Beyerdynamic - M 160

this is the first time i’ve seen a somewhat negative on the m160 😅 I love it on amps, acoustics and drums Been looking at the r84 for a sec, what do you use it on?

Of the ones I'm most familiar with: 1. Coles 4038 2. AEA R44 3. Beyerdynamic M160 4. AEA R84 5. Royer R121/R122 6. Royer SF12/SSF24 7. se Voodoo VR1/VR2 All are awesome.

I have used it on vocals a few times, always on singers with thin/reedy/breathy voices - it seems to compliment that type of voice well.

I'm specifically thinking of dirty tones but yes, there's something about the slightly scooped frequency response on a 421 that sounds great to me on distorted guitars. I've also used a 421 and 57 combo on a cab, they complement each other nicely. I think Coles are my favorite overheads. Really smoothes out harshness from the cymbals. Easy to back off for more room ambience + total kit or go closer for more cymbals. M160 is great, can't go wrong with those. I've yet to try the Heil mics but I'd like to.

Yeah you can't go wrong with condensers in a good sounding room. Dynamic mics do have their place, like on a snare drum. However...I used a Josephson e22s on snare the last drum session I did. It was with an excellent drummer who knows how to tune his drums, so I wanted something transparent and relatively flat with a robust low end and I was very happy with how it performed.

Cool gear list! With those options, I would try the ela m on the 12th fret and use one of the ribbons on the sound hole. I looove the options and flexibility of having a fast mic for the strings and something a bit darker for the body, really great options for blending. I would default to 1073s because they never really let ya down but I am really curious how the TG2s would sound on guitar, I imagine really iconic, so if it's more of a nostalgic or vintage sound the artist is after, I would definetly try that! I like your idea of XY 67s with coles as room mics, I can't imagine that not sounding wonderful. I find that XY is really amazing if you love the room sound, and also great for phase stability if the artist sways a lot during performance. I generally have preferred the results close micing with two drastically different styles of microphones and the fun blending options that follow. My go to for acoustic guitar is a TLM 102 on the 12th fret with Royer 121 on the sound hole into 1073s and I really do like that sound quite a bit. I place the mics about as close to the guitar as I can get away with and then check for phasing. I haven't used a M160 in years, but I really did love using it, so if I had access to that mic, hell, I'd love to hear it on guitar through the api and distressor. I imagine it would be a unique and dark sort of sound that would probably be more suited for grunge or punky sort of stuff, but still might be really cool if the accoustic is too bright. Best of luck and happy recording!

I've struggled a bit with the M160 on very quiet sources, sometimes mandolin, in that the noise floor was too high, at least on my unit. Recently picked up the AEA Nuvo N8, which is phantom powered, and I just love it. Super clean with that beautifully smooth ribbon sound. Great looking mic too. Using on mandolin/guitar and room mic on drums. Highly recommend.

Love my m160s on OH. I don't turn to them for 'ribbon magic' per se, but I consistently prefer them to many more expensive sdcs on OH in my small, low ceiling room. 4038s are a sound (and magic) all their own, and cannot be beat at what they do. Heavy proximity effect means they aren't all-rounders, but where they work best, they really can't be touched imho. Love them best in blumlein on drum room. As far as "ribbon magic" goes, I'm not sure how the AEA r44 is not on here, as it's got more of that than the other AEA offerings mentioned above, though I do like them all. One of my all time favorite vocal mics, and pairs perfectly with their RPQ mic pre. As an aside, the RCA 44bx was in production from 1932-1955. The 4038s have been in production since 1953. Not exactly 'modern' but.. still modern. I get it.

I can't say I love the M160 for guitar cabs all the time, but they are amazing on just about anything else I've ever put them on. Fantastic mic on any acoustic instrument. I do a lot of live broadcast performance work and the reason I use the M160 so much is because it has an incredibly tight hyper cardioid pattern. You can put one on an acoustic guitar and if you position it right there won't be any vocal bleed.

I’ve got a few M160’s and an M130. I think I get what you don’t like. The times I’m most happy with an M160 is when I’ve got several musicians in the same room and I want some isolation. It can do a really good job of that, as well as making the bleed usable. I like the Royers for that too, but the hyper cardioid pattern is pretty useful. It’s often not the best sounding choice by itself, but in certain situations it’s a life saver.

M160s with a cloudlift on acoustic guitars or right on the hammers of a grand piano is outstanding. Highly recommend.