ProAudio Review - February 2009 - (Page 37)

SECOND OPINION: T h e M A - 2 01 F E T: A n “ u n d e r p r i c e d a u d i o g e m ” by Russ Long Dave Royer has yet to design a mic that doesn’t catch my ear in a big way. As a big fan of the Mojave MA-100 and MA-200 tube mics, I was anxious to run the gamut with Mojave’s first tubeless mic, the MA-201 FET. As I anticipated, it’s rock-solid. First up was to give the mic a go on vocals. I used the MA-201 to record a male vocal through the LaChapell Model 583s, the Empirical Labs Lil’ FrEQ and the Tube Tech CL-1B; results were a large and punchy, yet extremely detailed, track. I used the same signal path to record female vocals and ended up with even better results. While the MA-200 is occasionally sibilant on female vocals, I found that the MA-201 FET to have a wonderful, open top end while remaining very smooth and natural. I put the mic to work on both electric and acoustic guitars and had great results in both instances. The MA-201 works amazingly well with drums and percussion, too. I ran two MA-201s through a pair of Daking modules to record toms and had great results. They wonderfully recorded drum overheads through the Manley Langevin Dual Vocal Combo. The MA-201 had a tendency to overload when I placed it in the kick drum, but placing it outside the kick (about six inches from the front head ) yielded a fantastic sound. I also used the MA-201 on snare, hi-hat, and tambourine on various sessions and had good results in each case. After spending several months with the MA-201 FET, I’ve found that during the microphone selection process, it is applicable to think of the MA-200 as a modern-day Neumann U 67 and the MA-201 as a modern day Neumann U 47 FET. As was true with the MA-200, my only real complaint with the MA-201 is its lack of selectable pickup patterns. That said, keeping it to a single pickup pattern keeps the price tag on this amazingly underpriced audio gem well within reach of even the most budget-conscious buyer. If you have a small project studio and can only afford one mic or if you are a large facility looking to add another color to your palate, this is the mic to buy. http://www.violetusa.com http://www.violetusa.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ProAudio Review - February 2009

ProAudio Review - February 2009 Contents From Razor Slice To Mouse Click Hot Gear At Winter NAMM ’09: Studio Prioritizing Good Acoustics In Tough Times Digidesign Pro Tools 8 Allen & Heath ZED-R16 Analog Mixing Console Mike Rivers Nevaton MC Series Studio Condenser Microphones FMR Audio Really Nice Series Pre-Amp and Dynamics Modules Mojave Audio MA-201 FET Condenser Microphone Genelec 6010A and 5040A Powered Loudspeaker and Subwoofer Massey Plug-Ins De:Esser Hot Gear At Winter NAMM ’09: Live White Space Regulation: What It Means To Us Recording Live Sound Summit Church in Fort Myers, Florida Bag End P-Crystal R Loudspeaker Mark Olson & Gary Louris’ “Turn Your Pretty Name Around”

ProAudio Review - February 2009

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