AEA Ribbon Mics NUVO N28 Compact Active Stereo Ribbon Microphone

The smoothest stereo ribbon?

I've been waiting 7 years for AEA to roll a compact stereo mic out. The minute this came out of its box it went straight to work sampling recorders without a hitch and performed beautifully from the first note to the last, over 30 hours. Bravo AEA! Unlike most ribbons trying to be vintage or lo-fi sounding with too much mids and funky highs, the N28 defies these stereotypes. It has the warmth and body one expects from classic ribbons, but still presents the highs (and transients) in a natural but relaxed way. Compared to a perfectly flat measurement omni, it is darker, but does not feel like it is excessively lowpassed or mangled, just smooth and relaxed on even the brightest sources, while still having plenty of detail and clean transients. The shorter, narrower ribbon (about half the size of a typical ribbon), compared to AEA's long ribbon designs like the N8 and R88, should help noticeably with off-axis linearity, imaging, and transients despite the warm sound, and that's exactly the impression I get. Overall despite this it seems very clean, reasonably low noise, and of sufficient gain for any preamp, which is incredibly impressive. As an active ribbon, it is perfect to pair with your portable Zoom F or Sounddevices MixPre recorder and in this way, mixed with some quality room mics, makes an absolutely fearsome, incredibly portable recording setup for chamber music and soloists you can just about slip in a bag, no power strips or road cases needed! The size and weight is similar to if even a bit lighter than most modern stereo ribbons (Samar, Mesanovic, Royer) but the sound is definitely on the rounder/warmer side comparatively. Physically and ergonomically it is an enormous improvement over the massive, heavy, and rather unsightly R88 (sorry AEA, I said it) while also way easier than trying to wrangle two ribbons into a blumlein pattern in the middle of a busy session. No joke it's literally half the size and a third the weight... and it sounds just as good if not better. Not quite as fetching as the classy midcentury Samar VL373A, the N28's utilitarian black finish and long, single cable is rather perfect to stay out of sight in front of a string quartet or brass ensemble when cameras are rolling (the finish is, to my eyes, almost identical to the black Neumann uses). It really doesn't get much cleaner or unobtrusive than this for concert recording! A special commendation for AEA for their incredible paper documentation, including some superbly written and laid out guides to working with ribbon mics and specifically stereo ribbons for any beginners or less savvy users. It's rare a manufacturer will even include much in the way of documentation these days, much less everything you need to get started using their mics! Whether you are a hobbyist or a professional, I could not recommend this microphone more. Stereo ribbons are unbelievably useful in all kinds of situations and this is definitely one of the best on the market. In fact, I might even say it is the best, because you can all but guarantee anything will sound great on it as their own demos show very well!