Likewise! Gotta get mine sent in at some point for a cleaning (I figured blowing out my ST122V with compressed air to get the dust out-it's a horrifying prospect! 🤣💯 But, I wanted to thank your crew for being so legit. Your patents contribute to innovation and improving the longevity of equipment, improve on historic traditions, and given their longevity (say like compared with semiconductors microelectronics in the chip Fab industry, like CPUs & video cards), you all offer durable lasting equipment that artists & other folks can use for generations. They're worth it, and you keep your prices affordable (I imagine getting those Raytheon submarine compact vacuum tubes you used in my R-122V are not exactly cheap, nor easy to come by these days 😅; not unless you've resorted to making your own in-house, at which point, even more props for keeping the prices down). The price for mine hasn't changed much since when I bought it in 2013, and while you *could* price gouge like the international conglomerates, you don't. Your prices are affordable, valuable, and your teams are extremely skilled! The engineering alone demonstrates this-as does your efforts to help rebuild mics. Your teams treat users with respect and while you _could_ charge prices only Warner Discovery, et. al., could afford, you don't. I can't thank you all enough for being ethical and committed to your engineering. I wish that more folks could get the opportunity to use your stuff. It's beyond worth it-something I can pass down in my family like the good china or silverware (that thing us middle class folks used to be able to do). I had wanted here in Portland, Oregon to help create a community space that gave artists and others the opportunity to use real quality tools that could help thrust them into a higher level of professionalism without the exploitive practices and prices of the local "private" studios. A place artists and others could come and express themselves. Unfortunately, I got sick along with my aging parents, which made my idea not come to fruition at that time, but with the holdout employee owned cooperative enterprises and other ethical firms like Royer Labs, it gives me some hope for the future. Thank you!
Great comparison video! I appreciate the transparency and variety of the comparison. Been thinking of getting an ST170, but an R-10 is on the list now. Cool playing too! Love that D'angelico.
I've got the Royer Labs R-122V that was supposed to be the "reference mic" developed for the lab for checking & calibrating mics before they leave the studio, and admittedly, it's made me realize just how much care the teams there put into their products. I also have an ST55 that I bought way back around 2007-2008. By comparison, the Sterling Audio ST170 (by way of claiming it's use of phantom power) just tells me that it's either a reverse engineered or used the parents for Royer's mics. I think the biggest thing with Royer's is their quality, manufacturing standards, and the 1 free ribbon replacement. They also repair vintage mics as well. Basically, they are a net shop that all things considered, give quite a good price on mics (if you think about how much a damn video card costs by comparison, and unlike that, the chances of a mic out sounding a high end Royer Labs microphone is slim to none, whereas that video card will be outdated in short order, especially gamers and artists/engineers/architects/scientists/etc. Who toss out big bucks for those ECC monsters) all things considered. Sterling Audio is good if you have an absolutely fixed budget & are working community/poverty, but if you have the ability to save up like in _ye olden times_, why waste the headache and just save up for something that you can give to your family when you pass (or some young artist) like you could with those beautiful instruments of old? (Sadly, the wood just isn't the same these days, and what wood is, simply isn't available unless you are a damn oligarch.)
great playing! even though you said you play lighter jazz when I saw your pedalboard- I was expecting your tone to be kind of metal. it was really nice though. As far as the mics to my ears - it sounds like the Royer is staying a lot smoother and keeping the lowest and highest tones intact, where the Sterling was picking up the same frequencies just not as predictably and with more top end issues.
Thanks so much for watching! I have a few up on my channel, here's a playlist of solo guitar covers I've done, and I'm releasing new covers every Thursday at 3pm. czcams.com/play/PL9NHdIbO4eR6PkDN0gu-lTHwrkysQFYRy.html
The Royer does sound a little more balanced, smoother, and you can really hear the difference when you pay attention to the low end. The Sterling is a LITTLE brighter on top, and more pronounced in the upper mids, but with less bottom end.
First off , you guitar playing is superb and smooth. Royer and the Sterling can be used for the same application; however, the Sterling may need some of the higher frequencies rolled off. Slight lack of bottom end. The Royer has low end.
