Blue Kiwi Users Manual

Kiwi

®

Sound thinking.

Blue Microphones
5706 Corsa Avenue, Suite 102
Westlake Village, CA 91362

www.bluemic.com

Warranty

This Microphone or related part is warranted under the conditions outlined below to its original,
registered owner, provided the purchase was made from an authorized Baltic Latvian Universal
Electronics (BLUE) dealer. This Microphone or related part is guaranteed to remain free from
operating defects for three years from the date of purchase. In the event that service is
required, all necessary parts and labor will be furnished free of charge during this period except
for tubes, which are guaranteed for 90 days against defects. This warranty is void if the serial
number has been altered, removed or defaced. The warranty is void if the equipment is altered,
misused, mishandled, maladjusted, or is serviced by any parties not authorized by Baltic Latvian
Universal Electronics (BLUE). The warranty does not include transportation costs incurred
because of the need for service unless arranged for in advance. Baltic Latvian Universal
Electronics (BLUE) reserves the right to make changes in design and improve upon its products
without obligation to install these improvements in any of its products previously manufactured.
This warranty is in lieu of any or all expressed or implied.

In keeping with our policy of continued product improvement, Baltic Latvian Universal Electronics (BLUE) reserves
the right to alter specifications without prior notice.

©2008 Blue Microphones. All rights reserved.
and

Blueberry, Cranberry& Kiwi Cables

other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

TM

Blue Microphones, Kiwi, Robbie the Mic Pre, Series 2 Shock, The Pop

are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blue Microphones, Inc. All

ongratulations on the purchase of Blue’s Kiwi

C

microphone. The transformerless Kiwi is the top of
our solid-state microphone line, combining the low
noise and superb transient response of top-grade
modern electronics with the crisp, airy high end of
legendary vintage vocal mics.

At the heart of the Kiwi is a multi-pattern variation
of Blue’s B6 Bottle microphone capsule. To provide
a consistent response throughout the range of
pickup patterns, two single backplate, large
diaphragm capsules are acoustically matched,
then measured in our anechoic chamber for opti­mum performance. The end result is a handcrafted
and hand-tuned dual backplate capsule, delivering
a modern tone with a smooth extended top-end.

Though designed primarily to achieve a world­class contemporary vocal sound, this capsule can
be utilized to add a glossy, produced sheen to sax­ophone, piano, electric guitar, and other lead
instruments. In omnidirectional and figure of eight
patterns, or when miking at a distance, the Kiwi
delivers every nuance in the room, with finely
focused resolution and clear, musical frequency
response — ideal for distant acoustic guitar
recording, ambient percussion miking, and uncon­ventional vocal treatments. In its cardioid patterns
the Kiwi excels at delivering a vocal or solo track
right to the front of the mix where it belongs, with
detailed highs, smooth midrange, and minimized
proximity effect (a bass boost inherent in all unidi­rectional mics).

Getting Started

The Kiwi system includes Blue’s custom
suspension shockmount, along with a velvet-lined
cherrywood box which houses the microphone.

The Shock

body from low frequency vibrations when mounted
on a stand. To fit the Kiwi into this assembly, first
open the wire latches on the upper and lower
circular padded bands situated inside the shock
mount frame. Then simply slide the Kiwi into the
bands, make sure that the pattern selector switch
is accessible, and close the wire latches to tighten
the bands around the microphone. The angle of the
mount assembly can be swiveled and adjusted
with the large thumbscrew, which will normally be
positioned at the rear of the mic.

is designed to isolate the Kiwi microphone

The Shock

Once you have the Kiwi secured in its shockmount, you may find it easiest to attach the assembly to
a stand by 1) loosening the boom stand arm or threaded end of the mic stand, 2) grasping the mount
assembly in one hand, and 3) screwing the mic stand threads into the mount, without over-tightening.
This procedure will eliminate any possibility of damage to the mic.

The Shock without loosening of the thumbscrew can result in damage not covered by warranty.

To get the most out of this, or any quality
microphone, it is essential to pair it with
a good microphone preamplifier. Most pro­fessional recordists prefer to have out­board preamps on hand, and will choose
solid-state or vacuum tube models
based on their unique characteristics. To
maintain the integrity of your signal, try
using Blue’s Cranberry, Blueberry or
Kiwi high-definition mic cable along with Blue’s outstanding Class-A vacuum tube mic preamp,
Robbie. And, whenever possible, connect your pre’s output directly to your recorder or A/D convert­er, bypassing the mixing board and any unnecessary components.

The Kiwi requires +48V phantom power, which is provided by most mic preamps, mixing consoles,
or separate phantom power supplies. It is important to note that some units, though rated at 48
volts, may supply insufficient or unstable phantom power, which can result in distortion and/or
degraded performance when used with the Kiwi.

To avoid damage to audio components when connecting phantom power, follow this simple procedure:

1) turn down the mic preamp gain, headphones, and your studio monitors, 2) connect microphone
cable to the Kiwi and microphone input jack, 3) turn on phantom power, 4) turn up the mic preamp
gain, etc. To disconnect or re-route the Kiwi, 1) turn down the mic preamp gain, headphones, and
your studio monitors, 2) turn off phantom power and wait 10 seconds before disconnecting the mic.

To secure the delicate capsule during transport and shipping, three brass
set screws are provided. These screws should be mounted in the solid
metal ring around the circumference of the grille when you first take the
microphone out of its case. Remove these screws before using the
microphone, and replace them if you will be transporting or shipping the
microphone.

are not removed.

NOTE: The Kiwi will not work properly if the security screws

L-R:

The Pop; Blueberry, Cranberry,& Kiwi

NOTE: Forceful positioning of

cables;

Robbie the Mic Pre

Capsule and Pattern Characteristics

When recording in a unidirectional pattern, the active, on­axis diaphragm is on the same side of the microphone as
the Blue logo. The pattern selector switch is located at the
rear of the microphone, and is easily adjusted by hand, with

omnidirectional, and figure of eight patterns marked on the selector
switch, there are 6 intermediate gradations of sub-cardioid (between
omni and cardioid) and super-cardioid (between cardioid and figure of
eight) patterns to choose from.

You will notice that the sound of the Kiwi capsule changes when
adjustments are made to the nine-position pickup pattern switch on the
microphone body. In general, the omnidirectional pattern offers the
flattest frequency response, with an absence of proximity effect. As the
pattern becomes more directional (by clicking clockwise through the

no special tools required. In addition to the standard cardioid,

Kiwi shown with

The Shock