Blind Testing Vocal & Guitar Mics: Telefunken U47 vs ELA M 251E | Royer R121 vs Shure Sm57

[@Producelikeapro]

Between these microphones, which did you prefer and why? Share your thoughts below!

[@spitfiremusic3997]

U47 all the way each and every day

[@plapclips6799]

U47 always does seem to win these days

[@sixstringalliance4417]

Any of these would be great!

[@MariJu1ce]

Really depends on the singer and the song! Im always suprised what works is not always what i expect will work

[@Nikkie_jurnigan]

Can you do Video how to mastering song with only pro tools stock plugins

[@YachtPartyBandFortWayneIN]

Hey Warren, this is Nick, the vocalist and drummer. Thank you so much for inviting our cover band Yacht Party to come perform the Steely Dan classic "Peg", we really enjoyed it, and appreciated your input very much. Hope to see you back at Sweetwater soon, or maybe you'll be at NAMM? Thanks again!

[@Producelikeapro]

Nick!! You did an amazing job my friend!! Very impressed! Hope to see you again soon

[@Bluelagoonstudios]

If a room isn't treated well, you hear the differences immediately, I did build studio's for broadcast purposes, and they asked me which microphones I should choose for their setup. I always said, clap your hands in the room, if it reflects everywhere, use dynamic mic's, if the room is treated, you can use dynamic and condenser mic's. If the room is treated like in studios like yours, you can hear it, but your ears have to be good to make a difference. I bought 10 Lewitt LCT 440 PURE and 2 Lewitt PURE TUBE Studio Sets. I'm happy with them. And my old SM7b's and SM58's and Shure Beta 58 A's. In time, a pair of Pure tube studio mic's will be added.

[@Producelikeapro]

Absolutely, tight solar patterns of dynamic mics work much better in excessively live rooms!

[@DRChevalier]

Really very useful to me. I do more instrumental work than with vocalists so was not surprised that the choice of 57 and 121 was preferred but I was really blown away by how nicely the U47 handled the vocals. Thanks so much Warren!

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much! Glad to be able to help!

[@thesongacademy5017]

Peg is a masterpiece. Nice vocal

[@Producelikeapro]

Yes! It certainly is

[@tjjordanmusic]

That vocalist sounds awesome! Would love to hear him in some of the other mic demo videos

[@Producelikeapro]

Marvellous!

[@Producelikeapro]

Great idea!

[@officialWWM]

I’d also vote for that! I thought he was great!

[@Producelikeapro]

@@officialWWMthanks ever so much

[@TimHarrisonPlus]

I enjoyed being a fly on the wall for this. I would LOVE to see this without telling anyone which mics are being used. Even knowing what’s being used in the test skews the results. Having real people in the room but having only the person positioning the mics knowing which is which would make for quite an honest test for all involved.

[@Producelikeapro]

Yes! Real blind tests are definitely the way to go! Stay tuned!

[@plapclips6799]

Great cover

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks! Great fun

[@thedp]

I kinda ignored the tonal differences because they were minor on the vocal mic. what I really picked up on even with YT compression was the transients and detail. The U47 had less transient detail making for a "smoother" sound while the 251 was unforgiving in revealing any flaw in vocal performance. that was quite useful to hear. likewise 57 vs 121 was as expected. thanks !

[@Producelikeapro]

Great insight! Thanks for sharing!

[@Joey-rp5vg]

Great stuff. It's amazing to hear the different sounds from mics and placement and the beauty is there is no right or wrong, only the tones your looking for for that particular song. Great video. Thanks very much

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much Joey! You Rock my friend

[@sixstringalliance4417]

Great seeing Warren at work

[@metalman3227]

Agreed

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much!

[@splashesin8]

😅Love it! Relate to, "I forgot the words right here, for a second." I did come back to him though❣️I like the closest to live sound.

[@Producelikeapro]

Haha Who hasn't forgotten their lines? Thanks ever so much!

[@adiohead]

Out of the box without EQ, I preferred the 251 for his vocals and and the sm57 for the guitars.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much for sharing

[@keithferris9574]

Me too. It was naturally compressed and more mix ready, but a little more sibilant.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks for your opinion@@keithferris9574

[@davidperez909]

I LOVE watching Warren work.

[@Producelikeapro]

Aw shucks! Thanks ever so much

[@spitfiremusic3997]

Love that song!

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much!

[@KirkyDrums]

1st was warm and suits the track . 2nd jumped out and was really clear but didn't sit imo

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much for sharing

[@vminator]

I do have a 47fet I recently discovered to be great on female vocals, before that I always used a C-12 as the go to. Ribbons are great but are always a bit darker. I have a M160 and a pair of rode NTR's a really like. The NTR's are like a poormans 4038. Not as smooth I admit but still sound great.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much of sharing!

