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NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE: Sonic Eden Studios is one of Music City's most popular demo recording spots.
Owned by award-winning engineer/producer John Albani, the studio regularly hosts the 'who's who' of Nashville's large base of songwriters and studio musicians. As a result, arguably some of the most important voices of the country music industry - those belonging to multi-hit writers, first-call background singers, and the yet-discovered - are regularly present in Sonic Eden's vocal booth.
Noticing this, Albani found a need for a large diaphragm condenser microphone that could comprehensively and impressively capture the essence of any voice and most every instrument that graced his studio. "I was looking for an
overall microphone, which is usually pretty stupid to do because everyone sounds
so different," Albani explains. "You never know what will sound good
because one person may sound great on one mic, then someone else will walk in
and it will be so wrong."
So Albani called Sweetwater Sound, asked them to send him several microphones
for evaluation, which he would try next to some of his own personal favorites.
Albani auditioned these mics during a session featuring several male and female
vocalists. Albani's stand-by selections included a Marshall V69, "a little-known
'secret' microphone that kicks butt," he says, and his Rode NTK, a mic
that Albani confirms is a good choice for female voice when used with his API
512 microphone pre-amp. "We also used pre-amps such as the Vintech 73I,
Universal Audio LA-610, and a Telefunken V72.
According to Albani, a clear 'best-in-show' was quickly determined. He chose
the Soundelux e250, which he confirms cannot be topped in the areas of reoccurring
compatibility with voice, after voice, after voice. "Some mics sounded
great on some people, but virtually no one stepped in front of the e250 to sing
and didn't sound good. It was amazing."
Soundelux designed the e250 as a microphone that offers the presence, size,
and low-frequency boost of many classic and popular live diaphragm condensers
but without those classics' not-so-popular tendencies toward low-frequency buildup
or tilted upper mid-range frequencies. The e250 was originally conceived to
be "a more affordable and mellow version of the ELUX 251," confirms
the company website. It became a cardioid-only microphone with a quality all
its own. Its aural shape can successfully showcase most any voice that blows
through its grille. The David Bock-designed mic features a one-inch, diaphragm
and comes in a wood box along with the ELUX 251's P251 power supply and a custom
shock mount.
"The first thing that I noticed with anyone who walked up to the e250
was that it had an incredible, chesty, powerful sound," Albani recalls
of his latest favorite in recording essentials. "It wasn't overly thick
in the bottom, but you didn't feel like you had to reach for any bottom, either.
What was there was extremely usable. Because of where the e250's top end is
happening, it has what I call 'the buzz' that really great microphones and pre-amps
have before EQ. It has that clarity and that 'fizzy' sound I like without scratchiness.
Even when someone has a slight 's' problem and things are a bit bright for them,
you can calm it down without thinking, 'Oh boy, this is going to take my head
off.' You can also de-ess without creating a lisping sound. There just hasn't
been an instance where I can't get an acceptable sound for anyone."
The flexibility of the e250 is apparent in its perpetual location within Sonic
Eden's vocal booth - always on the main microphone stand. "It has never
come down," confirms Albani. After a session, a plastic bag goes over it,
and the next day, it's always the first one to be used. It also sounds good
on things like dobro, fiddle, and mandolin - high-string kind of instruments.
But the nicest part about the e250 is that you really don't ever need EQ. It's
'built-in' EQ really brings instruments right out, and
they sit in the mix very well."
Most recently, Albani hosted Dobie Gray, the legendary singer of the 1972 hit
'Drift Away.' Gray, who tracked vocals with the Soundelux e250, completed the
session while Albani remained simply stunned by the recorded results. "When
he walked up to that microphone, I thought, 'Oh, man!' He has that really raspy
voice. The combination of his sound and his soul was incredible. Hearing vocals
sounding like that is a dream come true," reminisces Albani.
Award-winning engineer/producer, John Albani, Sonic Eden Studios, chooses the Soundelux e250 the overall perfect large diaphragm studio mic.
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