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Double Bass Xlson, Remic Red, and Remic Green

Ric Vice

Ric Vice

Supporting Member
Jul 2, 2005
14,295
12,465
Olivette, Missouri
#1
Hello Fellow TB er's

Here are two guick and dirty recordings of the Xlson alongside the Remic Red and Remic Green.

As I continue working with the Xlson, what I find is that it has the ability to put an edge around
the sound that puts the bass in the foreground on the recording and places the other instruments playing around it in the background. This microphone is lightweight and has a small footprint,
that makes it easy to mount on the instrument, provided the H-Clamp or Gollihur tailpiece mount
is compatible with your instrument. I had to use a small mic stand with a gooseneck to use it
with my Mirecourt Bass. The Xlson is on the left side and the Remics are on the right, you can simply
use the ballance control on your computer to compare the mics
 

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#2
What do you think Rick? You have a formidable arsenal of experience with amplifying the bass, is the Xlson a different kind of mic or just another option?

I am discovering that my last 3 years of options for amplifying my bass are all killing and I am done (please let me be done). I like new inventions, but I am done buying them. (truth is the real keepers for me are MAS, and Felix and after that whatever goes in can come out alright.)
 
#3
The MAS and Felix combo is really pretty magic. The stat B pickup into the Felix is just excellent. And of all the mics I’ve used I am happiest with the Remic Red. I’m certainly interested in the Xlson but after sending a small fortune on dB amplification I’ve reached my end point too.
 
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#5
flatback said:
What do you think Rick? You have a formidable arsenal of experience with amplifying the bass, is the Xlson a different kind of mic or just another option?

I am discovering that my last 3 years of options for amplifying my bass are all killing and I am done (please let me be done). I like new inventions, but I am done buying them. (truth is the real keepers for me are MAS, and Felix and after that whatever goes in can come out alright.)
Click to expand...

Flatback,
While everyones bass is quite different when it comes to microphones, this mic is really excellent at reproducing my bass. I can post some more clips if anyones interested. As long as you’re bass is compatible with the H-Clamp or Bass on Stage then it’s really easy to mount. I made those clips using a gooseneck on a microphone boom stand. Believe me when I say that I’m also really well outfitted with the Grace Felix and one of Mike’s powered 1/8’s I let Eddie Gomez use that rig and last week he loved it. Piro didn’t you just get a ToneDexter? :)

Ric
 
#7
Nathan Levine said:
The MAS and Felix combo is really pretty magic. The stat B pickup into the Felix is just excellent. And of all the mics I’ve used I am happiest with the Remic Red. I’m certainly interested in the Xlson but after sending a small fortune on dB amplification I’ve reached my end point too.
Click to expand...

I’ll have to test drive a Stat B the next time one comes up. I distinctly remeber how great one of the Stat B vintages sounded on Charlie Haden’s Vallume through my Walter Woods MI-400-8. You can hear that rig on a recording of Quartet West Live.
 
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#8
Ric, having used all of the current mics and pick-ups, I have settled on the Remic Green,blended with either the Lifeline,of FC through the Felix like yourself. My question to you, is how does this new mic work on a gig through your rig with a group ? I am talking drums and horns standard jazz set -up etc. Is it usable, getting enough volume without feedback or excessive bleed. This is where the rubber meets the road, as they say. I have had the most success with the Remic-Green just wondering about your observations. If it works that well maybe I might put it on the wish list, but at that price we are getting into the Schoepps range.....
 
#9
I agree with TroyK. As recorded, the green is clearly the best for me.

I loaded up both files in Audacity so I could match levels and listen to each mic in stereo. I'm curious to play with them some more and see how they compare after twiddling with the equalization...
 
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#11
Hey Ric,
I guess what I meant was after the Felix and MAS all of it is frosting. I love the Dex and the Yamahiko and the Remic Red and the Stat B, but in the end it is those two that make the most difference to me and I would pare down all the other stuff first, if I was paring it down.
 
#12
Hmm all three have a lot to like. The Remics in both recordings seem a little hotter in the mix. So panning back and forth favors the Remics over the Xlson unless you're careful to adjust volume and pan at the same time. The Remic Red seems a bit boomy to me - that would have to be tamed a bit in a live setting. In both recordings, the blend of BOTH mics together is just killer! But that might just be because it's in both ears.

Where were the mic placements on these?
 
