N22 Owner`s Manual
Contents
1. By doing this nothing need be said to the performers as they naturally will work at the distance you have established Your N22 was designed to exhibit significantly less proximity bass boost than other figure of 8 ribbon microphones so that it has a balanced sound at relatively small distances to the sound source You will find that the N22 works particularly well at similar distances as you would choose for condenser microphones rather than at distances that would be appropriate for traditional ribbon microphones Application Examples Your ears are obviously the best judge of microphone choice and placement but AEA has garnered a great deal of experience testing the N22 in a variety of recording settings and by talking to experienced musicians and engineers As a result we suggest the following guidelines to help you achieve optimal results when using the N22 Watch the videos on our website www ribbonmics com www aeasessions com and on our YouTube channel www youtube com AEAribbonmics for more tips and tricks for our microphones and preamps Vocals Thanks to the improved pop protection of the N22 you can use the microphone at close distances just like you would choose for a condenser microphone If you should encounter problems with plosives it is advised to use a pop filter The microphone has a vertical sweet spot that sits in the middle between the top and bottom edges of the black cloth covered grill basket When posit2. an SM57 Use the null plane of the figure of 8 to reject the hihat If you have a drummer that plays very well balanced yes this migbt be rare position the N22 so that its back side picks up the hihat as well PRECAUTIONS Most ribbon microphones need little if any maintenance Given proper care they last for decades Bing Crosby s personal RCA 44BX now in the collection of the Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters in Hollywood sounds as good today as it did when he recorded his radio broadcasts in the 1940s A few simple precautions will help you to keep your AEA N22 working well for life Phantom Power Although the N22 needs a standard 48V phantom power source to operate you should still make sure that phantom powered is turned off before plugging and unplugging the microphones The loud pops that occur when the microphone is plugged in with phantom power engaged can damage speakers headphones and ears Since passive ribbon microphones or other transformer coupled microphones are particularly sensitive to phantom power it is recommended to make disengaging phantom power before plugging and unplugging a habit Wind Gusts A second and equally important rule is never to blow directly into a ribbon microphone to test it Strong air turbulence can stretch the ribbon diaphragm and while it may not break it will nonetheless significantly degrade the microphone s performance The ribbon in the N22 is highly protected by multi layered
3. called leakage or crosstalk from nearby instruments into the various microphones The deep nulls of bidirectional ribbon microphones provide good rejection of unwanted sounds which also can be beneficial in sound reinforcement situations where feedback is always a threat While gobos can be effective in isolating performers from each other they introduce their own set of problems not the least of which are reflections in close proximity to the performers and or microphones that result in comb filter distortions Because gobos usually are bulky they also inhibit the ability of the musicians to hear and see each other easily Such a setup requires complex and often cumbersome headphone monitor mixes for the musicians D Because the N22 has a bidirectional pattern it has nulls at 90 270 from the principal front axis Projected in three dimensions these nulls produce a plane of rejection to the sides of the microphone that can be used effectively to reduce leakage Simply arrange the musicians so that nearby instruments are placed in the null of their neighbor s microphone and vice versa Although this does not entirely eliminate the need for gobos it can significantly reduce their number Keep in mind that a certain degree of bleed doesn t necessarily have to be bad For some styles and genres it can in fact be beneficial to embrace a little bit of bleed in order to create cohesive and natural sounding recordings The i
