OK, there are many fantastic microphones costing thousands of dollars, euros, pounds, etc.... We see them in high-end pro studios all the time, but for home and project studios how much better are they? Pro-level microphones are great to try out (and I will be reviewing more of them), but I thought this comparison might help you consider whether a $$$ microphone is the right upgrade for you. Don't get me wrong, if you have the budget and a premium microphone is the right move, that's Fantastic!... but there is no reason you can't get great recordings if you are using a microphone more in the price range of the Spirit. I hope you enjoy this comparison as much as I enjoyed making it. Cheers!
I moved to the Aston Spirit in my home studio - recorded Flashdance with Irene Cara on it (during Covid) so was stuck at home and well you check it out... I did it with Irene Cara - and honestly it came out better than we hoped - I think it was really down to the Aston spirit - area mic and fortunate to have one at home during lock down
Ive told people for years ...300 -1500 dollar microphones will get you professional recordings. Once you eq, mix and master it will be hard to tell the difference.
That is the workhorse price range where so many recordings are made! High-end microphones can be great to have in the studio, but the key word is "studio" as in what is the recording environment. I've always found recordings are far superior with a $500 microphone in a room with $1500-3000 in well thought out acoustic treatment vs a $3500 microphone in a room that is poorly treated (or not treated at all) for acoustics...
@askdrtk and even that is slowing being fixed with plugins like waves clarity de reverb. I was shocked how good it is. I tried it alongside the ns1 noise remover and low and behold, the vocals sounded clear and upfront with out the echo. Is it perfect, no, but its super close.
I own the Manley Ref going into a BAE 1073. The mic is very bright and can make things sound thin. I swapped the stock tube for a Mullard and it tamed most of the shrillness while retaining its clarity. The Manley Silver would be my go to.
Thanks for sharing the mod you did on the Ref, I find it tends to complement vocalists with a darker tone…great microphone but more of a specialty tool than an all-rounder for me… Haven’t tried the Silver, would be interested. Cheers!
I'm surprised by how much of a difference the sound source made! I heard a lot of difference on percussion and acoustic guitar, but almost couldn't distinguish between the two mics otherwise. Really interesting comparison, thanks for making the video! I'm convinced I'm doing just fine with the Spirit and don't particularly need an upgrade on that front.
I’m glad you enjoyed the comparison. For me it is about the sound, in particular which microphone best fits the instrument / vocalist. I don’t think in terms of microphones in terms of an overall “better.” If you find the Spirit to be a good fit for your recordings, producing the tone you are looking for, I would suggest an “upgrade” is likely unnecessary and depending on which mic you try, may not end up being an “upgrade.” Just my thoughts, but this is why we have so many microphones (at all price points) in studios when we are recording many different musicians and vocalists…Cheers!
RUclips videos do not do justice on how a mic sounds, it’s not the same when you’re in a studio and you could hear the depth of a mic. There is no comparison when it comes to the Manley.
Great video. You previously reviewed a pair of studio headphones made by AKG, the AKG K240 Mkii, and I would to see a review of another pair of studio headphones by AKG known as the AKG K271 Mkii. I would like to see audio tests made on them.
Unless you got them backwards, on the guitar tracks, the spirit were noticably clearer on the higher 2-5 section and the Manley was more pronounced on the 700-900 area.
one question about universal audo 710, i noticed that some of them says on the back made in china or malaysia on sweetwater but if you check in amazon says made in california, is there a difference in sound quality noise floor china vs USA?
The 710 was originally built in California, but was moved to Malaysia (710) and China (4-710). I cannot find any information on when the move happened. My 710 is made is California, but I have had it for a long time. I haven't heard / tested the two side-by-side so I can't say for certain they are identical, but the specs in the original manual (version 1.0 from 2008) and the current specs on the UA website are the same. It also doesn't appear UA has updated the manual either. Sorry I can't provide a more definitive answer.
@@askdrtk it's ok thanks, the reason of my question is because i was watching a sound test uad 710 vs focusrite isa one and uad had horrible noise floor, everybody in the comments was talking about it and i want to purchase uad for voice over but im not sure.
