I am selling an Audio Technica PRO35x Cardioid Condenser Mic on eBay that is in great condition. Well taken care of, used very little. It is a great mic for woodwinds, strings, brass, piano and drums. I used it with a mandolin.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220010517392
Thanks for looking!
Comments
How did you attach it to the mandolin? I'd be interested in trying the same.
I've been using one on an archtop guitar by clamping it onto the tailpiece and pointing the mike towards the bridge. Have to be VERY careful about feedback, but it gives a great acoustic sound on rhythm, much better than any piezo I've ever tried. For lead, I kick in the floating pickup.
"It's a great feeling to be dealing with material which is better than yourself, that you know you can never live up to."
-- Orson Welles
Feedback is probably much more of a problem with guitars. Archtops especially are just great big feedback machines.
It is a great microphone. I used mine recently on my Eastman archtop playing with a big band (Freddie Green style). The mike ran into the XLR channel of a Roland Acoustic Chorus amp, with a little bit of floating pickup blended in on the other channel for a little more warmth, and then two XLR outs from the amp into the mixing board. Worked like a charm.
A-T has another one, the AT831B, very similar, a lavalier condenser mike that comes with a "guitar adapter." This is a little clip thingy that attaches to the soundhole. This puts the mike in close proximity to the guitar's body. I personally think the Pro 35's mount is superior, because you can place the mike at a few inches distance from the body, getting more of the sound of the air.
"It's a great feeling to be dealing with material which is better than yourself, that you know you can never live up to."
-- Orson Welles
Failing that, you might be able to rig some sort of clamp to the body of the guitar and clip onto that. Or perhaps you could get your hands on an AT8444 guitar adapter, which is the one that comes with the the AT831b. It may also work with the Pro 35, I really don't know. You'd have to remove the mike from its mount, but that should nto be a problem.
I'd be interested in your experience. I've got a D hole Dell Arte coming in the near future and would like to try the Pro 35 on it.
"It's a great feeling to be dealing with material which is better than yourself, that you know you can never live up to."
-- Orson Welles
I just recently (and finally!) acquired a Selmer clone (a nice little secondhand Dell'Arte Sweet Chorus, purchased from Michael Collins). I've been playing around with the PRO35 in various locations. What seems to work best for me is to clip it to the soundhole with the mike actually inside the guitar's body. You have to experiment with different positions - e.g., too close to the bass side will be boomy. It does tend to pick up any sort of noise from the guitar, since it is a very sensitive mike, but I have found the sound to be pretty satisfying.
I run it into a Roland AC-60 Acoustic Chorus, which provides the needed phantom power. Have to keep the volume down, no higher than halfway on the channel gain and the master, but that is probably sufficient for any gigs my group will be playing.
I also tried it with the mike on the outside of the guitar, clipped to the soundhole and pointing at the fingerboard. Again, good sound, but feedback was a serious problem. Inside the guitar worked much better.
If you still have your PRO 35, this might be worth a try.
By the way, it does work great with mandolin. Thanks for the suggestion.
"It's a great feeling to be dealing with material which is better than yourself, that you know you can never live up to."
-- Orson Welles