4. RIBBONMICS amp PREAMPS since 1964 www ribbonmics com tel 1 626 798 9128 fax 1 626 798 2378 220 jy califo AEA N2 OWNER S MANUAL i cmm n I Revision 3 July 2015 welcome Congratulations on your purchase of the AEA N22 phantom powered ribbon microphone and welcome to the AEA family The AEA N22 was designed with the singer songwriter musician in mind Hard working artists honing their musical craft for many years feel strongly about their personal tone so they need a microphone that translates their signature sound in a recording Whether you are a musician home studio owner or experienced producer engineer you will find that the N22 provides a great ribbon tone without the need for EQ in most applications Most importantly the N22 was designed by listening first and measuring only after experienced musicians told us the microphone sounded great Bridging the gap between vintage and modern ribbon and condenser studio and live the N22 is the perfect companion for musicians and engineers alike Your N22 microphone is 10096 handcrafted in Pasadena CA AEA is a family owned company with a small crew of skilled technicians most of them being musicians themselves Proudly independent we still manufacture all our ribbon microphones and preamps by hand from locally sourced parts We hope that the N22 will help you capture many magical
5. enetrate the outer screening and work their way inside the microphone Over time this tramp iron can build up sufficiently in the magnetic gap to rub against the ribbon causing distortion electrical shorts or tearing of the ribbon The best prevention is to keep the microphone covered with the supplied plastic bag when it is not in use Under no circumstances should you disassemble and take the grill off of the microphone as this could allow tramp iron to enter the narrow gap between the ribbon and the pole pieces Disassembling the microphone will VOID your warranty Microphone Positioning The shock mounted clip that is supplied with the N22 microphone was designed to keep structure borne noise transmitted through the microphone stand away from the low tuned ribbon transducer For the shock mount to function as intended and to avoid vibration entering the microphone through its attached cable it is important to tie the microphone cable to the microphone stand in a loop with a cable tie shoelace or string 10 Magnetic Stray Fields Ribbon microphones are fundamentally prone to picking up strong external magnetic fields caused by light dimmers or nearby power transformers Guitar players will know this phenomenon from single coil pickups Even though much attention was paid to suppressing such sensitivity to external magnetic fields in the design of the N22 it is still possible that you might encounter this problem If you should pick
6. ill make your life a little bit easier Mounting the microphone on a strong sturdy microphone stand with a heavy base or tripod Is essential If you are using a boom make sure that it is properly balanced and make sure the tripod legs are positioned appropriately to prevent tipping 3 Ribbon microphones can withstand very high SPL sound pressure levels without difficulty but can be damaged easily by a sudden strong gust of air or high levels of low frequency sound waves like from a kick drum or bass cabinet This can stretch the ribbon causing the microphone to lose sensitivity and distort its frequency response To avoid possible damage follow this simple procedure when positioning the microphone Put the back of your hand where the mic will be if you can feel the motion of air on your hand place a pop filter between the microphone and the source of the air turbulence When recording kick drums or bass guitar cabinets angle the microphone to make sure that no wind blasts hit the ribbon head on 4 Your N22 is a valuable and important investment Like any piece of recording equipment or musical instrument it requires common sense and good basic care to keep it working properly Given simple basic care as described above your new microphone will perform admirably for decades APPLICATION ADVICE Controlling Leakage A significant and ever present challenge in contemporary studio recording is minimizing bleed also
7. ioning the microphone choose an appropriate stand or boom setup to accommodate for the height of the vocal talent in order to achieve the best sound Every singer will move a bit while performing but since the sweet spot is located in both the horizontal 7 and vertical axes it is fairly wide and forgiving If you are recording a musician who sings and plays an instrument at the same time you can make use of the exceptional rejection offered by the 90 null planes of the bidirectional pickup pattern to reduce the pickup of the instrument in the vocal microphone Acoustic Guitar When recording a solo guitar a good starting point is to position the N22 four to six inches 10 15 cm away from the guitar roughly pointing at the 12th fret or where the neck meets the body The closer you move towards the sound hole the more bass you will get Again if you are recording a singer songwriter who sings and play another instruments at the same time you can make use of the exceptional rejection offered by the 90 degree null planes of the bidirectional pickup pattern to reject the vocal in the guitar microphone Electric Guitar Bass The N22 can handle very high sound pressure levels and has improved wind protection so it can absolutely handle loud electric and bass guitars right on the grill of the amp Identify where the center of the speaker cone is located and place the N22 a few inches 5 10 cm away from the speaker pointing
