Is a $7,000 Mic Worth It? - Neumann U67 Reissue Review / Test (vs SM7B, TLM 103, U87 Ai, WA67)

[@Podcastage]

I am a dislike button.

[@FharishAhmedPortfolio]

LoL Don't steal my real life job! 😁

[@j_ett]

my friend i am too poor to look at that mic

[@domg6041]

Dislike his comment to like this video twice.

[@TheFinalRevelation2]

Those who sent you the mic could have afforded to send a star singer to test it on your channel

[@TheFinalRevelation2]

One use case would be as a gift for a star singer

[@MaSTARMedia]

The mad lad actually did it.

[@avamomoh]

I gotta say...these mic reviews are absolutely brilliant. I don't think anyone on the entire internet does these mic reviews better.

[@racoonman36]

Agreed

[@BoothJunkie]

Oh, madonna mia, I am so jealous.

[@Podcastage]

Come on over, I’ll you use the mic.

[@RetroFan2.0]

Same could only afford getting a u87ai 😭

[@BoothJunkie]

@@Podcastage Be right there.

[@tuneunleashed]

@@BoothJunkie come over to my house. I’ll use it for you. Just watch me.

[@spacemandave2345]

@@BoothJunkie Looing forward to the Booth Junkie / Podcastage crossover ;)

[@andref3419]

It's nearly impossible to dislike this reviewer 😃 👍 ! Competent, likeable and entertaining too, for those of being interested in this specific area certainly.... Please keep on doing those reviews, they are always helpful and a pleasure too.

[@joecaroselli9945]

And legend has it that Bandrew had his home repossessed in December 2021, but he walked out proudly holding a u67 suitcase. In all seriousness, I fully support a point that Bandrew Often makes; don’t go into debt over purchasing audio gear.

[@Podcastage]

1,000,000% accurate!

[@BILLY-px3hw]

I say if you are going to go into debt you might as well do it buying audio gear

[@XionMcOficial]

Tengo el 103 es una maravilla lo único que no me gustó es las "s" que suele dejar son muy brillantes además de que son muy sensibles y se pueden dañar con el tiempo si no se los cuidan, de ahi todo bien.

[@Podcastage]

The TLM103 is an excellent microphone. You will get decades of use out of that thing. Money well spent in my opinion.

[@lukecyrus]

Thanks for this one!! One reassuring thing to be noted on gear like this, is that it hardly looses any value over the years, if any. As opposed to spending 7 grand on a car or a new computer, you'll always be able to get your 7 grand back. I also loved how the flathead screws are all level on the power supply, attention to detail!

[@lukecyrus]

Edit: I just recorded a vocalist in my studio and I got to borrow my neighbour's vintage U67. We weren't quite feeling it, so we tried my OC818 and ended up using that one. Always depends on who/what you're recording...

[@pendejodanny6017]

@@lukecyrus maybe his vintage u67 has a different tube? Maybe it got replaced or something.

[@jeremyryannoel]

It’s hard to not like this microphone, regardless of price! The one thing I constantly hear are the room resonances since it’s highly detailed. That’s not the microphone’s fault, but definitely something to consider for vocal recording. Man this mic is good!

[@MattPicsET]

3:35 I’ve never heard a microphone with that much off-axis rejection! It’s completely dead in the null, the way it should be. Very impressive, Neumann!

[@EposVox]

Love the reference to the original U87 review ;)

[@whatskraken3886]

funny to see you here

[@jonclayburn2805]

The first time I listened to this from my iPad with the basic apple earbuds the balanced, warm, and wonderful tone of the U67 was noticeable when compared to all but the best of the other mics. I then went back and listened again with my sennheiser studio head phones and the improvement was clear with all the mics. I’ll never be able to afford a U67 but it since to hear what $7225 will buy you.

[@Pastorallenigma]

The mic does sound great but I wonder how much of that is the extra resonance created from missing a kidney.

[@JusttheWatch]

I'm watching this on my 3 year old Motorola cell phone without headphones. This mic sounds great!

[@nightchef57]

Oh my goodness, that sounds wonderful-big, balanced, warm, clear, smooth, all the good adjectives. I don’t know if I’ll ever be in a position to spend $7K on one mic, but based on this demo I don’t think I could say it wouldn’t be worth it.

[@techmed-rainer]

Woooowwww! Thank you so much 💓 for sharing this with us!👍🙏 And I'm really impressed by the U67's background noise reduction, because I couldn't here any noise by your new renal dialysis machine. 🙃😎

[@techmed-rainer]

You're dearly welcome!