[@akagerhard]

Both the U47 and ELA M251E are not within my budget, but I preferred the U47 in the Mix (Mic 1). I felt like it was a lot harder to judge in solo. Not sure how much of it is just due to the "EQ" the Microfones impart on the sound. But I guess it's always better not to have to EQ as much afterwards.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much for sharing! I like the U47 because IF I want to brighten it it's always smooth!

[@akagerhard]

@@Producelikeapro So you're saying some mics react better to being brightened up afterwards? Like when 2 different mics get to the same overall "brightness" post EQ - the U47 will likely sound smoother, eventhough it's just as bright? If this is the case I'd like to know how this would be possible. Honest question! Why?

[@Producelikeapro]

IF a mic has very pronounced high mids it's hard to brighten without exaggerating those, any mic that I can just do small amounts of EQ too is always going to be a winner for me! FYI I do NOT find a U47 overly bright, not on the ones I own or have ever used@@akagerhard

[@akagerhard]

@@Producelikeapro Thank you for elaborating! I take it that mics with quieter high mids are easier to EQ and others will probably need a cut in the high mids when boosting the highs more excessively. So a world class mic is preferred, but not necessary.

[@rome8180]

I thought the U47 was obviously better. I was surprised that anyone preferred the 251. The plosives were way more exaggerated with the 251. And it sounded way too thick in the low mids.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much for sharing!

[@jonsand2425]

Great video, very interesting !

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much

[@Hello-pl2qe]

Great video and comparisons

[@sixstringalliance4417]

Agreed

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much!

[@Producelikeapro]

@@sixstringalliance4417thanks ever so much

[@brentharmonmusicproduction]

For the Guitar Part I would have gone the Royer R122 and Shure 545sd. Then I would do like Pete Thorn, Tim Pierce and gotten the either BAE Audio 1073MP Dual Channel with the Steve Stevenson blend mod or the Chandler Limited TG2 Abbey Road Special Edition 2-channel Microphone Preamp with its summing on it.

[@Producelikeapro]

Yes! I'm a huge BAE fan, I've introduced a lot of great players to their incredible mic pres!

[@davidspicer5241]

Great vid! lovely studio.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much

[@johnmcreason]

Hello Warren I loved your video I am going to try the amp technique with the two microphones for my next guitar recordings the sound is really sublime on your demo thank you very much.

[@Producelikeapro]

Sounds great! Thanks ever is much

[@zorroinhell5549]

Another wisdom filled video. Thanks Warren, this is a very simple, yet valuable presentation. What button did you push on the Neve to correct phase?

[@Producelikeapro]

The Polarity switch. Glad you enjoyed the video!

[@gutekzpoligonu]

About Alice in chains Warren. Durring BLACK GIVES WAY TO BLUE recordings and THE DEVIL PUT DINOSAURS HERE, Jerry was singning throu ELM 251 and Martech Pre (Joe Baressi told You about that one on episode with Him) and old 160 XT DBX. DuVall, as a second singer, was going with same stuff but mostly via U47. I like ELAM for clarity and U47 for a body. Definitely great headache to have and great choice for one singer with different charmonies to try to separate A LITTLE BIT same vocals from the harmonies beside the diferences in singing.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks for your great comment! I was of course referring to the classic lineup when the amazing Layne Staley was the lead singer! I really your detailed comment. Many thanks

[@gutekzpoligonu]

@@ProducelikeaproLayne was the beast but I love that they comeback. BTW, I wasn't too familiar with heavy and sort of speaking new way of modern mixing until I've heard "Black Gives Way To Blue" and from that on I was all in into recording and mixing modern techniques to achieve this massive heavy sound but still with a lot of analogue taste.

[@Producelikeapro]

Marvelllous! Thanks ever so much for sharing!@@gutekzpoligonu

[@Ted_Swayinghill]

PEG!!!!!

[@Producelikeapro]

YES! Masterpiece of a song

[@mariodriessen9740]

Can I ask you a question, Warren? Many times I have heard people say that the Shure SM57 and the SM58 are essentially the same mics with the same specs apart from that (what do you call it? A) popfilter? Is it true that you can unscrew that thing off the 58 and then you basically turned it into a 57? It seems like the opinions on this are divided. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@tom_k_d]

SM57 and SM58 share the same capsule, as well as their respective Beta versions. I did the test with 57Beta A and 58Beta A: when both are having their grill unscrewed, they are 100% identical. Now thing is, you can't unscrew the SM57 grill, which will still have a slight influence on it's sound, compared to a SM58 with it's grill unscrewed - but these two come at least very close to each other, too, and it's always a good workaround when no SM57 is at hand.

