AKG D190E
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- Опубліковано 30 лип 2024
- This week we're looking at a vintage mic that is no longer in production, yet it's still widely available today. The AKG D190 was originally intended to be a reporters microphone for field work but quickly became a stage and studio staple from the 70's all the way to the late 90's.
Special Thanks To:
@drumagna Danny Lamagna for playing drums this week
Matt Garzilli for playing acoustic
**Contents**
00:00 - Intro
00:30 - D190 History and Variants
04:01 - Frequency Response Charts
06:50 - Voice Over Test
07:52 - Piano Test
09:10 - Clean Electric Guitar
09:37 - Overdrive Electric Guitar
10:03 - Distortion Electric Guitar
11:26 - Strummed Acoustic Guitar
12:11 - Finger Picked Acoustic Guitar
12:49 - Electric Bass
13:26 - Drum Set
14:37 - Solo Snare
15:15 - Conclusion
There is some 60s vibe captured on acoustic guitar with this AKG.. lovely
Thanks for watching! Definitely has some character different from modern mics.
Love the history lesson in these videos. Thanks for doing these.
Thank you! I really appreciate the kind words!
This is literally the most informative mic channel on the tube of you
Completely accurate
Seriously third that!
Tube of you 😂
I have been curious about this mic for a while but have not come across one yet so thank you for doing this and explaining the mic so well!
No prob, unless you have a very specific desire for this mic's aesthetic...or its, "interesting" sound...i would suggest finding something else lol.
Thanks for checkin out the vid.
Thank you so nuch for this incredibly informative video!!! Really appreciate it, keep going :)
Thank YOU for watching it! Appreciate it!
My AKG D190E is my first and oldest mic. I bought it second hand around 1980 and have used it for live performance and studio work. I love it. I do own others such as Shure, Rode, SE and Neumann but I come back to the AKG often.
I definitely think its underrated. I just used one of the D1000e’s on vocals (newest video) and it really surprised me how good it sounded. The 190 i recently used on some precussion with really great results.
Great Video! Thanks!
Thanks for checking it out!
thank you for this vid
Thank you for watching! Appreciate it!
I have six of them, the first four bought in 1976. I use them on toms. Two on my live kit and four on my studio kit. They take EQ really well and their rejection is a bit better than SM 57. I'm sure there are more appropriate modern mics but these continue to serve me well.
As a side note, 190s can bee seen all over Bill Bruford's drums in early Yes videos and Roger Taylor of Queen, who also sang through one.
I think they were way more popular in Europe than the USA. Thanks.
Thanks for the great comment! I haven't tried ours on toms yet... gonna have to give that a go now! Thanks for checking out the video!
My favorite snare mike... amazing on metal snares and I just give it eq bumps where I want it. Badass snare mic as its always had better transients than the sm 57... plus more wiggle room for eq moves. You want crack on your snare, this is it.
You hit it on the head. Out of the box this mic is okay, however it takes EQ REALLY well and
@@meistudiony yes I've been using it as my primary snare mic for 30+ years and always have a great crack and cut through the mix
Sounds fantastic on the guitar cab. I bet it sounds great in a mix as well.
It sits well and takes EQ quite well too. Thanks for checkin it out!
I always use the AKG on vocals and occasionally for guitar amps. Positioning is critical for vocals and an external pop shield is necessary. But I rate it and it's been on multiple records and good value.
I'd definitely like to see them put something like this out again. Their weird D5 and D7s they have out right now for vocal mics are kinda... ok, but something that could kinda stand in for a 57 with a different flavor would be most welcome! Thanks for watching!
Love the clinical-ness. Loving this channel and the philosophical perspective on ... er ... perspective. I have some odd mics kicking around here that I'm not sure what I'd ever use them for. SM51, some antique bullet mics (that I find really suck for harp. Makes me wonder), and one of those 60-ish Lafayettes that look like a space robot from a Buggs Bunny cartoon. Always thought I should fit them with some different elements. Thank you for this mornings most educational vid.