Ah thanks Ari! Appreciate it. I totally agree, and that’s even why I was thinking of selling the sterling. The advantage of ribbons usually is for the nice low end and the high frequency roll off, and the sterling doesn’t really give as much. Maybe a little less high end than an SM57 but it’s not as warm as most ribbons.
@@njrous Dear Nick, have you tried the Rode NTR ribbon or the Cloud 44? We are leaning toward the Rode NTR because of the 10 year warranty, and the extended frequency range, but again, that might make it sound brighter than the Royer.
less lows and more mids on the Sterling for sure. As expected. Good video. Both will get the job done when paired with an SM57/e609 and post processing. Honestly, Id take the Sterling to leave room for the bass in the mix. Of course I'd use a R121 over either of these.
For the price, the ST-170 is tough to beat... just got 2! For $99! I absolutely love them, and i can just boost the low end a little with a parametric etc... or just use a different mic like an sm57 to capture more of the low end
Nick, thanks so much for this really helpful comparison. The pronounced differences in low-mids/lows (granted, through youtube compression etc) makes me wonder if the R10's got more pronounced proximity effect, and if backing it off from the source a couple more inches than the ST170 would make them sound much more similar (or, getting a fuller sound on the ST170 with a little closer proximity - but that seems less likely/useful since it's already pretty close)? Cheers!
@@njrous Found a used on on the cheap, and just ordered new one. Been having a lot of fun using it as mono overhead, outside kick mic, and of course guitars. Great mic.
Great shootout. Thanks and informative. The R10 has a bit more of a true tone? and more pleasing overall. I noticed on the acoustic though that the Sterling kept up pretty good. Like you said though, the differences are mild.
Thanks, I agree! I think the Sterling is less “ribbon like” because it still has a decent amount of high information, whereas the Royer had the typical high end cut off. I think if the Royer had a cloud lifter or another preamp with more clean gain, it would keep up!
Yeah, that’s reasonable. Noise floor isn’t too bad with a cloud lifter or a nice preamp, but wanted to give an equal shootout with a standard interface
The Royer is a bit richer sounding--but now that the ST170 is $99, the Sterling is a much better deal. The difference can probably be corrected with a bit of EQ.
yeah, and in most applications, the Royer would need to be EQ'ed with some of the low mids tampered with a bit anyway. The Sterling however, may be not great for stand up Bass or Cello, but for vocals and acoustic, this may be a great purchase. ? I'm still looking...
Great video! Some background about sterling audio... they are a GUITAR CENTER owned company and their products are made with the cheapest components - so out of any microphone you can buy they have the highest markup! (The st55 retailed for 200$ back in the day and the cost was around 70$). Most microphones have 10-20% markup - so you can imagine how many of these have been pushed on unsuspecting consumers over the years by GC (commission paid) salespeople. Weird fact. Anyway, I am now thinking about getting this royer to compliment my r-121 as I often record guitar and drums together, and the royer is so dope on both amps and kick drums.
Hahah you've found out my secret, I actually got a few Sterling mics while I worked there (don't worry, never pushed an item for cost, always tried to help people find their ideal gear and not the best sales, but regardless when I worked there the cost didn't affect commissions). They pop up on the used market for close to cost, I've seen! The R10 would definitely be an awesome compliment to the R-121, great idea!
The Sterling sounds like a condenser mic. Are you sure it's a ribbon mic?. I will stick with the ART AR5 which sounds alot like the Royer r10 but with more gain cuz it's active.
When I use my ST170, when I engage phantom power, it gets really loud and overdrives my mic preamps, even at their lowest gain settings, so I need to use an in-line -20db attenuator. Is this normal? The mic sounds normal and perfectly fine without the phantom power… does it actually NEED the phantom power? Or is it fine to use it without the phantom power?
Hmm that’s weird, is it with guitar? It could just be that the amp is too loud for the mic (I had mine at a pretty modest volume) but if it’s working without phantom, I’d say don’t worry about activating it. Whatever sounds best!
