Sounds really great! Great performance. :D

Yes, they're great musicians...the footstomps on the wooden floor reinforce the need for good shock-mounting of the Line Audio CM family, this one wasn't isolated enough to exclude the rumble....

Haha... maybe just good feature, you got really sense of the energy of the performers through the recording. :D

Great Boccherini music! I teach in the Conservatorium in his native town and brings his name!

Studer, this is a fantastic performance that you captured quite beautifully. It really shows what a pair of mics that are well placed in a good acoustic can do.

What was the height and distance of your array on this? The (lute / archlute?) attacks in the pp passages are especially present and clear considering there are no spots.

Cm3 used as spots on strings in this recording.
Dpa 4006 with black grids as main pair
Joly modded nt5 on winds
Studio Projects cs1 on piano and solo cello

Quite a ways back...perhaps just on the edge of too much ambience (headphones tend to collapse the ambience and don't give a truthful picture on location...esp. closed back cans when monitoring in same room as the performers !)

About 3.5 m back from the front line of the performers, and 3 m high, with mic pair angled down to look at the tops of their heads (all were standing, apart from cellist) It was baroque guitar in fact, 6 string...small body (compared with modern guitar)

Very nice! What distance is the space on the stereo bar?

Thank you! The distance is 172 mm.

I apologise if this has been asked (and answered) here already….I’m using a CM3 as a mid mic in a mid-side pair, and am seeking advice on the location of the diaphragm within the cylindrical casing.

Is it located just underneath the perforated end cap….or behind the longitudinal vent-slots ? I’m assuming the same location applies to the CM4. I’d prefer no to open up my CM3 to investigate this, hence my question.

Thanks to J-P Gerard …if you could specify how many mm’s back from the perforated front edge the capsule face is located ?

I’m using it in conjunction with the sE VR2 active ribbon as side mic, and want to vertically-align the 2 ‘diaphragms’ as closely as possible…

When I held my CM3 to the light, I caught a glimpse of silver just at the top of the vents. Could be the edge of the suspension of the diaphragm...?

Don't know how deep the actual diaph. is behind the vents and I don't want to destroy one just to peek inside... but in practice a couple of mm won't matter so trust your gut feeling, should be about right. You can also do a simple phase check with a meter if you're so inclined but again - minutes differences here. Also, when pairing with a ribbon... you'll be in the ball park, since the ribbon dances around and the condenser diaph. doesn't move much so perfect phase alignment is basically impossible and the differences in size as well as the spacing between the transducers will have more impact than perfect alignment, if possible of the transducers. But, all this being said, as I recall, the CM3/4 grille is about 2mm thick then there's a small gap due to the capsule front spacers (factory fit, never open a CM3 or 4 as they may fall off and you'll probably lose them and the mic will be out of whack) then an air gap inside the capsule so maybe another 2 or 3mm so total 5mm from the front surface of the mic is not totally wrong.

Thank you for that detail J-P….given that the side vent slots begin about 6mm from the front edge of the mic barrel, the capsule face should be maybe about 2mm in front of the side slots ?

Possibly - this is all guess work! There shouldn't be much space between the back of the diaph. and the acoustic network for pattern control, indeed.

if it's any help, I did a rec with it and just presumed the front the capsule was where it picks up the sound, it worked well for me and didn't have any phase issues when rec in M/S. I don't have any photos of it but have a recording somewhere.

Can anyone recommend me a good wind shield kit for the cm3? I'm picking up a sennheiser mkh8050 later this year so preferably something that fits both.

The rycote ws10 kit should fit my needs but I'm confused about the pistol grip. Doesn't look like it can be hand-held but maybe I'm wrong. Hard to tell from the pictures.

There was an extensive discussion over the the CM4 thread. This post contains a link to a GS member's website, where he does quite a bit of testing of different windshield tests (drbadphil.com)
CM4 Is Here. Let's start a thread for it and let the CM3 go on

Here's the link to Roland's windscreen testing: https://drbadphil.com/small-windshields

This other test I did might be more useful: https://drbadphil.com/windshield-tests
But it would be useful to know usage (e.g. booming or not?).
Cheers,
Roland

Hi, new user here. Sorry if this has already been discussed, but I don't find the answer to my question. Does anyone know when the CM3-s marked 24-52V were produced? Is there somewhere I can find the specs for these and do you know if there are significant differences when compared to the 12-52V version introduced in 2011 and listed on http://www.lineaudio.se/CM3.html?

