New toys this weekend

[Manning]

I will have a Fearn VT1 Pre-amp, a Fearn VT7 stereo compressor and (hopefully) a Bees Neez Tribute in my hands by Saturday.

I may have just wet myself.

[Drumstruck]

hahahahaha

[chribble]

better bloody hope they sound good together!

[Manning]

We've already got a VT1 and it sounds just amazing, my favourite pre-amp ever.

So another VT1 plus the compressor... I'm giddy. Seriously.

[Chris H]

I remember dreaming about the day i would get my first Pultec EQP12A. I thought my game would instantly soar to previously unobtainable heights and when I finally got one after years of fantasizing.......... I was totally underwhelmed because it was such a subtle beast......... Most of the best bits of kit are very subtle in what they bring to your work. However in order of priority a great mic and a stellar listening environment, the transducers at each end of the chain, are so much more important to have than a great equalizer or compressor or boutique preamp. Enjoy the ride, it's great getting new gear.

[Hookemeister]

the transducers at each end of the chain, are so much more important to have than a great equalizer or compressor or boutique preamp

I'm in total agreement with that statement.

You know something interesting... there has been very little technological advancement in either end of the chain in over 60 years! Some small refinements but basically nothing has really changed in that area.

Have a look at a RCA DX77 or a Neumann U47 then take a look or listen to the current ribbon and condenser mics... not a lot of difference... in fact they do everything they can to copy them.

As for the other end of the chain... lets look at what makes that work.

Cardboard cone with copper coil inside a magnet all held together in a steel frame... yeah I still see a lot of those around... cone material has had a technology upgrade but everything else is much the same.

Good advice Chris... make sure you invest in one really good mic and one good pair of reference monitors before you start buying all those other toys!

[Chris H]

.........having said all that, i don't want to rain on Mannings parade at all...........getting that new Fearn gear and the beez neez Tribute is gunna make a great weekend, I would not say no to any of it by a long stretch. Let us know how it all goes when you hit the record button.

[Manning]

Greg, Chris et al - acknowledged. We're doing OK for monitors, we have a set of vintage Rogers LS5/8 mid-fields which are extremely nice, as we as a pair of (original series) KRK V8s for near field.

As noted elsewhere our mic selection is not fantastic, but we're working on improving it. We've got some nice GTs, a Rode Classic, an AKG 414, and adding the BeesNeez Tribute will improve the mix. Not owning a U87 is a little embarrassing, but we'll get one when we can.

[Manning]

Let us know how it all goes when you hit the record button.

Will do - everything we'll be recording in the next few weeks will be in Turkish (got a CD of children's songs to do), but I'll upload a few excerpts.

[Hookemeister]

Turkish, French, English.... it's all music... so it's all good.

I love Turkish coffee!

Have a great weekend.

[Drumstruck]

- everything we'll be recording in the next few weeks will be in Turkish (got a CD of children's songs to do), but I'll upload a few excerpts.

Now that sounds really interesting! There's a lot of charm and often very good melody in children's songs. Which reminds me - I have to finish "The Pig with the Curly Tail Tra-La".....

[Manning]

The BeesNeez Tribute is getting collected from Turramurra at 10AM tomorrow.

The Fearn's arrive after lunch.

Seriously stoked

[mylesgm]

what will you do if it the chain sounds terrible...?

[chribble]

[quote="mylesgm"]what will you do if it the chain sounds terrible...?[/quote]

haha thats true. maybe it will be "too tubey!"

bens mic tend to carry a lot of beef in the mids which could get wooly if the fearn is thick around there too

I have generally used Ben's mics with bright clean pres! but i hope it works for you.
Never used a fearn, but they look niceeeee

[Manning]

In that event, we'd simply use them in combination with other gear.

We already have a Fearn pre-amp so it's not an unknown, and it makes every solid state mic we currently own sound great. If the valve pre and the valve in the Tribute are overdoing the mids, then we've got some nice SS pre's like the API 512c on hand.

