AEA R44CE Ribbon Microphone

“The R44 is incredible on anything I put it on pretty much.” – Hanan Rubinstein (Alicia Keys, Pharrell, Kanye)

“On male vocals, both the AEA R44CE and RCA 44-BX again stood out as frontrunners – with the RCA sounding slightly more saturated and the AEA a tad cleaner to our ears – both providing a rich sound with considerably smoother and rounder top end than the usual suspect condenser mics.

Of course, such comparisons can never be scientific – who knows what these older mics have been through in the last 75 years? But this session was enough to prove that the R44CE can definitely hold its own by beating out one of the two originals easily while performing neck-and-neck with the other.

My final verdict: if you are looking for a mic that can impart some of the legendary RCA 44 sound into your studio without exposing yourself to the vicissitudes of the used market (and the considerable tonal variations between 75 year old microphones), AEA’s R44 series is undoubtedly the first place you should search.” – Tape Op

After tracking down the engineers who designed and built the original legendary RCA 44 ribbon microphones, AEA acquired ribbon material, made the tooling, and custom machined all the parts necessary to build the original RCA 44 B/BX design to its original specifications, in their own AEA R44CE design. Built just like they were in the 1930s, the R44CE from AEA flies in the face of every trend in modern ribbon microphone design, and to glorious results. After years of painstaking work, AEA has again begun production of the most important ribbon mic design of all time.

Legendary character with more than 80 years of studio history

The RCA 44 has been one of the quintessential recording microphones from the days of big bands to the modern recording practices of today. They’ve remained an essential part of studio life well after RCA stopped manufacturing them in 1955. The sound and response of the 44 B/BX were unlike anything else available, and was cherished for its smoothness, forgiving nature and unique tonal balance. Collectors began to buy up the supply of RCA 44’s quickly. Now you can get one for yourself with the AEA R44CE.

An accurate reproduction of the original RCA 44 Ribbon Microphone

The 44 was RCA’s best microphone from the 1930s into the ’50s. Is AEA’s R44CE that good? Both listeners and measurements say that the R44CE is even better, and that AEA has been listening to both users and ex-RCA engineers for over 25 years. AEA used to make all of the replacement parts for the RCA 44s, so they knew the design and workings of those coveted mics intimately. They started the re-creations by using only ribbon material originally manufactured for RCA. This is the best way to ensure that AEA’s R44CE ribbon mics are as close as humanly possible to vintage RCA 44s.

The magnificent design flies in the face of modern trends

The R44CE design runs contrary to all current ribbon microphone manufacturing. It is large and heavy when other microphones are smaller and lighter. The internal ribbon element is by far the longest, and its resonance tuning the lowest of today’s ribbon microphones. It is a pure undamped ribbon design, an approach that has been out of production for over 50 years while remaining in continuous studio use. It is different, and its sound is unique. The R44CE sounds good on everything. Leave it out and use it whenever you need to do a quick take.

Features

• A legenday mic design replicated for today’s recording
• Uses the same ribbon material as the original RCA 44
• A single diaphragm Figure 8 ribbon microphone
• Design has been in use for decades
• A very different sound than today’s ribbons
• Sounds equal to or better than the original RCA 44
• High SPL capability
• Below 30Hz to above 20kHz
• Polar Pattern: Native bi-directional pattern
• Case, stand adapter, manual and attached microphone cable included
• 100% handcrafted in Pasadena, CA, USA