Display posts from previous
Sort by

Re: Gear: TALK ME OUT OF IT or JUSTIFY MY PURCHASE?

952 by Kniferide
I've used 137's a few times when they came in a rental mic pack. They seemed to work fine where one might put a SDC. I've always wondered how they compare to a SM81 but haven't ever done a close comparison. I've always kinda assumed they are just a modern, shorter, version of an 81 made to be easily placed on stage. Are they much different? How do they compare to an Oktava 012? I use my 81's and 012's pretty much interchangeably with little preference of one over the other.
Was Japmn.

New OST project: https://japmn.bandcamp.com/album/flight-ost
https://japmn.bandcamp.com/album/numberwitch
https://boneandbell.com/site/music.html

Re: Gear: TALK ME OUT OF IT or JUSTIFY MY PURCHASE?

953 by eephus
KSM137/141 very hard to beat for a small diaphragm condenser. Easy to place, and they sound good on lots of stuff. Excellent snare mic that can take a hit.

The preamp is (or at least was) the same one that is in the KSM9 vocal mic. I had to shrink it into the KSM mic heads for the Shure wireless things, so I got to know them pretty well.

I thought the 137/141s sounded better than the SM81. The 81 has a flatter response, but I think extra lows in a small diaphragm mic aren't necessarily great, and if you run the 137/141 flat, it's plenty full sounding for what it is. If I'm using a SDC I probably want a bit of a lift on the "air" side of things, which the 137/141 has that built-into it. The 137/141 paired with a good ribbon mic is very nice for acoustic guitar.

The mechanical polar pattern switch on the 141 is worth the extra money. For strictly snare, doesn't matter, you'll want cardioid anyway. But the omni setting on the 141 is pretty great for a front-of-kit excitement effect or a big open ambient sound on whatever.

Re: Gear: TALK ME OUT OF IT or JUSTIFY MY PURCHASE?

954 by losthighway
^ I've been using KSM137/141s for like 15 years. All of this is true. A Josephson e22 can beat them on snare or toms, but that's at 3x the $. Not to mention many other things they can do that e22s weren't made for (overhead, acoustic instruments etc).

It's taken me that many years to even think about buying another SDC (I'm Soyuz curious) and that's more out of mic lust than any practical need.

Re: Gear: TALK ME OUT OF IT or JUSTIFY MY PURCHASE?

955 by Kniferide
eephus wrote: Mon May 19, 2025 5:13 pm KSM137/141 very hard to beat for a small diaphragm condenser. Easy to place, and they sound good on lots of stuff. Excellent snare mic that can take a hit.

The preamp is (or at least was) the same one that is in the KSM9 vocal mic. I had to shrink it into the KSM mic heads for the Shure wireless things, so I got to know them pretty well.

I thought the 137/141s sounded better than the SM81. The 81 has a flatter response, but I think extra lows in a small diaphragm mic aren't necessarily great, and if you run the 137/141 flat, it's plenty full sounding for what it is. If I'm using a SDC I probably want a bit of a lift on the "air" side of things, which the 137/141 has that built-into it. The 137/141 paired with a good ribbon mic is very nice for acoustic guitar.

The mechanical polar pattern switch on the 141 is worth the extra money. For strictly snare, doesn't matter, you'll want cardioid anyway. But the omni setting on the 141 is pretty great for a front-of-kit excitement effect or a big open ambient sound on whatever.
Might keep an eye out for a used pair. Any excuse to buy more mics, ya know?
Was Japmn.

New OST project: https://japmn.bandcamp.com/album/flight-ost
https://japmn.bandcamp.com/album/numberwitch
https://boneandbell.com/site/music.html

Re: Gear: TALK ME OUT OF IT or JUSTIFY MY PURCHASE?

957 by llllllllllllllllllll
eephus wrote: Mon May 19, 2025 5:13 pmThe 137/141 paired with a good ribbon mic is very nice for acoustic guitar.
I’ve used the KSM137 on acoustic, but never tried it with a ribbon. I had a AEA KU5A out that sounds cool on acoustic in kind of a Django single note way, but a little cartoonishly “vintage” unless I got the position just so. Went ahead and setup the Shure with it to give it a try when I have a minute. I bet it will be great.

Unrelated, but with a lot of sdc mics I never feel like they sound that great solo, though not bad, but hearing the mics in context with everything they really come alive.

Re: Gear: TALK ME OUT OF IT or JUSTIFY MY PURCHASE?

958 by eliya
llllllllllllllllllll wrote: Wed May 21, 2025 9:13 pm
eephus wrote: Mon May 19, 2025 5:13 pmThe 137/141 paired with a good ribbon mic is very nice for acoustic guitar.
I’ve used the KSM137 on acoustic, but never tried it with a ribbon. I had a AEA KU5A out that sounds cool on acoustic in kind of a Django single note way, but a little cartoonishly “vintage” unless I got the position just so.
Man, I feel like that's just how recording acoustic guitar is. Not so much the cartoonish Django sound, but it's really hard for me to get a good sound with a single mic unless it's positioned just so. Ribbon, ldc, sdc, dynamic - all been the same in that way.

Staying on topic, I've had a pair of KSM137 for almost two decades now. They're great and I never felt like I needed to upgrade.

Re: Gear: TALK ME OUT OF IT or JUSTIFY MY PURCHASE?

960 by cakes
This is a reverse, but I'm considering selling my 1977 P bass. Why? I dunno, I'm not as active as I used to be and I don't even play bass in a band anymore, though I don't know what the future would hold. However, I could get a pretty penny for the bass and just get a non-vintage one and reinvest the rest of the money into something else, like a second guitar. The poor thing has been hanging on my guitar rack for like 7 years just collecting dust.

I'm happy with the idea of letting gear go. I'm not really into hording gear and letting it collect dust just because of some value it holds. I know the replacement I would get would sound a little different, but that's just tweaking amps and EQs. I think part of me still holds onto it from my own history with it.

Am I crazy to do this? Who wants a killer P bass from the 70s?
Last edited by cakes on Fri May 23, 2025 2:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Post Reply

Return to “Tech Room”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests