From the graph, it appears that the high-end response is maintained up to 15-16kHz before dropping gently, ending up at around -10dB at 20kHz. The high end is characterised by a presence hump at around 3.5kHz, with a secondary hump at around 7.5kHz before the high end falls away towards 20kHz. Exactly the same swivel mechanism is used for mounting, and the weight is approximately the same as for the Raven.īeing a capacitor microphone, the Cardinal has greater high-end extension than the Raven, but the designers have also left out the gentle low-end roll-off, and instead given the response a little hump at 70-80Hz before the low end finally drops away. The stepped section to the rear of the microphone is also picked out on satin silver rather than being the same colour as the body. While the Raven is suitably attired in matt-black paintwork, the Cardinal comes resplendent in a lustrous red wood-grain finish, though I didn't take my penknife to the mic to check if the finish was real wood or not! The overall shape of the microphone is the same as that of the Raven, but with a further slotted ring behind the capsule-retaining ring. As with most vocal mics of this kind, the frequency response isn't designed to be flat and honest, but rather to give good speech intelligibility, and to this end there's a subtle presence hump at around 5kHz and another peak at around 12kHz before the response falls away towards 16kHz or so, which is pretty much the upper limit for this model. Below 50Hz the roll-off is far more rapid. Photo: Mike CameronBecause all cardioid microphones exhibit some degree of proximity effect, which boosts low frequencies when the mic is used close to the sound source, the response of the mic has been engineered to drop away gradually - just a few decibels between 800Hz and 50Hz. The Electrovoice Raven dynamic microphone. A mic stand thread adaptor is thoughtfully included. Tiny screws secure the grille-retaining ring, and removing them appears to provide the only means of access to the microphone. The mount is finished in what appears to be a satin chrome or nickel plate, while the mesh grille and grille-retaining ring are bright chromed. This is secure enough, but larger wings on the thumbscrew would have made it more comfortable to tighten. An integrated swivel mount provides freedom of movement, but with sufficient friction to keep the mic in place, and this in turn incorporates a swivel standmount with a thumbscrew clamping arrangement. The Raven is a dynamic cardioid microphone designed for both vocal and instrument use, and its retro-design body is short and stubby, with the balanced XLR output at the back and in the centre of a stepped section in the casework. A trawl of the Electrovoice and Telex web sites produced no further technical details, so I had to email them directly for answers to my technical questions. Oddly, for such professional-looking microphones, the vintage-style information sheets that accompany them provide no technical specifications other than a smoothed frequency response curve and a polar diagram plot at 100Hz, 500Hz, 1kHz and 8kHz. ![]() There is no fancy packaging or flightcase, but the microphones do come with little velvet bags that can be fastened by means of a drawstring. Photo: Mike Cameronīoth models offer a fixed-cardioid pickup pattern and both are designed to work live and in the studio, the main difference between the two models being that the Raven is a dynamic microphone, while the Cardinal is a capacitor model requiring standard phantom power for its operation. ![]() The Electrovoice Cardinal condenser microphone. Although neither mic is blue, they form part of the EVBlue range - Electrovoice are part of the Telex group, and Telex recently acquired BLUE microphones, so these are evidently a 'BLUE meets classic Electrovoice' design, as the styling combines elements of both lines. These two new microphones from Electrovoice are clearly an attempt to pander to the craze for all things vintage looking, but I have to admit that the solid engineering and distinctive styling of these mics are definitely seductive. These new condenser and dynamic microphones boast classy retro styling, but how do they sound?
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