ribbons keep distorting - placement

1
hi,

i've been recording for a long time with ribbons on various sources. the only problems i've encountered were always on guitar amps. I've never dared to 'experiment' to much with ribbons, since i'm always afraid to damage them ( a M160 once didn't survive a session ).
a 4038 seems to be clean from about 3 feet, when the amp (a single 12' tube fender) is at medium level (meaning volume at 2 or 3).
an AEA R88 yields similar results.
Any tips are welcome.

thanx

ribbons keep distorting - placement

2
I have seen people use ribbons up close to the speaker (some photo's even here on Electrical show the same).
I'm just curious why i keep having distortions when used so close.
Should i just turn the amp down (although this might reduce some of the qualities in the amp-guitar stage) ? I don't think the type of amp is the problem, since i've since tried various amps with similar results.

Thanx again

ribbons keep distorting - placement

4
I use ribbon mics on very loud guitar amps all the time. I usually have them at about 12-18" away from the cabinets. If I hear that there's a problem with the ribbon, I'll move them further away or use a different microphone.
I wouldn't do it but a friend of mine uses his M160s for snare and floor toms and they are fine.
Are you sure that your microphones are still alright?
What mic pre-amps are you using? If the pre-amp's input impedance is too low for your ribbon mics it could result in distortion and a loss of head room.
If it's not too much trouble I would have the mics checked just to make sure that the ribbons aren't stressed.
Best,
Max

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