Whereas one might think that this may only be suitable in certain contexts, you’d be surprised how often its pumping, tweaked out capture is absolutely the perfect antidote for an anaemic sounding track or source. The compressor unit itself is reminiscent of the quick clamping, hard attenuating FET units of yore – think a slammed 1176 or 1178 set to all buttons in mode, while the nature of the small diaphragm omni capsule makes it incredibly responsive to collecting transient material and detailing the subtle differences in room ambience and reflected elements in the acoustic space, before the compressor does its thing. It’s little things like this that really allow The Periscope to bring you into its world and after plugging it in and experiencing the quality of it’s pleasantly rekt capture, the superficial novelty quickly takes a backseat to its usefulness as a studio tool. The long pipe-like design also ensures that all compressor components can be neatly tucked away inside The Periscope’s uniquely shaped chassis. The onboard analogue compressor is conveniently powered using the same phantom power source as the condenser capsule itself, in turn meaning no requirement for any kind of bulky extraneous box or anything like that. There is method to the madness though, the copper pipe aesthetic reportedly ensures 100 per cent shielding and grounding from interferences, something which is no doubt extremely useful when you consider the heavy handedness of the compression circuit and its potential to amplify any artefacts in the signal chain. It also brings up some very important questions regarding mic design and marketing in general in the pro audio space. While this might not be everyone’s cup of tea, there is undoubtedly a sense of fun that bubbles underneath the surface of The Periscope, something that doesn’t always happen in the tense environment that is the recording studio. Looking like the exact middle ground between Pirates of the Caribbean and a WW2 pipe bomb and shipping in what can only be described as a miniature treasure chest (complete with blunderbuss style clasps and lined in swashbuckling rose velvet, of course), the aesthetic here is equal parts salty buccaneer and retrofuturist steampunk. The Periscope by Finnish manufacturer Scope Labs takes this premise to its logical extreme, combining a high quality omni condenser circuit with an onboard compressor (and not the limp-wristed kind), to achieve maximum ambience and maximum compression at the mic position, which in turn results in a voicing that is both extremely singular and surprisingly apt.īefore we go any further, it’s probably important to address the elephant in the room here – The Periscope’s unique and utterly inimitable aesthetic, which is no doubt one of its defining characteristics. When you actually stop and consider what’s actually going on when acoustic pressure travels and hits a compressed mic and the kind of radical sonic reshuffling of emphasis within the sonic envelope, it makes a tonne of sense that compression and room ambience are destined to forever be soulmates.Ĭatch up on all the latest music gear reviews here.Įven in the traditional, comparatively conservative world of pristine tube mics and high end preamps, microphones have routinely been driven for the purpose of eliciting excitable compression and saturation effects and anyone who has ever played around with room miking drum kits has quickly been made aware of the kinds of sonic bombast and ‘vibe’ that can exist when ambience and heavy compression meet. One of the funnest elements of recording instruments in the open air is experimenting with over-compression, mic selection, room ambience, and the kinds of interesting flavours this kind of processing can yield. Words by Erika Fedele Scope Labs | Enquire for pricing
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