ground loop. The ground loop may be very slight or more pro-
nounced, depending on the preamp. Battery powered preamps
usually do not exhibit this problem, and neither do well designed,
line operated mic preamps. The simple fix is to disconnect one of
the microphone’s two Pin-1 ground connections. A better method
is to make a small ground lifter adapter out of a male-female XLR
barrel
adapter. Switchcraft makes a very nice one and it takes
less than five minutes to wire it up. Simply connect Pin-2-to-Pin-
2, Pin-3 to Pin-3, and leave Pin-1 disconnected. Correcting the
problem at the preamplifier would be preferable, but is often more
difficult and/or expensive.
In conclusion, try to find the best preamp you can afford that has
good gain characteristics and low noise. Coloration is optional
and a matter of personal taste. Some people love the effect of col-
oration while others strive for absolute transparency.
Equalization and Ribbon Microphones
One of the great strengths of ribbon microphones is how well they
take EQ. Even with substantial amounts of equalization, ribbons
retain their natural, “real” quality. For example, when a lead vo-
cal is being performed on a ribbon microphone, you can actually
boost the upper end frequencies to the point where the ribbon mic
emulates the performance curve of a condenser mic with excellent
results. This is not to say that a ribbon microphone can replace a
quality condenser mic in all circumstances, but the EQ friendli-
ness inherent in ribbon microphones does allow for an enormous
amount of flexibility.
The reason that ribbon mics take EQ so well is because of their
inherent low self-noise (less than 15 dB) and unusually smooth
response characteristics. Dialing in high amounts of equalization
on condenser or dynamic microphones also means dialing in extra
amounts of the microphones distortion products and self noise;
garbage that contributes to an unnatural, unpleasant sound. Be-
cause distortion and self-noise are almost non-existent in ribbon
microphones, high levels of EQ can be used without adding
harshness or excessive noise.
10
