Hi, Hello, and welcome back to another installation of the blog! This week, we're going to cover a topic that we've touched on briefly earlier this year, but never settled on for too long to really discuss it fully; so, that's why today, we're going straight in the deep and discussing how you can get the best out of your mic.
As we're now into our second week of our Black Friday Sale, there may be some new readers joining the blog, so this will no doubt help you on your way to discovering your new microphones full potential - and if you've been an avid reader for a while, I'm sure it's never hurt having too much knowledge.
So with all that said and done, let's dive in!
Preamps
I think there's a few of you that will already have a great preamp, but this is simply the best way to get the best out of your microphone to start with. A great mic with a terrible preamp will only result in a bad sounding recording over all, however, with that said it's very difficult to find a bad sounding preamp in today's modern world (thankfully!). Though, with that said, different types of preamps will result in major ways to change the overall sound of the source you're recording and also interact with the microphone in various ways.
This, for me, is my favorite way to discover new ways to get even more out of my microphone collection that I already have, and the journey of this discovery would seem endless for all intents and purposes. Let me explain further why this is a great thing as well. With our microphones being at the forefront of modern design and technology, with our own patented capsule design and more, it means our mic's can pair with quite literally any preamp on the planet. And, as the first valve preamps for commercial use were made back in the 40's and 50's - that's quite a lot of exploring to do, wouldn't you agree?
Couple that with the various designs from companies such as Neve using transformers to coin their sound, Universal Audio mastering the use of Valves in preamps, and API expanding the preamp universe into Op Amps and discrete circuits, as well as the classics from Siemens and Telefuken… the world really is your oyster in new ways to bring more to your microphones sound just through preamps alone.
You can click above to access the eBook I wrote all around various ages and types of preamps.
Pairing
''If one great microphone sounds good, just imagine how great two would sound?'' That's actually the way I convinced myself to buy a second microphone the first time I did so way back almost a decade ago now, but I found that I'd actually completely overlooked an even bigger benefit to having a pair of microphones now: Stereo Recordings.
There's a whole host of reasons that stereo recording is required at various times to give you the best ways to listen back to the instrument or source you're trying to capture. Just one drum kit alone, there's at least the overhead stereo pair to capture the full spectrum of sounds from the shells and cymbals, let alone then pairing that with stereo room mics and variations of techniques to capture the room in the best or most creative way possible.
You can find a multitude of ways to explore stereo micíng techniques in the recent eBook I wrote within the last year covering everything from wide spaced A/B Pairs, XY Pairs, OTRF or NOS pairings, through to more advanced techniques such as if you have a pair of our flagship Black Hole Series BH1S with the ability to switch polar patterns and expanding the stereo recording capabilities even further by allowing techniques such as Blumlien, Decca Tree, and Mid/Side recordings.
Storage
One of the most underrated ways of getting the most out of your microphones in general is simply by looking after them. It seems silly to say out loud as they're tools of great importance, but they are also, for many, an investment and a substantial goal fulfilled when purchasing a wonderful sounding microphone such as the V67, BB29, or any of the Black Hole Series. There's many ways to avoid damaging your mic's and increase the longevity of them, but if you're new to looking after your microphone then here's a few things to consider.
Thankfully, a lot of the heavy lifting in taking care of your microphones from JZ has already been done for you in the way they've been designed. Not only are they road ready and touring capable (for example, Metallica and Architects use our mics as drum overheads all across the world), but they also feature our patented Golden Drop Technology with decreases the chance of oxidation and wear and tear to to the capsule, increasing the life of your microphone in general. But a great way to add even more life to your microphone is by keeping it out of the way of the elements the world can throw at it.
Particles in the air are the biggest problem, and the hardest to understand when starting off looking after microphones. But just by always using a Pop Filter, such as our waved metal design filter, you can stop saliva and dirt from a vocalist when recording from sitting on the capsule and damaging the sound of the microphone.
Another avenue to consider is also the way you store your microphones when not in use. A dust free environment is an absolute must for extending the life of your microphones, and even something as simple as a dust cover or leather case will suffice. Thankfully, we've helped eliminate this problem entirely thanks to our new storage boxes which you can also find on our website, that have the ability to house one or 2 microphones in a laser cut storage along with their standard shock mounts.
Lastly, the last main thing to consider is the safety of your mic when using them and each of our mics comes with its own shock mount system or internal shock mount technology to reduce the risk of damage to the capsule. However, if you'd like to take it a step further, all of our series have their own advanced shockmount systems, including the brand new addition to our Vintage Series line, our Universal Shockmount system compatible with the V47, V67, and V12.
All of our microphones including the ones we've discussed in today's blog are currently a part of our biggest sale of the year, Blcak Friday, and you can snatch yourself the best deal of the year simply by following the link here. As I'm sure you'll be aware, this is a limited time sale, so make sure you don't miss out before it's too late!