From Line Audio's hstorical ref page:

No Longer manufactured CM3 version:
SPECIFICATIONS:
Version made 2005-2011, marked "24-52V PHTM PWR"
(The new version made from nov. 2011 "12-52V" features the same specs and sound, but has increased headroom and also runs on 12V)
Type: prepolarised cardioid condenser microphone
Frequency response: 20-20000Hz (100-16000Hz+-1dB on axis!)
Phantom power: 24 - 48V
current consumption: 3.5 mA
Impedance: <100 Ohm
Sensitivity: 6mV/PA -44dB
S/N ratio (DIN/CCIR): 78dB(A)/68dB
Noise level: 16dB(A)
Max SPL: 130dB
Size: 77mm x 20mm

Thanks a lot, jpgerard! I obviously didn't check LineAudio's site closely enough.

Generally speaking, how do small condenser microphones age? Would you be hesitant to pick up a 12-18 years old pair of these used, rather than just buy the current CM4-s?
(I'm in Sweden, so I could just walk down to the local store and pick up those.) I'm only going to use them for hobby purposes and as long as neither in the pair dies I don't have the need to match it with additional units, but it if there is a significant risk that one in the pair suddenly dies it would obviously be preferable to own the current model.

Electrets have varying life expectancy but the Line Audio capsules are quite good and will not drift much over time, unless older (say, 70's) designs. I'd be more at ease buying a CM4 and know I have 2 years warranty though, it may not be possible to repair a CM3 once Roger's ran out of critical parts, of which he's kept a limited stock, specifically to fix CM3's (no don't ask him for parts, they're meant for in house repairs only). If you do prefer the CM3, pick one up if the price is reasonable and enjoy it. It should still be a reliable workhorse for years to come.

Thanks, great fodder for thought! No, I don't particularly prefer either, and if I did it would probably be the CM4 due to its slightly higher sensitivity. But thanks to your input I now have a better idea on how much I might bid on the used CM3 pair if at all.

Recently I started working on a new project with a double bass player and I found great use of CM3 on this instrument up close... a spaced pair of CM3, some 50 cm from the bass, a bit higher above the bridge, angled a tiny bit down... in a small room, practice recording... we record all our practices like that now to analyze ideas, etc.

For real we will do it live in concert, very likely with the same set up, only percussion will be a bit more precisely miced, now it's just two overheads... and maybe additional ribbon on double bass at the bridge position, close and CM3 a tiny bit further probably... for options...

On the two clips there is absolutely no processing on individual tracks, no EQ anywhere, only balance and a bit of master buss compression and limiter.

Sounds fantastic! Great presence, but still silky smooth.

I still have great love for the CM3, but after several years of putting this off, I need to thin the mic herd. This may not be the correct way to move stuff on here, but I wanted to alert Line Audio fans if they want a pair of CM3 mics, send me a message. I want to sell in the US for ease of shipping reasons but if you have a compelling desire to acquire a set, I could be moved to sell abroad for a fellow GS Line Audio CM3 fan. : )

It warms my heart to know people are still using and loving these mics. I bought my pair more than ten years ago. I will sell them at a reasonable price, yet to be determined because I do not recall what I paid for them, LOL!

Cheers---

The Line Audio mics are workhorses in my arsenal. Lately they've proven their worth as room mics and for other purposes but here they're soloist mics, viola and cello mics in Bach's B minor mass, which I recorded and filmed live about a month ago in the cathedral of Stockholm with S:t Jacobs Kammarkör and Orfeus Barock. Most of it is nice but I'm not thrilled about the soloists sound (my fault) and unfortunately the tenor was pretty ill at the concert.

https://vimeo.com/918351315
pw: gary

https://vimeo.com/918352025
pw: gary

Mics:
Main A-B pair: Microtech Gefell M296 x2
Soloists: Line Audio CM3 x2
Violas: CM3
Cellos: CM3
female chorus: Neumann KM140 x2
male chorus: Neumann KM184 x2
Organ: Lewitt LCT040
bass: Lewitt LCT040
Bassoons: Lewitt LCT040
Timpani: Lewitt LCT040
Woodwinds Sennheiser MKH406 x2

All through a pair of RME Octamic XTC into a RME UFX. Recorded with Reaper.

I recently used them to record piano during a concert instead of my usual modded AKG 460's, and was actually amazed at how good they sounded. Still great as choir spots. I have CMC 65's, 8040's and KM140's, which are all great, but the CM3's never disappoint.

Ok, someone bought my (now their) pair of CM3 mics.