Antares Mic Mod EFX user manual

							Owner’s Manual
Updated 
Sep\fember 2015 ® 
						

							©2015 Antares Audio Technologies. All rights reserved.
Certified Isinglass-free™  
Antares®, Auto-Tune®, AVOX®, Harmony Engine® and Mic Mod® are registered 
trademarks of Antares Audio Technologies. All other trademarks are property of their 
respective owners.
The “Don’t Sue Us!” Disclaimer: All names of microphone manufacturers and microphone 
model designations appearing in this manual are used solely to identify the microphones 
analyzed in the development of our digital models and do not in any way imply any 
association with or endorsement by any of the named manufacturers. This product is not 
guaranteed to produce, and will not necessarily produce, audio results that are consistent 
with or match audio results that could be achieved using any of the referenced microphone 
models. 
www.antarestech.com 
						

							\bhe Obliga\fory Legal Mumbo-Jumbo 
The Antares
®
 Mic Mod ®
 EFX software and 
this User’s Manua\f are protected by copyright 
\faw. Making copies, adaptations, or derivative 
works without the prior written authorization 
of Antares Audio  Techno\fogies, is prohibited by 
\f a
w and constitutes a punishab\fe vio\fation of 
the \faw. 
Antares Audio  T
echno\fogies retains a\f\f 
ownership rights to the Mic Mod EFX software 
and its documentation. Use of Mic Mod EFX is 
\fimited by the fo\f\fowing \ficense agreement. 
P\fease carefu\f\fy read a\f\f the terms and 
conditions of this \ficense agreement. At 
the time of insta\f\fation of the Mic Mod EFX 
software you wi\f\f be presented with a copy 
of the agreement and asked whether or not 
you agree to it. \bontinuing with the insta\f\fation 
process beyond that point constitutes such 
agreement. 
Mic Mod EFX License Agreement 
Antares Audio Techno\fogies grants you a 
non-transferab\fe, non-exc\fusive \ficense to use 
Mic Mod EFX under the terms and conditions 
stated in this agreement. Use of Mic Mod 
EFX indicates your agreement to the fo\f\fowing 
terms and conditions. 
License 
You may: 
1.Use

 Mic Mod EFX on on\fy one computer at
a time.
You may not: 
1. Mak

e copies of Mic Mod EFX or of the
user manua\f in who\fe or in part except as
express\fy provided for in this agreement.
Your right to copy Mic Mod EFX and
the user manua\f is \fimited by copyright
\faw. Making copies, verba\f or media
trans\fations, adaptations, derivative works,
or te\fecommunication data transmission
of Mic Mod EFX without prior written
authorization of Antares, is prohibited by
\faw and constitutes a punishab\fe vio\fation
of the \faw.
2. Mak

e a\fteration or modifications to Mic
Mod EFX (or any copy) or disassemb\fe or
de-compi\fe Mic Mod EFX (or any copy), or
attempt to discover the source code of Mic
Mod EFX.
3. Sub

-\ficense, \fease, \fend, rent, or grant other
rights in a\f\f or any portion of Mic Mod EFX
(or any copy) to others. 
						

							Term o\f the Agreement 
This agreement is effective unti\f terminated 
by you or Antares. You may terminate the 
agreement at any time by notifying Antares and 
destroying a\f\f copies of the manua\f, and erasing 
Mic Mod EFX from a\f\f machine-readab\fe 
media, whether on-\fine or on archiva\f copies. 
In the event of breach of any of the terms of 
this agreement, you sha\f\f pay the attorney’s 
fees of Antares that are reasonab\fy necessary 
to enforce the agreement p\fus resu\fting 
damages. 
Limited Warrant\b And Disclaimer 
MI\b MOD EFX AND A\b\bOMPANYING 
M ATERIALS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” 
WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER 
EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN\bLUDING, BUT NOT 
LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF 
MER\bHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A 
PARTI\bULAR PURPOSE. 
Antares Audio Techno\fogies does not warrant 
that the functions contained in the program wi\f\f 
meet your requirements. The entire risk as to the 
use, qua\fity, and performance of Mic Mod EFX 
is with you. 
SOME JURISDI\bTIONS DO NOT ALLOW 
LIMITATIONS ON HOW LONG AN IMPLIED 
WARRANTY LASTS, SO THE ABOVE 
LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. THIS 
WARRANTY GIVES YOU SPE\bIFI\b LEGAL 
RIGHTS. YOU MAY ALSO HAVE OTHER RIGHTS 
WHI\bH VARY FROM JURISDI\bTION TO 
JURISDI\bTION. 
Limitation o\f Liabilit\b IN NO EVENT WILL ANTARES BE LIABLE 
FOR ANY DAMAGES, IN\bLUDING LOSS OF 
DATA, LOST PROFITS OR OTHER SPE\bIAL, 
IN\bIDENTAL, \bONSEQUENTIAL OR INDIRE\bT 
DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE USE OF M
I\b 
MOD E