Haha, to some the slight difference is worth the extra bread! This is also the mics outside of the band context, it could be more apparent to you within that context
I liked both. If somebody is on a budget then thank God for budget mics or less expensive mics. If someone can afford the more expensive mics then get it. The main thing is to learn how to use the gear, get the best spot in the room, then mixing and mastering. I got a sterling mic pack with large diaphragm and small diaphragm pack and they both sound nice.
One thing to also consider is that the Royer is passive and Sterling is active. With something like a cloudlifter or similar clean boost, these issues go away. Maybe I should make another video with the cloudlifter!
@@njrous The problem I do have with the cloudlifter or fethead is that they do add their own color to the mix. So you are no longer getting the true sound of the mic anymore. I would rather advice you get a preamp with more gain( I guess even the ssl2 with a 62dB gain will work out for the royer rather introducing some gain boosters). I have a fethead which has less color than the cloudlifter and I can hear the subtle difference between it been in the signal chain and not used..
Hey Nick! Loved your video ;)
Thanks so much!!! Love your mics
Likewise! Gotta get mine sent in at some point for a cleaning (I figured blowing out my ST122V with compressed air to get the dust out-it's a horrifying prospect! 🤣💯
But, I wanted to thank your crew for being so legit. Your patents contribute to innovation and improving the longevity of equipment, improve on historic traditions, and given their longevity (say like compared with semiconductors microelectronics in the chip Fab industry, like CPUs & video cards), you all offer durable lasting equipment that artists & other folks can use for generations. They're worth it, and you keep your prices affordable (I imagine getting those Raytheon submarine compact vacuum tubes you used in my R-122V are not exactly cheap, nor easy to come by these days 😅; not unless you've resorted to making your own in-house, at which point, even more props for keeping the prices down). The price for mine hasn't changed much since when I bought it in 2013, and while you *could* price gouge like the international conglomerates, you don't. Your prices are affordable, valuable, and your teams are extremely skilled! The engineering alone demonstrates this-as does your efforts to help rebuild mics. Your teams treat users with respect and while you _could_ charge prices only Warner Discovery, et. al., could afford, you don't. I can't thank you all enough for being ethical and committed to your engineering.
I wish that more folks could get the opportunity to use your stuff. It's beyond worth it-something I can pass down in my family like the good china or silverware (that thing us middle class folks used to be able to do).
I had wanted here in Portland, Oregon to help create a community space that gave artists and others the opportunity to use real quality tools that could help thrust them into a higher level of professionalism without the exploitive practices and prices of the local "private" studios.
A place artists and others could come and express themselves.
Unfortunately, I got sick along with my aging parents, which made my idea not come to fruition at that time, but with the holdout employee owned cooperative enterprises and other ethical firms like Royer Labs, it gives me some hope for the future.
Thank you!
Great comparison video! I appreciate the transparency and variety of the comparison. Been thinking of getting an ST170, but an R-10 is on the list now. Cool playing too! Love that D'angelico.
Thanks dude! Yes, love my D’Angelico
I've got the Royer Labs R-122V that was supposed to be the "reference mic" developed for the lab for checking & calibrating mics before they leave the studio, and admittedly, it's made me realize just how much care the teams there put into their products. I also have an ST55 that I bought way back around 2007-2008. By comparison, the Sterling Audio ST170 (by way of claiming it's use of phantom power) just tells me that it's either a reverse engineered or used the parents for Royer's mics. I think the biggest thing with Royer's is their quality, manufacturing standards, and the 1 free ribbon replacement. They also repair vintage mics as well. Basically, they are a net shop that all things considered, give quite a good price on mics (if you think about how much a damn video card costs by comparison, and unlike that, the chances of a mic out sounding a high end Royer Labs microphone is slim to none, whereas that video card will be outdated in short order, especially gamers and artists/engineers/architects/scientists/etc. Who toss out big bucks for those ECC monsters) all things considered. Sterling Audio is good if you have an absolutely fixed budget & are working community/poverty, but if you have the ability to save up like in _ye olden times_, why waste the headache and just save up for something that you can give to your family when you pass (or some young artist) like you could with those beautiful instruments of old? (Sadly, the wood just isn't the same these days, and what wood is, simply isn't available unless you are a damn oligarch.)