Very nice... At first, in the intro with both mics as vocal test, I thought the Spirit in cardiode was a bit darker than the Reference. But then I see that it even has a highs (in its lower part) that is more enhanced by a minimal difference. I have recorded (with the spirit) some female voices that did not like the 3-5 khz zone. But I was left with the doubt, how would they have sounded changing to omni or even bidirectional. 🤔🤔
It really does show the way our ears interpret frequencies relative to each other. I think about how we will often go for wide cuts instead of boosts to bring out the sound we need on a track. Not enough time to show everything in the video, but I like figure-of-eight on the Spirit with a small amount of dynamic eq cut around 6kHz (wide q)....works well with hardware too (EL DerrEsser). Cheers!
I have both of these Mics and a few really good pres and a decent room thats treated well but not great. IMO, unless your shooting a mic out in a mix, your not going to hear a difference in almost any mic you throw up. I have about 8 great mics since I am a vocalist, recorder, writer and engineer. I have made records and can say the right person behind any gear can make a great sound. The first stage in a vocal chain is well... the vocalist which makes a HUGE difference. The Aston would not be my first choice unless it was already on the mic stand and I just needed to get that great vocalist recorded in a great vibing moment. But again, my pre , my mic placement, and the vocalist would be on point. No gear can replace pure talent on the front or back end of a song. Manley does not play well in bad rooms -(picking up everything around you )-as with most high end mics as you have sorta said as well. Treat your room and you will be rewarded no matter what mic you put up.. Manley just does it better in a good room with a good pre with the right person in front of the mic.
Thanks for sharing and I agree, start with a good sounding room (well treated), a talented vocalist, a microphone suited to the vocalist, placed properly, with a good preamp, all setup well and good recordings will happen. The Ref C is a great microphone that I find to be particularly sensitive to room and positioning, even compared to other mics I have in its price range. Gear has little value without talent on both ends of the session and I share these kinds of videos to hopefully make that point. You can’t spend your way to great recordings (at least not on gear alone). Cheers!
2 times better , 10 times different, that's not how it works, and misses the point entirely of what makes a mic good. There's so many factors involved. It's like how people compare a $100 mic to a $5000 Mic, and go, "look they sound almost the same, I can hardly hear a difference. There's so much more to it!
@@narrator-timothymckean Like so many things dude hah. I didn't even want to have to write this, as it was food for thought, but I mean I have no issues trying to articulate a bit for you. So, some things that can make mic's different apart from the way they (apparently) sound, are , noise floor, how they sound on a variety of sources/voices, build quality, build style, which also leads to life span, or serviceability etc. Also, cheaper mics use cheaper components, a lot of time that aren't particularly reliable, and have poor life span etc etc. There's how a mic stacks over multiple tracks, so like certain frequencies, or resonances that can build up, and start to really show themselves, or how a mic takes processing, and also, just as one example, say you have a $5000 mic, and a $200-1000 mic, it could even be true that just from the price difference that the $200 mic holds up really well, but a lot of times what you'll find on a more expensive mic vs a cheaper mic , is that at the end of the day, the cheaper one still just needs a lot more processing, and work, and that can even add up in just pure time spent in post which can mean money/time for a lot of people, especially if let's say I'm recording 5 separate tracks of vocals with the same mic. Another example, you can have two mic's that sound pretty darn close with a softly spoken voice, but then the cheaper one can't handle loud sources as well, like screaming, or on kicks/snares it can't handle it at all, and distorts the capsule, or with loud guitars for instance, on a distorted guitar that has lots of overtones, and harmonics, the cheaper capsule, and electronics can really start to show, because you'll get really apparent, and odd ringing, whistling, and weak/annoying sounding frequencies that more often show up in the mids, and especially high end. Also, some cheaper capsules/mics, even if they apparently sound okay, the capsule can't handle condensation/humidity well, and can lead to issues. Actually, my Aston Spirit was having that issue. It kept cutting out when I was trying it out on a vocalist, and it was the condensation in the environment I found out. That all said, you have to be objective, and remember