FX OR A\b\bOMPANYING MATERIALS. 
THIS LIMITATION WILL APPLY EVEN IF 
ANTARES OR ITS AUTHORIZED AGENT HAS 
BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SU\bH 
DAMAGE. YOU A\bKNOWLEDGE THAT THE 
LI\bENSE FEE REFLE\bTS THIS ALLO\bATION OF 
RISK. SOME JURISDI\bTIONS DO NOT ALLOW 
LIMITATION OR EX\bLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR 
IN\bIDENTAL OR \bONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, 
SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY 
TO YOU. 
Whew! Now that that’s over, \fet’s get on to the 
good stuff.  
						

							Contents
Chapter 1 Getting Started  2
Installing and Authorizing 
Technical Support 
Chapter 2 Introducing Mic Mod E
FX  3
About the Technology 
So What Exactly Does It

 Do?
 
Chapter 3 Using Mic Mod EFX 5 
Live or Mixdown 
Signal Flow 
Controls 
Input Section 
Source Mic Section   
Modeled Mic Sect

ion
 
Tube Saturation 
Output Level  1
1Chapter 4
  Chapter 5
  1
3
Chapter 6
  Realistic Expectations 
Choice of Input Microphone 
Microphone Variations 
Microphone Technique 
Excessive Frequency Boost 
Polar Pattern Selection 
Off-Axis Response 
Get Creative 
Appendix: The  Mic 
Models 14 5
6
  8 10
10 
						

							1
Welcome!
On beha\ff of everyone at Antares Audio Techno\fogies, we’d \fike to offer both our 
thanks and congratu\fations on your decision to purchase Antares Mic Mod EFX, the 
wor\fd’s on\fy c\fassic microphone mode\fer. Before you proceed any further, we’d \fike to strong\fy encourage you to register 
and authorize your copy 

of Mic Mod EFX. (You can skip ahead to the Authorization and 
Insta\f\fation instru\hctions in the next chapter. We’\f\f wait.) 
At Antares, we are committed to exce\f\fence in qua\fity, customer service, and techno\fogica\f 
innovation. With your purchase of the Antares Mic Mod EFX, you have created a re\fationship 
with Antares which we hope wi\f\f be \fong and gratifying. Let us know what you think.  You can 
count on us to \fisten
Again, thanks.
The Who\fe Antares \brew  
						

							2Chapter 1: Getting Started
I
ns\f
alling  Mic M od  EFX
Mi c Mo d EF X is  designe d to  wor k wit h a  wide 
variet y of  digita \f audi o app\fications . P\feas e refer 
t o  you r hos t app\fication’ s use r manua \f fo r more 
informatio n on  insta\f\fin g an d usin g p\fug-ins. 
(A\fthoug h in  mos t cases , simp\f y doub\fe-c\ficking 
Mi c Mo d EF X insta\f\fe r an d fo\f\fowin g the 
resu\ftin g direction s wi\f \f b e  a\f\f yo u nee d to  do.)
Au\fh o
rizing Mi c Mo d EFX
Authorization is the process by which Mic 
Mod EFX is a\f\fowed to permanent\fy run on 
your computer . Detai\fed instructions  can
 be 
found in  the fi\fe “Authorization Read Me” 
which  is inc\fuded with your  software 
down\foad.  Mic Mod EFX authorization requires 
an 
iLok USB smart key. If you a\fready 
own other audio p\fu g

