Engineer Darrell Thorp Chooses Loads of Lauten for Foo Fighters Concrete & Gold Album

Darrell Thorp in his private studio with his Series Black Microphones. Photo Credit: Derek McCoy

Seven-time Grammy winning engineer and mixer, Darrell Thorp, used Lauten Audio mics, including its flagship tube mic, Eden, on new Foo Fighters album “Concrete and Gold”

San Jose, CA — Sept 19, 2017 — Engineer Darrell Thorp recently recorded the Foo Fighters new album at EastWest Studios in Los Angeles and chose to use loads of Lauten Audio microphones, including the Atlantis, Eden, Clarion, and the new Series Black LA-120, LA-220, and LA-320. The new Foo Fighters album “Concrete and Gold” (Roswell Records/RCA Records) was released on September 15, its first single, “Run,” hit the top 10 on the Rock Airplay Billboard charts in June. “We had a massive setup for recording the band,” says Thorp, “part of the challenge was we had 4 drum kits set up at once, a bass station, vocals, keys with 2 keyboards and pianos, and over 20 guitar amps, some in the live room and some in Iso-booths — I was using a lot of Lauten Audio mics.”

Discussing how and where some of the different mics were used, he explains, “For a sonic clarity difference I was having all the background vocals recorded on the Lauten Audio Eden mic, it’s a bit of a sweeter sounding mic, and I was using the ‘Forward’ switch so they would always sound breathy, and open and airy, around the lead vocal.” 

“On the song ‘Happy Ever After’ which is the quietest, most acoustic track on the record, Dave Grohl was playing this Harmony solid body acoustic guitar, which is super quiet, but it has a ‘sound’ — so I grabbed a Lauten Audio Atlantis mic and switched on the +10 dB gain switch — which is "expletive" genius!” exclaims Thorp. “I was barely rocking my mic pre, so I had plenty of level to Pro Tools and I was able to get a really good guitar sound. I was also using the Atlantis and LA-320 on guitar amps a lot, sometimes the LA-320 was on room guitar amps as well at about 15 to 20 feet from where the amps would sit in Studio One at EastWest — the room is huge and sounds amazing.”

The Series Black LA-220 mics were used for some of the main tom mics says Thorp, “They were amazing, they worked so well. I used the LA-220s on the Gretsch ‘George Lake’ kit with a 13-inch rack tom and a 16-inch floor tom.” 

  

Thorp concludes, “I really do stand behind the Lauten Audio mics, I use the products a lot! I’m not just a face on an ad and a face on the website. We just did a Foo Fighters BBC Live session and I took an Eden for a mono overhead on the drums, which sounded great. I use the mics all the time when recording!”

Darrell Thorp is a seven-time Grammy® Award winning producer, mixer, and engineer (Foo Fighters, Radiohead, Switchfoot, Molotov, Beck), with over 20 years experience and many multi-platinum records on his discography. Thorp moved to Los Angles in 1997 after a 4-year service in the U.S. Navy and started interning at smaller studios, and eventually worked his way up to an Assistant Engineer at some of L.A.’s prestigious studios such as Track Record, Conway, and finally Ocean Way Recording. He recently had the pleasure of recording and mixing the new Foo Fighters album "Concrete and Gold," and also engineering the new Beck record "Colors". 

About Lauten Audio 

Lauten Audio microphones continue to carve out a unique niche for recordists seeking microphones with an original sound. In addition to the Series Black, their product line includes their flagship “Eden” LT-386, the award-winning “Oceanus” LT-381 transformer-less tube condenser microphone, and the FC-387 “Atlantis” solid-state Multi-voicing™ large diaphragm condenser microphone. Lauten Audio microphones have received rave reviews from both experienced recording engineers and leading Pro Audio magazines around the world. Lauten Audio is located in San Jose California, for more information visit http://www.lautenaudio.com or call 1-877-721-7018.

Lauten Audio

www.lautenaudio.com

Lauten Audio Press contact:

Paul J. de Benedictis

pauljdb@gmail.com (650)-303-2565

All trademarks are the property of their respective holders.

