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Double Bass Troll Ribbon Mic

#281
I just got a used Troll from the classifieds, hoping to do some hobby recording and some live gigs. But it is very noisy, I am using a brand new Fethead. Gain on my amp (Little Mark III) is not much higher than when I use my pickup. Also tried straight in to my mixer (xr18) and listening on headphones, same result. I am using a new Fethead but it is also very noisy without the Fethead, but at much higher gain levels obviously.

Thinking it may need to be repaired? This is my first ribbon mic, any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

I can give more details on my setup if needed.
 
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#282
jvgreene said:
I just got a used Troll from the classifieds, hoping to do some hobby recording and some live gigs. But it is very noisy, I am using a brand new Fethead. Gain on my amp (Little Mark III) is not much higher than when I use my pickup. Also tried straight in to my mixer (xr18) and listening on headphones, same result. I am using a new Fethead but it is also very noisy without the Fethead, but at much higher gain levels obviously.

Thinking it may need to be repaired? This is my first ribbon mic, any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

I can give more details on my setup if needed.
Click to expand...

Did you get to the bottom of this? Sounds like the ribbon needs replacing. I sent mine back to Brandon and he repaired the mic.
 
#284
jvgreene said:
haven't had a chance to play with it much recently. Bass is actually in the shop at the moment. Was yours doing something similar before it was repaired?
Click to expand...

When the ribbon was sagging, it was extremely noisy. I could hear the ribbon shaking when playing forcefully and there was some distortion after the initial attack.

Check this out for more detailed info on sagging ribbons: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

You should be able to inspect the mic's ribbon without your instrument. If you're careful, open the mic up, remove the inner wind-screen and visually inspect the ribbon. Compare the condition to the example of sagging ribbon in the aforementioned link. In my case, the sagging ribbon was very obvious.
 
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#285
I'm getting a little clinky sound after a harder attack on a note... First I thought it was the F-clamp but the sound was there with the rubber bands also.
I'm thinking there's something loose inside.

I'll have to take a look inside the mic!
 
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#287
Coupla things...
-The Fethead works best with a full 48volts.
-The mic has a pretty pronounced proximity effect so positioning is important.

I've had good luck using it to record but it has usually been in combination with another mic or two. Either SDC or dynamic (~SM58)
 
#289
ericsmith said:
I'm getting a little clinky sound after a harder attack on a note... First I thought it was the F-clamp but the sound was there with the rubber bands also.
I'm thinking there's something loose inside.

I'll have to take a look inside the mic!
Click to expand...

A year (plus) later…
Did you sort this out? I have the same thing with my Troll. Only when mounted with rubber bands, though. Tried putting the Troll on a stand and it sounded OK. But the rubber band mounting is so much easier and out of the way when playing live.
 
#290
The green one said:
A year (plus) later…
Did you sort this out? I have the same thing with my Troll. Only when mounted with rubber bands, though. Tried putting the Troll on a stand and it sounded OK. But the rubber band mounting is so much easier and out of the way when playing live.
Click to expand...

No, i tried it on a stand aswell but same noise. I haven't really used the mic after that... Shame, it worked well for me but I don't know who would/could fix it and I didn't get an answer from the builder either.
 
#291
A typical symptom of a ribbon that needs to be replaced is that it will sound okay at low sound pressure but distorts at higher levels. Sometimes it's sagging, sometimes it's tiny iron "warf" (dust) which sticks to the magnet and interferes with the ribbon. I own a number of ribbon mics, and I have had to reribbon three of them. It typically costs $125-150... that may be more than the mic is worth in the real world. There are not many people left who do that work. Clarence Kane (google "ENAK") or AEA in LA might be able to help you.
 
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#292
ericsmith said:
No, i tried it on a stand aswell but same noise. I haven't really used the mic after that... Shame, it worked well for me but I don't know who would/could fix it and I didn't get an answer from the builder either.
Click to expand...

I'm surprised Brandon didn't get back to you, he's always been pretty responsive for me. A while ago I sent mine to him for a lack of volume and distortion, I think I paid $50 and got it back in a week. Ribbon mics can be a bit more finicky/fragile than dynamics or condensers but man this one sure sounds good!

