Mike's Mics: NADY CM100

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

NADY CM100

The NADY CM100 is marketed as a “measurement microphone” (e.g., calibrating loudspeakers in a particular room space, as well as for tweaking sound system EQ). The NADY CM100 is also sold by Behringer as the ECM8000 and by Audix as the TR-40. They’re all essentially the same microphone.

The CM100 is not really intended for use as a studio recording mic; however, it has an extremely wide and flat frequency response, high definition and an omnidirectional polar pattern that made it very tempting to try as a field recording mic. I must say, I was rather pleasantly surprised at the results. I used it to record a small jazz band and the CM100 showed a very even, uncolored character – with a couple of caveats.

First, the polar pattern of the CM100 is not linear across its entire frequency spectrum. I noticed that the upper harmonics of the off-axis instruments were rather subdued. Second, on very pianissimo passages the microphone’s self (white) noise becomes apparent. On louder sources and passages, this isn’t as much of an issue.

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Mike's Mics

Here, you'll find reviews of inexpensive condenser and ribbon microphones with the emphasis on acoustic instruments. If you’re a pianist, percussionist, clarinetist, harpist, violinist, trombonist, etc., this blog may give you enough helpful information to make a more informed decision regarding which budget-priced studio microphone will work best for you.

Most online user reviews of inexpensive studio microphones seem to relate only to how these mics sound on drums, electric guitar cabs and vocals. There is relatively little information about how these microphones work on acoustic instruments and ensembles.

There are currently only a few companies in China that build most of the inexpensive condenser and ribbon microphones available here in the United States. They are almost always “rebadged” and sold under various company monikers (MXL, Nady, Behringer, Apex – to name a few).

There’s an unfortunate tendency to sneer and bad-mouth any equipment that comes from China, particularly microphones. Some of this is justified as quality control is frequently inconsistent and noticeable variations in the sonic character of these Chinese microphones can be very noticeable between samples of the same make and model.

Inexpensive Chinese microphones certainly don’t compare to the high-dollar “boutique” microphones by Neumann and Telefunken. Nonetheless, the overall quality of these inexpensive microphones is surprisingly good for their price range and many of them prove quite adequate for acoustic instrument/ensemble recording projects.

The question then becomes,” Should I spend $5,000.00 on a microphone when a $500.00 microphone will work almost as well?” Yes, the $5,000.00 Neumann U87 will sound better, but does it sound $4,500.00 better? For many musicians on a tight budget (like me), the answer is almost always no.

If you play an acoustic instrument, this blog will hopefully give you enough helpful information so you can make a more informed decision regarding which budget-priced studio microphone will work best for you.

Enjoy.