Did not want to side-track another current thread, but for those interested - this is well worth a read:
http://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/...crophones-test
A whole range of ribbon microphones from the $100 range up to over $1K.
On the lower cost ones, there are a few things to be aware of. Most of them come (as do lower cost mandolins) from just a couple of factories in China. They then get re-branded and sold in various packaging.... so the name might mean very little. Moving up a bit (or a lot in some cases) certain importers or microphone engineers buy these 'base designs' in then modify them to varying degrees. This can involve anything from just a new 'paint job' to replacing transformers, re-tensioning or re-building the ribbon motor, to a complete new shell. It varies - a lot. You need to do some research to find out exactly what the situation is. Some of these mods are really excellent, some not so. You certainly can't go by looks alone.... there are also two basic designs: a Short Ribbon motor and a Long Ribbon motor. It is pretty easy to tell which is which...
Typical Long Ribbon design
Typical Short Ribbon design
You'll see the same 'base microphones' sold with numerous labels... though the modifications (if any) will be different from the Golden Age models shown. The 'straight from the factory' examples can be very hit or miss, with often dubious QC. This is why buying from a source (importer) that tests and mods them is a good idea.
You can even modify them yourself, if so inclined. Lots of info on the web.
While I'd agree that the most expensive ribbon mics do tend to be consistently excellent (Royer, AEA, etc.) some of these heavily modified lower cost ribbon microphones can be amazingly good too, in their own right. They are definitely worth investigating.
Bookmarks