it's not always a matter of just expensive vs cheap, because at the end of the day there's still things to take into account, like what mic is working well on a source compared to other mics. I've had $200 mics beat out $5000 mics before, but I also take into account other things, like am I going to be doing 3-10 tracks of vocals with it, or does it sound great when he sings quiet, but not as good when he's screaming 1" away, but I'm just saying theres how a mic sounds, and then other things to consider, and also knowing if a certain tool has certain limitations. Some other factors are, some mics just sound either (A), a lot more finished, and usually that just means that it just sounds a lot more natural,and you can spend the time enhancing it instead of fighting the mic, and using processing to get it to sound great, or fixing issues. Like I said, it's not a hard rule all the time, but a lot more times than not, a mic built up to a certain caliber/quality usually seems to just hold up better all around, and it's not always just money. I know of some mics that are quite shitty that are $200-300, and some mic's in that price range that are great, it just depends on the sum of the parts, build, design, components, and even QC etc. Actually tis was never anything to do with a particular mic, but speaking of my Aston, the capsule sits on a bit of a tilted angle, and there's no way to fix it with how it's designed to sit/be secured, it was a QC issue, and the capsule, and or the capsule mount should not have passed IMO, but for the money I guess it either gets ignored, missed, or overlooked. Also, looks, and clout can matter in some situations. I have some clients that, and it sounds shallow, but unless I have a Neumann, or Mic's of a certain caliber, they just wouldn't wanna work with me, and would go to someone that had them. If you're doing a podcast, and aren't trying to be a professional engineer, then I would say it doesn't matter in the slightest, or if your an artist, and a mic that's $100-500 is working great for you then awesome. I have Neumann's, and cut vocals on a Shure SM7b 50% of the time, so it's just knowing your tools, and knowing there's often various factors to consider. Also, back to the point of being objective. I've mixed lots of songs where the vocal was cut on a $100 Apex Mic, or a $200 MXL, and what I can say is every time I've mixed vocals on certain lower cost mics, it was a piece of work, and a challenge, but in the end price isn't everything, and apparent sound on a single source isn't everything. That said, I have $200-500 mics that I'd probably never use on Vox, but I'd use other places no issue, and it's not even because they outwardly, or apparently sound bad, but theres just things you only learn, and pick up on from experience. Are they always massive things, no, but if I can cut vocals on a certain mic, and have it sound a lot closer to finished, and have to struggle with it less later, then that's usually what I'm going to do, but it's not even a gear snob thing, it''s just about the topic of how theres more to it sometimes than a lot of these dumb shootout's you see of people arguing how a $2000 mic is 80% as good as a $5000 mic, or whatever it is.I know of some mics that are quite shitty that are $200-300, and some mic's in that price range that are great, it just depends on the sum of the parts, build, design, components, and even QC etc. Actually tis was never anything to do with a particular mic, but speaking of my Aston, the capsule sits on a bit of a tilted angle, and there's no way to fix it with how it's designed to sit/be secured, it was a QC issue, and the capsule, and or the capsule mount should not have passed IMO, but for the money I guess it either gets ignored, missed, or overlooked.
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
OK, there are many fantastic microphones costing thousands of dollars, euros, pounds, etc.... We see them in high-end pro studios all the time, but for home and project studios how much better are they?
Pro-level microphones are great to try out (and I will be reviewing more of them), but I thought this comparison might help you consider whether a $$$ microphone is the right upgrade for you. Don't get me wrong, if you have the budget and a premium microphone is the right move, that's Fantastic!... but there is no reason you can't get great recordings if you are using a microphone more in the price range of the Spirit.
I hope you enjoy this comparison as much as I enjoyed making it. Cheers!
I moved to the Aston Spirit in my home studio - recorded Flashdance with Irene Cara on it (during Covid) so was stuck at home and well you check it out... I did it with Irene Cara - and honestly it came out better than we hoped - I think it was really down to the Aston spirit - area mic and fortunate to have one at home during lock down
Nice collab with IC...Great vocals and arrangement! If anyone is wondering about the Aston Spirit, check out Ginny Vee's video! Cheers!