[@crooker2]

That mic is insane. Neumann is, and has always been my favorite microphone manufacturer. I had the fortune of using a U87 at a radio station I used to work for, and a TLM103 at another voice over studio I used to work for. Buttery smooth. Neumann mics are just pure luxury. If you can afford it. Which I can't.

[@commonsense5188]

I agree. I love my TLM 102.

[@Odiex27]

Thanks!

[@lucaslutzerler5429]

7k plus ... for voice over ... No. 7k plus ... for music - people listen too via phone or a tiny boombox ... No. 7k plus ... for the joy to work with it ... YES!

[@ThisIsTechToday]

Ah, a classic...reissued! I love the original one. Definitely bougie.

[@LaidbackSounds]

Bougie means candle in my french language, i doubt it costs the price of a candle lol

[@techmed-rainer]

Danke!

[@Podcastage]

Thanks so much Rainer. I hope you’re loving the TLM67!

[@techmed-rainer]

@@Podcastage Thank you, Bandrew! Yes, I start loving it. Unfortunately my work didn't leave me much time with it yet. I'm looking forward to next weekend, I'll be free then.

[@rosevan5485]

Great comparison. I’m a musician / singer ….. I appreciated the u67 and the u87 ai. Great job thank-you.

[@QuantumGamingUploads]

TLM-49 seems such a fantastic Microphone. Loved the quality

[@Elephatal]

You're crazy, Andrew! I don't know what we'd do without you, though. It's awesome the thought you put into the different signal chains that this mic would actually be put through. I think I was both surprised and unsurprised to hear the differences.

[@chagize]

I must have seen about a hundred such videos.... but this one is world class and I'm enjoying every second! Thank you thank you thank you!

[@alphamarshan]

I completely agree on the music, Bandrew. The Mids and Highs were detailed but so smooth and buttery. Sounded great on acoustic as well.

[@louperez359]

I LOVE this review. You are both crazy and passionate about your business. Forget the Buyers Remorse. Enjoy this mic and keep making GREAT video's.

[@Podcastage]

Thank you so much for the kind and supportive words. Life is all about fulfilling your duties, but also finding what you're passionate about and embracing it. I appreciate you watching and commenting.

[@jeffsaffron5647]

All the Neumanns are pretty well matched I would say. Sound from them is very pleasing.

[@lilianweiss2028]

Beautiful! And perfect review of it. So here's a crazy idea for one of the friday videos: I have always loved the U67 lows/low-mids/fundamental range - so much power! But the highs are a bit subdued. U87 has that sparkling silvery/greyish highs/airs (that can get harsh at times). Bandrew, you are one of the few people on this planet, that can pull this off: Mount the U87 and U67 close (top/down) and blend them (U67 lows and U87 highs) in post. Probably gonna need insane mic technique to avoid phasing and lin-phase EQ, but this might be bliss.

[@sirnigelcogs]

It sounds pretty good of course. The Warm Audio clone mic doesn't sound anything like it.

[@kankantandikaigorotan1496]

ya w.a. sounds like a different mic

[@oscarmorales-cn3hz]

True, but sounds really good as well.

[@southpau]

Another real u67 probably wouldn’t sound exactly like this u67!

[@mintwith4ts]

I've spent the last half year looking through your microphone catalogue and a couple others for a mic that stood out to me. A perfect one. Extreme detail, and perfect tonal balance, something like that. I think this is the one for me. It's beautiful. It isn't over the top but still extremely pleasing. It sounded gorgeous on the preamps. It's probably the best microphone I've ever heard on your voice. I want it so much, but I don't have the money. But I would buy it in a heartbeat. This is what I've been looking for for so long. This is it.

[@weaktearecords]

It's hard to say anything negative about anything you pay that much for! The Rode actually sounded great in comparison. I would like to see a video comparing similar style mics using eq to match and see what is close.

[@Mr_A_Mia]

I gently liked this video in case it would damage the microphone.

[@ilikefrogs525]

The new comparisons are gonna be lit.

[@theebob2008]

Probably some of the best vocal shootouts on KZbin for sure!

