Mesanovic Microphones is a somewhat newer company from Detroit, eponymously named for its founder, Deni Mesanovic, who built and designed his first ribbon mic for his senior thesis in college. In the decade since, the company has also added to its line of microphones two models of 3-way active monitors, each with unique designs and features – an impressive start for such a young company!
Many of the Model 2A’s features can also be applied to Model 2 and Model 2S (stereo with a fixed Blumlein arrangement of the ribbons), which, aside from being passive mics, share the same 2-inch long, 1.8-micron ribbon motor design. The 2A is an active, phantom-powered ribbon microphone, entirely built in-house with a bespoke transformer and the aforementioned motor housed in a gorgeous CNC-machined polished stainless steel body. The active circuit gives the 2A 13 dB more output than the passive Model 2, which makes it an ideal mic for quiet sources where the character of a ribbon is desired, but the preamps used either can’t provide enough gain or get too noisy at the top of their range.
The 2A’s motor design, which includes the housing for the ribbon and magnets, also contains resonator plates on the sides of the motor; Mesanovic claims that these contribute to the extended high-frequency response of all of their microphones, a statement I can attest to be absolutely true! The stated frequency response is 20 Hz to 20 kHz, but it continues well beyond that at the high end. The response is nominally flat from 20 Hz to approximately 10 kHz, with a slight 2 to 3 dB bump from just above 10 kHz to around 18 kHz. This rise is above those often annoying/painful frequencies – the numbers seem to confirm the sense of air these mics exhibit. While many ribbon mics are known, and even celebrated, for their mellow, rolled-off high frequency response, the Mesanovic’s sonic signature could best be described as almost condenser-like. Nothing is lacking in high end on these mics, but luckily there’s nothing exaggerated or unnaturally bright about them. The Model 2A reproduces what is placed in front of it in a flattering and natural way.
My first testing opportunity for a pair of 2As was as a spaced pair of drum overheads: A great torture test for any microphones given the huge frequency range and volume of a drum kit. However, with a max SPL of 140 dB, these 2As should handle the raucous noise of a rock drum kit with aplomb. Running the mics through AMS/Neve 1073OPX preamps yielded a beautiful sonic picture of the kit. Cymbals shimmered with incredible detail without a hint of harshness, and the low frequencies of the toms sounded almost as if they were close mic’d. The snare was also well represented in the center of the stereo picture with a strong body and crack. Given how extremely well the 2As performed as overheads, I used them as drum room mics in a Blumlein pair configuration, and also as a spaced pair in front of the kit. I first placed them about two meters in front of the drums to pick up as much low end as possible before moving them back a couple more meters. The closer position was more appealing to me as they emphasized the body of the drums rather than the splash of the cymbals when placed farther back, but this will be room-dependent, and in a larger room it might be perfect.