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#13
one thing in favor of the Remic Red on (I finally downloaded your recording and listened to it) is that the Remic needs no H clamp (although it works great with it) but they are pretty close. Sound of your bass coming thru ...Dont know if I would say there is enough of a difference to make the Xlson viable. With the Dex out there providing so many mic possibilities (including the Xlson if you had one available for a few minutes) and all of IT'S feedback rejection and mixing possibilities, seems like to me that the Xlson is several years late in the game.
 
#14
Ric Vice said:
Flatback,
While everyones bass is quite different when it comes to microphones, this mic is really excellent at reproducing my bass. I can post some more clips if anyones interested. As long as you’re bass is compatible with the H-Clamp or Bass on Stage then it’s really easy to mount. I made those clips using a gooseneck on a microphone boom stand. Believe me when I say that I’m also really well outfitted with the Grace Felix and one of Mike’s powered 1/8’s I let Eddie Gomez use that rig and last week he loved it. Piro didn’t you just get a ToneDexter? :)

Ric
Click to expand...

Thanks for the clips and the thoughts, Ric.

And YES, I'd love to hear some more clips of the Xlson. Are you still planning on bringing it to the jam session tomorrow?
 
#16
flatback said:
one thing in favor of the Remic Red on (I finally downloaded your recording and listened to it) is that the Remic needs no H clamp (although it works great with it) but they are pretty close. Sound of your bass coming thru ...Dont know if I would say there is enough of a difference to make the Xlson viable. With the Dex out there providing so many mic possibilities (including the Xlson if you had one available for a few minutes) and all of IT'S feedback rejection and mixing possibilities, seems like to me that the Xlson is several years late in the game.
Click to expand...

Hard to say, but what I do notice, is that in the room, which has been virtually impossible for me to capture on a recording so far, there is a distinct difference with the Xlson's ability to move the other instruments, (in this case a NAD Viso 1) :) into the background, as they come into the mic, versus the bass which is in the foreground. What you don't have to deal with, at least in my case, is either hitting your thumb on the Remics mount, which is a bit of a problem on my bass with it's narrower fingerboard width and a concave underside or placing them facing up on the tailpiece which in my case is scalloped with a concave backside, making it difficult to hold into position underneath the tailpiece. While I haven't contacted Remic about the issue I'm
wondering just how one replaces the camera foam wedges, when they no longer hold their shape. I really hope that isn't an issue, but the only way I can see would be to unsolder the connections at the XLR and replace the foam. Perhaps I worry to much. I think the Xlson has great promise and sounds very good in the room, with lots of detail. It's a very robust design and uses a standard mic cord. It reminds me of the Heil PR 40 Mini that you demoed once upon a time, only it's smaller and lighter with a side address and no top opening.

Ric
 
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#17
Maple said:
Hmm all three have a lot to like. The Remics in both recordings seem a little hotter in the mix. So panning back and forth favors the Remics over the Xlson unless you're careful to adjust volume and pan at the same time. The Remic Red seems a bit boomy to me - that would have to be tamed a bit in a live setting. In both recordings, the blend of BOTH mics together is just killer! But that might just be because it's in both ears.

Where were the mic placements on these?
Click to expand...

The Remics were both wedged under the fingerboard. While the Xlson was mounted on a short floor boom stand, with a gooseneck, as neither the H-Clamp or Bass on Stage body mounts will work on my bass. The Remic Red is a full range mic and it's likely I needed to EQ the low end and bring it back while raising cut off slope on the HPF a little more.
 
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#18
Povl Carstensen said:
My subjective oppinion is that the Remics do a good job of picking up middle frequenzies, while the Xlson has a nice "pillowy" sound. Remic Red seems to lack "the pillow" (bass), while green almost has to much low end (which has been commented before). Seperation from the piano seems quite good on all mics.
Click to expand...

Povl,

I'm glad you were able to catch those subtile distinctions. We made every effort to try and asses the bleed for all the mic's while trying to get an accurate recording of the bass. Which isn't all that easy as it turns out. In it's defense there is a way to reduce the low end of the Remic Green, by notching out it's low end bump.
 
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#19
kkenda11 said:
I agree with TroyK. As recorded, the green is clearly the best for me.

I loaded up both files in Audacity so I could match levels and listen to each mic in stereo. I'm curious to play with them some more and see how they compare after twiddling with the equalization...
Click to expand...

That would be great, they are two mono tracks but as they are different mic's my rather simplistic Rhode Record app doesn't offer much in the way of equalization. As I've mentioned before equalizing the Remic Green is a bit of a challenge through a bass amp, however this doesn't seem to be near as much of an issue FOH through the mains when I've had occasion to do that.
 
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