Mic Shootout Listening Party: Neumann U87 vs MXL 990 vs u87 Clone Mic Mod (Female Vocals)

[@LanceisLawson]

Overall the U87 sounded best. But the modded 990 sounded surprisingly good. Best bang for the buck is the modded 990.

[@Thoracius]

The MXL990 was my first condenser. I remember that sound -- both muddy and brittle at the same time. I ended up modding my 990 with the rk47 capsule and removing the extra layers of mesh and it's much more usable now.

[@danieladriani2260]

Espanol

[@Mr-Evil-Dave]

Thank you for sharing, always enjoy a good comparison video. Mic comparisons are especially nice.

[@Mr-Evil-Dave]

Oh and I prefer the modded as well.

[@medhcine]

Hey Cato, really like your Cam and sm7b setup 🔥. Deep comparison, thank you shawty for the video

[@colinaiken]

Thanks!

[@HHSTuba]

I really like the modded 990. Fuller than the base model, brighter than the neumann.

[@okay1904]

I actually preferred the unmodded 990 in this comparison. It cut through the most, helping the voice to sit well above the foundation of the song and it made the vocal more intelligible.

[@REALSTERLINGBABY]

IMO the Mxl 990 comes 2nd the moded Mxl 990 comes 1st and the other one is the 3rd 🔥 dope music tho u just gained a new fan

[@westharmony]

I have an MXL 990 and 991. I run them through my UK Sound 1173. Trust me it sounds amazing and the preamp helps in having more girth to the sound. Love those mics.

[@CatoNoise]

Nice! Yeah, the 990 really impressed me here. I was sleeping on it before, but it's a great mic!

[@JR-lx8nn]

Gee ... another $100 vs $2500 microphone shoot out - very refreshing and unique. There is nothing like an apples-kumquats product comparison. And so very nice of you to give away and bias the jury (us) with your take before we get to hear any of them, although I we are surely unwashed and not qualified to reach our own conclusion without a proper cue. Truly unfortunate, as the only valid demonstration is a blind A/B comparison recorded with as close to identical circumstances as possible. Ideally, you would record the same vocal passage with all three microphones at once, either on identical equipment or as three separate tracks in your DAW, and not reveal which microphone is which until the end, minimizing or avoiding bias altogether. Another video proving little or nothing substantial or significant. Perhaps this explains why there are only 17 comments, and only 71 thumbs up, to day from more than 2100 views ... Disappointing, sorry I came, and I won't return. Have a good day. TTJ

[@CatoNoise]

lol

[@huyked]

The way you requested us to be kind because it was scratch vocals, I was expecting the worst. Well, what the heck? It sounds really good to me. Sheesh! lol. As with your other Clance + Imes songs, I'm already digging this one. Man, it's tough deciding for me. I listened like 5x-6x* for all of them. But for sure, I had a negative response with the Neumann. It felt like it jolted my ears in some parts. I didn't like it. - And, wow ..... SpongeBob voice: "Two hours later". Yeah, it's been maybe that. If not, 1.5 hours. This is been on repeat, me trying to figure out why I like #1, the mic I dissed first. :D What I didn't like about it is at 6:11 ("calling") and 6:38 ("baby"). The frequency or the loudness gets me . BUT, what I like about the Neumann the most is that her voice feels part of the song and not above it. It allows the music and beat to survive, especially the _very subtle_ etherealness in the background. It doesn't cover it. I love that the "ghost" is always there, especially after 6:49 ("core"), where it travels from right to left "behind/through" me. Some of that is lost/felt de-emphasized in the other takes, possibly due to mic volume, voice/mic difference, or subtle singing/timing difference. Okay, it has definitely been two hours now. lol. Last note is that, you (or whoever added all those sounds, beats, booms, clappity clap/"snap", whisks?, etc.) are so talented. The music/beat is freakin' beautiful. I would say this is my favorite now. I couldn't stop moving with the song when listening. Had to to really concentrate to decide which version I liked best and why. *lol I've lost count. Most likely 30+ times.

[@starrexoticbullies3397]

Does he still do mic mods? The website isn’t working 😢

[@sundogaudio851]

I think if it was me, id try to eq the U87 to mimic response of the modded 990. and just see, because theres a sparkle on the U87 i was missing on the modded mic. but i do get why it was chosen.

[@CatoNoise]

Yeah, that's a great idea, thanks! I think we will try that.

[@rocketsauce5067]

It's weird that the u87 sounded more hyped in the upper mid/Top end.I thought the stock 990 sounded the smoothest.

[@KenSilvers]

Cato, are you homosexual?