Well said Christopher! I do feel the sterling has less of a high end cut off, which could be cool in some scenarios.
great playing!
even though you said you play lighter jazz when I saw your pedalboard- I was expecting your tone to be kind of metal. it was really nice though.
As far as the mics to my ears - it sounds like the Royer is staying a lot smoother and keeping the lowest and highest tones intact, where the Sterling was picking up the same frequencies just not as predictably and with more top end issues.
Haha, thanks! I agree with the Royer
Nice playing getting that Kurt Ros. Vibe
Haha thanks Phil, definitely a big influence (on my playing and choice of guitar)
Also your playing is smooth as hell, hope to hear recordings from you
Thanks so much for watching! I have a few up on my channel, here's a playlist of solo guitar covers I've done, and I'm releasing new covers every Thursday at 3pm. czcams.com/play/PL9NHdIbO4eR6PkDN0gu-lTHwrkysQFYRy.html
The Royer does sound a little more balanced, smoother, and you can really hear the difference when you pay attention to the low end. The Sterling is a LITTLE brighter on top, and more pronounced in the upper mids, but with less bottom end.
Yeah totally agree! I think the different is really heard in the distorted comparisons, and it becomes much more obvious. Thanks for watching!
the royer sounds way better wow @@njrous
First off , you guitar playing is superb and smooth. Royer and the Sterling can be used for the same application; however, the Sterling may need some of the higher frequencies rolled off. Slight lack of bottom end. The Royer has low end.
Ah thanks Ari! Appreciate it.
I totally agree, and that’s even why I was thinking of selling the sterling. The advantage of ribbons usually is for the nice low end and the high frequency roll off, and the sterling doesn’t really give as much. Maybe a little less high end than an SM57 but it’s not as warm as most ribbons.
@@njrous Dear Nick, have you tried the Rode NTR ribbon or the Cloud 44? We are leaning toward the Rode NTR because of the 10 year warranty, and the extended frequency range, but again, that might make it sound brighter than the Royer.
Love your video!
@@ariguth4852 I have not! The ribbons I’ve been eyeing are the AEA series and the Ohma ribbon mic, but they’re a bit pricier
Thanks. Very informative video. I dig your playing. Tasteful
Thank you Randy!
less lows and more mids on the Sterling for sure. As expected. Good video. Both will get the job done when paired with an SM57/e609 and post processing. Honestly, Id take the Sterling to leave room for the bass in the mix. Of course I'd use a R121 over either of these.
Well said!
For the price, the ST-170 is tough to beat... just got 2! For $99! I absolutely love them, and i can just boost the low end a little with a parametric etc... or just use a different mic like an sm57 to capture more of the low end
definitely Royer! , but ST170 can be useful on oh`s and percussion, if You want some crispy sound. nice test and skils. respect
Funny you mention that cause I was actually thinking of getting another ST170 for overheads! Thanks for watching and commenting
Nick, thanks so much for this really helpful comparison. The pronounced differences in low-mids/lows (granted, through youtube compression etc) makes me wonder if the R10's got more pronounced proximity effect, and if backing it off from the source a couple more inches than the ST170 would make them sound much more similar (or, getting a fuller sound on the ST170 with a little closer proximity - but that seems less likely/useful since it's already pretty close)? Cheers!
Glad to help! I think you’re right, to an extent, but I think the Sterling just has less lows and a more pronounced high end.
Nice playing! I ended liking the sterling more bc it had more bass and detail to my ears
Thanks dude! Wow interesting, I think you might be the first to think that hahah, but thanks for your input!
The RT 10 smokes it in the mids and low mids. Sounds like butter.
Definitely agree, that thing is sooo good
Hey great playing! I'm looking into a pair of R10s and this is a great demo of what it can do, thanks!!!
Hey thanks, appreciate it! R10s are definitely super versatile and budget friendly compared to the 121!
@@njrous Found a used on on the cheap, and just ordered new one. Been having a lot of fun using it as mono overhead, outside kick mic, and of course guitars. Great mic.
Nice that’s exciting! You could also do a lot of cool MS things with it which has such a cool effect
Great shootout. Thanks and informative. The R10 has a bit more of a true tone? and more pleasing overall. I noticed on the acoustic though that the Sterling kept up pretty good. Like you said though, the differences are mild.