Lauten Audio Expands 'Series Black' Line with Two New Condenser Microphones

Lauten adds LA-220 Solid-state vocal condenser and LA-120 small diaphragm instrument pair to the “Series Black” microphone line aimed at budding recordists

San Jose, CA – August 2nd, 2016 – Today, Lauten Audio announced two additions to its new line of microphones aimed at budding recordists, dubbed “Series Black.” The LA-220 ($249 est. street), is a professional, solid-state, large diaphragm true-condenser studio vocal microphone, while the LA-120 ($349 est. street), is a pair of professional, solid-state, small diaphragm FET instrument condensers. Inspired by classic designs, both new microphones give users access to great sounding, yet affordable, professional quality products. The 2 new Series Black microphone models will ship starting in August and Internationally in October.

At its core the LA-220 features a U.S. made ultra-low-noise JFET amplifier, a 1-inch pressure gradient, large diaphragm, and a true-condenser capsule with cardioid polar pattern. The new mic features independent 120 Hz low-cut and 12 kHz high-cut filters, a transformer balanced output, and includes a spider-style shock mount.

The LA-120 mic package comes as a pair, and features interchangeable 17mm pressure gradient condenser cardioid and omni-directional capsules, U.S. made ultra-low-noise JFET amplifiers, 50 and 150Hz low-cut filters, 10 and 15kHz high-cut filters, and a transformer balanced output. The dual mic package ships with a wooden box and hard mounts.

Both microphones are designed to give budding recordists an affordable entry into the world of professional sound recording. “We are giving developing recordists two excellent new microphone options that complement each other, as well as the LA-320 vacuum tube condenser mic that is already available, also in the Series Black line,” says Brian Loudenslager, Founder of Lauten Audio. He continues, “Our unique high and low cut filters offered on these mics have already garnered rave reviews from users and professional reviewers. These features take into consideration common problems in home, basement or bedroom recording environments and make achieving great recording results easy for anyone.”  Both microphones feature two independent filters located on the microphone with easy to engage switches. If the room or source is boomy, or if there is low-end rumble from outside noise, recordists can turn on the low-cut filter and eliminate much of the problem. The high-cut filter can be used to roll-off high frequencies helping tame bright sources. 

Both new mic packages feature high quality components often found in much more expensive microphones. “We have again utilized our years of experience to create what we believe to be the best value of any professional microphones on the market today. With the classic inspired designs, ultra-low-noise JFETs, built-in filters, and included accessories, these microphone are sure to quickly become a popular choice for any recordists on any budget.” adds Loudenslager.

The LA-220 has a manufacturer suggested retail price of $499 and an estimated street price of $249 and the LA-120 has a suggested retail price of $599 and an estimated street price of $349. They will be available in U.S. retailers starting in August and worldwide in October. 

About Lauten Audio
Lauten Audio microphones continue to carve out a unique niche for recordists seeking microphones with an original sound. Their product line includes their flagship “Eden” LT-386, the award-winning “Oceanus” LT-381 transformer-less tube condenser microphone, and the FC-387 “Atlantis” solid-state Multi-voicing™ large diaphragm condenser microphone. Lauten Audio microphones have received rave reviews from both experienced recording engineers and leading Pro Audio magazines around the world. Lauten Audio is located in San Jose, California, for more information visit http://www.lautenaudio.com or call 1-877-721-7018.

All trademarks are the property of their respective holders. Description and specifications are subject to change without notice.

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Lauten Audio "Atlantis" is the Microphone Behind the Grammy for "Best Jazz Vocal Album"

Engineer Todd Whitelock Captures Grammy Gold with Lauten Audio ‘Atlantis’ Mic

‘Best Jazz Vocal Album’ Grammy® goes to Cecile McLorin Salvant’s "For One to Love"

Todd Whitelock in Avatar's studio A

San Jose, CA – (March 7, 2016) – Engineer Todd Whitelock loves the Lauten Audio ‘Atlantis’ FC-387 microphone for recording vocals, it’s now his “go-to” female vocal mic. At Avatar Studios in New York last year he used the Atlantis to record vocals on the Grammy® Award-winning album "For One to Love" by Cecile McLorin Salvant which garnered the prestigious “Best Jazz Vocal Album” for 2016. The album category awards the Grammy to the Artist, Producer, and Engineer. The album was released on Mack Avenue Records. Whitelock has engineered albums for many of today’s most lauded artists including Josh Groban, Idina Menzel, Christian McBride, Brian Blade, Harry Connick Jr., Yo Yo Ma, as well as Chick Corea, Wynton Marsalis, and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, to name just a select few.

