The Mic
Locker Issue
Kicking off our 39th year of publishing!
A microphone is more than gear—it’s the voice of your studio, your lens to the sound. A well-placed mic can create depth or intimacy, capture a source with breathtaking realism, or make it feel larger than life. Every engineer needs a carefully curated mic locker tailored to their style and needs. That’s what our annual Mic Locker Issue is all about—your ultimate guide to choosing and using the right mics for every session.
Plus, our October issue has bonus distribution at the AES Show in Long Beach, CA!
Reviews
Of course, what’s a microphone-themed issue without the latest and greatest microphones? We have six microphone reviews. In the world of stunning high-end, large diaphragm condenser mics, we have the Austrian Audio OC-S10, the Nordic Audio NU-24K, and the Pearlman Church Mic. In the medium-diaphragm condenser realm, we check out the Ear Trumpet Labs Wanda. We have the newly updated DPA 4099 Core+ instrument microphone, and on the ribbon mic front, we have the Royer Labs R-12 Active Ribbon Microphone.
Every microphone requires a powerful preamp, and this month we have two to choose from, the Chandler Limited REDD.47 Special Edition tube preamp and the Soyuz Lakeside preamp.
We also have a virtual microphone preamp on tap as we check out the 280 PRE plugin from Mixland.
Also, we get our vocals in order with the NOIZ One Vox plugin from NOIZ Hub/KIT Plugins.
Interview
This issue’s interview is with GRAMMY Award-winning producer Will Maclellan, who co-produced the latest Sarah McLachlan album Better Broken with Tony Berg at the famed Sound City, and we also welcome back producers Matt Wallace and Will Kennedy, who mixed the album in ATMOS. [GET IT HERE]
Features
In this month’s RECORDING Techniques with Dave Martin, Dave digs into his mic locker with a look at uncommon uses for common microphones, such as using dynamic mics on overheads or piano, pencil condensers on vocals, fun with boundary mics and more. [GET IT HERE]
In Studio 101 with Joe Albano, Joe teaches us about various plugin types, as he continues his year-long course on setting up a personal project studio. [GET IT HERE]
Mark Hornsby is back with his always insightful Inside The Studio column with a historical look at the “Titans of Tone”––the Neumann U47, the Telefunken ELA M 251E and the RCA 77-DX, [GET IT HERE] and in this issue’s RECORDING Field Notes, Giles Reaves helps us get more familiar with our microphones as he considers Mic Locker Management for a Rainy Day. [GET IT HERE]
If you love microphones and their stories as much as we do, you won’t want to miss the October AES, Mic Locker issue of RECORDING Magazine