"I really think this is the most compact and simplest to position drum microphone on the market." Reviewer / Nolan Rossi
Review by Nolan Rossi for Church Production Magazine - June 2016 issue
Audio engineers, let’s be honest. We are all really comfortable with mic’ing the typical instruments that an average Sunday morning offers us. I’d even wager that many of you keep the same microphones on your drum kit, your guitars amps, etc. I get it. We all go through seasons of experimentation and then times of constancy. The question is what do we do about “bluegrass Sunday,” when an accordion, fiddle, and mandolin show up? For most of us we don’t get much experience with these types of sources and so our microphone locker doesn’t provide us the tools to win in these situations. DPA is one company that has a great solution for these situations. In fact, I’ve used the company’s microphones on tour in the past and they have provided excellent solutions for situations such as these.
CLOSER LOOK & CELLO APPLICATION
The new
4099 instrument microphone is designed to cover a plethora of instruments with its versatile mic clip options. I took it into my studio for an in-depth look at what it can offer. The 4099 is a compact super cardioid condenser microphone; its small and sleek design is useful in tight situations. Atop a small, 5.5-inch, gooseneck rests the capsule, which has a shock mount and windscreen. The cable, thin by any means, comes in 2.2mm (designed for upright bass) and 1.6mm (designed for handheld instruments). At the end of this cable the mini connector works with virtually every wireless transmitter on the market. In addition, a mini connector to standard XLR adapter is provide for a hard wire connection. The same 4099 microphone works in an exhaustive series of smart microphone clips that provide solutions unique to each instrument. Each clip option designed for its purpose is described by the letter following the model number. The
4099B is for upright bass, the
4099C is for cello, and so on. DPA has designed clips for the
accordion, upright
bass,
brass,
cello,
drums, acoustic
guitar,
mandolin, banjo,
piano,
saxophone and
violin. A standard
microphone stand adapter is available, as well as a music stand
“clip on” adapter. The “
universal” clip utilized a nylon strap the user can wrap around and belt onto an instrument. There is a mounting option that will work for virtually any instrument and situation. As stated before, I’ve used these microphones on stage in the past. What I’ve seen most often is the application for cello. Every touring cellist that I’ve worked with travels with his or her own 4099. It is the
standard for this application, without a doubt. The microphone is so easy to travel with and does the job so well that a cellist does not have to worry about how their sound will be reproduced. I can attest to the quality of the sound and to the design. The mount works brilliantly by attaching to the strings just bellow the bridge. The gooseneck offers multiple positions to place the microphone.
Although I had experience in the past, I still wanted to hear how the 4099 worked in this isolated studio situation. I asked my friend Cara Fox to come and play a bit for me in the studio. Cara plays for All Sons and Daughters, Gungor and Kari and she also plays at her home church, Journey in Franklin, Tenn. We spent about 45 minutes recording parts and listening to the 4099. There are two popular mic’ing techniques for the 4099 with the cello. One option is to position the microphone toward the f hole of the cello. This produces a warm and resonate sound. It sounds more classical to my ear, and if I was working with a quartet I would probably mic the cello in this fashion. The other popular position is to place the mic right under the bridge, aimed at the body of the cello. This provides more detail on the top end while still remaining balanced. This is typically what you see from cellists that are accompanying bands. That extra detail in the top end helps to cut through a band mix. The design of the clip makes it easy to position while perfectly isolating the sound of the cello. No handling noise is heard; just the pure sound of the instrument. Similar to the cello application, I’ve had great success using the 4099 on violin and mandolin. The clips here work by attaching to the body of the instruments. The clip provides a stable foundation for [a mic] that is inevitably going to be in some type of motion with these instruments.