For One To Love was recorded live in the studio with Aaron Diehl (piano), Paul Sikivie (bass), Lawrence Leathers (drums), and Cecile on vocals. “Each of these musicians are masters of their craft, their talents go well beyond their amazing musicality,” notes Whitelock. “Together they are a quartet, not just a trio backing vocals and they play in a rarefied zone of precision, intuition, and conviction that was just awesome to watch and hear—and record!”

“Of all the Grammys that I have been honored with, this one is special. I feel this one is

Cecile at Avatar studios singing into Atlantis microphone

personal and so deserving for the artist and her artistry as it’s Cecile’s first Grammy and producer Al Pryor’s as well. It’s an intimate record, a portrait actually, that puts it all out there for everyone to behold. Cecile is one of the most natural performers and artists that I have ever had the pleasure to record. She performs the music naturally, effortlessly, so I need to make sure it sounds natural and effortless. For One To Love was one of those perfect storms, the right artist singing the right music in front of the right microphone, in the right studio. She made the magic, I didn’t do anything but get out of her way.”

“I have to thank Fabrice Dupont for turning me on to the Lauten Audio ‘Atlantis’ microphone, which I used for both of Cecile's records,” says Whitelock. “We listened to all the famous ‘old tube mics’ on her voice before choosing Atlantis for its clarity, quietness, and dynamic range — it quickly became my go-to favorite for female voice.”

When he first tried the Atlantis mic on Cecile’s voice at Avatar Studios he was pleasantly surprised, “Besides Avatar’s incredible collection of microphones, I had a couple of my other favorites with me too. It was really about blindfold testing, putting all those mics up there and seeing what was most complimentary for her vocal and dynamic range, and to capture her real character, the essence of her performance. We all listened to playback and the Atlantis was a revelation! I chose the Atlantis, Al Pryor and Cécile both chose the Atlantis as their favorite. It was like ‘Oh my god! – Thank god I brought the Atlantis!’”

Whitelock says, “With the Atlantis I found I was not having to push Cecile into the balance, her voice just floated above the track with this really vivid picture of her voice, bigger than anything else that I had tried, she just filled the track, letting the music just wrap around her. That was everything for me. It was staggering.”

Check out a live session at KCRW from Cecile's previous album “Womanchild” which was nominated for a Grammy 2 years ago, Whitelock also recorded her vocals using the Atlantis mic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RsjZFG76Qk

“Actually, a lot of amazing singers have been on my Atlantis microphone,” he adds, “from Rene Flemming, to Rhiannon Giddons, Idina Menzel, to Audra McDonald. And in most of these cases I have to put up their favorite mics, but in the same blind/ playback tests the Lauten Audio Atlantis wins every time. And these singers have sung for years and years on what they think is their favorite microphone! The Atlantis makes my job much easier. It’s eliminated the guesswork. You bring in Lauten Audio mics and you know what you’re going to get. If it’s a new client they are going to be amazed, and if it’s an old client, that’s what they’re expecting to hear.”

The Atlantis FC-387 microphone was a collaborative effort between Lauten Audio, and New York engineer and producer Fab Dupont. Its Multi-voicing™ feature gives recordists three distinct timbre’s to choose from with just the flip of a switch. Originally designed for vocals, the Atlantis also shines on acoustic instruments of all types.

Lauten Audio
www.lautenaudio.com

Todd Whitelock
Allmusic.com credits

Producer Corrado Rustici Chooses Atlantis Mic for Italian Pop Star "Virginio"

    Italian producer Corrado Rustici, together with engineer Michael Rosen, auditioned many top mics for recent sessions at Rosen's 'East Bay Recorders', but chose Lauten Audio's 'Atlantis' FC-387 for Italian pop singer Virginio's vocals.

Corrado Rustici and Michael Rosen at East Bay Recorders

Rustici has a body of work that surpasses 70-million in album sales, and although he is most well-known in Italy with his work on music from mega-stars such as Zucchero and Andrea Bocelli, he has made California his home-base for many years and has worked with British and US superstars such as Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn, John Lee Hooker, and Stewart Copeland, to name a few. Most recently, during his production of new Italian breakout singer and songwriting star Virginio, Rustici booked the East Bay Recorders studio in Oakland and working with owner/engineer Michael Rosen recorded vocals for Virginio's new album for Universal Music Italy. When evaluating microphones to best bring out Virginio's pop-star voice, Rosen and Rustici auditioned a series of industry leading microphones as would any seasoned producer or engineer, after many models and trials they realized the best match was the 'Atlantis FC-387 - a mic originally designed especially for vocals.

