The U87 almost acts as a limiter on the picking of the guitar, eliminating the dynamics (transients). This is either a good or bad thing depending on what you’re trying to achieve.
Personally, I always choose to preserve as much detail as possible during the actual recording. It’s easier to tame things afterwards than it is to bring out details that simply aren’t there.
As Bill says “..The U87 almost acts as a limiter..” ..that was my impression when I rented one to hear how it sounds compared with an M-Audio Sputnik and a CAD e300². The U87 sounds like someone’s talking in a monotone ..no relief!
The Sputnik (don’t laugh!) has iridescent highs, deep lows, and the upper mids attract your attention because they seem to be ‘distanced’ slightly, giving your ears something to latch onto, almost like listening to 3D sounds at different distances.
The CAD mics have the similar ‘all-present-with-the-same-impact’, rather tiring, ‘insistence’ as the U87 ..with greater bass depth than the 87, and sharper highs ..but the Sputniks ‘invite’ your ears (or brain) to listen with more attention than to the U87.
I thought I was just a lone heretic. Many thanks for the reassurance, Bill.
2 replies on “U87”
The U87 almost acts as a limiter on the picking of the guitar, eliminating the dynamics (transients). This is either a good or bad thing depending on what you’re trying to achieve.
Personally, I always choose to preserve as much detail as possible during the actual recording. It’s easier to tame things afterwards than it is to bring out details that simply aren’t there.
As Bill says “..The U87 almost acts as a limiter..” ..that was my impression when I rented one to hear how it sounds compared with an M-Audio Sputnik and a CAD e300². The U87 sounds like someone’s talking in a monotone ..no relief!
The Sputnik (don’t laugh!) has iridescent highs, deep lows, and the upper mids attract your attention because they seem to be ‘distanced’ slightly, giving your ears something to latch onto, almost like listening to 3D sounds at different distances.
The CAD mics have the similar ‘all-present-with-the-same-impact’, rather tiring, ‘insistence’ as the U87 ..with greater bass depth than the 87, and sharper highs ..but the Sputniks ‘invite’ your ears (or brain) to listen with more attention than to the U87.
I thought I was just a lone heretic. Many thanks for the reassurance, Bill.