Peter Chaikin Picks Sanken Dual-Diaphragm Mics for Ian McCrudden Project
Peter Chaikin is a video producer and Grammy(r) nominated recording engineer who has guided market-leading companies in the launch of award-winning music recording and post-production products. Chaikin recently recorded an acoustic music project with filmmaker and singer/songwriter Ian McCrudden. His microphones of choice for the project were pairs of Sanken’s dual-capsule CU-44X MK II and CU-51.
Ian McCrudden and Wendy Joyner recording with Sanken mics.
Chaikin explains, “Ian has directed music documentaries about Anita O’Day and Rickie Lee Jones and is himself a talented singer/songwriter. He told me about his current musical collaboration with an artist on the East coast, Wendy Joyner, and played their cover of John Prine’s “In Spite Of Ourselves” and I loved their vocals, the interplay, and humor, and we knew it would be great fun to record together.”
Ian McCrudden, a film producer, director, writer and founder of Epiphany Pictures, has contributed songs for many of his films. He was nominated for Best Long Form Music Video at the 52nd Annual GRAMMY(r) Awards and conceived and directed the acclaimed concert documentary film “Rickie Lee Jones – Live in Stockholm.” Wendy Joyner is a vocalist / guitarist widely admired for her work with a prolific NYC songwriter group.
Chaikin describes the project, “My objective was to capture a recording that was authentic, and the key to that is compelling vocals, present, honest and clear without embellishment. I’m fortunate to have worked with many vintage mics over the years and each had its own character. For this project I wanted mics that could capture the intimacy and emotion of their vocals with no coloration or strain.” The recording was made in a cottage living room with hardwood floors and abundant natural light, using two Sanken CU-51s as vocal mics, and two CU-44X MKII’s on the guitars.
Chaikin continues, “While Ian’s vocal is gruff with lots of character, Wendy’s is pure and clear and they each play acoustic guitars. Vocals can sometimes sound great when solo’d, but become boxy when the instrument mic is added. I’d heard great things about the Sanken CU-51 and CU-44X. They are cardioid mics with very neutral off-axis response and virtually no proximity-effect. I thought these properties would capture natural, authentic vocals. The innovative dual capsule design was intriguing, and longtime friend Jim Pace, principal of plus24, the USA Sanken distributor, supplied his personally owned Sanken mics we needed for the session.”
Peter Chaikin
Afterwards, Chaikin recalls, “Listening in the control room, I was taken by surprise. I wasn’t used to hearing cardioid mics without proximity effect – the vocals were natural and present. The guitars were full and crisp without boominess. Soloing the mics, there was great separation. The vocal sound didn’t change when summed with the guitar mic. I was really impressed by the neutrality, realism, and lack of coloration overall. Ian and Wendy were very pleased when they heard the results.”
McCrudden commented “To my ears, the result was a sound that was faithful to the playing and singing in the room, giving us a spirited and unique duet.”
Chaikin continued, “I really enjoyed these mics. It was a new experience for me. Rather than turning to my familiar go-to mics, the Sanken mics delivered neutrality and a sense of presence I hadn’t experienced before.”
Ian and Wendy’s rendition of John Prine’s “In Spite Of Ourselves” is now available on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/4cLg4Cdx0TwAB3Vcd8lA8G?si=pxz0982JRn66yuB1FJfYrQ&nd=1&dlsi=0a01bb59ba194bdc&flow_ctx=395322e7-24cd-4383-ac02-df700ce82adb%3A1745962226#login
Sanken’s CU-44X MK II’s revolutionary design features two titanium-matched capsules for low and high response with a wide dynamic range and headroom.
https://sankenchromatic.com/products/cu-44x-mk-ii/
Sanken’s CU-51captures the depth and nuances that make a vocal special, while maintaining the sonic qualities that one would expect from an expensive vintage tube mic. https://sankenchromatic.com/products/cu-51
About Sanken Chromatic
The Sanken Chromatic range of six professional studio microphones provide musicians, sound designers, engineers and producers with the ultimate set of pure, transparent sounding mics for a wide variety of applications. They are designed and meticulously engineered in Japan using the latest technology and include many innovative features. The result is a set of mics that have phenomenal frequency response, accurate off axis response, exact patterns, minimal proximity effect, low noise, and high SPL tolerance. There are six microphones in the range including CO-100K, CUX-100K, CU-44X MK II, CU-51, CU-55, CU-41R. Sanken Chromatic mics are distributed in North America by plus24. https://www.plus24.net