Rustici is focusing on developing young artists such as Virginio these days, and loved what the Atlantis mic gave to the production, "I have been using Lauten Audio mics for about 2 years, I often choose them over a lot of other top microphones when I audition mics for a singer. On this session we tried about 6 different microphones and the Atlantis was the best match for Virginio's voice. The mic is very smooth with a nice top end, it gave his voice a lot of body."

Virgino's selfie during the session

The East Bay Recorders sessions have already paid-off with a single released entitled 'Hercules', that is in heavy radio airplay in Italy and is receiving incredible reviews. "A young, talented singer who firmly believes in the values of music, Virginio Simonelli is now ready to climb the charts," said journalist Cinzia Del Prete, upon hearing the new song.

After singing one of his original songs at Italy's most important music festival in 2006, the Sanremo Giovani, Virginio was signed to Universal Music Italy and released his first album. Since then, as a songwriter Virginio has collaborated with Italian star Elisa, and Gary Barlow (Take That), and his song 'Limpido' became a hit duet with Laura Pausini and Kylie Minogue, later followed with his own duet with Pausini on his song 'Dove Resto Solo Io'. Recently he's worked with songwriters Andy Marvel (Celin Dion), Dimitri Ehlirch (Moby), and Jesse Harris (Norah Jones). In 2011, Virginio was the winner of Italy's most popular singing contest TV show, 'Amici'.

Rosen, who has engineered for top artists, across many genres, including Todd Rundgren, Santana, Tesla, Joe Satriani, and Popa Roach, commented on the sessions and the Atlantis microphone, "I choose the Atlantis mic for this vocal because of its super clear and present top and strong body, it provided Virginio with the inspiration and the power that the track needed."

The Atlantis FC-387 microphone was a collaborative effort between Lauten Audio, and New York engineer and producer Fab Dupont. Its Multi-voicing' feature gives recordists three distinct timbre's to choose from with just the flip of a switch. Originally designed for vocals, the Atlantis also shines on acoustic instruments of all types.

Lauten Audio
www.lautenaudio.com

Corrado Rustici
www.corradorustici.com

Michael Rosen, East Bay Recorders
www.michaelsrosen.com

All trademarks are the property of their respective holders.

Darrell Thorp Becomes a Believer in Atlantis

Los Angeles, CA – May 18, 2015 – Seven-time Grammy® winning Engineer and Mixer, Darrell Thorp, recently acquired a pair of Lauten Audio’s Multi-voicing™ microphones, the Atlantis FC-387.

Recently picking up multiple Grammy’s for his work on Beck’s, “Morning Phase,” Thorp has built a solid foundation in the music industry, further adding to that foundation with his Atlantis microphones. Thorp and Lauten Audio’s founder, Brian Loudenslager, recently became acquainted after exchanging social media praise for each other. “I friended Darrell on Facebook; upon him accepting my request, he posted on my page stating, “Love your mics!” I replied simply, “Love your ears,” says Loudenslager, adding, “Of course I had to inquire and get more specifics as I wasn't aware Darrell was using our microphones”.

During a session in 2014, Thorp had a challenging vocal session with a female singer, Suzanne Santo from the band HoneyHoney, who had a very powerful and dynamic vocal. Thorp talked the producer into getting a demo of the Atlantis microphone so he could try it on a few things. “The producer wanted to try it on her vocal,” said Thorp. “We had tried other microphones without success. We put up the Atlantis and, BAM!, really airy and open,” says Thorp. “What really surprised us was how much the mic was smoothing out the 3k bump that was part of her tone. It smoothed the vocal into a more manageable place that I could handle better on the mix. And she loved the Atlantis as well,” added Thorp. He used the ‘Neutral’ setting on the Multi-voicing Atlantis mic, the other settings are ‘Gentle’ and ‘Forward’.

Thorp speaking at Grammy's

“It was truly an honor to have the intended design of the Atlantis validated by such a decorated engineer like Thorp”, says Loudenslager. Released in 2012, the Atlantis was a collaboration between engineer/producer Fab Dupont and Lauten Audio. Dupont wanted a modern vocal microphone, with multiple timbres that could tackle any vocal challenge, that idea became the Atlantis, model FC-387. On release of the Atlantis in 2012, Fab said, “I need a microphone that can be custom tailored for recording female vocalists, so that when they start belting on a chorus – my eyes don’t hurt!” 

