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By Rick Van Horn
How can something you can barely see sound this good?
One of the great joys of doing reviews for MD is that from time to time I get to ìdebutî a new or little-known product that
I think has tremendous potential.Such is the case with Applied Microphone Technologyís new drum micís.>AMT is a small outfit that has chosen to put their limited financial resources into product development rather than advertising-so you may not have heard much about them.But just because the company is small doesnít mean they canít make a great product.
AMTís microphone designer is Marty Paglione.>Heís a creative guy whoís tremendously knowledgeable about microphone technology.Better yet, heís a working drummer with twenty-five years of playing experience. So he has specifically designed his microphones to suit the needs of real-world drummers playing in every conceivable situation-from clubs and casual gigs to studios or concert stages.
AMTís current line consists of two models: the A-95 snare and tom micí and the M-40 bass drum micí.Each model is designed to be as compact as unobtrusive as possible while offering the most ìtransparentî reproduction of sound possible.(ìTransparent,î for those who arenít into audio technology jargon, simply means that the sound is reproduced exactly as it is, with no additional high- or low-end emphasis or other sound coloration added by the microphone itself.)
Descriptions
The AMT A-95s are made of anodized aluminum, and they feature a built-in shock mount.As small and light as they are (they weigh only 1.6 ounces, including their cable), theyíre actually pretty rugged.They attach to virtually any drum rim by means of a spring clip thatís fast and easy to use but still secure under normal playing.The result of this is that in the event you hit them with a stick, theyíre more liable to simply be knocked out of the way than damaged.But that event is extremely unlikely given their incredibly diminutive size.When I played the kit I hardly noticed that the micís were there; when I viewed it from the audience area I could barely even see them.This compact size also makes micí placement easy, even on complicated setups where micí stands, booms, and even clamp- on attachments are difficult to use.
The M-40 bass0drum micí is actually a two-part system.>The micí unit is a 2î long by 3/8î diameter tube set on a 2í X a1/2î base plate.The plate is there just to give the micí a place to sit securely when placed inside a bass drum.A small cable connects the micí to a 1î X 1î X 3î active-electronics box from which the performance of the microphone can be tailored.(More on this later.)Only the micí goes in the bass drum; the box would be placed on the floor.Once again, the micí is so small as to be virtually invisible, yet durable enough to withstand the rigors of repeated use.
In terms of micí placement, the obvious method is simply to put it on a muffling pillow inside the drumshell.In fact, the micís tiny size provides the option to permanently affix it inside the drum.For those who play with no hole in their front head, Marty Paglione has designed a mount that clamps to the front bass-drum hoop and puts the micí conveniently in front of the drum.
The Test Format
I conducted this review under slightly different circumstances than others Iíve done in the past.Marty set up a test situation with as set of AMT micís placed on a high-quality drum kit in the Cabaret Room at Seasons Resort and Conference Center at Great Gorge, in McAfee, New Jersey.On the same kit Marty also placed a selection of the major microphone models commonly used for drum mincing.
The purpose of listening to other microphones along with the AMT micís was not the judge one against the other, A/B fashion.Marty simply wanted me to have a point of reference for state-of-the-art microphone performance.
I played the drums myself to get a solid idea of their sound from behind the kit.Then I went out into the house and listened to the drums played by another drummer (the talented Mr. Terry Bissette) in order to hear their sound from that position.This all took place before any micís were turned on.Then, with the able assistance of Seasonís house sound engineer Dave Tassey and sound consultant Roget Page, I was given free rein to work with the various microphones comparing features like sensitivity, headroom, gain before feedback, frequency range, responsiveness to EQ adjustments, and overall clarity.By going through this listening process I established my own parameters of outstanding drum-micí performance.Only then did I have the AMT micís turned on.