51 is a lav mic? And the Lafayette, is it one of their "pill" mics or something else (99-4581... looks like a martian ray gun, very square). I hate bullet mics... i've yet to hear one thats useful... period. lol Really appreciate you watching and commenting! Thanks!
@@meistudiony Sorry, it's not an SM51, I just had a look, it's just a 51. The 51 looks like something someone would address crowds with in 1952. And the Lafayette is the 99-451, only this one is branded by a different name, probably because it came with an old taper recorder or something. Yea it looks like a ray gun. Fun mic to have sitting around but I've never used it for anything. I used to be real bothered by keeping things original and I got new elements for my two bullet mics but they still suck. Always thought it would be cool to stick 57 elements in them. Thanks for commenting back Paggs (Paggs?).
@@toddgreenwood9631 ooooh. The 51. Looks like the front grille from a 1940s car squared off. Thats real close to one of the up coming videos! 🤫
Absolute banger of a video - nice one buddy. I love the 'vintage'-esc top and bottom roll off compared the 57, but definitely a bit too papery on the snare for my tastes.
Thank you for watching! I really appreciate it! This mic has definitely made an impression. Wish they would put reissue some of these older mics that had a unique sound.
that was a great presentation,. thanks a bunch,. ive got both sm57 and the akg 190e the only two mics i have,. hey is it possible for you to do a review on the line 6 toneport alongside gearbox the software it comes along with,. thats basically my set up along with my desktop., thanks again for the awesome presentation
Thank you for watching, appreciate the support! I used to have a tone port a LOOONG time ago and have no idea who i lent it to. Lately I've been using the Helix software in conjunction with a few other amp sims which I've been satisfied with for the most part. I'll see if i can get my hands on one (and if it works with my current setup... line6 wasn't the best at updating their older software lol)
God the sm57 sounded good on that acoustic guitar
Words i never thought id ever read! Lol. Thanks for checkin out the video. I have a new video this week with some alternatives to the sm57. Should be out later this week.
I’m a big fan of the D190 E, in fact I just bought my second one, three days ago for $107 all in. They have such nice quality of construction, and there is something sort of expensive sounding to my ear for a dynamic microphone.
The response is flatter than almost anything youll find today. That leaves you with a more detailed sound especially in the mid range, which most mics are scooping out to get thar DJ smile eq sound. While that works great on a lot of things, its not great for everything. Sometimes you just want a nice even response. Thanks for checkin out the video!
@@meistudiony Definitely agree!! Oddly enough though even with the flat response, I find this mic to just sound really nice most of the time. In fact, I haven’t had it sound bad yet. It makes an awesome drum crotch mic.
I really liked the sounds of the piano with both mics... Can you elaborate on the mic/pre setup??
Hey thanks for watching! The mic pres used in this video i believe were the aea rpq 500 series preamps. They are VERY clean preamps with an insanely high impedance. This allows the signal between mic and pre to be at its “best” or should i say strongest. The pres themselves dont really have much character to speak of so youre getting to hear the mic itself for the most part. Usually pres like a neve, api or something like the UA 610 (tube pre) tend to color the signal a little bit.
As far as placement for the mics, theres one mic pointing down where the bass strings cross over themselves and another next to the lid arm pointed down toward middle C. Gives a great stereo spread with an enhanced bass. Since our piano isnt very long, this helps tremendously with getting the most out of it! Hope that answered the question.
Have you ever worked with the Shure KSM8 vocal mic? If so, what's your take on it?
Funny you mention that. It came up just tonight in my research for next weeks video. I haven't had the opportunity to use one of those... yet. But I can definitely put it on the radar. Thanks for checking out this weeks video! Appreciate it!
It sounds like the response changes a lot based on positioning, which probably makes it a bit finicky in a studio set up.. and since it doesn't have any special character to it it's probably hard to justifying pulling this out of the mic locker instead of a more familiar mic for the purpose you need it for.
It did sound relatively nice on guitar, but again I don't think I'd pick it over the slew of options that already exist for that.
As for the flat response rant, agreed, in fact this mic is a shining example of when it's not necessarily desirable to have a flat response mic. If I pull out a flat mic it's because I want a good faithful reference for either calibrating equipment, or on vocals if I intend to shape and color them myself. But since that mic sounds a bit variable with positioning it kinda defeats the whole purpose.
