[Harp-L] Re: The Mocrovox mic.

["samblancato" <samblancato@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Guys,

I read the couple of posts on the Microvox mic and thought I'd add my two
cents worth.  I bought one when they first came out and I have a couple of
comments on it.

First of all, it doesn't sound like a bullet mic but it will give you a
slightly fat sound if you cup your hands hard around it and your harp.  As
far as hand effects go I was really underwelmed by this mic.  You see, since
you hold the mic element INSIDE the cup of your hand the wa-wa effect you
get when fanning your hands doesn't sound anything like an all acoustic
wa-wa. To get a good wa-wa, you need the mic to be outside the range of your
hand and harp so that it picks up the change when you open up your hands.
The Microvox doesn't do this.  If you turn this mic all the way up and cup
your hands around it and your harp really tight you can get a really nice
tone somewhere between a bullet and an M-57 but you have to keep your
cupping consistent or the tone will change. One thing I do like about this
mic is that it is really feed-back resistant and that's nice.

If you are looking for a mic to give you a good acoustic tone your best bet
(IMHO) would be to use a really high quality cardioid type vocal mic, turn
up the volume higher than you would for voice and then play close to it but
leave enough room to work with your hands.

I almost never use the Microvox I bought.  If I want dirty I use a bullet
and if I want clean I play through a vocal mic and the PA.

Sam Blancato, Pittsburgh