California-based, family-owned Lauten Audio expands its specialty microphone lineup, with the Lauten Tom Mic. Purpose-built for capturing the true sound of rack and floor toms, this rugged side-address condenser mic is at home on the road or in the studio. Equipped with a custom-designed 32mm large diaphragm capsule and specialized dual-bias circuitry, the Tom Mic captures the pure tones of rack and floor toms for maximum impact. Its supercardioid polar pattern focuses on the desired drum, minimizing phase issues and pickup of adjacent toms.
To help minimize cymbal bleed, Lauten’s unique bleed-blocking head design works in tandem with the dual-bias circuitry offering up to -28 dB of off-axis rejection. Additionally, the Tom Mic’s open circuit sensitivity is on par with typical dynamic mics, allowing it to easily handle high SPL levels that would overload other condensers. The net result is the performance of a condenser with better rejection than a dynamic.
Things are Shaping Up
What sets the Tom Mic apart from other drum mics is its specialized on-board sound shaping. Two selectable filters impact the mics performance, playing a key role in its sonic versatility. A three-position, high-pass filter can be set flat or rolled off at 140 Hz or 80 Hz, while the complementary low-pass filter gives you a choice of flat, 5 kHz or 12 kHz. These filters let the engineer quickly dial in a desired tom sound without having to resort to extensive channel EQ. Like the filter set in its Snare Mic, Lauten engineers have given serious thought to the frequency points and how they affect the sound. I like how the manual clearly explains what each setting does and how mic position angle affects the sound.
Built for the Road
The side-address Tom Mic is built around a solid brass headframe, utilizing a tough wire mesh windscreen backed by a mildew-resistant dust filter that protects the mic from errant stick hits, dust and debris. Its integral stand mount secures with a knurled ring to a threaded section on the base of the mic permitting it to be rotated in the mount for easy positioning. A large lever arm is used to adjust the mount’s swivel. Like a lighting grip stand, pushing a small button on the lever allows it to be positioned for maximum leverage. I found the mic easy to place and adjust even in tight setups. Lauten Audio includes a 3/8” to 5/8” thread adapter but no drum mount clip.
I prefer to minimize mic stands around a drum kit, so I experimented mounting the Tom Mic to some of my existing drum clips. I found that it was a bit too heavy for the plastic clip-on rim mounts but worked quite well on “Claw” type” mounts.
Off to the Boom Boom Room
For this review, Lauten sent a pair of Tom Mics, each nestled in a padded Cordura carry bag. I spent an afternoon getting familiar with the filter settings by miking rack and floor toms on my studio kit. With both filters set flat, I got a clean basic tone. Engaging the 80 Hz high pass filter while leaving the low pass filter flat cleaned up bottom-end boom. Choosing the 80 Hz and 5 kHz settings focused on the drum’s tonal sound. On my floor tom, setting the high pass filter flat and engaging the 5 kHz added some fullness to the bottom end. For smaller rack toms, engaging the 140 Hz filter captured the dynamic attack while eliminating unwanted low frequency resonance.
Having this knowledge helped me make quick decisions at gigs, getting good tom sounds with minimal effort. With my trusty claw mounts, I could quickly position the mics in their optimal location while keeping them out of the drummer’s way. I had success with them on a wide range of small rack toms to a large 20” floor tom.
Tom, Meet Leslie
Yes, it’s called the Tom Mic, but if you know me, I’m going to try it on other things. On a big band gig where the drummer used an electronic kit, I used the first Tom Mic on bari sax. With the filters at flat and 12 kHz, I got a nice, full meaty bari sound. I liked how easy it was to position the mic, and the large lever let the musician quickly adjust the mic if needed. I placed the second Tom Mic on alto sax. With the filters at 140 Hz and flat, I got the desired bite with detail — especially on solos.
On another gig, I only needed to mic kick, snare (with my trusty Lauten Snare Mic) and overheads, leaving the Tom Mics available. The guitarist had a dual amp setup with one amp feeding a custom-modded Leslie rotating speaker. I tried a Tom Mic on the Leslie with pleasing results. I set the filters at 80 Hz and 12 kHz and placed the mic about 3” from the cabinet. Tom Mic played well with Leslie, resulting in a crowd-pleasing guitar sound.
After using the Tom Mics on a wide variety of things, I can say that Lauten has another hit that goes above and beyond its name. Thumbs-up on this one.
At a Glance:
Tom Miking Made Easy
This ruggedly built, cool-looking and great-sounding compact large-diaphragm condenser offers excellent off-axis rejection optimized for toms and is a go-to choice in other applications as well.
Lauten Audio Tom Mic
PROS
- Rich tom sound
- Excellent off-axis rejection
- Flexible onboard filters
- Easy to position
CONS
- A bit heavy for some drum clips
- Prefer filter switches on back side for easier access
- Pricey
SPECS
- Type: Side-address condenser
- Polar Pattern: Supercardioid
- Freq. Response: 20 Hz – 20k Hz
- SPL Handling: >135dB (0.5% THD @ 1kHz)
- Sensitivity: -58.0 dBV/Pa
- Impedance: >150 ohms
- Power: 48v phantom
- Weight: 12.3 oz (mic only); 15.9 oz (w/mount)
- Street Price: $398
MANUFACTURER: Lauten Audio
More Info: www.lautenaudio.com