-ins, you probab\fy 
a\fready have one. If not, they can be 
purchased from many \foca\f music 
stores as we\f\f as most on\fine music 
techno\fogy retai\fers.
NOTE: You will need to authori\fe Mic 
Mod EF\b before you can run it in your 
host. If you plan to follow along with 
the manual (a good idea), go do it now.
\bechnical Suppor\f 
In the un\fike\fy event that you experience a 
prob\fem using Mic Mod EFX, try the fo\f\fowing:  1.
 
Make sure you have the  \fatest version 
        of the plug-in. You can download the 
    installer for the latest version from 
    our 
Latest Software Downloads page.
2.If you are having prob\fems authori
 zing your software, be sure that 
you have  the \fatest
version  of the  i
Lok License Manager
application installed on  your computer. IMPORTANT!
 
Windows users: 
After downloading and installing 
the iLok License Manager, you 
must reboot your 
computer   
before running your software.
If your prob\fem is not reso\fved after taking the 
above actions, try the fo\f\fowing: 1.
Make another quick scan through this
manual. Who knows? You may have
stumbled onto some feature that you
didn’t notice the first time through.
2. Visit our Support page.
3. Join the 
Antares Forum. The Antares
Forum is a place
 where Antares product
users can gather to exchange
information, compare notes, and get to
know other Antares users
 from around
the world.
4. For the quickest access to new
developments, follow us on Twitter and
l
ike us on Facebook or check out our
YouTube and 
Google+ pages.  
						

							3A modern reincarnation of Antares’ renowned Microphone Mode\fer p\fug-in, Mic Mod 
EFX \fets any reasonab\fe qua\fity microphone sound \fike any of a variety of historica\f 
c\fassic and rare exotic microphones. Using our patented Spectra\f Shaping Too\f™ 
techno\fogy, we’ve created precise digita\f mode\fs that reproduce the subt\fe sonic 
characteristics that make each microphone unique. Simp\fy te\f\f Mic Mod EFX what microphone 
you are actua\f\fy using and what microphone you’d \fike it to sound \fike. It’s as simp\fe as that.
Chapter 2: Introducing Mic Mod EFX
With Mic Mod EFX, you can afford to record 
each track through a mode\f of the specific mic 
that wi\f\f best produce that idea\f sound you’re 
\fooking for. Or use it in \five performance to get 
the sound of mics you’d never consider using 
on stage. You can even use it during mixdown 
to effective\fy change the mic on an a\fready 
recorded track.
Not on\fy do the mode\fs reproduce a\f\f of the 
subt\fe sonic characteristics that make each 
microphone unique, but they a\fso give you 
contro\f of each mic’s specific options. Does the 
mic have a \fow cut fi\fter? If so, it’s in the mode\f. 
Wind screen on or off? \b\fose or far p\facement? 
Each option resu\fts in the same sonic effect 
that it wou\fd have with the actua\f mode\fed mic. 
And for that fina\f touch of perfection, you can 
even add some tasty tube saturation.
Abou\f \fhe \bechnology
The mode\fs emp\foyed by Mic Mod EFX are not 
derived from theoretica\f considerations. They 
are generated by a proprietary ana\fysis process 
that is app\fied to each physica\f mic mode\fed. 
The precision of these mode\fs a\f\fows Mic 
Mod EFX to reproduce even the subt\fe (and 
sometimes not-so-subt\fe) sonic variations that 
one often finds in different samp\fes of the 
same mode\f of microphone. \bonsequent\fy, for 
some important mics, we’ve provided mu\ftip\fe 
mode\fs, each based on measurements taken 
from individua\f mics.
Another advantage of our mode\f-based 
approach is that there is essentia\f\fy no 
processing de\fay apart from the natura\f phase 
effects of the microphones being mode\fed and 
any de\fay inherent in the operation of the host 
app\fication or hardware environment.
Fina\f\fy, the qua\fity and signa\f-to-noise 
characteristics of the processing are pristine. 
Because of our commitment to mode\f-based 
processing, there are none of the \fimitations 
or distortions characteristic of FFT-based 
a\fgorithms. The qua\fity of the output is \fimited 
on\fy by the qua\fity of the input.
So Wha\f Exac\fly Does I\f Do?
Whi\fe there is a \fot of fair\fy comp\ficated 
stuff going on under the hood, the essentia\f 
functiona\fity of Mic Mod EFX is rea\f\fy quite 
simp\fe. Basica\f\fy, audio from a microphone 
is input to Mic Mod EFX where it is first 
processed by a “Source Mode\f” which serves 
to neutra\fize the known characteristics of the 
input mic. The audio is then processed by a 
second “Mode\fed Mic” mode\f which imposes 
the characteristics of the mode\fed mic onto the 
previous\fy neutra\fized signa\f. Fina\f\fy, the audio 
is passed through a mode\f of a high-qua\fity 
tube preamp offering the option of c\fassic tube 
saturation distortion.
The detai\fs are found in the next chapter.  
						

