Pro Audio Review - June 2008 - (Page 64) STUDIO | REVIEW by Rob Tavaglione ing sound was nicely “in my face” and attention-grabbing without nasty condenser mic transients. I ended up using both ribbon mics across the whole project, blending them to taste on each song. More room “air” means less artificial reverb required nice. Rather than throw the VR88 at unusual applications, I chose to apply it where a ribbon would be a typical choice and got expected results. Tambourine found the VR88 emphasizing the “thwank” of palm hits on 2 and 4 and de-emphasizing the metallic rattle of the jingles. Even if you’re looking for the opposite tambo sound (bright with rattle) the VR88 can still step up; just aggressively apply a HPF around 250Hz and push up a high-end shelf at about 8k ‘til it’s bright enough. It may take hefty amounts of boost, but don’t worry because ribbons take EQ with grace (their cushioned transients accept such boost very pleasantly). The manual recommended apps with jazz guitar and drop-tuned, heavy-metal guitar, so I dutifully gave them a shot. The VR88 had the right tone for jazz guitar, but it just wasn’t clean enough, with distortion present unless the amp was unreasonably quiet or the mic was pushed too far back into the room. The heavy guitar actually worked much better with the VR88 about a foot back, angled in SAMSON continues on page 72 ➤ Samson VR88 Active Velocity Ribbon Microphone Old-school ribbon sound in a new-school package It’s only natural that today’s largely digital production environment has welcomed, and probably intensified, the resurgence of the ribbon mic. Now, an abundance of affordable ribbon models offer various degrees of sound quality, but most all budget models are saddled with the burden of requiring a very clean, high-gain mic preamp. Samson’s new VR88 attacks this problem with an active output stage and throws in a number of unexpected accessories to boot. | FEATURES The VR88 represents a sizable investment from Samson; with five years of R&D in the making, the VR88 is handcrafted and available for only limited production. This production run is accompanied by a complete set of accessories including an aluminum carrying case, yoke mount, elastic-spider suspension mount, protective sock and a premium 90-degree right-angle XLR cable. The VR88 is an active velocity ribbon mic, featuring a 2.5-inch long, 2-micron thick, pure aluminum ribbon suspended in a neodymium-created magnetic field. The active output stage requires 48-volt phantom power and a bit of memory (as you will probably forget to engage it at first). The bidirectional VR88 handles SPL of 135 dB, has frequency response from 30Hz – 16kHz, a self-noise level of 17dB and an impedance of 200 ohms. The VR88 lists for $750 with the complete mic kit, but is available for $400 - $500 street. | IN USE The first thing that grabbed my attention was Samson’s thorough, yet brief, owner’s manual. Not only did the manual provide a number of helpful mic technique suggestions, it also included a primer of sorts on the proper care and handling of ribbon mics. Studio veterans may skip this chapter, but many a first-time ribbon owner will be (and should be) intrigued by how careful we engineers have to be with such sensitive equipment. The VR88 fit nicely into its yoke mount, with the help of a threaded retainer ring that more than securely held the mic. However, this yoke has parts made of plastic, so I’m a little concerned with its long-term durability. I instead opted to use the included spider-shock mount, which also used the retainer ring to amply secure the mic to the basket, but also employed some plastic parts. The shock mount may not be stellar, but it’s adequate and a welcome accessory for this low price point. I can’t live without my AEA and Beyer ribbons on drum rooms, so naturally I started there. Clearly a creature of habit, the VR88’s active output made me quickly reduce my preamp gain by about 20dB. The sound was unmistakably ribbon, with a delightfully emphasized bottom, an overall (compressed) smoothness dynamically and an understated, rolled off top end. Side by side with the AEA R92 (a modern, passive ribbon mic), the VR88 was a little darker, a little slower with transients and a little less “real” sounding in its soundstage. There was a certain irregularity in the mids (I suspect a bump at 350Hz-ish and a dip around 2kHz?) that, in this case, was particularly interesting! This midrange dip made the VR88 sound a little further back, but after some EQing (I inserted a HPF and my usual corrective room EQ dip at 400Hz) and extreme limiting (about 12dB) the result- APPLICATIONS Studio, project studio KEY FEATURES Active velocity ribbon mic, requires 48V power; 2.5-inch long, 2-micron thick, pure aluminum ribbon suspended in a neodymium-created magnetic field; 30Hz – 16kHz frequency response, a self-noise level of 17dB, impedance of 200 ohms; comes with aluminum carrying case, yoke mount, elasticspider suspension mount, protective sock and a premium 90-degree rightangle XLR cable; handcrafted, limited production. PRICE $750 list CONTACT Samson Technologies Corp. ☎ 631-784-2200 ➲ www.samsontech.com 64 | ProAudio Review | June 2008 www.proaudioreview.com http://www.samsontech.com http://www.proaudioreview.com
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