8. mportant thing to listen for is whether or not other instruments that bleed into a specific instrument microphone still sound natural You will generally find that well designed ribbon microphones like the N22 capture a natural off axis sound which means that bleed from other instruments can contribute to the overall sound in a pleasing way Proximity Effect Proximity effect is a characteristic of all directional microphones it is a rise in low frequency response that increases at closer working distances While this can be used to good effect particularly with male voices to give them an enhanced richness and depth the potential trade off is reduced articulation or clarity that can result from the masking effect on the treble due to excessive bass boost cn m o l t m n Free field response Frequency Hz Experienced vocalists instinctively locate the proper working distances for the microphones they are using From as early as the 1930s Frank Sinatra always kept one hand on the microphone stand while singing Some joked that he simply was steadying himself but more knowledgeable people noticed that he would bring the mic closer for more intimate moments and then move it farther away when he belted out a line This technique became known as working the mic A simple technique for maintaining the proper working distance from the microphone is to place a pop screen between the performer and the microphone
9. n Up to 90 dB rejection at right angles to the front back axis Level changes with angle of incidence but frequency response is consistent Pure aluminum corrugated ribbon 1 8 um 0 185 in 4 7 mm 2 35 in 59 7 mm 8 83 in 32 4 cm 1 62 in 11 7 cm 1 62 in 9 5 cm 12 9z2 99b g 1 Ib 13 oz 8109 XLR 3M 48 LO 4C9 LO HZ LIII L 1 l 1L LL 2k Frequency Hz D dEr is equivalent to 6 2 m iPa at 1 kHz Nomaiized tp D dBr at 1 kHz 5 S Wi o s 29 inding m uw Accessories Included Storage shipping case microphone stand clip custom protective mic sleeve user manual 13 WARRANTY Your N22 microphone comes with a one year limited warranty on parts and labor shipping not included Please see the supplied warranty card for details Registering your microphone with AEA will extend the warranty to a full three years Simply fill out the supplied registration form and send it to Audio Engineering Associates 1029 N Allen Ave Pasadena CA 91104 You may also register your AEA equipment online at http www ribbonmics com aea form php SUPPORT If you should encounter any problems with your microphone or if you have questions regarding using the N22 in specific application please contact our customer support team at support ribbonmics com To talk to a live human being call 1 626 798 9128 between 8 00 a m 6 00 p m PT Monday
10. op filter The N22 is the first member of AEA s NUVO series Rooted in the RCA tradition just like other AEA ribbons all NUVO microphones are designed to offer a fresh approach to the ribbon transducer and represent Wes Dooley s take on the evolution of the ribbon microphone GENERAL GUIDELINES The two sides of the N22 front and back are voiced exactly the same but keep in mind that the backside has opposite polarity compared to the front Positive polarity is achieved by positioning the side with the logo towards the sound source The supplied microphone clip will provide adequate vibration isolation in most situations To maintain the best performance from your new AEA N22 microphone take note of these four basic rules 1 Keep the microphone covered when it is not in use 2 Always use a sturdy microphone stand 3 Never expose the microphone to strong air turbulence 4 Be nice to the microphone and it will be nice to you 1 Keeping the microphone covered when it is not in use will reduce the possibility of damage that might result from a sudden gust of air coming from air conditioning or an open door or window Place the supplied protective bag or a standard plastic bag over the microphone when it is not in use For longer term storage replace the microphone in its protective case 4 2 While the N22 was designed to work well with all standard microphone stands a high quality boom stand will st
11. performances that touch the heart Read this manual thoroughly to make sure that you get the best sound and longevity from your new microphone Please don t be a stranger and become part of the AEA community by sharing your experiences with the N22 via e mail phone or our social media channels Wes Dooley President of AEA TABLE OF CONTENTS WELCOME INTRODUCTION GENERAL GUIDELINES APPLICATION ADVICE Controlling Leakage Proximity Effect APPLICATION EXAMPLES Vocals Acoustic Guitar Electric Guitar amp Bass Drums PRECAUTIONS Phantom power Wind Gusts Tramp Iron Microphone Positioning Magnetic Stray Fields SPECIFICATIONS WARRANTY SUPPORT ANN A WN m mM O O M M us A N INTRoDuCTION The N22 is a side address phantom powered ribbon microphone with a bidirectional or figure of 8 pickup pattern It was designed for close up miking applications like acoustic and electric guitars vocals drums or piano but it is also well suited to be used at a distance thanks to its healthy output level With phantom powered JFET electronics and a custom German transformer the N22 achieves optimal performance with a wide range of preamps ranging from vintage high end models to USB or Firewire audio interfaces in home studio setups The highly protected pure aluminum ribbon allows for using the N22 in live sound applications and vocal recording without the need for an additional p