							4  
						

							5Chapter 3: Using Mic Mod EFX
Live or Mixdown?
Mic Mod EFX functions equa\f\fy we\f\f processing 
audio during its origina\f performance or \fater 
during the mixdown process. However, if you 
have the choice (which you typica\f\fy wi\f\f for 
everything but a \five stage performance), we 
strong\fy recommend using Mic Mod EFX as 
an insert effect during mixdown. This wi\f\f a\f\fow 
you to experiment with mic choice and various 
mic settings whi\fe auditioning their effect in the 
context of the entire mix.
If you do choose to work this way, it is 
important that you carefu\f\fy document a\f\f 
mic data for each recorded track. This shou\fd 
inc\fude the mic used, any settings such as \fow-
cut fi\fter and/or response pattern se\fected, as 
we\f\f as the average distance between the mic 
and the signa\f source (singer, instrument, etc.). 
This information wi\f\f be required to proper\fy set 
the Source Mic contro\fs during the mix.
Signal Flow
Mic Mod EFX is divided into a number of 
discreet functiona\f b\focks as fo\f\fows (in the 
order of signa\f flow):
Input
 For

 setting the input \feve\f of the audio 
to be processed.
Source Mic
 For

 indicating the mic (and 
the state of its various parameters) that was 
actua\f\fy used to record the audio.
Modeled Mic
 For

 se\fecting the mic (and the 
state of its various parameters) whose sound 
you wou\fd \fike to mode\f.
Tube Saturation
 For

 adding a mode\f of 
ana\fog tube saturation distortion.
Output
 For

 setting the output \feve\f of the 
processed audio. The use of each of the 
individua\f contro\fs is covered be\fow.
Mic Mod EFX Con\frols
Inpu\f Sec\fion
The Input Gain 
s\fider, as is no doubt 
obvious, is used to 
set the \feve\f of the 
incoming audio. The 
exact amount of 
gain or attenuation is 
disp\fayed numerica\f\fy 
above the s\fider. In 
most instances, the 
input gain shou\fd be 
set at the highest \feve\f 
that does not cause 
the 0 dB area of the 
graphic \feve\f meter to 
\fight.
The Leve\f Meter 
disp\fays the \feve\f of 
the audio as it is being 
processed by both the 
Source and Mode\fed 
Mic mode\fs. Because 
some mode\fs (or combinations of mode\fs) 
can resu\ft in increased amp\fitude at various 
frequencies, changing to a different mic mode\f 
or changing a mode\f’s settings may require an 
adjustment of the Input Gain to avoid c\fipping
In practice, you shou\fd start out by setting the 
Input Gain at a bit under the optimum \feve\f. 
Once you’re confident that you’ve found the 
right mic settings for your track, you shou\fd go 
back and fine tune the gain for maximum \feve\f 
without c\fipping.