Jazz bassist Carlos Henriquez has been using an MXL Revelation II for high quality recordings during lockdown, and says he’s been struck by the microphone’s ability to capture an authentic Jazz sound. 

“Sonically, the genre of jazz carries a lot of history and we often find that as technology advances, the historical sound ends up being altered. You could spend thousands of dollars on antique microphone solutions, but then you also have to spend thousands of dollars on the equipment needed to run them.” 

A Juilliard Music Advancement Program (MAP) graduate, Henriquez joined the Jazz at Lincoln Center orchestra in 1998. Over the past 22 years, he’s since toured the world with the orchestra, and has contributed to more than 25 albums. 

When COVID-19 pandemic struck the US in March, Henriquez found himself attempting to record music from home for the first time in his makeshift home studio.

“For our performances, we solely rely on microphones, which are directed by our Acoustic Sound Engineer David Robinson and Audio Engineer Todd Whitelock,” explains Henriquez. “When we first began working from home, I had nothing to offer in terms of sound other than my iPhone and laptop. I ended up capturing a couple of recordings on my iPhone, which Todd was able to work with. However, listening back, it was not the high-quality audio that we are accustomed to at Jazz at Lincoln Center. I knew I needed to do something about it.”

Engineer Whitelock suggested Henriquez audition the MXL Revelation II.  “As soon as the microphone arrived at my house, I was immediately impressed. I could tell this was going to be a solid mic.”

Whitelock also suggested Henriquez look into a few other pieces of essential gear such as speakers and a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation). “With my new Revelation II microphone incorporated into my project studio, the audio files I was capturing went up twofold in terms of clarity and quality, even Todd was amazed with how clear everything sounded. What really blew us away with the Revelation II is the ability to change the polar patterns of the mic. We are seamlessly able to swap back and forth between figure eight, omnidirectional, and cardioid polar patterns. This has been extremely helpful, especially working from home.”