BEYERDYNAMIC OPUS 89
1 June 2006
Beyerdynamic continues to roll out its new Opus line into Australia, the latest being the Opus 89 vocal dynamic. The ‘89’ features rugged construction, a hardy basket, and a sturdy shockmount system. It has a supercardioid pickup, a smooth top end, and a present low midrange that gives the mic its robust sonic character.
Designed with touring use in mind, the 89 is seemingly based around the TGX-60, both visually and sonically (although, admittedly I didn’t have the TGX-60 with me to draw a direct comparison)… and it also has the ‘big’ feel of the TG – one performer commenting “It’s big isn’t it?”. Actually the shaft is only 10mm longer than an SM58, and in my massive paws, I could hardly tell the difference.
The basket is quite solid, designed in the now-familiar Beyer style: hemispherical screw-off end, vented rear with an open-cell foam insert behind, and a nylon screen over the capsule end – I’d suggest buying a stock of foam inserts and changing them regularly if you’re intending to use them as part of a touring rig.
In practice, the Opus 89 did the job nicely at several gigs, as expected. Used on a hip-hop act, it sonically outperformed two different name brands radio mics that were being used alongside it, its fuller midrange adding good intelligibility to vocal and spoken word. As a main vocal mic with a rock act it proved to be much richer in the low mids, to the extent that for some vocalists there was a need for some tailoring of the EQ to avoid this affecting the clarity, yet on other singers it proved perfectly suited.
In terms of gain, the Opus 89 consistently required less power from preamps than most other dynamic mics on stage. There were some feedback issues, mainly in the aforementioned low-midrange, but these were relatively minor.
This microphone rounds out the Opus line with a high-quality hand-held dynamic. There are three ranges of Beyerdynamic microphones to choose from: ‘Classic’, ‘Touring Group’ (TG), and ‘Opus’ – each of which has definite stand-out mics. Happy choosing!
Price: $499
Audio Telex: (02) 9647 1411 or www.audiotelex.com.au
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