UNPACKING, INSPECTION STORAGE AND
TRANSPORT
The R1 MKII was carefully tested and packed at the
factory. The soft case has been designed to protect
the microphone when you store, ship or move it.
Please always use it when you will need to transport
the R1 MKII for service or for any other reason.
IMPORTANT NOTICE:
The ribbon assembly in the R1 MKII, as in any
ribbon microphones, is very sensitive and fragile
and can be easily damaged if handled the wrong
way,
That is why it is important that you immediately
after you have received the R1 MKII, verifies that it
is working properly and that it has not been dam-
aged during shipping.
The warranty of the ribbon assembly in the
R1 MK II does not extend beyond this initial inspec-
tion, since it can be damaged so easily if it isn´t
handled properly.
In the rare case that the R1 MKII is not working
properly when receiving it, please contact your
dealer.
FEATURES
- The unmatched natural and musical sound of a
classical ribbon microphone.
- A stunning realism with the feeling of “being-
there”.
- The typical large and mellow ribbon sound quality
with a very smooth top end and an extended low
end.
- A fast and life-like transient reproduction.
- An ultra-high SPL capability, 160 dB SPL (1% THD
@ 1000 Hz) and a very good sensitivity for a ribbon
microphone.
- A Figure-8 directional pattern for wide sweet spots
both in the front and in the back of the microphone.
Zero spots towards the sides.
- A 50 mm long ribbon made of 2 microns thick
aluminium foil.
- An internal shock mount for the ribbon and
magnet assembly.
- A removable microphone cable and a soft trans-
port case
- Manufactured of the finest materials for a great
performance and long-term reliability.
- The R1 MKII can be used with any standard mixer
or preamp, preferably with a balanced input.
USE OF THE R1 MKII
The Figure-8 pattern of the R1 MKII gives you the
ability to separate sound sources by placing the
unwanted ones in the side zero pick-up directions.
Placing the unwanted ones towards the sides of the
R1 MKII will remove most of the direct sound from
the sound source. The R1 MKII will still pick up
that source from the reverberant field
in the recording room though.
Due to the small width of the ribbon,
the horizontal pick-up pattern is very
wide.
It is much wider compared to a large
capsule condenser microphone.
The vertical pick-up pattern is narrow
at the higher frequencies though due
to the length of the ribbon. This
is due to the fact the wavelength
at higher frequencies is much
shorter than the length of the
ribbon. If you want maximum
top end response from the R1
MKII, it is important that the
R1 MKII is mounted so that it
is parallel to the sound source.
If it is vertically angled against
the sound source, then there
will inevitably be a loss of top
end. This can sometimes be a
R
1
MKII
W W W . G O L D E N A G E P R O J E C T . C O M
I
Vintage Style Ribbon Microphone
INTRODUCTION
Congratulations on choosing the Golden Age Project R1 MKII microphone!
The R1 MKII is a high quality vintage style ribbon microphone. It offers the unique and natural
sound that has been available in classical microphones like the RCA 44 and 77 that are still used to
make high quality recordings today after almost 70 years.
The R1 MKII is very well suited for the recording of most sound sources like vocals, acoustic
instruments, strings, horns, orchestras and choral groups and many live sound applications.
In spite of its low cost, the R1 MKII meets the most stringent demands.
To get maximum benefit and trouble free use out of the R1 MKII, please read this manual carefully.