Review of the best mic stand money can buy!
I have owned or used just about every type of mic stand out there. Now, I know what you’re thinking – really, it’s just a mic stand! Well, I’m here to tell you that not every microphone stand is made equally. In fact, I don’t think I have seen any that are built quite like the Latch Lake micKing 2200. I’m not sure if they’re ex-NASA engineers over there in Eagan, Minnesota or what!
In my personal home studio, I have basically thrown out all my other mic stands! I keep a couple short amp/bass drum stands around, but for the most part – the micKing does everything else for me.
My studio is small. I don’t have a ton of room. Most of my audio recording is going to be 1 to 4 audio channels at a time, honestly no more (unless it’s a drum session). I go straight into my DAW (Pro Tools), through my Universal Audio Apollo interface.
I have trimmed all my outboard gear down to just the basics. I’m at about 95% “in the box” now. I have plug-ins galore, and love them. Life has become so much easier now, way more easier than the old days. Creativity can flow without having to wait on set up of any list of items to get that right sound recorded. With that being said, the one item I love to have on hand in spades are different microphones. Condensers, dynamics, ribbons, etc. They all have different purposes and characteristics that make them sound different. I always try to capture the sound as good as I can at “the source”, and avoid fixing it in the mix later. I love Microphones. They are the main focus of my outboard gear. I’m in my Al Schmitt phase where I’m practicing mic placement first and foremost over EQ and compression later in the mix. As Eric B. and Rakim would say it – I’m a microphone fiend. I love Microphones.
Some of these mics are HEAVY. Ever try to put a U47 up on a flimsy, stripped out mic stand? Not happening. Trying to get the right angle on an instrument or voice with a thin, light weight stand? It just won’t cut it.
In comes Latch Lake. Now, my only experience is with the micKing 2200, but from everything I can see – the rest of their lineup is in place with the quality and performance that the micKing 2200 has displayed. It is the one microphone stand to rule them all.
Construction on this bad boy is insane. I couldn’t believe the weight of it when the UPS man showed up at my door. There’s some minor assembly required, you simply have to screw the stand into its base. That’s about it. The base is an incredible design that can be tilted and rolled around so you don’t have to go to the chiropractor every time you want to move it. It can also be interlocked or “nested” with other micKing 2200’s or the larger 3300’s. Ingenious. The 29lb. 16″ base foundation has immense strength and flexibility. These guys at Latch Lake really thought this whole thing out.
Ninety percent of the weight of the base is on the outer perimeter for maximum stability, and raised center section allows cords to burrow under the base without crushing.
I can get my mic to just about anywhere I want without fear of dropping it or jimmy rigging it. Latch Lake has created an ingenious “lever lock system”, that requires only one quick and simple adjustments throughout the entire stand. These locks ensure, hands down, the strongest hold possible with the least amount of frustration. You can even customize their tension to your precise needs! No more twisting and turning or stripping out cheap plastic adaptors and nuts. It really is amazing and easy to work with.
It features a 2-section boom – 45.5″ – 7’3″ (at full extension, boom reaches up to 14′) which makes it awesome for any task, including drum overheads or even choirs. The boom itself has a removable counter weight. It can be positioned anywhere on the boom arm. Honestly, this stand holds my heaviest mic’s just fine without it – but I sure like the extra insurance it provides for my piece of mind.
My favorite feature on this amazing product is the spin grip mic mount. At the tip end of the boom, Latch Lake has included a mic mount. Not any ordinary mic mount. With the flick of their ingenious lever lock system the mic mount can freely spin 295 degrees! It utilizes a 3″ disk brake capable of locking the heaviest of microphones in place. This enables you to hold your mic in place and freely spin the mount into the base of your mic clip or shock mount (using a standard 5/8″ fitting). It’s just so easy! It really makes mounting the microphones at any angle so care free. You can easily place your microphones at angles unavailable to traditional microphone stands, adding the flexibility to work around isolation shields and more accurately position drum overheads. It also comes with a thread extender adapter for short threaded stands.
I have been so happy with this purchase. The only thing I thought to myself weeks after I bought it was “now I’m going to have to buy another one!” Tight? I love recording acoustic guitar in stereo, don’t you? Well, upon further review it seems Latch Lake has really thought of everything! They have come up with additional accessory boom arms. They are called Xtra Boom. LOL. and they come available in 12″, 18″, and 24″ lengths. The micKing 2200 is so heavy duty that you can simply add additional boom arms to it.
You can add these Xtra Boom arms to the boom itself or the base, offering up multiple possibilities for mic placement. I not only purchased the 24″ Xtra Boom, but I also snagged another spin grip for the boom. Now I can do all sorts of mic placements with only one stand in my smaller sized studio. Less set up/clean up, and less space being taken up. When I’m done, I simply fold it down and roll it into the corner. The micKing 2200 is one of my favorite pieces of gear, and it’s just a stand! This is the stand that every serious studio should have. The price may scare some of the smaller guys off, but you get what you pay for these days. I will never have to replace this one, that’s for sure.
My last project I had 4 mic’s mounted to the stand! Two of them were Mojave MA-300 tube mics and I also had a stereo pair of Neumann KM184 in an XY setup. Just awesome! Before the 2200 showed up I would have had 3 different stands with cables all over and no room to move.
The Latch Lake micKing 2200 comes in at a price of $739.00 retail. Yeah, that’s big bucks. Add the Xtra Boom for $99.00 (that’s any of the 3 sizes). The 2200 has a bigger brother, the 3300. The micKing 3300 will get you another 3′ of boom height and will set you back $1099.00 retail. And last but not least, the micKing 1100, the smaller brother of the group. The micKing 1100 costs $539.00 retail, and you do loose some of the awesome features like the heavy, interlocking base. But the 1100, from what I can tell is a great stand in its own rights. It is actually pictured above with the Xtra Boom arm attached to it.
All of Latch Lakes stands and accessories come in black or chrome. I went with the black, but the chrome does give you that nice retro feel.
All in all, you have to decide if your pocketbook can handle that kind of a hit for a mic stand. But if you have microphones that cost over $3k-5k, to me it’s a no brainer. If you’re looking to throw up a Shure SM57 – then I think you’ll make it fine with the cheap $25 stand. I love me some Latch Lake!