Power Girl
Member
What kind of sound recording mics did hollywood use back in the 40s and 50s? Where could I buy some old mics I didn't see any on ebay?
back in the 40s
- Thread starter Power Girl
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Power Girl
Member
I want to record dialog and have it sound like it did back then. Is there another way to do this than buy an old working mic?
serenity737
Active member
There are less expensive Ribbon mics available. Ribbons are very sensitive and easily broken - definetly not for field work. I would suggest getting in touch with a local studio. If you have your own DAW set up (such as using Audition) the microphone modeling plug in by Antares may be useful.
Mike
Mike
Why in the world would you use old mics just to achieve an old mic sound. Record using standard current mics, and then apply your changes in post.
My rule of thumb: Always capture the cleanest, tightest audio on set. Apply effects (talking through a telephone, old mics, talking through a door, etc.) in post. What happens if you record the effect on the set and then you hate it in post? ADR.
Phil
My rule of thumb: Always capture the cleanest, tightest audio on set. Apply effects (talking through a telephone, old mics, talking through a door, etc.) in post. What happens if you record the effect on the set and then you hate it in post? ADR.
Phil
timapter
Veteran
there are loads of plug ins that can get you an "old mic" sound, which, for you, would be the right way to go, for sure.
I've heard of post guys using old and strange microphones for recordings to get interesting effects, but there it is a creative decision, backed by time and money. Not the right answer in 99% of applications.
I've heard of post guys using old and strange microphones for recordings to get interesting effects, but there it is a creative decision, backed by time and money. Not the right answer in 99% of applications.
Power Girl
Member
Thanks, I will try out doing it in post.
yes i would definitely do it in post.
there are a few new microphones being made that really have the look of different mics over the years.
even if you are using a modern mic and doing the effect in post, if you want a certain vintage look there are new microphones that might help sell the effect visually so the person will be half way there towards thinking it is that vintage and then when you have the sound tweaked to match you will be all set.
in the recent johnny cash/june carter cash movie they did a great job of having vintage mics that changed with the era that they were in for each part of the story.
matthew
there are a few new microphones being made that really have the look of different mics over the years.
even if you are using a modern mic and doing the effect in post, if you want a certain vintage look there are new microphones that might help sell the effect visually so the person will be half way there towards thinking it is that vintage and then when you have the sound tweaked to match you will be all set.
in the recent johnny cash/june carter cash movie they did a great job of having vintage mics that changed with the era that they were in for each part of the story.
matthew
Noiz2
Sound Ninja
THe #1 difference in "sound" of those movies VS most film you see today is that they were shot on sound stages and you get a very close full sound. No mic is going to give you that out in the noisy world. I sort of discovered this by accident when we looped a scene in a booth with a very nice large diaphragm condenser. It does pick up a bigger sound but the BIG difference was the clean and intimate (but not wireless thin) sound. It instantly sounded like a 40's movie. IOt was great but we ended up dirtying it up to fit with the rest of the movie.
Due to various limitarions in recording technology in the past, lots of older recording have a fair amount of distortion. This accounts for some of the big sound. The trick is replicating the distortion the right way 
I would contend that most of the distortion comes from the amplification and recording process and not from the mics.
Unless you are very serious and patient, real vintage mics that would be associated with this sound are not an option. Things like the RCA 44B, Neumann U47, M49, AKG C-12 and the like are items that fetch between $2500-$15,000 depending on condition.
All that aside, even a cheap Chinese large diaphragm mic can give you a really big sound if used properly.
If you have a very high quality tube mic preamp (and some very good solid state preamps) you can get a great big sound by just cranking up the input gain all the way. I routinely record vocals with the input gain cranked all the way up and you get a great presence from this technique. I have to stress you need a very good preamp for this, you use a Mackie or something and you are just gonna get a bunch of crap.
I would contend that most of the distortion comes from the amplification and recording process and not from the mics. Unless you are very serious and patient, real vintage mics that would be associated with this sound are not an option. Things like the RCA 44B, Neumann U47, M49, AKG C-12 and the like are items that fetch between $2500-$15,000 depending on condition.
All that aside, even a cheap Chinese large diaphragm mic can give you a really big sound if used properly.
If you have a very high quality tube mic preamp (and some very good solid state preamps) you can get a great big sound by just cranking up the input gain all the way. I routinely record vocals with the input gain cranked all the way up and you get a great presence from this technique. I have to stress you need a very good preamp for this, you use a Mackie or something and you are just gonna get a bunch of crap.