Schoeps CMC4 Cardioid Small Diaphragm Condensor Mic.
The Schoeps Colette review
There is nothing other to be said about those microphones than: they are fantastic. I came across those mics in the first studio I’ve ever worked in in Germany. Just like the HÖF compressor. When I had the finances I checked on Ebay and found this particular pair instantly. I now have them up constantly somewhere in the room and around the instruments and voices – close, far, up, down, roomy or dry.
I literally meander around the room until I get the sound I need, which then most often doesn’t have to be equalized much. Don’t get me wrong the Schoeps are outrageously good when heavily compressed and otherwise processed – like I explained in the AKG C-414 article.
My pair of CMC4 with Cardioid and Hyper Cardioid capsules are from the Colette Series. Purchased from their first owner, a sound recordist in Switzerland, who bought them ‘sometimes in the mid 1970ies, when they first came out’ to be used during film productions. Given their age these can be considered vintage. They work on T-Power instead of phantom power and seem to have a larger output than the new ones.
The Colette Series consists of a flexible system of amplifiers and capsules. Namely the CMC 3, 4, 5 and 6, nine capsules with different pickup patterns and pads. The chief task of a CMC microphone amplifier is to convert the extremely high-impedance signal from the capsule to a very low-impedance one suitable for transmission through a microphone cable. They all feature a symmetrical class-A output stage with neither coupling condensers nor an output transformer. This design helps them to achieve extremely low distortion.
When Reviewing the CMC 6 xt for Mix Magazine, Kevin Becka found that “what’s easy to like about the xt is the smooth, silky top end and its size. Because it’s so light and tiny, it’s very easy to maneuver into tight spots. It was a winner in this application and became the first-call guitar mic for the rest of the session. Sonic Beauty.”
The name Schoeps is recognized throughout the world for products of outstanding quality, whose simple elegance and devotion to detail offer practical solutions to a broad range of recording situations. Schoeps specializes in the manufacture of condenser microphones of the highest quality with their supporting accessories since 1948.
Links
- Schoeps Microphones
- Kevin Becka’s review in Mix Magazine
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