[@billpomeroy7433]

Brandrew, your pun of a name is as awesome as your knowledge on all of the subjects you cover, as well as audio in general. It is so inviting the way you do your reviews. I had a U 87 AI for a long time, 10 years, and when I ran into financial troubles I sold it. I also remember in my not very well treated room, I tried to do voiceover work on it, and the darn mic was so detailed it picked up everything just like you said in your you 87 review. I hit the back button on this video 10 times or so trying to hear any sonic differences between the 87 and the 67. There is a very slim margin. I'd like to know what you think. And thank you again for being so thorough. I forgot to mention that I did my first commercial voiceover demo in a studio with an original U 67. And I absolutely love the tone. What's not to like? And I loved my you 87. Forgot to mention that.

[@pouriaabdipour8144]

It’s always so joyful to watch your videos, Bandrew 💐 I own a U67 Vintage Use it for voice over in my podcast. I think composing to the re issue, The re issue, seemed a little more modern and forward composing the vintage one. (And I love the analog vintage sound) Thanks again.

[@TomasHundza]

Totally fkn worth it!!! You are awesome, so many in-depth tests, your work is a gem!

[@magy1777]

It’s awesome that someone is…….special enough to review a mic like this, thank you 🙏🏽. Now I first got notification while waiting on hold with only my iPad mini series 2 to listen on……no headphones, and was laughing my arse off at the piss poor reproduction of the tests. I now on my way to watch and listen through something more up to the Challenge. New subscriber.

[@sambolino44]

Years ago my friend let me borrow his U 87 and I fell in love with it. It was hard to describe what it was about it that made it better than other microphones; it just made my voice sound better. Recently, I did a comparison test of my best microphones (none of which are actually very good) and decided that the one I like the sound of the best for recording vocals and acoustic guitar is my $30 Behringer ECM8000 omni condenser I bought to use with a real time analyzer. I compared it to my Samson C01 and a similar condenser that came with headphones and my Scarlett input in a bundle (CM25), and also to a Lyx SDPC-2 condenser that came in a pair with omni, cardioid, and hyper-cardioid capsules. To your point, in retrospect, I wish I had spent all the money I spent on a bunch of cheap microphones and instead bought a few real good ones. However, if you totaled up how much I have spent on mics you still wouldn't have enough to buy one C-414. Can't help but wonder what it would sound like if I just replaced them all with ECM8000s! Except that it's nice to have some directional mics. My test was done with gobos behind the mics, BTW. You are the only person I have seen who actually does a decent test of microphones, BTW. Thank you for that, it's really helpful.

[@HarvinderSingh-yy8th]

Mojave MA 201 fet is best budget Cm.

[@VOByRobbins]

The U67 is the mic of the gods, wow! what a fun review to hear all of these mics--- serious drool! Thank you Bandrew!!!

[@kieliscalling]

Come on! It is handmade, in Germany (I've visited the factory), by very professionell persons, extremly checked and sounds amazing. It is worth every penny :) Thanks for your video.

[@mudrahel.philosophovich]

It's just the best. So clear audio! Unbelievable!

[@WilliamJohnston]

The review I’ve been waiting for! 🤩

[@marcofioravanti4176]

Mr. Spaceman! Great review, as always. I feel, that this here is somewhat special, indeed. Not-thrown box intended! Plus, I admire, that you sacrificed yourself, to buy "us" a microphone so expensive, u can´t even afford a razorblade anymore! Keep up the good work! We don´t do it, somebody has to do it! Priceless content! Sincerely yours, your goldeneared listening community!

[@danielmunoz6790]

I'm pretty sure that mustache counts as a pop filter. Hearts.

[@eaustin2006]

I think this is the best mic I've ever heard. Thanks for this. Perfection.

[@ΝίκοςΠιτλόγλου]

It's insane! Before one hour I received and unpacked my U67. Surprisingly I saw that you upload this video and surely I watched it first! I'm happy for your conclusion. Now I'm going to hear my new microphone. Cheers!

[@SavoxYT]

The US really seems to get screwed when it comes to the price of Neumann microphones. The U67 costs £4,500 over here.

[@LTPottenger]

It sounds amazing when it goes into that tube preamp!

[@Podcastage]

Yeah it sounds fantastic through a tube amp. Thanks for the comment.

[@BarnardoPlays]

Thank you for your work in putting out such detailed information. I listened to this review and comparison on crappy laptop speakers where all the mics and preamps sounded basically the same.

[@firecatfly]

It's the smooooth dynamics of a singer with a gorgeous vocal range that makes every cent spent on the Neumann U67 worthwhile. I have one of these and use it on a female client whose bluesy smoothness is just incredible. My 67 has paid for itself several hundred times over. My other favourite is the Neumann TLM49. On a set of lower pipes, this microphone is breathtaking.