Honestly with pro mics its how it cuts through the mix
...and choosing the mic that best compliments the vocalist or instrument. Sometimes subtle, but makes a big difference in the mix... Cheers!
Well done, great coverage. Thank you for your time on these.
Thanks, my pleasure to share!
Damn I love Aston but I'm getting my Manley for SURE!!!!!!
You wont regret it. Its a bright mic like the Sony. pairs well with vibey pres. LA610, Neve 1073.. Sounds even better on a Neve Newton.
Ive told people for years ...300 -1500 dollar microphones will get you professional recordings. Once you eq, mix and master it will be hard to tell the difference.
That is the workhorse price range where so many recordings are made! High-end microphones can be great to have in the studio, but the key word is "studio" as in what is the recording environment. I've always found recordings are far superior with a $500 microphone in a room with $1500-3000 in well thought out acoustic treatment vs a $3500 microphone in a room that is poorly treated (or not treated at all) for acoustics...
@askdrtk and even that is slowing being fixed with plugins like waves clarity de reverb. I was shocked how good it is. I tried it alongside the ns1 noise remover and low and behold, the vocals sounded clear and upfront with out the echo. Is it perfect, no, but its super close.
I own the Manley Ref going into a BAE 1073. The mic is very bright and can make things sound thin. I swapped the stock tube for a Mullard and it tamed most of the shrillness while retaining its clarity. The Manley Silver would be my go to.
Thanks for sharing the mod you did on the Ref, I find it tends to complement vocalists with a darker tone…great microphone but more of a specialty tool than an all-rounder for me… Haven’t tried the Silver, would be interested. Cheers!
I'm surprised by how much of a difference the sound source made! I heard a lot of difference on percussion and acoustic guitar, but almost couldn't distinguish between the two mics otherwise.
Really interesting comparison, thanks for making the video!
I'm convinced I'm doing just fine with the Spirit and don't particularly need an upgrade on that front.
I’m glad you enjoyed the comparison. For me it is about the sound, in particular which microphone best fits the instrument / vocalist. I don’t think in terms of microphones in terms of an overall “better.” If you find the Spirit to be a good fit for your recordings, producing the tone you are looking for, I would suggest an “upgrade” is likely unnecessary and depending on which mic you try, may not end up being an “upgrade.” Just my thoughts, but this is why we have so many microphones (at all price points) in studios when we are recording many different musicians and vocalists…Cheers!
RUclips videos do not do justice on how a mic sounds, it’s not the same when you’re in a studio and you could hear the depth of a mic. There is no comparison when it comes to the Manley.
Great video. You previously reviewed a pair of studio headphones made by AKG, the AKG K240 Mkii, and I would to see a review of another pair of studio headphones by AKG known as the AKG K271 Mkii. I would like to see audio tests made on them.
Glad you enjoyed it! The 271 mkii are on my review calendar. By the way, M70x review will be live next week...
@@askdrtk Great! Looking forward to it!
Supposedly the Manley Reference uses a microphone capsule that's found in much cheaper Chinese microphones.
Unless you got them backwards, on the guitar tracks, the spirit were noticably clearer on the higher 2-5 section and the Manley was more pronounced on the 700-900 area.
I hear that too... Both are great mics on their own. Glad to hear you are getting a Manley...All their gear is top notch in my experience! Cheers!
Love this mic and I also own a u87
Great set to have in your mic locker…nice versatility between them. Cheers!
one question about universal audo 710, i noticed that some of them says on the back made in china or malaysia on sweetwater but if you check in amazon says made in california, is there a difference in sound quality noise floor china vs USA?
The 710 was originally built in California, but was moved to Malaysia (710) and China (4-710). I cannot find any information on when the move happened. My 710 is made is California, but I have had it for a long time. I haven't heard / tested the two side-by-side so I can't say for certain they are identical, but the specs in the original manual (version 1.0 from 2008) and the current specs on the UA website are the same. It also doesn't appear UA has updated the manual either. Sorry I can't provide a more definitive answer.