Thanks, I agree! I think the Sterling is less “ribbon like” because it still has a decent amount of high information, whereas the Royer had the typical high end cut off. I think if the Royer had a cloud lifter or another preamp with more clean gain, it would keep up!
The noise floor was horrible on the Royer...that would make it unusable for me, personally.
Yeah, that’s reasonable. Noise floor isn’t too bad with a cloud lifter or a nice preamp, but wanted to give an equal shootout with a standard interface
Ah ok, that's a good point.
Great video, great review, great playing. Thanks
Thanks, glad you enjoyed!
The Royer is a bit richer sounding--but now that the ST170 is $99, the Sterling is a much better deal. The difference can probably be corrected with a bit of EQ.
yeah, and in most applications, the Royer would need to be EQ'ed with some of the low mids tampered with a bit anyway. The Sterling however, may be not great for stand up Bass or Cello, but for vocals and acoustic, this may be a great purchase. ? I'm still looking...
Thank you for the video King!
🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼Thanks for watching Arty!
Great video! Some background about sterling audio... they are a GUITAR CENTER owned company and their products are made with the cheapest components - so out of any microphone you can buy they have the highest markup! (The st55 retailed for 200$ back in the day and the cost was around 70$). Most microphones have 10-20% markup - so you can imagine how many of these have been pushed on unsuspecting consumers over the years by GC (commission paid) salespeople. Weird fact. Anyway, I am now thinking about getting this royer to compliment my r-121 as I often record guitar and drums together, and the royer is so dope on both amps and kick drums.
Hahah you've found out my secret, I actually got a few Sterling mics while I worked there (don't worry, never pushed an item for cost, always tried to help people find their ideal gear and not the best sales, but regardless when I worked there the cost didn't affect commissions). They pop up on the used market for close to cost, I've seen!
The R10 would definitely be an awesome compliment to the R-121, great idea!
The Sterling sounds like a condenser mic. Are you sure it's a ribbon mic?. I will stick with the ART AR5 which sounds alot like the Royer r10 but with more gain cuz it's active.
sterlingaudio.net/dp/sterling-st170-active-ribbon-microphone/
When I use my ST170, when I engage phantom power, it gets really loud and overdrives my mic preamps, even at their lowest gain settings, so I need to use an in-line -20db attenuator. Is this normal? The mic sounds normal and perfectly fine without the phantom power… does it actually NEED the phantom power? Or is it fine to use it without the phantom power?
Hmm that’s weird, is it with guitar? It could just be that the amp is too loud for the mic (I had mine at a pretty modest volume) but if it’s working without phantom, I’d say don’t worry about activating it. Whatever sounds best!
nice guitar playing
Thank you!! 🙏🏻
Sick ring 👊😎💥❤
Angelo Izzo 🤗🤗🤗 thanks big guy
I agree
royer has alot more body and fullness
This guy is epic
Yoooo thank you bro!
Why pay more, the Stirling does it.
Hard to tell a difference.
Haha, to some the slight difference is worth the extra bread! This is also the mics outside of the band context, it could be more apparent to you within that context
I liked both. If somebody is on a budget then thank God for budget mics or less expensive mics. If someone can afford the more expensive mics then get it. The main thing is to learn how to use the gear, get the best spot in the room, then mixing and mastering. I got a sterling mic pack with large diaphragm and small diaphragm pack and they both sound nice.
How do u make those cool panels?
Towels 😎
Royer - too much noise and sounds dirty. Maybe for vintage amps
One thing to also consider is that the Royer is passive and Sterling is active. With something like a cloudlifter or similar clean boost, these issues go away. Maybe I should make another video with the cloudlifter!
@@njrous The problem I do have with the cloudlifter or fethead is that they do add their own color to the mix. So you are no longer getting the true sound of the mic anymore. I would rather advice you get a preamp with more gain( I guess even the ssl2 with a 62dB gain will work out for the royer rather introducing some gain boosters). I have a fethead which has less color than the cloudlifter and I can hear the subtle difference between it been in the signal chain and not used..
@@joshmcdzz6925 this can be said about anything, though.