I gotta come clean. I am a confessed microholic and can’t resist checking out cool looking microphone designs — whether new releases or classics. So a year ago, when CAD Audio’s CADLive division unveiled a “reimagined” version of the company’s 1959 Astatic A77 dynamic microphone, as part of its 85th anniversary celebration, I definitely wanted to check one out.
A Little History
CAD Audio originally took shape as the Astatic Corporation, founded in 1931 by C.M. Chorpening and F.H. Woodworth, two ham radio operators with a passion for clean, clear audio transmissions. This passion led them to the development of the acclaimed D-104 microphone, which was revolutionary in its ability to perform without static.
Astatic Commercial Audio Products has continued its growth since then with solutions for commercial AV applications such as airports, schools, houses of worship and corporate boardrooms. The company remains key to CAD Audio’s portfolio for integrators, consultants and architects with patented innovations such as Variable Pattern microphones.
CAD (Conneaut Audio Devices) Professional Microphones was initially formed as the pro division of the company to serve the emerging recording and live sound markets in the early 1980’s — essentially segments not served by Astatic. Initially, CAD introduced a revolutionary servo circuit console and breakthrough processing products.
The company went on to develop leading-edge high performance studio microphones such as the popular Equitek Series E100, E200, E300, VSM1 and highly coveted VX2. CAD emerged as a leader in recording microphones and became a key player in the project studio revolution of the late 1980’s and early 1990’s.
Today, CAD Audio serves industries such as recording, broadcast, live performance, commercial and consumer electronics. CAD Audio also offers products in the wireless mic, wireless in-ear monitors, studio accessory, headphone and USB microphone markets.
Back to the Present… er, Past
Originally, the A77 was released by Astatic in 1959. The new “reimagined” (there’s that word again) version is, I am pleased to say, exactly that. The new mic has the near-exact body shape as defined in George Bruce Kamp’s original 1957 concept (U.S. patent number D185712) — in fact, the new model even ships with a large 11×17-inch engineering drawing (see Fig. 1) that shows the design in detail.
Fortunately, there are a few changes from the original in the new mic that I heartily approve of. Most noticeable is that the Astatic A77 was chrome, while the CADLIve A77 has a bright brass, gold-toned finish, which adds some bling and sets it apart from other mics. One definite annoyance is that fact that the Astatic model — like so many mics of its day — was fitted with a 3-pin (non-XLR) Amphenol 91-MC3M1 connector and could be wired for high- or low-impedance operation. This of course, would require a mating Amphenol 91-MC3F1 connector (shown in Fig. 2) or an Amphenol-to-XLR adapter on the cable end and if truth be told, if I never have to deal with another one of these, so much the better.
A third outward change between the two mics is that the older version had a front-mounted on/off switch and the CADLive model wisely omitted this “feature.” There’s nothing more frustrating than dealing with an onstage mic that gets switched off by someone — such an emcee — leaving a dead mic for the next performer. Suddenly there’s no sound, and of course, the fault must be the operator at the FOH position, who is as far as possible from the stage. So in these cases, no switch = good switch.
The Test Drive
I liked the A77 right out of the box. The body is slightly over seven inches tall, and the mic has both a quality feel and a goodly heft. The fit and finish were impeccable. Under the metal grillwork is a fine mesh to keep dust out and plosives to a minimum.
The capsule is a large-diameter, side-address dynamic that’s updated with a PowerGap high-gauss neodymium magnet and a TrueFlex diaphragm. Impedance is rated at 500 ohms — definitely in the “low-Z” category and sensitivity is a respectable -48 dBV (3.56 mV) @ 1 Pa. Frequency response is rated as 30 Hz to 15k Hz.
I was anxious to see how the A77 performed. I’m a fan of supercardioid designs, as the 120-degree off-axis null points are ideal for placing wedge monitors off to the sides — rather than in front of — the vocalist. The A77 has a fairly tight polar pattern, and begins to attenuate the signal as it gets center, so this mic offers plenty of feedback rejection, while it’s not the best choice for a singer that jumps around a lot and can’t stay on-axis. However, sounds that are slightly off-axis are simply rolled-off and do not become harsh or edgy.
While we are on the subject of vocal placements, I should mention that the A77 does exhibit a nice — though not overbearing — proximity effect that’s just enough to add some low-end fullness without creating an overly bass-heavy response. The mesh windscreen was effective in stopping all but the most extreme plosives, and in such cases, simply backing off the mic a few inches or so did the trick. The mic does have some susceptibility to wind noise, requiring some judicious application of a high-pass filter, since this microphone body style is not conducive to foam windscreens.
I really liked the A77’s vocal character; it’s generally fairly flat, with a subtle presence boost and a surprisingly smooth high-end response that worked for both male and female vocalists. Of course, with a mic that looks this cool, anybody just has to sing better; and at $249, this is definitely one to check out.
At a Glance
Classic Looks, Modern Performance
CADLive reimagines a classic 1959 model from its Astatic heritage and comes up with a model that sounds as good as it looks.
CADLive A77 Vocal Microphone
PROS
• Vintage appearance
• Solid dynamic performance
* Tight supercardioid pattern
CONS
• Susceptible to wind noise
STATS
- Pattern: Supercardioid
- Principle: Dynamic moving coil motor
- Frequency Response: 30 Hz — 15 kHz
- Sensitivity: -48 dBV (3.56 mV) @ 1Pa
- Impedance: 500 ohms
- Street Price: $249
- Manufacturer: CAD Audio
More Info: www.cadaudio.com