[@mariodriessen9740]

@@tom_k_d : Thank you very much. I appreciate it. You made it very clear, so thanks again!

[@Producelikeapro]

It looks like there;'s some great answers here! Yes, same capsule!

[@Producelikeapro]

Marvellous!@@mariodriessen9740

[@jeremythornton433]

Now if we can compare the high end U47 to the low end Warm Audio U47jr. I'd really love to hear how much the price difference matters since I can't afford the expensive one but do own the cheaper one.

[@Producelikeapro]

That's a marvellous idea! Stay tuned!!

[@jhhhfdm11]

you mentioned typical EQ for vocals (300hz boost, 10k boost, deessing) i find myself often cutting 3k, to make room for instruments. and also i cut 10k to make room for hihats which frequencies you usually cut on a vocal to make room (if at all) ?

[@wyrlismike]

im stoked, both the u47 and the 251 sound like my tube m-audio sputnik mic, never would have thought it, thanks for the esteem warren

[@metalman3227]

That's a good by product

[@Producelikeapro]

Haha indeed

[@the-matrix-has-you]

Hi Warren, do you and Sir Jack Douglas own Advance Audio CM251 I wonder? I have read in some forum that Jack Douglas have said the Advance Audio has nailed the sound of Vintage AKG ELaM 251... is this the Truth? could you please tell me if these statements people make are true? Thank you Warren you Rock🎼🎵🎶🎸🎹🎺🎤🎧📻

[@bdlevine8791]

Where did you place the 121? Did you put it in the rear or front?

[@Producelikeapro]

On the front. If I'm going to use a 121 (prefer the R10 OR the R122V!) then I make sure the capsule is super close to the SM57.

[@Behnan]

Mic -> your favorite BAE Preamp -> Distressor -> Distressor -> 1176 ??

[@Producelikeapro]

One Distressor would be enough going into an 1176! Also if you have two Distressors you can set one to compressor and the other to limit

[@byteborg]

How about the rear 57 mixed in for rythm and the 121 for solo sections?

[@Producelikeapro]

Try it! Sounds like an interesting idea to me

[@byteborg]

@@Producelikeapro I'll certainly try it out with 57s from front&back and one of my condensers!

[@Producelikeapro]

Marvellous@@byteborg

[@nicolasblanckaert2035]

maybe I'm ear tired today but to me the SM57 + Royer is too bright and I go for the 2 SMs. Or maybe it"s because I listened to too much Alice in Chains haha

[@Producelikeapro]

Haha too much 'Alice In Chains'? Is that such a thing?

[@nicolasblanckaert2035]

@@Producelikeapro HAHA excellent

[@Producelikeapro]

Haha thanks!@@nicolasblanckaert2035

[@Mister_Jahn]

agree the 47 is better for him 100%

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much for sharing!

[@officialWWM]

I have a question about recording guitars. When producing my own music, I typically play all the instruments myself, so it’s not a full band playing live situation. I tend to choose an amp sound and play all my parts in dry with no fx and add them later when mixing. However, this can be very time consuming. Am I doing this right, or should I just fully commit to my reverb and delays etc at the time of recording? I’m very interested in anyone’s opinion:)

[@chinmeysway]

Plug-ins?or reamp type send / return. Commit to pedals! Or delete and re-record after messin w Pedsls? Or two takes; one clean to tweak in post, one w effects baked in. Keep one version discard other down the road.

[@officialWWM]

@@chinmeysway lots of decisions, lol.

[@AmiliaCaraMia]

For delays and reverbs, I add them in the box later because I want the full context of the mix so I know how to place them. It's always tedious as I like to do a lot of automation / volume rides on reverbs in general. Plus I'll sometimes want different reverbs to accent different guitar parts. What you can also do if you like the sound of a pedal is build a small patchbay for them. That way you can send the guitar back out to the pedal and capture it later. Wouldn't do that for saturation exactly but yeah. I do this a lot for delays / reverbs that have a particular vibe. Haven't found a quick way to do this, as it's all dependent upon the current mix and changes a lot. Cheers 🙌

[@officialWWM]

@@AmiliaCaraMia interesting approach. As a guitar player, I find the way I play changes completely depending on the tone I use, the amount of reverb and delay etc. so playing clean and dry is not very conducive to getting a good performance from me. Also, I think it can be healthy to make a decision on a sound and commit to it. There seems to be a lot of different ways to skin this particular cat :)

[@Producelikeapro]

Great question! For guitar amps, if the band has a sound they use at every going they I"m loathed to change it as everyone has worked with that sound! However, ion you're on your own and you don't have a sound you are completely committed to of course then you could add that to the channel they way you hear it and then tweak later if necessary!

