<<Just curious what variation in mics is acceptable for stereo
recording, and is it feasible to compensate after the fact?>>
Some variation in sensitivity is inevitable. What distinguishes the
high ticket models from the mere mortal microphones is that
manufacturers' quality control keeps the variation to a vanishingly
small degree in the upper price echelons.
<<I ask the question as I have recently bought 2 x AT3032 from diffrent
sources, one of which turns out to be from a old production batch,
while the other purchased from an online source seems to be from a
far more recent run - I'm guessing at 4 years between runs based on
batch codes.>>
Even mics from the same batch can have noticeable variations in
output sensitivity or frequency response. It's up to the manufacturer
to test the products & determine how big the window of acceptability
is going to be, vs how many of the units coming off the assembly line
will be rejected. I have various Neumann KM84 mics as much as 15
years apart in date of manufacture which match perfectly as pairs.
That's part of what one pays for with a brand like Neumann.
<<The main issue is with a preamp giving 60dB gain I'm getting a 1.4dB
hotter signal from one mic.>>
This amount of variation is not terrible nor wonderful. About to be
expected in that price range. I would use the pair in the same
configuration always, i.e. lower output model always on the left,
then compensate with a 1.4 db boost in post production. A far bigger
problem would be a significant variation in frequency response, since
this may be only partly compensated accurately after the fact.
Scott Fraser
|