sounding good through a fender twin?)
and i've been meaning to record some parts at home.

sorry to steer the thread, but how are the opto (fabio?) comps goin??

im still about a month or three off finishing renovations and then it is full steam ahead for the diy thing,

catch up eventually,

ps how many melcors did u build?

[mfdu]

hiya harry - good to hear from ya agin. hope the reno's are going ok.

ribbons mics are from www.shinybox.com in the US - delivery was $30 (not the USPS price quoted on the page) and i recommend them highly.


re. fabios opto compressor, i built all the melcor opamps but am still running the unit with TL072 opamps - have to unrack it and swap them over. should be interesting - i'll chain one side with the melcor's and see how they compare.

it is a monster. enough gain to run an sm57 by itself. awsome. great in the signal path of a ribbon - you can boost that puny signal up to the levels of god herself!

its a hard build compared to an 1176 or G-ssl, but juicy juicy. uses a massive output trannie (1.1:6.45 6.45) which i am going to trial in the output stage of an 1176 (currenlty a 1.1:2.2) to see if i can get a similar gain boost. that should be wicked.

cop ya later.

chris.

[Kris]

Whilst we're on the topic, I have been looking at these mics. They're inexpensive enough to buy one to try out.

http://www.pacificproaudio.com/ribbon_mic.asp

Anyone used one of these?

[mfdu]

i believe they are essentially the same as the shinybox 23 - but without the alternate output trannie options.

made in china, probably the same factory as the sm pro audio ribbon as well.

on the prodigy boards, there has been concerns about yet another low-end ribbon but i can't remember that brandname. the issue was that when opening up the mic to have a look, the ribbon itself appeared to be made of kitchen quality al foil.

i only have experience with the shinybox 46's. did i mention that i love them?

chris.

[tonymite]

Hey chris MDFU /MDMA ... a mate of mine aka nik K bought the shinybox 46 ( lundahl) and we tried it for 1st time last nite after some amature a/b shootouts with other mics ...

we placed it over a drum-kit .. as you would a LDC with the smaller omni ( figure 8 ) facing the ceiling . Standard ceilng hight ...
this thing brought out a low end rumble from the bass drum, that had such an effect - no colon therapy could match...

is this due to a gravity thang ?? cos once we placed the mic infront of the kit ( a few feet away) ... in an upright position ... it sounded fine ...

was it gravity or the rear of the mic picking up the standing waves ??


ANYONE ???

[rick]

there are definate gravity issues with ribbons
chris (linear) just bought up a RCA 44 ribbon that was in my cupboard
and i think he was truly amazed at how "floppy" the ribbon element was
in fact he decided to tightened it up a bit, which may or may not have been a great idea ( they do get out of tolerance pretty easily)
and yes they can have trouble working "uphill"

[mfdu]

heya tonymite

the 46 has more bottom end (flab?) than the 46C (cinemag output trannie) and certainly it is useful in some places, and OTT in others.

i have found similar (running the ribbon element parallel to floor/ceiling), where the low end rumble goes far beyond the traditional bottom end push of the proximity effect.

i generally place my ribbons on an angle so the element is not resonating on either horizontal or vertical plane - since my walls are parallel, resonances can take off if i'm not careful.

so, ribbon o/h on drums.
the vibe determines how i'll approach it. normally, the ribbon would be one of three mics, being kick (pzm, beta52, md421 - depends), snare (sm57, md421, green bullet maybe?) and the o'h.
my standard 46 quite often gets run through a dirty gritty old CEI preamp and then mashed by an 1176 (clone) in 'all in' mode. depends if i need colour, or a true representation of the kit!!!

i rarely go beyond three mics on a drum kit.

the ribbon element would be about 45degrees from vertical, and not facing straight on to the drum kit - i angle the face of the mic maybe 10degrees from the drummer (on the snare side, if the snare needs a boost - on the floor tom side if it needs a hand) and then i rely on the figure8 response to keep a blend of direct and reflected signal.

i'll post a photo if you want, but no one position isn't going to suit all uses. it helps to listen to it.

hope that gives you some more ideas.

chris.