Some drummers-and many sound engineers- are wary of using condenser micís on drums.This is primarily due to their sensitivity (or ìgain structureî), which can make them difficult to control.They often have to be attenuated (ìpaddedî) to a large degree before they can work effectively, and this can create problems with balancing the overall mix on the sound board.>But Marty has taken this into account, and has specifically tailored the gain structure of the AMT micís to be only 3 dB more sensitive than a Shure SM57 dynamic micí.In this way the micís still offer some of the sensitivity advantage provided by a condenser, but they also are as easy to control as a dynamic.>Sound engineer Dave Tassey underscored the effectiveness of this feature, saying, ìThe fact that the AMTís were condensers scared me at first.But the only one I padded for use in our showroom was the kick-drum micí ñ and that only slightly.>Theyíre super controllable..î
Microphone Performance
The A-95 snare and tom micí was incredibly accurate in terms of how it reproduced the sounds it heard.In fact, when the micí was run at a low gain level I couldnít even tell it was on, the sound was so much like that of the ìliveî drum.>When we ran the fader up a bit, the drum sound changed in only one respect:It got louder.>This was based on a virtually flat EQ setting.>When I deliberately worked with the EQ to change the drum sound, I was able to do that quite effectively.The drumís acoustic sound was pretty deep and mellow; I was able to add a little high-end boost to bring out the attack and the crispness.They beauty of this was that I didnít lose any of the low end of body of the drum sound in the process.>The A-95ís frequency response allowed me a wide range of adjustment with no sacrifices.
The toms were tuned very deep and round-sounding, with lots of overring.Given this situation-and the sensitivity of traditional condenser micís this was a formula for disaster under normal circumstances.But the gain structure of the A-95 allowed me to control a lot of the overring just by adjusting the volume level of the micí.A little muffling on the drums themselves (although much less than you might expect) brought everything into total controllability.From there on, I could just enjoy the accurate sound reproduction that the micís provided.>And once again, if I wanted to alter the tonality of the drums, I had lots of EQ range in which to do it.I could maximize the attack, accentuate the depth, or achieve a combination of both with a minimal amount of EQ adjustment.At all times and under all EQ setting the micís projected the drum sound with good definition and clarity-even on busy drum patterns.
The M-40 kick-drum micí had lots of headroom for plenty of control range.I ran it with very little attenuation, and it still allowed for lots of fader boost before distorting (good for those who like a kick drum that rattles the walls).Yet is also transmitted a full, round, complete bass drum sound at a low volume-which some popular dynamic bass-drum micís donít do.
The bass drum itself was muffled and tuned so as to be pretty flat and dull (a typical studio sound), so I experimented with EQ-ing the M-40 to achieve different tonalities.It responded beautifully: A small amount of low-end boost gave me a deeper, fatter drum without any accompanying ìmuddiness.îI had to add a proportionately greater amount of high-end EQ to get a more pointed attack sound, but the result was more than satisfactory.Iíd say that the M-40 favors the low end, with exceptional clarity in that range.>This isnít surprising, given itís intended purpose, but it actually has a pretty impressive overall frequency range.>Accordion to Marty Paglione, the micís offer a frequency response of 50 Hz to 20kHz and can withstand sound pressure levels (SPLs) of up to 141dB.
Now, this is where the active electronics I mentioned earlier come in.The box that the M-40 connects to contains a replaceable computer chip that permits whatís called ìwave shapingî with each microphone.The chip controls the micís gain structure, frequency response, and frequency curve.Through the use of different chips, drummers or engineers can actually have their M-40ís tailored to suit their particular tastes or applications.For example, an M-40 could be adjusted to suit their familiarization with other micís, or it could be ìfine-tunedî to suit the acoustics of a given room.>This versatility adds to the M-40ís value.>AMT plans to offer updated chips direct to end users.The chips will be exchanged at no cost; if the user wishes to acquire additional chips theyíll be priced around $25.>(A sound engineer might want to take advantage of this option, since it would make it possible to have a ìselectionî of high-quality microphones at $25 a piece.)
Conclusions and Prices
I was really impressed with the performance of the Applied Microphone Technology micís.They provided sound reproduction and adjustment capabilities equal to or better than almost any microphone Iíve ever heard.They provided convenience and positioning flexibility that exceeds that of almost any micí on the market.Theyíre designed by a drummer ñ with features that apply to real-world drumming applications.Given all of that, I honestly think the AMT microphones represent a major step forward in drum-micí technology.
And the best this is, they donít cost an arm and a leg.>A set of four A-95s, with a carrying case, will have a list price of $790 (which will be discounted to around $600 by most major retailers).The M-40, owing to itís greater electronic sophistication, will list for $350.These arenít budget prices, but they are certainly competitive with other condenser systems on the market- and with many popular high-end dynamic micís, as well.As I said earlier, thereís a good chance you may not have heard of Applied Microphone Technology, buy you owe it to yourself to check out their exceptional products.If the micís are not in your local drum ship, contact Applied Microphone Technology,