Recording - May 2011 - 27

Moving to the small-diaphragm cardioid capsule, I tried the Chameleon alongside such usual SDC fare as a vintage Neumann KM84 and a Shure SM81, as well as a Lauten Torch tube mic. Again on acoustic guitar, this time in the traditional 12th-fret position, it was even nicer than the large capsule. While not as full and opulent sounding as the KM84, it captured a nice even woody tone that was devoid of the low-mid rumble common to many acoustics. Compared to the other small-diaphragm choices, it was not as dense and tubby as the Torch, and it had loads more upper-end personality than the SM81. One of the things that I don’t record every day is ukulele (okay—once you’re done chuckling, we’ll move on...). At the end of the session one of the guys pulled out his uke and wanted to throw down one last quickie. Since he was singing and playing at the same time, and worse yet, swaying to the jaunty little tune, I switched to the small omni capsule. It did just the trick to minimize the audible effects of the performer’s movement. It also sounded nice and, again, natural as well. I am not normally an omni guy, but I quite enjoyed the added sense of space that the omni capsule provided, not only on ukulele, but also on drum overheads and hand percussion such as congas. I also took time on each session to test out the Heater Voltage control, to either add a touch of warm thickness, or to push the sound back with a thinner cool tone. In both cases it is a subtle effect, but still a useful one that can help when layering a mix. The stack test By now you see a reoccurring theme of openness, naturalness and brightness. As such this is a mic that “stacks” exceptionally

well. By “stacking” I don’t mean guitar cabinets, I mean putting lots of tracks recorded with the mic on top of one another. Many of our target readers will have a small collection of inexpensive mics with which they do many of their usual recording tasks, with their budgets allowing “one good mic” to use on critical sources. Used over and over again to record many different instruments or vocals one at a time, some mics’ sounds “stack” better than others. So for one final test, I used two different “47-ish” mics, and the TS-1 MKII with its lollipop capsule, to track an entire Americanastyle song consisting of lead and backing vocals, conga, acoustic guitar, kick drum, tambourine, and shaker. When I auditioned each mix in mono with zero eq or compression, the Chameleon sounded more neutral and dimensional, in effect proving that it can make a great one-andonly mic for any home or project studio.

Conclusions As of press time, most of the companies offering this mic were asking about $500, but that’s without the largediaphragm capsule that was once optional now being included in the package, so figure $600 just to be safe. Even at that price, this mic makes a great value as a “better mic for the important tracks” for any studio on a budget. To conclude, the TS-1 MKII, while on the brighter side, is natural, laid back and consistent sounding, and will do well to take your mic locker a step higher. That— and it makes a hell of a ukulele mic. (I have always wanted to say that.) Prices: Full kit with three capsules, $599 street More from: Chameleon Labs, www.chameleonlabs.com; distributed in USA by TransAudio Group, www.transaudiogroup.com.

RECORDING MAY 2011

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Recording - May 2011

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