Since that initial demo of the Atlantis, Thorp added a pair to his own collection. “I’ve now used them on drums, vocals, background vocals, and guitars,” says Thorp. “I recently used Atlantis on snare; turned it to the ‘Forward’ setting, holy crap, the snare was really snappy and bright - perfect for the song. I like it on back-ground vocals in Omni mode.” In addition to having the Multi-voicing switch, Atlantis also features Cardioid, Figure-of-eight, and Omni-directional polar patterns, as well as a +10 gain, and -10dB pad.

“It’s been great in the mix,” Thorp told Loudenslager, “Man, I am a believer. You have a great product here!”




Lauten Audio
www.lautenaudio.com

Darrell Thorp
www.darrellthorp.com

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Lauten Audio to Reveal "Eden" a Multi-voicing Tube Microphone

Building on the success of the Atlantis, Lauten Audio announces "Eden," a vacuum tube Multi-voicing(tm) microphone at 2015 Musikmesse Trade Show in Frankfurt.

Frankfurt, Germany - April 13, 2015 - At the 2015 Prolight + Sound / Musikmesse in Frankfurt, Lauten Audio will, for the first time in public, reveal the model LT-386, nick named "Eden," a vacuum tube, Multi-voicing(tm), large-diaphragm condenser microphone. Eden features Lauten's proprietary "Multi-voicing(tm)" technology; a switch offering unique timbre settings, three different polar patterns, and an exclusive high-pass filter.  Eden is for recordists seeking the most diverse and useful modern vacuum tube microphone. It offers a smooth and rich character reminiscent of the most sought after classics. Lauten will be showing the Eden microphone at Prolight + Sound / Musikmesse in Frankfurt, Germany, April 15-18, at booth A60B, in Hall 5.1. Eden is estimated to list for $3,999.00 (USD) and be available at dealers starting in June 2015.

Brian Loudenslager, Founder of Lauten Audio, reveals, "This was our greatest challenge yet. In preparation for and during development, I spent time learning to understand what people think is so special about vintage and vintage inspirations like the C12, 47, 251 etc. I spent many hours in the studio with industry veterans learning what they hear. Not that I haven't done this in the past; it's just that this time, rather than think what I could do differently, I was trying to imagine what I could do the same within our own microphone range and then expand upon it. Eden was designed as a result of these experiences. I've even surprised myself; the Eden is so smooth, with a sprinkle of that magic 'pick your adjective' you often hear described."

"I need to give a shout-out to several people including Grammy(r) winning Producer/Engineer, Jason Carmer, who lent us his studio and ears for many, many hours, as well as Mastering engineers Michael Romanowski and Piper Payne and everyone at Coast Recorders," adds Loudenslager.

Multiple switches located on each side and back of Eden allow the engineer to highly configure it. First is a polar pattern switch located on the microphone itself; which is not common for a modern vacuum tube microphone, giving recordists the option of choosing between a Cardioid, Omnidirectional or Figure-8 polar-pattern. It also features a unique high-pass filter; of course, this high-pass isn't like others. "I'm not revealing the per-octave's yet, if ever, but can say, it's unusual in a microphone," says Loudenslager.  Lastly, Eden will feature a voicing switch that offers Forward, Neutral, and Gentle timbre options. "Without a doubt, adds Loudenslager, "Eden could arguably be the smoothest, most versatile, large diaphragm, vacuum tube vocal microphone ever."

As the Company did on its Atlantis model, once again Lauten Audio worked with engineer and producer Fab Dupont to help develop the sonic signature. "I wanted something that has all the benefits of a true vacuum tube transformer mic without the drawbacks, and Lauten Audio made that happen," says Dupont. Some of the many challenges Fab requested were a unique high-pass and a semi-permanent shock-mount. Dupont adds, "The high-pass switch in Eden gives you bass drum clean-up and vocal clean-up options. Imagine having a Lauten Atlantis with all its characteristics and adding the control and density of a tube and transformer design-that is Eden by Lauten Audio." 