[@thulioassis1023]

I like how you emphasize that, if not comparing them directly, we would find them both to sound great for his voice. It's like choosing a colour for my next Ferrari - spoiler alert, I'm not.

[@Producelikeapro]

Indeed! They are both wonderful mics! Congratulations on your new Ferrari! Haha Factory red I assume then?

[@thulioassis1023]

@@Producelikeapro Whatever colour is in stock and ready to go!😉

[@Producelikeapro]

Haha exactly!@@thulioassis1023

[@tom_k_d]

Vocals: Mic 1 in this case - it adds nice grit / harmonic distortion to the vocals, which suits this song - Mic 2 sounds much cleaner, but boring. Guitar: R121: much more versatile.

[@officialWWM]

What an awesome singer! I liked mic 2, it seemed a little brighter to me. But what do I know, I’m the Worlds Worst Musician 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much for sharing

[@MichaelLenz1]

One is better for sure

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks for sharing

[@JSSTUDIO-wr2jq]

🙂👍

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much

[@PrantoKoX]

Interesting video, good and realistic insight into what so often happens in a studio, for a vocal session. 👍🏼👍🏼 On a side note, I always find it amazing how most don't even flinch at the fact that those "Telefunken" (a brand & badge bought and revived, that has nothing to do with the German preamps, AEG/Siemens gear, and re-badged Neumanns & AKGs of back in the day) microphones linked in the video description are SO vastly, wildly overpriced - just because they carry that badge, it is IMHO no excuse to price them hijacking & riding on the extremely high prices now fetched by the original, vintage mics. These are modern day & age made mics, manufactured with all the aid and benefits of modern technology, globalization, parts outsourcing, CNC and metalwork advancements, global distribution etc, and they didn't even need to do the groundwork for the capsule and circuit design as they are using the work of the original European engineers. Clearly, despite being good, their prices are greedily inflated, like x5 if not even x10. I find that despicable. Buy one of these and although you can flaunt the name, you still know you don't have the real thing. And I find that silly. So, for my money, best stick to smaller brands and more original mics of today, with far more realistic prices. 🤷🏼‍♂️ To each their own.

[@metalman3227]

Ok but you trashed a video because the engineer Darrell Thorpe uses mainly Lauten Audio mics which are a fraction of the price and even though he uses them on every album you made it sound like the video was an Ad. Be consistent, you just sound like you're trolling looking for a reason to complain.

[@PrantoKoX]

@@metalman3227 @metalman3227 Not at all. Pls read what I wrote again before calling names. I didn't "trash" anything, actually I often praise videos here and elsewhere. Regrading that other video (although I fail to see why you would be commenting on it here under an unrelated video and go seeking out my comments - makes you look like a bit of a stalker or fanboy??), I clearly said I like & use Lauten mics, I like & respect Darrell and his work - but I'm not blind. And I wouldn't assume on what engineer X or producer Y uses, if you trust YT for such info in the age of such aggressive marketing... well good luck to you! Rearding this video, just read again, my comment is about "Telefunken" of today and their pricing policy. Nothing against the video itself. And nothing to do with this channel's very evident brand pushing in other videos, regardless of the prices. Thanks for following me around, over & out - cheers. ✌🏼

[@metalman3227]

Thou doth protest too much @@PrantoKoX you are ignoring the vital point. The mics Darrell uses are majority Lauten, so a video where he records drums are going to be.....yes, you guessed it.....Lauten! That doesn't make it a video for Lauten. Address that, edit your comment, or even admit you're wrong and then you can have a point of value LOL

[@PrantoKoX]

@@metalman3227 Sorry, I don't take orders. 🤐

[@metalman3227]

You just lie LOL@@PrantoKoX

[@pongmaster123]

i would appreciate if the microphones are called by their correct name, this is a Telefunken *USA* U47 and has not to much in common with a real original U47.

[@metalman3227]

The company is actually called:- TELEFUNKEN Elektroakustik In what respect are they 'not to(o) much in common'?

[@dralithi]

I like the U47, because it's the topic of a Frank Zappa lyric joke 😂

[@in.der.welt.sein.]

Mic 2 hurt my ears

[@keithstuart1670]

Maybe you should get a REAL vocalist

[@AdamTru1]

I hope you find the attention you so desperately seek.