T.H.E. Audio modular condenser microphone system
T.H.E. (Taylor – Hohendahl Engineering) is a company that was spawned by the ideas and frustrations of a few people. Namely, Taylor Johnson of the “Sound Room”, and the Hohendahl brothers.
Their idea was ….”Lets make some microphones that will break the mold of today’s standard high-end condensers”. Simple enough? Not really. Dream fulfilled? Absolutely!
These mics are the culmination of decades of expertise in the mic industry. All of the best aspects of German engineering combined with forward thinking ideas in mic body electronics have gone into this modular system consisting of the KA-04 mic body preamp and a range of capsules from 25 & 33mm “lollipop” design to 1/2″ cardioid, omnis and all those in between. There are actual more capsules offered for this system as well as some reference mics which you can read about on the THE web site. It is also rumored that there will be an active cable system in the not too distant future for these. Taylor is quite proud of them, as well he should be!
After a few months of friendly badgering, Taylor finally shipped me my choice of his new product line. I was tempted to take his BS-3D Binaural Sphere (a product separate from the modular system), but chose to go with something that my readers would probably benefit more from.
A day later, FED-Ex delivers a handsome cedar box containing two of the prettiest mics I have ever seen. From the pictures I had seen, they look a bit on the gaudy side…all polished and trimmed in gold. In your hand, they resemble a beautifully sculpted piece of art that have a weighty to them. There was something reassuring about their stoutness. Perhaps it is the sinking feeling I get when I hold a $2000 pair of mics that feel like they are plastic. Not so with these! They are almost heavy for their size. No matter though because they sound as good as they look!
They possess a certain smoothness to them. I think another good adjective to use here would be truthful because these mics do not display any coloration that I could notice. Perhaps they have a small rise in the high-end, but that works to your advantage when recording from a distance. I would categorize them as a bright sounding microphone, but not in a harsh way that sometimes occurs with other mics described the same (neumanns or schoeps come to mind). The mics are amazingly quiet, almost no self noise to speak of. None that I could hear any way. This is a result of the electronics used inside the mic body. Electronics that are said to be way ahead of the current guts in most high-end big name German condensers. Taylor told me to blow into one of the elements while I was testing. This would typically produce a noise similar to a freight train. This was not the case. What I heard was me blowing! No distortion from the mic what so ever. That was pretty impressive.
Where these mics will shine will be in close micing situations. I say this because of the SPL capacity they have. It’s a lot! Even when stage taping a fairly loud band, I was still surprised by the amount of headroom they offered. In a studio situation, I would probably run to these as my “go to” mic for any/all acoustic instruments. Something about the sound of them seems to suggest that they would bring the strings to life. The capsules I tested were the KR-2C true cardioids. Side/rear rejection seemed to be good, though not quite as dramatic as some mics I have used. Even still…I think they are much easier to listen to, or better put as pleasing to listen to than any other pair of condensers that I have used previously. I look forward to working with these mics some more and becoming more familiar with them. I had to return my test mics before I could really become comfortable with them. I will have more opportunities in the future and I’ll be sure to update this page with my thoughts.
Is there a downside? I don’t really think so. Their price is right in the middle. Not nearly as expensive as some modular systems, but a little pricier than others. I believe a pair of the mic bodies with a matched pair of cardioid capsules will run around $1500. You can certainly pay more and get less in return!
With these T.H.E audio microphones, you get what you are paying for.
Specifications:
Phantom Power…………………………48 Vdc
Input Noise Equivalent………………..< 2 µV RMS
Power Consumption………………….. 2.5 mA
Maximum Output Drive (differential)………… 18 Vpp
Output Impedance (5Hz to 30Khz)… < 90 Ohms Maximum Dynamic Range……………………… > 132 dB
