Choosing between these two mics and wondered about gearslutz's opinion, especially about the LRM-1.

The LRM-1 is cheaper, assembled in from Chinese parts in Europe by a gearslutz member, so I'm thinking QC and customer service will be good, but I can't find many opinions on the mic itself. The GAP R1 on the other hand has lots of people saying how great it is, but is perhaps £40 more.

How much is a Cascade Fathead where your at? I have one and love it. QC is very very good with these mics as well. It was pretty much the selling point for me

Thanks for the reply

Prices here for low end ribbons go

LRM-1 £92 = 140USD
MXL R144 £129 = 196USD
GAP R1 MkII £135 = 205USD
Cascade Fathead £190 = 290USD

So more than twice what I was hoping to pay. I'm on a very tight budget here.

Anyone use the LRM-1?

bump?

...I've not used the LRM-1, but at that pricepoint and JP Gerard behind the product, that's a no-branier...if I was in Europe I'd grab one...

...I have the GAP R1 MK2 (passive) and MK3 (active)...I also have the Cascade Victor with the Lundahl tranny upgrade...all three are excellent bargains, IMHO...so far the Victor is my favorite, but not by much...the LRM looks to be based on the same chinese components, but with some improvements as per JP (who has a very reputable history as director of ADK's Custom Shoppe for many years)...grab one, you're good, I'm confident...

No Hype Audio LRM1 ribbon mic anyone

Thanks for the input. I actually got the price wrong, it's €92 which is £78 or $120. Really is a no brainer. Now to decide on Lundahl or no Lundahl.

By the way. I think they ship to rest of the world.

Hi guys, yes indeed, I ship pretty much anywhere. The LRM-1, as anything I ship in fact, is packed like it's expensive porcelain. I prefer to see them stay in the EU as I know the postal services are typically OK but I've shipped outside of europe and had no problem either.

Kidvybes, thanks for the comments!!!

...IMHO, ribbon mics are a real value in the microphone marketplace, and a ribbon mic that gets that extra bit of attention from a reputable gearhead like yourself JP, and at such a fair pricepoint, really sounds like a bargain...

...can you be a bit more specific about what differentiates your LRM-1 from the standard Apex/Nady/Gap (ShuaiYin) OEM long-ribbon mics (without revealing your "secret sauce")...

BTW Kesh, the MXL R144 goes for only about $75-80 here in the US, and isn't bad, but I prefer the GAP and Cascade offerings which IMHO, are worth the additional expense...

Sure, but there's no secret sauce, except maybe attention to detail... well OK there's one thing other guys offering a similar mic don't do and it does make a difference, but I won't mention it as I don't want the main supplier in China doing this on all other mics.

Basically, I get the mics in parts from a supplier I know well so I get pretty decent stuff to start with. I have plenty of spares if a given part or component is not cutting it. After assembly I obviously test the mic by comparing with my benchmark. There's usually a bit of metalwork involved but so far I've been happy with the ribbon motors and only had to put one aside in about 200 to date so that's not bad at all. Again, having proper QC at the factory helps a great deal and the only things I've had issues with are metal parts, and most of the time it's typically a cosmetic flaw that leads to swapping something.

For those wondering why my ribbon mic is cheaper than similar looking mics from known brands, well, I sell direct. That's a 30% saving for the end user, and some even go through a distributor, adding another 20 to 30%.

Being able to test each unit before packing yields better results than trusting a chinese factory and shipping sealed box products from the assembly lines to retailers. IMHO you can't really do this with things like ribbon mics... you need to get them in parts or preassembled and make sure that each mic is A-OK before the user gets his hands on it. the result is, so far, nothing but happy customers and not a single return or repair.

Cheers, JP

Thanks JP!...which leads me to my next question...approximate shipping cost to the US? (maybe a group buy to minimize shipping costs per mic?)...

On my Bpost account, that would cost 37 Euros up to 3 mics including insurance and tracking. This is the priority service I use all the time. 4 mics and up would cost 60 Euros for the same service. I don't ship without tracking or insurance, sorry! If you can arrange a group buy get back to me and we'll figure out a price for the whole thing. NB: Keeping the declared value under 800 Euros typically puts the parcel into the "no clearance" category but I've had a couple of USA based customers who had to wait for Customs clearance but so far I don't think any of my US customers had to pay import tax - however don't quote me on this! If in doubt please call your local post office, they should know.

