uhm...What do you think about this reply? sm57 mod

[::XeS::]

Ok...last week I was searching some info about sm57 mods (no tranny or different tranny) and I found this video:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNhluJgv6i4&feature=email[/ame]

It's very interesting but when he recorded the samples for the comparison, he tied the 3 mics togheter in a big triange (1 mic up and 2 down) aiming the source. Personally this solution is not very good because how we well know, only 1-2mm left of right can change very much the sound.
So I dared to post this comment:

" The comparison should be better with a reamped signal. Grouping the mics you can't have the same situation because aiming the speaker 1mm left or right can change a lot the sound "

It's not an offensive comment...it's only my opinion and I didn't say bullshits I suppose..
Today he replied:

"all 3 mics were in a triangle exactly on center, so they were effectively in the same spot hearing the same thing.
Much better than moving mics around.
I have been a recording engineer for over 30 years+ (and won Grammys as well), i am aware of mic placement differences.
This test is a neutral & equal way of hearing the differences in the mics, if you have a better way, please post it and i'll be the judge after i see & hear what you have done."

....Ok You are the best, you won grammys, you are engineer for 30 years but....how can you say that you're aiming the same spot, with 2cm+ of distance from each mic? I think a better way is to reamp a signal 3 times, placing the mics in the same position every time (at least for guitar amps).
Bah

 

[raybrochill]

I think you're right. the mics are pointed at different parts of the speaker.. even if they're equidistant from the center. His response was mega douchey. "I WON SOME GRAMMYS SO IT SOUNDS THE SAME!"

 

[Soundlurker]

I agree. In fact the only way to have a good comparison is to use one mic and record it 3 times (different standard sm57s don't quite sound alike), first without the mod than with one mod and finally the other. It should be positioned in the same spot in all 3 recordings. Optionally the test could contain more than one position as longs as it it perfectly reproduced with and without the mods.

 

[Uladyne]

I think he meant that since the mics apparently (haven't watched the video yet) were in a uniform(?) triangle in the exact(?) center of a speaker, they must be pointing at areas of the speaker which (in a perfect world) would be the same distance from the absolute center and the mics should be the same degree off axis as eachother, and therefore should all be "hearing" an identical sound.

But I doubt he lives in a perfect world. He probably did his experiment here on earth, so I have a lot of room for doubt.

If he wanted to be more scientific, he should have perhaps taken three identical 57's and did his "perfect mic triangle perfectly in the center of the speaker" thing, and made sure they all sounded perfectly identical to many diferent sets of trained ears. If he were so lucky as to succeed at this, he should repeat this multiple times to lessen the probablility that it was luck that got him 3 identical sounds from 3 different places on a speaker.

If he were successful each time, he would be a little bit safer in assuming that his "perfect mic triangle perfectly in the center of the speaker" thing is an accurate way to judge different mics. Then he could do his mods and do his trick a bunch more times, and each time each "mod" or "no mod" should sound at least closer to its own subsequent "takes" than to any "takes" from any of the other mics.


But that would be overkill, so I'd probably just do what this dude did and call it good.

Its after posting stupid shit like this that I realize why I never get anything productive done, ever, haha.

 

[AudioGeekZine]

where are the results posted?

 

[::XeS::]

Here there are the links http://www.gearslutz.com/board/gear...-tests/190036-sm57s-modified-stock-tests.html
You can also download the protools session

 

[AudioGeekZine]

he posted the shootout nearly 2 years ago. He probably just does not give a fuck about it anymore.
why should you?

 

[Sinister Mephisto]

I heard it. A friend of mine did it. Sounded worse than a regular 57 to my ears.

 

[KillFrenzy]

Simply phase invert 3 'identical' SM57 on a perfect triangle (invert the phase in pairs, of course). No sound at all? If so, his test is valid.

 

[::XeS::]

The problem on his reply was the tone. C'mon, if he was right he could use those 5 minutes he spent to reply in a better way. An answer like "I won grammys so fuck you" is a really silly answer.
Anyway, good for him.

 

[greyskull]

typical gearslutz.

 

[006]

typical gearslutz.

QFT.

 

[C_F_H_13]

typical gearslutz.

amen.

 

[KillFrenzy]

Yeah... tone is everything.

 

[::XeS::]

Definitely

 

[AudioGeekZine]

So let's talk about the actual shootout.

I really only heard a difference in tone, enough that I would choose one over another, in the examples of the distorted electric, and only on the chords. I could hear something different with the low tom as well, but none particularly sounded good.

The kick, snare, and chicken picken examples all sounded pretty much the same, nothing clearly better.

I preferred the TAB Funk or no transformer modded mics where I could hear a clear difference.

 

[punkrockacademyfightsong]

I could clearly tell a difference on all of the sounds.
For almost everything I preferred the TAB funken too.
For overdriven guitars I preferred the transformer less
And only for kick I preferred the stock!

 

[AudioGeekZine]

When I say I didn't hear a difference, I meant what I heard didn't make a difference.

 

[Loren Littlejohn]

There really isn't any good way to compare microphones, even with a reamped signal your still stuck trying to position a mic in the same spot. Actually his way of doing it would probably be the way I would have tried to attack it.

 

[Loren Littlejohn]

The acoustic guitar test was fucking stupid and flawed as was the snare and tom ones.

The other tests however seemed to be fine.