@@askdrtk it's ok thanks, the reason of my question is because i was watching a sound test uad 710 vs focusrite isa one and uad had horrible noise floor, everybody in the comments was talking about it and i want to purchase uad for voice over but im not sure.
Saw this comment after I was replying to you on the "outboard gear" video. Hopefully I covered off what you are looking for...
Very nice... At first, in the intro with both mics as vocal test, I thought the Spirit in cardiode was a bit darker than the Reference. But then I see that it even has a highs (in its lower part) that is more enhanced by a minimal difference. I have recorded (with the spirit) some female voices that did not like the 3-5 khz zone. But I was left with the doubt, how would they have sounded changing to omni or even bidirectional. 🤔🤔
It really does show the way our ears interpret frequencies relative to each other. I think about how we will often go for wide cuts instead of boosts to bring out the sound we need on a track. Not enough time to show everything in the video, but I like figure-of-eight on the Spirit with a small amount of dynamic eq cut around 6kHz (wide q)....works well with hardware too (EL DerrEsser). Cheers!
I have both of these Mics and a few really good pres and a decent room thats treated well but not great. IMO, unless your shooting a mic out in a mix, your not going to hear a difference in almost any mic you throw up. I have about 8 great mics since I am a vocalist, recorder, writer and engineer. I have made records and can say the right person behind any gear can make a great sound. The first stage in a vocal chain is well... the vocalist which makes a HUGE difference. The Aston would not be my first choice unless it was already on the mic stand and I just needed to get that great vocalist recorded in a great vibing moment. But again, my pre , my mic placement, and the vocalist would be on point. No gear can replace pure talent on the front or back end of a song. Manley does not play well in bad rooms -(picking up everything around you )-as with most high end mics as you have sorta said as well. Treat your room and you will be rewarded no matter what mic you put up.. Manley just does it better in a good room with a good pre with the right person in front of the mic.
In the Video world they say the best camera is the one you have.. The best mic is the one you have at that time.. Make it work.
Thanks for sharing and I agree, start with a good sounding room (well treated), a talented vocalist, a microphone suited to the vocalist, placed properly, with a good preamp, all setup well and good recordings will happen. The Ref C is a great microphone that I find to be particularly sensitive to room and positioning, even compared to other mics I have in its price range. Gear has little value without talent on both ends of the session and I share these kinds of videos to hopefully make that point. You can’t spend your way to great recordings (at least not on gear alone). Cheers!
Ironic that I also have the Aston Spirit with the ISA One. Can you give me some vocal setting tips for them?
I returned the Manley in favor of the Lewit 1040. At that price point it buries the Manley head first!
The 1040 is one of the best new microphones I've heard in a long time!
Love the 1040 too. So flexible in tone. Had a 940 but sold it to get the 1040. God it's a heavy system
Lewit mics are great mics. Especially the pure tube.
Manley was better for me than 1040 it just didn't sound wowing to me wa 8000 had more wow factor
I am considering doing the same. How do you think does it compare? and in what mode does it sound the best for your use case?
2 times better , 10 times different, that's not how it works, and misses the point entirely of what makes a mic good. There's so many factors involved. It's like how people compare a $100 mic to a $5000 Mic, and go, "look they sound almost the same, I can hardly hear a difference. There's so much more to it!
There’s more to it than how they sound? Like what?
@@narrator-timothymckean Like so many things dude hah. I didn't even want to have to write this, as it was food for thought, but I mean I have no issues trying to articulate a bit for you.
So, some things that can make mic's different apart from the way they (apparently) sound, are , noise floor, how they sound on a variety of sources/voices, build quality, build style, which also leads to life span, or serviceability etc. Also, cheaper mics use cheaper components, a lot of time that aren't particularly reliable, and have poor life span etc etc.
There's how a mic stacks over multiple tracks, so like certain frequencies, or resonances that can build up, and start to really show themselves, or how a mic takes processing, and also, just as one example, say you have a $5000 mic, and a $200-1000 mic, it could even be true that just from the price difference that the $200 mic holds up really well, but a lot of times what you'll find on a more expensive mic vs a cheaper mic , is that at the end of the day, the cheaper one still just needs a lot more processing, and work, and that can even add up in just pure time spent in post which can mean money/time for a lot of people, especially if let's say I'm recording 5 separate tracks of vocals with the same mic.
