Double Bass Sennheiser 906e review the search for the perfect dynamic

[flatback]

Well this mic ain't it. I had high hopes for this mic. I really liked the size and the forward facing element. I use the Exploraudio clamp, and I'm looking for a mic that is better then the 20 year old low end Beyer vocal that I am using. After a lot of experimentation I found a real sweet spot just under the fingerboard. On gigs this adds the right amount of air and clarity but no woof or mud. It adds a little volume boost in thumb position without changing the timber.
I really had hoped that this mic was going to be right for the bass and sound but it was too boomy to trebly and just not complimentary.
It was so not the right sound I sent it back after one gig. Maybe the 609 sounds better?
One thing I am really noticing with a Bass mounted mic (H clamp between the strings etc) is the reall need for isolation. If you don't have isolation then all kinds of body vibrations can reach the element and affect the sound. The 906e is very susceptible to this.
I talked to Bob Heil the other day and he is sending me a PR 40 to try. He is a real salesman and has a whole rap about how his mics use a new technology unlike virtually all other dynamics. I saw Ben Street the other day at Yoshi's and he was using a EV RE 20 into the house nd a GK 150 for monitoring. it sounded really good and I'm hoping the PR 40 will give me the sound of the EV in a smaller mic that can be mounted on the H clamp.
More later...

 

[Uncletoad]

Dissapointing. I was hoping it would be more like the 409.

 

[flatback]

yea but the PR 40 haas got my interest up. It looks good on paper. Kind of a beast though. I'm really considering the M88 from Beyer if the Pr 40 doesn't work out.

 

[gnergaard]

Flatback,


Did you experiment much with the different EQ settings on th mic?
I know one of the settings is supposed to accentuate mids and roll of lows...
I was really hopeful about this mic too.
BTW where did you get your H-clamp? Did you order it direct from overseas? Is anyone distributing them here?
Good luck with the new mic and let us know how it works out.
-Greg

 

[flatback]

Flatback,


Did you experiment much with the different EQ settings on th mic?
I know one of the settings is supposed to accentuate mids and roll of lows...
I was really hopeful about this mic too.
BTW where did you get your H-clamp? Did you order it direct from overseas? Is anyone distributing them here?
Good luck with the new mic and let us know how it works out.
-Greg

yea I went all thru it...It is voiced for guitar cabs and is not friedly to (at least my) bass, amp cab etc.
I'm more hopeful about the Heil.

 

[Peck_Time]

I guess this shows how variable the whole mic/ bass/ amp/ ears combination is.

I've had a Sennheiser e906 for 6 months now, and it's the only thing I use. It mounts easily onto my bass with 4 rubber bands, and then I plug it into my iAmp 500 and Whizzy 12.

I don't find it too trebly or guitarry, in fact I would like to roll off a bit of bass, but I can't work out the iAmp's EQ! I much prefer it to the Revolution Solo piezo pickup I was using, and to the Shure Beta 57.

 

[flatback]

I guess this shows how variable the whole mic/ bass/ amp/ ears combination is.

I've had a Sennheiser e906 for 6 months now, and it's the only thing I use. It mounts easily onto my bass with 4 rubber bands, and then I plug it into my iAmp 500 and Whizzy 12.

I don't find it too trebly or guitarry, in fact I would like to roll off a bit of bass, but I can't work out the iAmp's EQ! I much prefer it to the Revolution Solo piezo pickup I was using, and to the Shure Beta 57.

That's fantastic man. I am so glad it's workin for you because it is the perfect package, small forward facing so it picks up the front of the bass. I wish I coulda got a sound out of it because I really wanted it to work.

 

[Uncletoad]

That's fantastic man. I am so glad it's workin for you because it is the perfect package, small forward facing so it picks up the front of the bass. I wish I coulda got a sound out of it because I really wanted it to work.

You try hanging it under the bridge?

 

[flatback]

You try hanging it under the bridge?

yea with the H clamp I can (and try) everywhere. I remember holding a mic in that space under the fingerboard thinking if I could just get it to stay there while I play...
Uncle did you ever try a Heil mic?

Hey happy new pop congrats.

 

[Uncletoad]

...
Uncle did you ever try a Heil mic?

Nope. What's that?

 

[flatback]

Nope. What's that?

Invalid Link Removed

 

[Uncletoad]

Invalid Link Removed

How do you put that on the bass?

 

[flatback]

How do you put that on the bass?

dude mon you put the bass on it.

 

[Uncletoad]

dude mon you put the bass on it.

Ah. My bad.

It's like a Sybian.

 

[flatback]

Ah. My bad.

It's like a Sybian.

???

 

[MT Spaces]

???

FlatBack I just googled "Sybian" ....... you don't really want to know ! Papa T, yo a bad boy. Cover Vincent's eyes ....... please.

 

[flatback]

FlatBack I just googled "Sybian" ....... you don't really want to know ! Papa T, yo a bad boy. Cover Vincent's eyes ....... please.

oh thats rich. Thats funny UT.

 

[bolo]

yea but the PR 40 haas got my interest up. It looks good on paper. Kind of a beast though. I'm really considering the M88 from Beyer if the Pr 40 doesn't work out.

Anxious to hear how the PR 40 works out.

Beware pal, the Beyer M 88 is a bit of a beast too. I think I've typed up a few posts about the weight of the mic being too much for the H-clamp in certain orientations.

The wife goes out of town this weekend. (Which means there will be a whiskey drinkin' contest at my house ...). I'll take some pics and post 'em to give you a better idea of how the M 88 and clamp works and don't work on my bass. Under the end of the FB, the clamp + mic looks and feels a little awkward to me, but sounds great just like you said.

 

[Tbeers]

Ah. My bad.

It's like a Sybian.

Probably a couple times a year I read a post here that makes me laugh out loud. Congrats....

 

[bolo]

Here are some pics of the Beyer M 88 and the H-clamp.

I seem to have the best luck w/ a mic on my bass located between the bridge and the end of the FB. I get a sound that I like with the head of the mic anywhere from their mid-point up to the end of the FB, and even a little north of there. This is the latest orientation that sounds real good to me. I can’t really reach those spots very easily w/out the H-clamp or a gooseneck like my AMT.

I think people like Adrian Cho, Bob Branstetter, piro and perhaps others all gave me the idea to try a mic around this part of the instrument. Comparable perhaps to an AMT w/ a tailpiece mount.

I think this mic sounds more natural on my bass positioned like this than anywhere down around or under the bridge. I spent time today (again) trying different things poking the mic through the afterlengths of the strings in different spots and at different angles, much like Chris F., Uncletoad, piro's latest, and others. (The steroided-out windscreen on the Beyer makes it ridiculously easy to do that and have it stay put.) There are spots with a fair amount of output in that region below the bridge on my bass, but through this mic they all sounded either a little too boxy and ringy or a little too boomy and hollow to me. I like it as shown in the pics a lot better.