"Fab and I have evolved in our ability to understand each other and while this is a good thing, he also challenged us a great deal more," says Loudenslager. "In reality, Eden is a completely 'from-the-ground up' design with a much more vintage inspired design methodology. I started with a tube version of Atlantis, but in my opinion, we ended up with something quite different-this is our new flagship microphone."

Eden will be assembled in the USA and feature a modified version of Lauten Audio's 31.25mm dual-diaphragm capsule, a custom wound, U.S. built output transformer, EF86 or equivalent pentode vacuum tube, Switchcraft(r) connectors through-out, nickel plated head, a semi-permanent shock mount, and Lauten's new unique surface finish also done in the USA. Accessories included with the microphone will be Lauten's custom tube microphone cable with Switchcraft connectors, hard case and mount.  Final specifications will be released prior to the product shipping which is estimated to be in June 2015, with a list price of $3,999.00. (USD)

About Lauten Audio

Lauten Audio microphones continue to carve out a unique niche for recordists seeking microphones with an original sound.  Their product line includes the award-winning "Oceanus" LT-381 transformer-less tube condenser microphone, the FC-357 "Clarion", and the FC-387 "Atlantis" solid-state Multi-voicing(tm) large diaphragm condenser microphone.  Lauten Audio microphones have received rave reviews from both experienced recording engineers and leading Pro Audio magazines around the world.  Lauten Audio is located in San Jose California.  For more information visit http://www.lautenaudio.com or call 1-877-721-7018.

All trademarks are the property of their respective holders. Description and specifications are subject to change without notice.

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Hi-Res Photos download:

http://lautenaudio.com/pr-images/eden-lt-386-front.png

http://lautenaudio.com/pr-images/eden-lt-386-leftfacing.png

http://lautenaudio.com/pr-images/eden-lt-386-rightfacing.png

Lauten Audio “Atlantis” Microphone Now Shipping

 Audio “Atlantis” Microphone Now Shipping

New FC-387 “Atlantis” solid-state large diaphragm condenser microphone available worldwide June 1, 2012

Fab Dupont with the Atlantis FC-387

San Jose, CA — May 29, 2012 — Lauten Audio has begun shipping its new microphone, the FC-387 “Atlantis” model. The new mic is a solid-state large-diaphragm condenser with three distinct personalities. Atlantis features multiple switches for three different polar patterns, gain, and unique timbre settings. The FC-387 offers a blend of full and rich low- and mid-range, as well as smooth and unique high-mid and high-frequencies - recordists seeking an incredibly diverse and useful modern FET studio microphone will like it. The Atlantis FC-387 microphone retails for $1599. US and will be available worldwide from dealers June 1, 2012.

The engineer who had a huge ‘voice’ in the tuning and settings of Atlantis, Fab DuPont, a New York engineer and producer says, “Nobody is making a microphone for the modern recording process - everybody is making microphones as if we were still going through consoles and transformers to tape several times in the process of recording. The reality is we don’t. The reality is that we all record into a very clean preamp, into a very clean converter, into a very clean DAW, coming out a very clean D-to-A. And everything in incredibly open and bright and pristine; it’s really hard to make a modern, good sounding record because everything is too bright and everything is very wide open.” 

Fab had been speaking with Brian Loudenslager from Lauten Audio at parties and tradeshows and telling him about this predicament. Fab recalled telling Brian, who agreed to work with him on a new model of Lauten Audio microphone, “I need a microphone that can be custom tailored, for recording female vocalists, so that when they start belting on the chorus - my eyes don’t hurt!” 

Brian Loudenslager, Founder of Lauten Audio reveals, “It’s really been a pleasure and an eye opening experience working with Fab on the Atlantis. Getting what I feel was a true non-biased opinion during the development and tuning of the Atlantis has taught me a lot about how others perceive the timbre of a microphone. This microphone is just so useful, with the many different preamps, voices and sources available today; the Atlantis can work with them all. Just flip a switch, or two.”

Fab adds, “The idea was to put it all in one microphone. A microphone that would be neutral enough for modern recording, so that when you plug it into a regular preamp it’s all good and it doesn’t sound too bright and annoying. Then it would have several personalities. One personality would be the neutral one, one personality would be a mellower one for bright vocalists. And a bright setting too, even brighter than neutral—if you are recording dull instruments you can use that.”

