Blue Microphones Woodpecker Reviews

4.0/5.0 based on 8 customer reviews

Sweetwater Advice

Mike Harris

I recently attended a ribbon mic shoot-out in a room full of industry veterans. The Woodpecker was the unanimous winner. It doesn't hurt that it looks as classy as it sounds. Try a pair as drum overheads.

Alan Carter

I've always been a fan of Blue mics so when I heard they were releasing a ribbon I knew I had to try it - and it quickly became the envy of every other mic in my closet. Its buttery lows, smooth mids, and natural highs make it the ideal choice for any application (acoustic guitars and vocals are my favorites). The best part about recording with the Woodpecker is knowing that I won't need to EQ the track - it sounds amazing as is!

Carson McClain

The Woodpecker melds the sounds of ribbon and condenser together in one capsule. You will find the warmth and reality of a ribbon are very prevalent with this mic without ignoring the presence of the highs. An all-around great mic and a must-have for every studio.

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Customer Reviews

Adrian J Rosas
from Texas
October 27, 2011Music Background:
Recording Engineer, Producer, Solo Artist,

Lovely

Perfect with my sm57. I was really looking more towards the R-121 but i fell in love with this mic. sounds amazing. every single one is unique. Give it a chance.

Don Laws
from Toronto, Ontario
August 4, 2009Music Background:
Pro Musician : Vocalist/Trombonist...years..

This is a sweet sounding microphone

I finally tried blue microphones after getting over the fact that they looked too "cute" to be serious. This woodpecker microphone is wonderfully sounding and engineered. I have owned recently two ribbon microphones,a Crowley and Tripp Studio vocalist and a Royer R121 (which I traded in for this microphone).
The main use for these microphones were for male jazz vocals and brass instruments (mainly trombone).
The best sounding trombone recording I have done were done on the Royer R121..but I found the woodpecker to be as good as or better. The woodpecker has a wider frequency response which make it oh so sweet for vocals as well. The sound is smooth and very realistic with excellent mid-range detail.
I did not expect much of this microphone but i would think that it would sound great in front of any acoustic source where you want to capture the true sound. The advantage of the ribbon is that it can handle high SPL levels from sources like a trumpet of trombone and not distort.
BTW This microphone replaces both my Crowley and Tripp and the Royer..it is that versatile. If you are looking for a ribbon microphone this is the one in my opinion...everyone has to listen for themselves..

Joshua Lovvorn
from Decatur, AL
September 22, 2008Music Background:
Home hobbyist

Nice and smooth

I was working on a session and needed an acoustic guitar part tracked. In the middle of setting up the standard condensor mic I changed my mind and reached for the Woodpecker instead. On playback, the guitarist was blown away with the sound we had captured. If you want to hear a smooth, natural tone from whatever instrument you're tracking, the Woodpecker is a great choice. Just be sure to invest in a good pad if your preamp doesn't have one onboard, as this is a pretty hot mic. Well worth the price!

Bart
from Moscow, Idaho
October 15, 2007Music Background:
Recording Engineer

Amazing

This mic sounds incredible. It makes whatever source you put it on sound smooth and warm. I have had great results on every source I have put it on.

R. Bruce Smith
from Saginaw, MI USA
July 12, 2012Music Background:
Broadcast Engineer, Voice Talent, Recording Engineer, Musician

My primary use of the Woodpecker is for voice over work. There is a cool proximity effect that, if used properly, can really enhance the bottom end nicely. It already has a dip in the middle of its responce curve, so you don't need to be heavy handed on the EQ to get rid of the "nasties" that can occur anywhere between 700 and 1000 Hz. The microphone's signal also responds nicely to EQ, but be carefull not to push the highs up to much as it does have a bit more self noise than I would like. That being said (written) the high end extention is pretty good so you really don't need much EQ in that area either.

This is really a great microphone. Having active electronics means you don't need to worry about having a mic pre with enough gain, or worry about inadvertantly killing the ribbon with phantom power, as phantom power is required to make the thing work. I would compare its output level to that of the Neumann TLM-103. I'm guessing that the internal amplification circuitry is the source of the self noise, but it's give and take and as I stated before its not enough to matter if you are careful about how you impliment this microphone.

Along with the high end that most ribbons do not have, this thing also has that classic ribbon "BIG" sound; very warm and "cozy". I'm glad I have this mic.

Doug Hazelrigg
from Decatur, Illinois
September 19, 2011Music Background:
amateur musician and recordist

A fine microphone

The good: it's sounds really smooth on vocals and acoustic guitar. It has a lot of gain and looks cool. The not so good: has a bit of self-noise when the ribbon is vibrating, but it's not horrible. Also, despite the 136 SPL rating, it distorts a bit when placed face-on a loud over-driven guitar amp -- moving the mic back and lowering the volume yields a nice result, however.

take it or leave it.. im here to help.. not brag about what i know and like
from whatsitmatter, USA
September 27, 2008Music Background:
Recording Engineer, Studio Owner

sorry to be the bad review buuuUt.......

glad i bought this b-stock or i would have been FURIOUS!

noise floor is through the rOOF, definitely need to pad this mic too, extremely hot... as far as the sound.. its a ribbon trying to be a condenser.
VERY dark, and extremely aggressive proximity effect. works best on loud sources. if you're looking for a ribbon, save your bucks and do the real deal.. get yourself a royer R-121/122 or an AEA R88, i have both and they DESTROY this thing in all the shootout apps ive done so far.. also... dont even try and convince me that anyone spending a grand on a mic shouldn't consider another 700... do it big.. and do it right....

Frasco
from Brooklyn, NY
April 13, 2012Music Background:
Producer, Engineer, Guitarist

NOISEY!!!

The noise floor is ridiculous. It's like tape hiss, but with no charm. It sounds nice on vocals and acoustic guitar, but I ALWAYS found myself scrapping the tracks because the noise was infuriating. I even sent it back to BLUE, they installed a new ribbon, solved nothing.