Abbey Road King’s Microphones
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- $29.99
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About this plugin
Waves' Abbey Road King's Microphones plugin models three historically significant microphones from EMI's royal archives, each capturing the distinctive character of 1920s and 30s microphone design. The collection includes the King George V carbon mic, the only known model of its kind, alongside companion pieces that defined an era of broadcast technology. These models emerged from meticulous restoration work performed during post-production on "The King's Speech," where Abbey Road engineers discovered the mics' unexpected versatility beyond period-accurate dialogue recording.
What distinguishes this plugin from typical microphone modeling tools is its tonal signature rather than technical fidelity. The original microphones exhibit pronounced proximity effect, frequency coloration, and a compressed character inherent to carbon and ribbon designs of that era. Each model offers three range positions - close, natural, and ambient - allowing producers to shape both nearfield and room characteristics within a single interface. The sonic results skew toward the characterful rather than transparent, with particular emphasis on midrange density and a subtle, almost vintage-sounding compression.
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The plugin finds its strongest application in sound design and music production contexts where unconventional mic placement yields desirable results. Guitarists and synth players benefit from the mics' ability to add vintage filtering and crunchy coloration difficult to achieve through conventional EQ. Used before reverb chains, the Abbey Road King's Microphones excel at creating period-authentic room ambiance and spatial depth. For engineers prioritizing sonic character over accuracy, this represents a genuinely distinctive tool with historical legitimacy backing its unusual sound.