|
|
AEA A440 Description
With
the release of the A440, AEA has synthesized more than 30 years of experience
with high performance microphones. The A440 is the quietest ribbon microphone
ever produced. The A440 combines all the warmth and beauty of the classic 44,
both sonically and visually, but with a signal so hot you'll have to try it to
believe it. Like the rest of AEA's Big Ribbon Mics™, it needs little EQ, takes
it nicely when you want it, and is free of resonances in audible range. The
A440 is unlike any other product on the market today and no professional studio
should be without one.
Like its cousin, the R44CX, The A440 is based on the RCA 44BX, but is phantom
powered and uses a Lundahl transformer. It uses the same RCA NOS ribbon
element, only 1.8 microns thick, which is from material originally manufactured
for RCA. It also features the museum quality shell with a durable bronze
investment cast yoke. An umber paint with red medallion transformer case and
bright nickel finishes with golden accents is standard. The microphone package
includes a three meter cloth covered Accusound Silver Studio Pro cable, a
zippered canvas bag, and AEA 44VC vertical case for proper shipping and storage.
The A440, like the rest of AEA's maufactured product lines, is manufactured and
assembled in the
U.S.A.
|
AEA A440 Review /
See
All ZenPro Audio Reviews Here: Review Page
Everything you ever thought you knew
about a ribbon mic just gets tossed out the window (or “wind-er as they say in
the mountains”) when you hear the A440. It’s like holding a small tank in your hands,
heavy and all metal and built to last. If you dropped it on somebody’s head,
they likely would not survive and if they did they probably wouldn’t be quite
right afterwards. It really is amazingly heavy. It’s the detail and output that
makes you scratch your head and wonder how they did it.
The amplifier on board the phantom
powered A440 is scorching high output, except noise. It really is among the
quietest mics on the planet, yet the output just screams hot detailed sound.
The first time I ever put one up, I had it in the next room and the doors were
open down the hall from the control room to the live room, maybe separated by
30 feet (we’re talking no direct line between me and that mic, and 5 turns in
between). I pulled the monitors up and could sit there and very lightly slap my
hands together and it was like there was no wall / window between me and the
mic. With some condenser mics that is not an amazing feat, but remember this is
a ribbon mic and the preamp wasn’t even cranked up yet. THAT is a stellar
performance, I’ve never seen a ribbon capable of this kind of response.
HUGE, smooth, midrange focused and
that gentle / smoky / dancing sort of top end you only get from Wes Dooley on
his large ribbon mics. The realism is amazing, definitely the kind of mic you’d
want on a scoring stage where every inch of the room should be captured. I
never got to use one in a live situation (I don’t get out much) but this was
the central theme to the design.
Conclusion: Overkill for a project
or home studio maybe, when you don’t need to distant mic a concert (buy an R84
or R44 for typical close mic studio use). The A440 has its place in high end
scoring stages and studios that can afford the best.
|
|
|
|
|