ProAudio Review - September 2008 - (Page 24)

STUDIO | Feature TRENDS Continued From Page 22 EARTHWORKS The piano is regarded as one of the most challenging instruments to record. Each piano has its own unique characteristics, and each element of the piano — from the hammers on the strings to the position of the lid to reflections from the room itself — all contribute to that sound. To help solve the piano-miking problems presented in the recording, live sound and church environments, Earthworks produced the PianoMic System, which consists of two high definition microphones mounted on mini-flex arms that point directly at the strings — no mic stands required. PAR sat down with Earthworks’ director of product development Larry Blakely to discuss the PianoMic, which joins the company’s product mix along with the DK25 DrumKit Systems in their growing line of instrumentspecific microphones. PAR: How did Earthworks come to the decision to design a mic specifically for piano? inch mini goosenecks that come off the center of that rod. The rod will adjust so you can favor either the low or high strings, if desired. The distance between the two mics is fixed, but you have a plus/minus five-inch swing with the mini goosenecks that allow them to move left to right and/or up and down. We get the best results with it when the mics are approximately two inches in front of the dampers and two inches above the strings. mics on any given instrument and hear a significant improvement in sound quality. Our goal is to have instrument microphones that are far more faithful and do a much better job at reproducing the instrument’s sound than conventional microphones. I’m not sure the world needs a whole slew of new instrument microphones, but there is room out there for microphones that provide a dramatic improvement in sound quality. SE MICROPHONES If the piano is one of the most difficult instruments to mic, acoustic guitar must be one of the most difficult instruments to stay miked. One slight movement of the player or the instrument will alter the sound, and engineers have gone to drastic lengths to maintain a consistent mic position without hiring a mannequin. SE aims to solve this dilemma with the GM10, an acoustic guitar mic featuring a universal clamping system that allows the user to adhere the mic on any flat-backed six-string. Bob Reardon, managing director for Sonic Distribution U.S., SE’s North and South American distributor, showed us why the GM10 suits the acoustic guitar and why other mics situated on SE’s clamping system won’t make the cut. PAR: Why did SE decide to design a mic specifically for acoustic guitar? Bob Reardon: We wanted to deal with the age-old problem of “wait, you moved.” If you put the guitar down and go into the control room and listen to a take and then sit back down it’s very difficult to get in exactly the same spot. The GM10 allows you to get very specific as far as tone and placement. This allows you to really zero in on the sweet spot: find it and maintain it. And the player can come back after a break and the mic is in exactly the same spot. PAR: What characteristics of the acoustic guitar did SE study when designing the GM10? BR: Since almost all acoustic guitars are different, SE had to look at the broad range of instruments, especially when it came to the mounting — everything from thin bodies to jumbos and baritone guitars were measured. Isolation from the physical vibrations of the guitar body was important so these did not transmit to the mic capsule. Three levels of isolation were used: On the mount itself as part of the surface that also protects the guitar body; an isolated “socket” mechanism as part of the boom; and the mic capsule mount has a built-in “rubberized” isolator. Larry Blakely: I was having lunch with a sound contractor Larry Blakely, Earthworks' director of product and asked him, “Are there development, With The PianoMic any microphone products that The mics that we developed for the you need that you can’t get, or i.e., don’t exist?” And he said, “Yes. I need a piano mic PianoMic have 148dB SPL and it needs to be for churches. I need a better balance between that high with the mics that close to the the high and the low strings of the piano. It strings. Our engineers also used random must produce a better overall piano sound incidence omnis instead of conventional with more gain before feedback. I don’t want omnis. Random incidence microphones are it to pick up sounds of other instruments designed to work within a diffuse sound outside of the piano, and it cannot be visible field as inside of a piano is a diffuse sound from outside of the piano — no stands, no field. Every string is a sound source, the booms. And it has to sound nearly as good soundboard is a sound source and there are with the piano lid all the way closed as it tons of reflections. The random incidence does all the way open.” That’s a mighty tall polar response picks up all direct and reflectlist. I thought about it for a few minutes, ed sounds with great accuracy. We did some pulled out a napkin and sketched out what is PianoMic recordings with the piano lid at the essential PianoMic design. A year later, full stick, half stick, and all the way closed. There is precious little difference in sound we had a prototype. quality between the three recordings. PAR: What characteristics make this mic so suitPAR: Does Earthworks plan to design more ed for acoustic piano? instrument-specific mics? LB: There’s a telescoping rod that’s supported by both sides of the piano. The rod sus- LB: Yes. With our high definition micropends two specially designed mics on six- phone technologies, we can put one of our 24 | ProAudio Review | September 2008 www.proaudioreview.com http://www.proaudioreview.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ProAudio Review - September 2008

ProAudio Review - September 2008 Contents Publisher’s Page: It's A Hard Drive World Broadcast News and New Products Lawo mc256 Digital Production Console Studio News and New Products Earthworks PM40 Piano Mic System Onkyo Professional PR-SC885 HDMI 1.3a Surround Sound Processor Developments and Trends: Instrument Microphones Benchmark Media DAC1 Pre Focal Twin6 Be Studio Reference Monitors Cascade FAT HEAD II Blumlein Package Studio Projects CS5 Microphone M-Audio Pulsar II Small-Diaphragm Condenser Live News and New Products JBL MRX512M Live Monitor QSC: Behind The Scenes Contracting News and New Products Primacoustic Broadway Professional Acoustic Solutions Buyer's Guide: Contracting Amplifiers/Mixers Buyer's Guide: Contracting Speakers Single Slice: pc muñoz "Chatter & Buzz"

ProAudio Review - September 2008

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