The first mission for the new mics was a sequence of shows with reggae and hip hop-influenced singer-songwriter Jamie T and his band.
"The first two shows with Jamie T were small warm-up gigs in August at very small venues in London and Southend," says Wooster. "Both venues proved to be great tests for the rejection characteristics of the 8040s which I used on the hi-hats and the snare drum. I also used a pair of 8020s to capture the cymbals, close miking the underside of the two crash cymbals.
"The next two shows were at the V-Festivals, playing in large marquees. At both shows the mics really proved what they could do going through a very substantial PA system, producing a truly dynamic and percussive snare sound.
After the V-Festivals, Wooster flew out to Los Angeles to work on a pair of shows with Leona Lewis. "Leona's first show was a post-VMA party at the Chateau Malmont in Los Angeles," continues Wooster. "It was a very small stage to fit a big band on. Leona's drummer is hard hitting Nissan Stewart. The MKH mics handled those levels without any issues yet still managed to capture a very accurate reproduction of the source sound. I used an e 905 alongside the MKH 8040 again, which allowed for even further artistic scope.
"The second show was a recording in Sunset Studio for a show called Stripped. Two days of rehearsal allowed me to do some very accurate comparisons with my current choice of condensers. The rehearsals were recorded into ProTools direct from my FOH Digidesign Profile console. The results led me to the conclusion that I've found new mics for both my snare and hats."
(Jim Evans)