After shipping many experimental microphone builds back and forth between California, where Lauten Audio is located, and New York, where Fab’s studio is housed, they finally agreed on the specs and the sound of the mic. “We came up with what is now the Atlantis. Which to me is my very first ‘desert island mic’ - I can do anything with it,” says Fab. “It’s probably the most versatile mic I’ve ever had because of those three different personalities.”

Multiple switches located on each side and back of the FC-387 Atlantis microphone allow the engineer to uniquely configure it. First is a polar pattern switch giving recordists the option of choosing between Cardioid, Omnidirectional or Figure-8 polar patterns. Borrowing the gain options from its sibling, the Lauten Audio ‘Clarion’ FC-357 microphone, the Atlantis features a -10db and +10dB switch. The +10dB gain switch increases versatility by allowing a choice of whether to have more character from the preamplifier gain or directly from the microphone, while the -10dB switch reduces its output and increases the maximum SPL level allowing it to record very loud sources.

What makes the Atlantis microphone truly unique is its voicing switch. This feature gives recordists three very different timbres to choose from that satisfy an extremely wide range of recorded sources. The options are: Gentle, Neutral and Forward. The ‘Gentle’ position provides maximum control of bright or peaky sources like S’s in vocal recordings. The ‘Neutral’ position offers a nice even response with good control over vocal “S” sounds and other audio peaks, while the ‘Forward’ position can help bring life to dull sources without having to use EQ, but still maintaining control over any peaks.

As are all Lauten Audio microphones, the FC-387 Atlantis is built with extreme attention to detail. From the individually hand-tuned capsule to the premium high-resolution electronics, the microphone is a high-quality precision instrument that will meet or exceed the demands of any studio recording environment. 

Fab’s experiences with the Atlantis mic in his own studio, recording on real projects, has revealed how well the mic turned out. “I have tracked a pretty impressive amount of vocals through it - that’s the mic’s main target: vocals - and it has not failed yet. It’s great on female vocalists on the ‘Gentle’ setting,” says Fab. “It’s great on quiet folk singers on the ‘Neutral’ setting. It’s really great on far away drums and stuff on the bright setting because you get no phase problems, and you get the bite that you need. It’s really quite a wonderful mic.”

“The first thing I did with the Atlantis was the demo for the launch of the Universal Audio Apollo demo, that’s a pair of Atlantis mics on the drums. That’s also the Atlantis mic on the vocal for the Apollo demo,” explains Fab.

“I’m doing the next Cyrille Aimée record; she is the next biggest thing in Jazz. She’s totally in love with the Atlantis mic for her vocals. Everybody loves it, big engineers, small engineers. It’s not for people who go for the look of the mic or the name of the brand; it’s for people who actually listen to what’s coming out of the speakers. It’s for people who really know what the current modern recording problems are and want a solution: Atlantis is the solution.”

Technical Specifications for Atlantis FC-387:

Type: 31.25mm dual large diaphragm pressure gradient transducer microphone

Polar Patterns: Omnidirectional, Cardioid and Figure-8 selectable

Circuit: Low-noise solid-state FET

Frequency Range: 20Hz - 20Khz

Dynamic Range: 120dB minimum

Impedance: < 200 ohms

Max. SPL: 0.5%THD@1000Hz: 130dB

Self-noise Level: < 12dB(A)

Sensitivity: 16mV/Pa OR -36±2dB 0dB=1V/Pa 1000Hz

Special Features:

3-way -10 dB attenuation, 0dB and +10dB gain switch

3-way Gentle, Neutral, Forward voicing switch

3-way Polar pattern switch

Connector: 3-Pin standard XLR

Power Requirement: +48V phantom power

The Atlantis FC-387 microphone retails for $1599. US and will be available from dealers worldwide on June 1, 2012.

About Lauten Audio

Lauten Audio microphones continue to carve out a unique niche for recordists seeking microphones with an original sound. Their product line includes the award-winning “Horizon” LT-321 tube microphone, the “Oceanus” LT-381 transformer-less tube condenser microphone, the ST-221 “Torch” small diaphragm microphones, and the new FC-387 “Atlantis” solid-state multi-functional large diaphragm condenser microphone. Lauten Audio microphones have received rave reviews from both experienced recording engineers and leading Pro Audio magazines around the world. Lauten Audio is located in San Jose, California. For more information visit: http://www.lautenaudio.com or call 1-877-721-7018.

All trademarks are the property of their respective holders. Description and specifications are subject to change without notice.

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