VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[markt]

Gotta love the "Sandlot" reference though...I feel your pain Jason!
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"Dammit Jim, I'm a voice actor, not an audio engineer!"
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[Dayo]

I'm with Kevin G on this - prefer the U87, but applying the same processing to both skews the result - especilly when you start limiting.

I've always thought the U87 is so popular because it gives you a sound that engineers can shape with relative ease.

Respect to the CAD though - it's a fab mic.
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Colin Day - UK Voiceover
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[georgethetech]

I chose Mic 1 on first listen, but I hear things I like in both, depending on the need for the read to "cut" over music and FX tracks. I agree that the U87 may sound better on a Grace M101 or something else ultra-clean.

You geeks are right about not using limiter/hpf on a mic comparison test. However, keep in mind these tests are always in the context of a home studio user environment, so I think it's appropriate to do a limited amount. Graeme didn't edit out noise or use a noise gate here.

Would you process the two mics differently? Perhaps yes, but I still think the demonstration illustrates the tonal characteristic differences quite effectively.
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[Lance Blair]

I do like things in both mics:

For the CAD:
I like the robust low mids.
I like that there aren't any overplayed frequencies.
I like that it's 'dark' without sounding muddy.
It's a triumph that this mic can be made in Ohio and sold for under $500. It sounds good on anything (and yes, I've done sessions with various instruments as well).

For the Neumann:
I love the highs.
I love the pumped lows around 200 Hz
I love that the sound is so clean, open and 3D (but I only notice that on good headphones).

If I had both, I'd use the U87ai for spots/promos and the E100s for narration/long-form.
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and now, http://lanceblairvo.com the blog is there now too!

[Philip Banks]

May I suggest keeping the U87ai for the body of work and the CAD for the pauses? The former should be latterly processed whereas the latter should be formerly processed!

The above at the ISA (1013mb), obviously.

[Lance Blair]

That's funny...but a brilliant idea since the CAD has the lowest self-noise at 3.7dBA! Speak into the Neumann, and keep the CAD open in channel #2 as a room tone mic.
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Skype: globalvoiceover
and now, http://lanceblairvo.com the blog is there now too!

[graemespicer]

I want to thank everyone for playing along! It was fun, and I learned a lot. As always, I really appreciate the help and wisdom of all the smarty-pants here on VO-BB!
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Graeme Spicer
Voice Actor

Member of the World-Voices Executive Board

tel • (416) 716-2246
email • graeme@graemespicer.com
graemespicer.com

[Rob Ellis]

Hey Pilgrim, that's MR Smarty-Pants, thank you.