Another example, you can have two mic's that sound pretty darn close with a softly spoken voice, but then the cheaper one can't handle loud sources as well, like screaming, or on kicks/snares it can't handle it at all, and distorts the capsule, or with loud guitars for instance, on a distorted guitar that has lots of overtones, and harmonics, the cheaper capsule, and electronics can really start to show, because you'll get really apparent, and odd ringing, whistling, and weak/annoying sounding frequencies that more often show up in the mids, and especially high end.
Also, some cheaper capsules/mics, even if they apparently sound okay, the capsule can't handle condensation/humidity well, and can lead to issues. Actually, my Aston Spirit was having that issue. It kept cutting out when I was trying it out on a vocalist, and it was the condensation in the environment I found out.
That all said, you have to be objective, and remember it's not always a matter of just expensive vs cheap, because at the end of the day there's still things to take into account, like what mic is working well on a source compared to other mics. I've had $200 mics beat out $5000 mics before, but I also take into account other things, like am I going to be doing 3-10 tracks of vocals with it, or does it sound great when he sings quiet, but not as good when he's screaming 1" away, but I'm just saying theres how a mic sounds, and then other things to consider, and also knowing if a certain tool has certain limitations.
Some other factors are, some mics just sound either (A), a lot more finished, and usually that just means that it just sounds a lot more natural,and you can spend the time enhancing it instead of fighting the mic, and using processing to get it to sound great, or fixing issues. Like I said, it's not a hard rule all the time, but a lot more times than not, a mic built up to a certain caliber/quality usually seems to just hold up better all around, and it's not always just money. I know of some mics that are quite shitty that are $200-300, and some mic's in that price range that are great, it just depends on the sum of the parts, build, design, components, and even QC etc. Actually tis was never anything to do with a particular mic, but speaking of my Aston, the capsule sits on a bit of a tilted angle, and there's no way to fix it with how it's designed to sit/be secured, it was a QC issue, and the capsule, and or the capsule mount should not have passed IMO, but for the money I guess it either gets ignored, missed, or overlooked.
Also, looks, and clout can matter in some situations. I have some clients that, and it sounds shallow, but unless I have a Neumann, or Mic's of a certain caliber, they just wouldn't wanna work with me, and would go to someone that had them. If you're doing a podcast, and aren't trying to be a professional engineer, then I would say it doesn't matter in the slightest, or if your an artist, and a mic that's $100-500 is working great for you then awesome. I have Neumann's, and cut vocals on a Shure SM7b 50% of the time, so it's just knowing your tools, and knowing there's often various factors to consider.
Also, back to the point of being objective. I've mixed lots of songs where the vocal was cut on a $100 Apex Mic, or a $200 MXL, and what I can say is every time I've mixed vocals on certain lower cost mics, it was a piece of work, and a challenge, but in the end price isn't everything, and apparent sound on a single source isn't everything. That said, I have $200-500 mics that I'd probably never use on Vox, but I'd use other places no issue, and it's not even because they outwardly, or apparently sound bad, but theres just things you only learn, and pick up on from experience. Are they always massive things, no, but if I can cut vocals on a certain mic, and have it sound a lot closer to finished, and have to struggle with it less later, then that's usually what I'm going to do, but it's not even a gear snob thing, it''s just about the topic of how theres more to it sometimes than a lot of these dumb shootout's you see of people arguing how a $2000 mic is 80% as good as a $5000 mic, or whatever it is.I know of some mics that are quite shitty that are $200-300, and some mic's in that price range that are great, it just depends on the sum of the parts, build, design, components, and even QC etc. Actually tis was never anything to do with a particular mic, but speaking of my Aston, the capsule sits on a bit of a tilted angle, and there's no way to fix it with how it's designed to sit/be secured, it was a QC issue, and the capsule, and or the capsule mount should not have passed IMO, but for the money I guess it either gets ignored, missed, or overlooked.
i believe yes Manley was 10 times better