The InVision Universal Studio Mount (or USM) has been designed to provide a 21st-century alternative to elasticated suspensions, the basic form of which has remained essentially unchanged for several decades. Based around the resilient 'u'-shaped Lyre suspension mount used in Rycote's existing InVision suspension range for smaller-barrelled microphones, the InVision USM will fit any high-quality microphone from 18 to 55mm in diameter, including large-diaphragm models and those with flat-sided and tapered barrels.
With no elastic or rubber parts, the USM suspension does not need rethreading, and because the Lyres are made of the composite material Hytrel, they are virtually unbreakable, says the company. The modern design and materials used create a mount that isolates the microphone more efficiently from handling and stand-borne noise than 'cat's-cradle' suspensions. In Rycote's vibration testing, the Universal Studio Mount provided up to 12dB more isolation than elasticated mounts.
"Elasticated microphone suspensions have remained more or less the same since the 1940s," comments Rycote's managing director Simon Davies. "We knew that the materials now exist to do a much better job of isolating recording mics from unwanted noise, and felt confident that we could deliver a universal solution for around the price of a quality dynamic vocal microphone. In the event, the USM comes in at considerably under that cost, and improves considerably on the performance of existing suspensions."
(Jim Evans)