[@LBJedi]

Not sure if I’ll EVER need or be able to afford this mic, but so cool to see/hear it! I appreciate you making this review very much👍

[@artyohm4810]

Thanks so much for this thorough review, I was torn between this and the Behringer XM8500!!

[@nmbr73]

I thought I could use this microphone to make captain's announcements on my luxury yacht. But I'm pretty happy with my XM8500 ... and I'm concerned that the U67 could have some issues with picking up ambient noise here. 🤔

[@Screaming-Trees]

I bought mine a few months back and for me it was worth every penny. I spent years and about $20k dollars going through clones of old Neumann microphones none of which deliver on their promise. Which isn't surprising I guess since it isn't possible to reverse engineer the diaphragm. It's a complicated process that's still an industry secret to this day. And of course the diaphragm manufacture is what will determine your frequency response. You can copy the back of the capsule, the electronics, the transformer, the power supply and whatever else you want but it doesn't matter. It won't give you the sound of the old classic Neumanns because that's in the diaphragm. Save yourself a whole lot of years and a bunch of money and pick this up. It's the OG.

[@painauchocolate2395]

I hummed a middle A throughout this video and your voice sits well on this note. A prevalent frequency

[@krazywabbit]

The least I can do is throw a like and remain subscribed. On a serious note, as I listen to this on my iPad, I hear little difference than the other 7,225 mics you have reviewed. Wait, it will dent? For that kind of scratch, it shouldn’t even scratch. Sending thoughts and prayers to your wallet.

[@snaildamnefy8298]

It's specifically complimentary to your voice and narration style . Good luck hope you get many years of functional performance out of it . You have the means to sing a theme song now.

[@magnuseriksson8081]

I love the sound of it and how it seems close off the room sound so well.

[@davidriddle6798]

Love what you are doing with the tests The difference is small and when recording music with mixing eq, compression and FX the difference is even smaller

[@glynnpowell7864]

Good ole diminishing returns

[@ChrisCebelenski]

Maybe not the best business decision, but boy does that put a smile on your face. So a really good personal decision. For me, I've got more money than sense usually, but even so I'd have to really think very hard when the U87 Ai is pretty much "there" already if I want that sound. I'd consider getting one for rental should I want to be in that business, but even then the price to rent is going to make potential customers think twice, so... maybe not.

[@AGTech]

Been looking at this one for SOOO long, but I'm also not really complaining using my Neumann U89i :D Would be really interesting to see a direct comparison of the Neumann U67 to a Lewitt LCT 840 tho!

[@stephenbowlby1638]

A Nashville recording studio owner friend of mine had two U87s modified into U67s with circuitry changes. This cost him a lot of money, and he is not one to spend money unwisely. The differences are significant. I got to hang one of them in my studio and compared it to the Lawson L47 I normally use. That was quite a shootout, because it also involved a 414 EB, two other L47s, a C48, and an original Telefunken U47. A great joy having big iron like those in my hands to compare, as Bandrew knows.

[@ScottGrammer]

Good to see you reviewing a true high-end mic. Now all you need is to locate an AKG C-24 to review. It's a stereo tube mic, essentially two C-12's in one body. An original (not the reissue) should only set you back around $30,000. Should make a great podcast mic. (!!!) EDIT: Fixed a typo...

[@StephenLeeMusic]

I still like the TLM49 the most in this review. It just has that super smooth creamy sound and kinda sits between the 67 and 87.

[@wychwoodmusic]

We love you, Bandrew. Also, damn the Rode NT1 was the first one that struck me as being in the same ballpark as the U67. That's quite a mic for the price! Also ALSO as soon as that acoustic guitar came in I was like "whoa, I recognize that sound" and "isn't that great."

[@JonathonNunn]

Love the u67... Thank you for the review

[@nachocabrera]

Although all the frequent users of this channel really know that this guy was not going to throw the box, maybe we were a little curious and hopeful about it.

[@sarcasmtraderable]

As a kidney specialist, to answer your first question in the video, no, you can not live without both kidneys. But, you can happily live with one. Hope that helps. Great review.

[@Acnologia]

The sound is big/wide, but it's very harsh - almost brittle. I prefer Neumann KMR 81i, that is the best Neumann mic ever made. I own Neumann TLM67 (which also sounds kinda harsh).