A position sensitive mic works better if it already has a lot of character in my opinion. Like with a royer 121 's offset motor system, or even in a more minor way a SM57. There are books worth of forum posts of engineers debating how to angle and position a SM57 to a snare drum! This probably why it became such a ubiquitous mic and the D190 just became a relic of the past.
Also minor point but I'm very frustrated whenever a client asks me to make something sound 'warmer' I've found from musician to musician that definition means wildly different things! At this point it doesn't mean 'more mids' or 'less air' it just means 'the sound that I like" and it's process to figure out what that is for every client.
Youre my kinda people! This is mic is definitely finicky. The slightest change in position changes the tone quite a bit. Back in the 70s, given the competition, this may have been more desirable. (Esp given the price) but now, theres a thousand choices. Thanks for the amazing comment and checking out the video!
@@meistudiony I thought of it during a big drive today, but I still fail to see why this was preferred over a SM57 for live sound back then. You showed that the cintered bronze filter can get dinged, and the handling noise is atrocious. They are rugged yes.. but I wouldn't try driving a nail with one! Maybe it was more a availability thing for different regions? I think I'll ask my father who was working on various festivals across Europe in that era, he might have insight on it.
Thank you for making such high quality no BS tests and showcases. I keep learning things with you, even on microphones I already know well!
@@Kookie_sings i think youre right about the geographical thing. I would love to hear your dads input is on this. I cant find anyone on this side of the pond that has anything nice to say about it. I mean the 57/58 just feels and sounds better. From a white paper perspective maybe the 190 is “better” but not out of the box. It does take eq really well and i was really tempted to show that on the demo, but wouldnt be a fair comparison. Thanks again!😁
Flat frequency response...Was yours measured flat by you? There's a mid-range peak that sounds like it's around 1K on your voice, which admittedly is the source I'm most familiar with to judge.
Just going off of the spec sheet provided by AKG. The mic exhibits some crazy shifts in tone with proximity, more so than i've seen with other mics. There IS a sweet spot for it, i just dont think i hit it in the video, but its like 2" or so off the cap. I normally cut a lot of 1k range out of my voice for the spoken parts, so it might be more of there not being a cut, rather than a boost in this case. Good ears! Either way, to me the mic is "meh" at best. I didn't hate it on acoustic guitar though, it kinda had that 70s-ish sound to it.
I was hearing that upper mid bump on the 57's (piano).. the AKG is a sweet one, tho for sure. I liked it on the blues-ey guitar. I also think the 57 shines on the snare (but I'm just a hillbilly, remember) LOL. Cheers from Bugtustle
I didn't mind it on piano and acoustic. Electric... i think the 57 was just a little more gritty and raw with that scoop in th e mid. Could take it or leave it on snare, the full drum mix... barely noticeable difference to me. Thanks for watching! (any progress on the room?)
@@meistudiony I have had 'plumbing' on my mind lately LOL.. more delays and an old house with full copper plumbing that's reached end of life in some cases.
@@TheJTish oooohhh yeah. I was there too man. Wound up pexing most of the place before i put the studio in. Tiny pipes = big problems if not taken care of. Hope its taken care of soon!
One observation that jumped out me on this mic was when you said "handling noise is atrocious" it sure is. And there's irony here as it was intended as a reporter's mic and it sounds fabulous for vocals, but definitely not suitable for someone who wants to hold the mic, as it makes a right racket. That smooth sound is definitely worth having though. The only other thing I'd like from this mic is a bit more sensitivity. Overall I think it's a useful thing in the arsenal and worthy of praise. And man it looks cool
Lol. Glad someone picked up on that!! 🤣 thanks for checkin out the video!
J'ai le même micro AKG dans sa boite, avec la pince micro à vendre pour 100 €. Il a très peu servi.
I have the same AKG microphone in its box, with the microphone clamp for sale for €100. It has had very little use.
Muito Legal o seu canal de youtube, Parabéns...Eu tenho 58 anos de idade...sou do Brasil.
