recordinghacks

Blue Microphones 8-Ball

Cardioid Condenser Microphone

The 8-ball is a cardioid condenser with unusual form factor — a spherical case design, as used on the Ball, Kickball and Snowball. Although the Ball and Kickball also require phantom power, the 8-ball is unique among this set for being a condenser mic, with a Class A, low noise FET preamp built into the mic body.

DRUM!

the Balls were soon deemed prohibitively cumbersome and impractical due to their shape and size and the limited range of motion of the recessed stand adapter.

[As overheads,] the 8-Balls did a decent job picking up the cymbals as well as some meat from the snare. While there was a slight lack of low-end presence, the bright high end served to enhance the cymbal bite… The 8-Balls definitely presented a workable sound… overall, the 8-Balls did an admirable job, especially for the price.

Electronic Musician

The two applications on which the 8-Ball worked best were kick drum and bass guitar. The 8- Ball really shines when used as a secondary kick mic positioned a few inches from the front head (with another mic on the beater). The low mid scoop was perfect for getting the boxiness out of the kick drum without using EQ. When I miked an amplified electric bass, the 8-Ball had a similar frequency curve to the EQ I tend to put on bass, accentuating the extreme lows, cutting the low mids, and boosting the high end to make the bass stand out in the mix.

The Blue Microphones 8-Ball is also known as: 8 ball, 8ball.

The mic was released in 2004.

Specifications

Frequency Response - CardioidClick Graph to Compare!

Pickup Patterns	Pads & Filters
Cardioid (10 mV/Pa; 35 - 20,000 Hz)

Capsule Dimensions	Impedance	SPL/Noise
Diameter n/a	50 Ohms (Low)	Max SPL: 150 dB

Weight	Length	Max Diameter	Interface(s)
450g (15.87oz)	95mm (3.74'')	95mm (3.74'')	3-pin XLR male (1)

Power Specifications
Requires phantom power Phantom voltage: 48v

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