MXL R144-HE Heritage ribbon studio microphone

I bought this microphone looking for a cost effective ribbon. I did the research, read the reviews and took the plunge. I bought two of these puppies with the primary intention of using them in a blumlein array for stereo recordings. The appeal of ribbon microphones to most people is their inherent natural sound with a silky smooth high frequency response and a deep, warm low end. This is also why I wanted a pair of ribbons, but wasn't willing to blow £1000+ on a Royer, AEA or equivalent, so this microphone seemed perfect. All good so far, however, there is a twist in the plot...

These microphones, along with countless others (dynamic coil and capacitors included) are made, very cheaply, in China, Korea, Taiwan and the likes. Now, this is great for us because it means we can buy our microphones for a fraction of what they would cost if they were made in Germany, the UK, US etc. However, this also means that these products have a high level of production variance and, to be honest, awful quality control. As I found with the R144. I must note here that I purchased the R144 HE which is silver as opposed to the frankly unnatractive indigo finish of the regular R144 but fundamentally the two microphones are the same.

When I first opened the parcel, I was greeted with an attractive, glossy cardboard box bearing the MXL logo, a fancy photograph of the R144 and some basic features/ specifications. Inside was the aluminium carry case, which is a nice aesthetic touch as well as serving to extend the life of your mic, it makes the whole package feel more expensive and luxurious. Opening the case revealed the microphone, nestled snugly in a foam cut-out, with the shockmount, cleaning cloth and spare shock mount bands in the adjecent compartment. The microphone itself is quite the looker, remeniscent of a U47, but considerably smaller than I expected. Not to my distaste however. Pop a vocalist in front of this and they are going to feel like Frank Sinatra or Aretha Franklin, happy days.

Plugging the microphone in for the first time, I was giggling with excitement (as I do with all new gear) to hear what the R144 had to offer *Please note this microphone is passive, do not, I repeat, DO NOT apply phantom power to it. Although it may not instantly break the ribbon element, it is not designed to operate on 48V, just don't. Also this mic requires a tonne of pre amp gain so don't be shy* I proceeded to open my mouthhole and start talking: "one..two..hey, hey..yeeeeaaah!" Hmmmm, it sounds good, but much duller than what I remember from my previous experience using the aforementioned more pricey ribbons. Now this is where the research part comes in...

During my research prior to buying this microphone, I came across many people experiencing similar poor performance in budget ribbons. The main culprit seemed to be as a result of poor production and quality control at the manufacturing stage: a sagging ribbon, oh dear. Now hang on, don't let me put you off just yet, there is light at the end of the tunnel!

I was completely prepared for this and after a brief confirmation of the problem (done by gently tilting the microphone horizontally 180* from front to back and hearing the "clunk" of the loose ribbon), I set myself to rectify the issue. Note here: this part WILL void the warranty of your already faulty microphone (ridiculous, I know) and requires a steady hand, nerves of steel and a small, jeweller-style phillips screwdriver. The aim is to tighten the ribbon element (which is an extremely thin, extremely delicate corrugated strip of aluminium) to bring back all those silky highs we talked about earlier and end up with a very good sounding ribbon microphone for peanuts!

Fixing the microphone:
1. Unscrew the bottom setion of the microphone body to remove the outer chasis and reveal the wiring and transformer.
2. Remove the two small screws on the base of the capsule housing, holding the headbasket in place.
3. Gently lift the headbasket from around the ribbon motor, you now have the bare bones of the R144.
4. First check again if the ribbon actually needs to be retensioned, if there is only a very slight sag, it shouldn't be too much of a problem. Mine was hanging well below the magnets, shocking!
5. Loosen the two screws at the top of the motor assembly i.e. the very top of the microphone so that the plate clamping the ribbon can move about.
6. This is the tricky bit. You must make sure not to flatten the ribbon element, corrugations are needed! Very, very carefully pull the ribbon through the clamping plate to tighten it. I found an effective method was to place the microphone on a moveable surface e.g. a piece of paper, clamp the excess ribbon inside a book and very slowly move the microphone away from the book to tighten the ribbon.
7. Once the ribbon is horizontally level (a small amount of sag is ok) tighten the screws to secure the ribbon between the clamping plate.
8. Re-assemble the microphone body.

I nervously plugged in the microphone for a second time, put on my headphones and spoke. To my delight the fix had worked an absolute charm, I had all that lovely smooth high frequency goodness back and I also noticed a tighter transient response. Fantastic! I also tried the R144 on my guitar amp and got some great results, the body was full and deep and the honkiness and harsh presence had been subdued.

Overall:
Build quality - 2 Stars (the mic is nice but that ribbon sagging is just unnaceptable, poor show MXL)
Sound - 4 Stars (after fixing. The amount of gain required may result in a noisy signal for people with low quality pre amps)
Look - 4 Stars (the paint finish on the mic and shockmount aren't as polished as more expensive mics)
Value - 5 Stars (you can't beat this kind of sound for the price, the R144 way surpassed my expectations)