Re: [Harp-L] Audix Fireball

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Greg Heumann wrote:
<Hi, Richard. I've played with the Audix Fireball - and have to say it
<may be great for YOUR music, - clean and smooth - great for Jazz,
<country, clean acoustic - but for MY music I really don't like it a
<bit. I point this out as clarification for the newbies in search of
<"chicago blues tone" - the fireball is NOT a good mic for that
<purpose in my opinion (unless, perhaps, combined with the right
<effects boxes.) It remains clean and even with a tight cup doesn't
<break up in any way shape or form like a traditional vintage mic.


Greg,

First, I appreciate that my best-known recordings consist of two CDs 
worth of solo acoustic harp, but like most players of my generation, I 
was raised on amplified blues, and I know and love the sound, and know 
the stock setup -- Astatic JT30 or Green Bullet into a class A tube amp 
-- very well.  I own a Ron Holmes-modified Crate VC508 class A 5 watt 
tube amp that is all about blues, and I've played through a lot of blues 
rigs in my travels.

Second, I suspect that what you've played with is the first version of 
the Audix Fireball.  The latest revision to this mic includes a 
different element with a lot more bottom end, and its sound is much 
bigger, and tougher when you want it to be.  It was this mic that 
Charlie Musselwhite was using when I saw him at the Cafe du Nord in San 
Francisco last May.  Charlie was running it through a tube amp, not a 
bunch of effects boxes, and he didn't seem to have any trouble getting 
plenty of breakup through it.  I presume that any mic that Charlie 
prefers to use can be considered an authentic blues mic?  It certainly 
sounds authentic when he's playing through it.

I agree that an Astatic JT30 or Shure Green Bullet has a distinctive 
sound, and the Audix doesn't sound just like either one.  If it did, 
what would be the point of owning an Audix?  But have you noticed that 
the Green Bullet and the Astatic don't sound like each other, either, 
and they're both good for blues?   Paul Butterfield used a Shure 545; 
that's at least as far afield from a Green Bullet as the Audix.

The Audix happens to break up at a much higher volume level than my 
Astatic, which is no problem, because the Audix has a much higher 
feedback threshold than the Astatic. I don't suppose most players will 
be unhappy to learn that they can play a lot louder with an Audix.

Anyway, why not just take your favorite blues amp and your Astatic JT30 
down to the local musical instrument store, and do a side by side 
comparison with a Fireball?  Make sure the Fireball is a model V (for 
volume control) -- that model has the new element for sure.  And don't 
forget to turn it up loud enough to get some breakup.  Did I mention 
that the Audix gets a lot more volume before feedback than the Astatic?

Regards, Richard Hunter
hunterharp.com