12. right at its center for a very direct in your face sound This is the spot that will obtain the most high frequency content If it sounds too harsh try moving the microphone slightly off center of the speaker cone You can also try positioning the N22 at an angle You will find that small differences in positioning can make huge differences in the sound so experiment until you find the spot you like When using multiple microphones on a cabinet at once and mixing them to create a particular sound it is important to pay attention to the phase relationship between the different signals Try to position the different microphones as close to each other as possible to avoid phase problems caused by sound arriving at the microphones at slightly different path lengths Make sure to listen to the combined signal summed to mono to catch potential comb filtering that could be caused by out of phase signals If you are recording with the back lobe of the N22 it is important to invert the polarity on the preamp or DAW For a more natural sound that captures the sound of the amp in your 8 room try backing the microphone up a couple of feet Drums Although the N22 may work well for traditional ribbon mic placement techniques like overheads or room mics it is particularly well suited for more close up applications like drum underheads kick or snare On snare drum the N22 really brings some character to the table that will be hard to find in
13. screens and cloths to provide 9 superior wind protection compared to many other ribbon microphones so that the microphone can be used for recording vocals without the need for a pop filter Nonetheless using it outdoors requires special care to avoid wind which can damage the ribbon Indoors however It is also important to avoid serious air movement from stage curtains open windows doors or air conditioning systems Use the supplied cloth bag to cover the microphone whenever it is not in use High SPL sound sources do not usually pose a problem because most ribbon microphones can handle 130 dB SPL or more without difficulty It is only those explosive sources that produce a strong blast of air such as the bass port on an electric guitar or bass amp a guitar being plugged or unplugged while the amp level is turned fully up an on axis kick drum particularly with a port on the front head that are potentially damaging If you are unsure about how much wind is hitting the microphone place the back of your hand where the microphone is going to be If you can feel significant wind blasts angle the microphone or use a pop screen to avoid direct hits Tramp Iron Minute iron particles sometimes known as tramp iron are common within our environment AEA ribbon microphones contain powerful magnets that produce strong magnetic fields These fields can attract any ferric metal near the microphone that if they are small enough can p
14. through Friday There are a number or audio and video recordings of various _______ microphones online Please visit www ribbonmics com Qut o Manufactured by AEA Ribbon Mics amp Preamps 1029 N Allen Ave Pasadena California 91104 USA Tel 626 798 9128 Fax 4 626 798 2378 www ribbonmics com
15. up a hum try rotating or moving the microphone to find a spot where the hum disappears and try eliminating potential sources of stray magnetic fields You can use the microphone to find where hum is originating Rotate the mic for maximum interference and move it back and forth to sense its direction The high performance magnets used in the KU4 and R44 are incredibly strong and a significant amount of stray magnetic field lines surround the microphone Avoid placing the microphone in close proximity to hard drives credit cards analog tape or any other magnetically sensitive items to prevent any data loss These classic ribbon mics were designed for maximum performance in professional environments with well trained technicians 11 SPECIFICATIONS Operating Principle Directional Pattern Frequency Range Maximum SPL Sensitivity Output Impedance Recommended Load Imped ance Phantom power Polarity Polar Response Horizontal Vertical Transducer Element Material Thickness Width Length Microphone Dimensions Height Width Depth Weight Shipping weight Connector Pressure gradient transducer Bidirectional lt 20 Hz to gt 20 kHz 141 dB SPL 1 third harmonic gt 1 kHz 6 2 mV Pa at 1 kHz no load 92 Q broadband 1 0 or greater P48 phantom power mA Pin 2 high for positive pressure at the front of the microphone Native bidirectional figure of 8 patter
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