Distance Over Time, the fourteenth album from American progressive metal band Dream Theater, was released on February 22, 2019 on the Sony Music label. Lead vocalist James LaBrie was captured exclusively using Mojave Audio’s MA-1000 large-diaphragm multi-pattern tube condenser microphone.
Mixer, engineer, and producer Richard Chycki served as the vocal co-producer and engineer on Distance Over Time. Chycki described his experience with the Mojave Audio MA-1000.
“LaBrie sings all lead and backing vocals,” Chycki explained. “I learned about the MA-1000 toward the end of recording vocals for Dream Theater’s previous album The Astonishing, where the mic proved itself as an excellent choice for James’ vocal style. As a result of that experience, we used it exclusively for the recording of Distance Over Time. James’ vocal performance can have a particularly wide dynamic range and finding a microphone with both a complementary response and the ability to handle his vocal level had been a challenge—until we discovered the MA-1000.”
When queried about those MA-1000 attributes that made the mic an excellent choice for capturing LaBrie’s vocals, Chycki offered the following comments. “First and foremost, the MA-1000 has the innate ability to sound great on all sources on which I’ve used it,” he said. “The mic is in many ways a jack of all trades and master of all. For vocals, the MA-1000 is both present and bright—without being harsh or sounding EQ’d. The detail of its capture is exemplary, as is its ability to capture high SPL without distortion or breakup.”
“Mojave Audio and HHB Canada, the Canadian distributor for Mojave, have always been super-accommodating and proactive,” he reports. “Both companies exhibit genuine concern that all projects involving the use of their products turn out right. I know that if I have questions, I can call the Mojave office and get capable support without any runaround—and that’s very important.”