Which Lundahl do you use, the mu or the amorphous? I was thinking of buying a mic with stock trafo and maybe doing my own mod later, then I can have fun A/Bing. Maybe with a Sowter though, as Lundahl's ribbon transformers are hard to find in UK.

It's a 2912, it gives a very natural/flat response which classical engineers love. Most Rock/Pop guys prefer the stock transfos (Taiwanese!).

...I believe the Lundahl 2912 is what was used in my Cascade Victor...very smooth and natural sounding!...

The way the transfo interacts with the ribbon motor and the mic pre matter a lot, more than in a condenser mic. In this case the Lundahl shows a very flat midrange, unlike the taiwanese transfo, which reminds me of the transfos used in the "smaller" RCA mics like the 74B and such, it boosts the mids a hair and doesn't go down as deep as the Lundahl, so it's a more forward sound, more present and "pop" if you like... the Lundahl definitely is flatter and more natural, but also less fun ;O) They're both useful but if you're after linearity, the Lundahl is it.

One key thing is whether it will help a sibilant baritone. I'll be using it for all the usual ribbon things, but I'd also hope it helps with a singer who is sort of Leonard Cohen with a lisp, and whose music is all smoked filled rooms. I was told ribbons or SM7b, but I can't afford the SM7b

Most ribbons will be a lot smoother than the SM7b. They're much slower and don't have a peak in the sibilance range. However there are exceptions, like the Beyer M500, which could sound a bit sibilant on problematic voices. But even the old 500 is pretty smooth compared to the average dynamic.

Well I bought one with the Lundahl and it arrived today. It's a large, heavy beautiful thing, and like J P says, packaged like porcelain. Sounds great so far though haven't given it extensive use. Very happy.

My one tiny complaint, though No Hype Audio is a great name for a company, written on a microphone it seems somewhat, idk, cheap?

...that's great, bro...please post tracks once you have some available...I'd love to hear it...I'm considering organizing a local "group buy" among a few of my associates, to make shipping expenses to the US more reasonable...JP has been very helpful and forthcoming with info on these mics...

...and I like the name...comes straight to the point...good gear at a fair price, sans the BS...just hang the mic inverted if the logo stresses you

No Hype Audio is just fine with me and it's also descriptive of both of my purchases from them this year.

About the name, I think its silk screened and you could scratch it away or edit like
"hype audio" or "no audio" LOL

Matti

I'll replace it with something in German, as all good mics should have.

Good input. My next product will be released under a new brand, ie. "expensive audio". I'll get to charge twice as much! ;O)

Seriously, I think I have a blank body somewhere, if someone ever needed an unlabelled LRM-1. Refinishing shouldn't be hard, either.

...JP, just another quick question about the LRM-1...I see you maintain the double mesh of the headbasket, but does it have the additional mesh wire cage w/fabric in it, like the GAP ribbon mics, or do you omit that component when assembling your mic?...thanks!

I plain hate the internal mesh. We're not in the 40's anymore and buyers know that you shouldn't blow into a ribbon mic or use it outdoors. You don't need an internal blast filter for most jobs but the ribbon itself is protected by a fine mesh - no silk fabric screen inside though. However for vocals a popfilter is a good idea! At least you can decide if you need one or not - yu don't have to open the mic to remove it if you don't.

...I agree...I just removed the internal mesh cages from my GAP ribbon mics and there is a clear improvement in the articulation of voice now...a bit more air and presence...

Ribbon mics work on air velocity. An internal fabric filter is just the wrong way to go!

Maybe same words but in French, or Dutch, or Walloon.

On a more serious note, I'm building a pre for it. Does it have an ideal input impedance?

Inderdaad... well it's a low Z out, so 600 Ohms would be a nice bridged input Z. You could try lower still. I don't know what Lundahl have to offer in terms of mic pre transfos, worth checking.

The pre will be a transformerless Cohen topology. I understood ribbons to like light loads (high impedances). I'll just make it switchable.