Also a valve compressor doesn't suit every situation, but for when one is appropriate the Fearn will be brilliant. We've got a Purple MC77 as an alternative.

As far as the Tribute, I am buying it unheard, but I've used an Arabella (so I trust the brand) and the mic has high commendation from everyone who has ever used it (so I'm inclined to trust the model). I can't afford a U47, so this seems to be a great alternative. If we just can't get the Tribute to sound good... well I'll be pretty surprised. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

[chribble]

great! its not that you wont get it to sound good,

just saying. i have a soundelux 250 mic but it sounded better through an API than anything else to my ears.
through the tab v78 it didnt sound as good to me

[lonearranger]

...

As far as the Tribute, I am buying it unheard, but I've used an Arabella (so I trust the brand) and the mic has high commendation from everyone who has ever used it (so I'm inclined to trust the model). I can't afford a U47, so this seems to be a great alternative. If we just can't get the Tribute to sound good... well I'll be pretty surprised. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

As a Classic II user - would be interested to hear the difference between the ClassicII and tribute, where the rest of the signal chain is the same. I have a beesneez capsule in an old nt2, that I am still quite tempted to put into the classic.

[Chris H]

I think the Classic 11 is a great mic, worthy of a place in the lineup when matching a mic to a vocalist. When I got my Classic we put it up with a vintage U87, the valve AT 4060. From memory it had a slightly smaller focus area than the other two meaning if the singer moved about a lot from side to side, the sound would move in and out of focus a bit. I have used mine often, live in the studio, on a female singer songwriter who plays piano. Fig 8 with the null facing the piano and have always been pleased with the results.

[Manning]

So I got the Beez Tribute and it is just jaw-dropping. Totally balanced, sparklingly clear yet warm. Our random mucking around last night produced the best recordings we've ever done (at least in terms of audio quality). There is plenty of daylight between it and all of our other mics. I'd love to hear from someone who has AB'd it against a Tfunk U47, if the Tfunk is even better then it must be something really special.

Combined the Tribute with the Fearn VT1 pre-amp for valve into valve and it remained absolutely pure, so my fears of it becoming a bit wooly were completely unfounded. It also sounded amazing through the API, although subjectively I still preferred the Fearn.

The Fearn VT7 compressor is also gorgeous. I hate trying to talk about compressors, as you inevitably end up using weasel words trying to describe it. So here - "it making our stuff hear gooder". I've never used a valve compressor before so getting used to the more gradual response time (as compared to an trannie comp) is a minor adjustment. But despite the Purple MC77 being a very respectable comp, I'm genuinely wondering if we'll ever reach for it in preference to the Fearn. Having said that, there is a learning curve. The Fearn isn't modelled on any obvious predecessor, and it has a "harder/softer" control that I don't fully understand yet. It's not quite knee or ratio, but something different.

Regardless, talking about audio gear is like dancing about architecture, so to make it easier, if anyone is up Glenorie way and wants to check it out, drop me a line.

[The Tasmanian]

You will reach for the Purple again - it does a few things that the Fearn will never do.
Unless you are only looking to only get one type of compression sound on everything you do for the rest of your life..

[Manning]

You will reach for the Purple again - it does a few things that the Fearn will never do.
Unless you are only looking to only get one type of compression sound on everything you do for the rest of your life..

Yeah of course you're right. New toy madness kicked in and I was getting a little carried away

It IS fantastic though. I did an acoustic guitar track on Sunday night, used the Tribute and a GT40, both into a VT1 and then into the compressor. No added reverb and no EQ, and it was the best sound I have ever got, ever. Amazingly warm yet absolutely sparkling - ah, pure joy.

[jkhuri44]

not sure if you've noticed yet manning, but the output gain on the Purple mc77 is F@#$ing awesome...even if you're not compressing, just turning shit up using that comp, sounds awesome.