No passado , Eu tinha um Estúdio Famoso e Eu fazia Produçoes profissionais...
Eu nunca me interessei por Microfones , e não entendia nada...
Eu simplismente comprava u-87 Neumann e AKG-c-414, e ignorava todos os outros...
Hoje em dia que já estou mais velho e tranquilo , passei a gostar de microfones...
E Eu fico testando , marcas , microfones baratos ,´so por Hobye...por diversão...
Recentemente, Eu tirei a Válvula de um U-67 , original que Eu tenho, e montei ....
Montei uma Capsula de 34mm c-47 da China , com um circuito marchall , mxl, no meu U-67.
O Som ficou muito bom e muito limpo, gostei...
Mas sei que meu U-67, Perdeu o valor comercial...
Coloquei uma capsular de 25mm, num BM-700 chines de 20 dolares e atenuei a entrada.
O Bm-700 de 20 dolares ficou bom , mas tem alguma frequencia sobrando , em 630 htz e
nem sei como tirar...
Outro dia , Eu coloquei Voz de um cantor de Rock, com um microfone dinâmico de 10 dolares
O Pior que, a qualidade ficou boa...mas tive de mexer demais em compressores e equalizador.
Em ambiente , controlado , onde tem boa acústica, o Microfone Condenser 34mm. fica bom demais
Não causa problemas...
Melhor microfone do mundo, Eu acho é AKG-C414, mas tem um agudo , artificial...altas frequencias artificiais,
Mas deixa o som bonito.
O SEU CANAL É MUITO BACANA, VOCE ENTENDE MUITO..PARABÉNS PELOS TESTES...
Gostei demais...
Obrigado por assistir. se possível, coloque o U67 de volta em seu estado original. o valor vai ficar bom. quase todos os microfones podem ter problemas com plosivas. condensadores, dinâmicos e plosivos podem danificar os microfones de fita. parte da diversão de brincar com os microfones é ver como eles soam diferentes. alguns soam melhor em uma pessoa e outros soam melhor em pessoas diferentes. só tem que encontrar o caminho certo para o trabalho!
I wanna know what’s your number one choice though!!!!!!!!?
Depends on the situation.
Electric guitar 99% of the time royer 121
Acoustic guitar akg C414xl 2 usually with something else.
Snare drum Beyerdynamic m 201
Kick drum AKG D112 or beta 52 (genre dependent)
Toms Shure Sm98
Floor tom. Still searching for a fave!
Hat/ride Shure Sm81
Piano roswell MiniK47 BUT we just got something in yesterday from germany that may unseat this 😉
Vocals… it all depends on the singer. I have some great LDCs either hand built by me or some boutique company that ill go to first. If the situation calls for something more “live” there are a bunch of hand helds that i might use. These videos are kind of more for me to archive the sound of my collection so i can figure out what to reach for when the time comes. I always tell interns in the studio to know their own gear inside and out so they can make informed decisions as well.
I have this is mic and the sond is amazing. Like vinatage radio lol😅
while it does have a pronounced midrange, it should still be full on the bottom and top as well. If it's sounding like a old radio, it might be damaged. This mic likes to have a fair amount of impedance at the preamp as well. Thanks for checking out the video!
@@meistudiony thnx lot
O que me faz odiar os Microfones Dinâmicos, é a letra "P" e a Letra "B"...
Unica coisa chata de microfones Dinâmicos em Voz...
Pra instrumentos tipo Guitarra , caixa de BAteria fica muito bom...
Harman kardon products are suck toys. Crap. AKG was great was. The reproductions I don't know.
They do seem to be having some QC issues with their "cheaper" line of mics for a while now. I get MANY akg mics in the shop for repair, especially the perception line.
Wouldn't it be great if they could capture that innovation and spirit AKG had in the60s/70s!? And that kind of goes for ALL the major manufacturers. That time period just seemed to produce some of the best, longest lasting staples of audio. EV RE20, Shures SM line, The AKG D series (and some new C mics were great as well), Sennheisers 421 in the 60s and 441 in the 70s. And so many more. Thanks for checking out the video and for the comment! Appreciate it!