In fact I'm recording with it tonight but as Juuso says, on a stand out front not between the bridge feet.
-Jeff
 
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#295
Strange thing. I bought some new rubber bands and tried it at another location and had no bad sound at all. My basement, where I usually practice, is a bit of a haunted place. I once had to record a BG bassline lying on my back, since the only way to take out the hiss from the pickups was to have the bass facing upwards. I later realized that the big problem is my automatic lawn mower, or rather its "limiting wire". Functions like a big ass radio antenna it turns out. I will test to turn the lawn mower off to see if that's the culprit now as well. Seems strange, since the sound was very "mechanic". But who knows…
 
#297
N. Kentucky Bass said:
Did you buy a Troll for your PJB? I have a Phil Jones BG-150 combo and a PB-300 powered speaker, and am interested in how Troll plays with gear like that. Thank you.
Click to expand...
Yes, I did, but I also ended frying it...

Thing is to use it with the PJB and get the maximum output you need the FetHead. But for the FetHead to work you need external phantom power. So I bought the Behringer PS400 to try and forgot to put the FetHead and the power went to the mic...

Was I satisfied with the sound? It was lacking a bit of treble and definition for my taste. It did match nicely with the Realist Lifeline. But for all the plug in and extra stuff that you need to carry around, I'm not sure it's worth the little gain you are getting. Although, I'd be curious to see the result with a brand new ribbon, but I haven't heard from anyone over after sending a e-mail a few weeks ago.

I got a pair of Line Audio CM4 this summer and I think it fit my needs more. Which is recording at home. It all depend on what you are looking for.
 
#298
Silevesq said:
Yes, I did, but I also ended frying it...

Thing is to use it with the PJB and get the maximum output you need the FetHead. But for the FetHead to work you need external phantom power. So I bought the Behringer PS400 to try and forgot to put the FetHead and the power went to the mic...

Was I satisfied with the sound? It was lacking a bit of treble and definition for my taste. It did match nicely with the Realist Lifeline. But for all the plug in and extra stuff that you need to carry around, I'm not sure it's worth the little gain you are getting. Although, I'd be curious to see the result with a brand new ribbon, but I haven't heard from anyone over after sending a e-mail a few weeks ago.

I got a pair of Line Audio CM4 this summer and I think it fit my needs more. Which is recording at home. It all depend on what you are looking for.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the reply! I'm looking at the options for live amplification and Troll sounds interesting. For an acoustic instrument, I believe good mics, good placement, and good room treatment are a winner. But how to get that in a live setting? I've done enough live location tracking to know the obstacles. My bass has a Gage Lifeline pickup, which I run through a Noble tube preamp into the combo amp's effects return jack or the powered cab. It sounds good, but it's clearly a piezo tone -- not even in the ballpark of my Peluso 22 251 LDC blended with Telefunken M60 SDC on the fingerboard. I've also been looking into the Tonedexter but would have to hear it to believe it.
 
#299
I’ve been enjoy reading this thread and I’m considering switching to troll ribbon from DPA4099.

Is there anyone who switched to troll ribbon from dpa or possess both troll ribbon and dpa?

Could someone tell me what is better about troll ribbon compering dpa?
What I care is mostly about feedback issue.

I’ve been having a hard time getting good sound and enough volume from dpa. Mostly gets feedback at high frequency.

My gears are DPA,realist lifeline, schertler yellow blender, Marcacoustic Ac101.

I know it sounds amazing at live recording situation.(this is why I purchased it)
Howevet this is not what I do a lot and I want a decent mic for my daily basis jazz club gigs.

The place I play mostly holds 30~150 people. And there is not always a good PA.

Also what I don’t like about DPA is, there are too many possibilities to get a sound as you can place a mic wherever you like.
It bothers me when I get decent sound at my house but does not work at gig.you can not test a lot of place to mic during the gig.
 
#300
I'm thinking about springing for one of these. Both for recording and live use where appropriate. I already own a cloud lifter, so I would just need a clean phantom supply to go with.

I have a couple of questions for users:

1. How well does the rubber banding to the bridge act as a shock mount? Can you still move a bit with the bass without handling noise?

2. Does it really do a better job than others with respect to feedback in amplification?

3. Has anyone used one through a regular old bass guitar amp setup with success? (I use Ampeg stuff)

4. Can you play direct with monitors and control feedback?
 

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