[@OutxfOrder]

Are the songs you play on the guitars original music? I always love watching your music sections in reviews.

[@ikigai47]

I wonder in these cases how much the user is placebo'd by the price and brand rep. Would love to see a buddy of yours give you a blindfold test on all these mics and have you rate them. I have no doubt the U67 would still rate VERY high since it's obviously a quality mic, but I do wonder if it would rate hands down #1 for you.

[@PhenixDj]

User bias is HUGE, schoeps made a study before where they showed students multiple different colored mics and a "recording by each one of them" (it was the same recording on all done by one mic only) and there was a general consensus on differences between the "mics" (darker colored one "sounds warmer", toyish bright green one "sounded worst" and so on). There is something to the sound of a neumann, sure, but as sound also is so subjective, probably any mic that keeps more "technical issues" like sibilance and so on under control can be a "best microphone" to someone. Audio Test Kitchen can do that for you, they have set up a very nice way of re-recording into different mics as closely as possible, so you can actually make very good comparisons, and in the blind tests, I gotta tell you, Neumann definitely wasn't my first pick often. (My first picks often were the Manley, or high end Lewitt mics).

[@ikigai47]

@@PhenixDj - Thanks for that. I toyed with AudioTestKitchen a bit. I'm not sure what to make of it so far. I could barely tell the difference between a $6000 Manley Reference Gold and a $250 MXL mic whereas I KNOW I could in person in a blind test. I listened on 8 inch studio monitors (M-audio) as well as my 250ohm BeyerDynamic DT770 Pro's. I intentionally went with extreme scenarios to test the accuracy of the recordings but maybe I'm somehow doing it wrong. The wav form changed a bit as I went through various mics. I guess they're running all these through the best hardware pres and compressors? I also tested two mics I own, the WA47 and the SM7B. In person I can easily tell the difference but not in the test kitchen. Will keep messing with it. Either way thanks! Cool software

[@goneil9866]

@@PhenixDj In 1994, Recording Magazine did a blind test with about a dozen mics, including a Neumann, Bruel Kjaar, Beyer, AKG, Shure, etc. The winner was the Audio Technica 4033 (a mic I wish Podcastage would review). The blind test subjects were all seasoned session vocalists, if I recall correctly. The editor wrote a rebuttal, suggesting that the vocalists didn't know what they were talking about and that he was surprised the Neumann (TLM series) mic didn't win. All too often, we listen with our name brand biases. You can buy a budget mic, have it modded, and end up with a boutique quality mic, in terms of performance. But you lose the bragging rights and bling factor.

[@LilXanyzz]

Great video

[@tyremanguitars]

it's worth checking out and comparing this to the gefell UM92.1S! great microphone.

[@EposVox]

Yeeesh

[@Mheyos]

It sounds absolutely amazingly

[@MrNicknayme]

Do I think the 67 Reissue sounds 2 times better than the 87? Yes. Yes I do. I do very much think so!! The elegance of the highs and the high mids are so very sweet, and the fulness og the lows and low mids are so comforting.

[@12GARCHI]

I Love it! Good Job, Thank you very much for making this Video.

[@wearashirt]

since the iMac against the wall has this subby sound from its built in speakers, the opening audio was quite an exception due to the tube sound

[@cthru2k]

Just found your channel today while trying to decide which mic I will purchase, watched a few of your videos while at work. I am home now on my PC and saw this pop up on my feed. Liked and Subbed.

[@ChiragR-007]

Amazing video sir 💯💯💯💯💯💯

[@harisjaved1379]

LOL..thank you for the review! I am pretty happy with MV7 you recommended.

[@MadeOnTape]

every time I've had the pleasure of being in the presence of this mic, it's magic. This mic makes you realize that almost all other mics seem "inaccurate". The off axis sounds are 100% beautiful and useful. Bleed is not an issue. That being said, have you ever reviewed any mics from Vanguard Audio Labs? Would love to see one on the V13

[@Iamdanybazz]

I really loved the Shure

[@mrkite89]

That AT2020 is impressive! I have an AT3035 which I find very natural sounding on many sources, great mic...

[@cgriesemer]

I could have probably watched 3 hours of back-and-forth mics comparisons there. Was slightly expecting the TZ Audio Stellar 2 in there since it was marketing as a TLM103 comp w/ a K67 style capsule.

[@homergutierrez8661]

The U67 really sounds buttery and smooth without the harsh sibilance on most of the others. It is very balanced and easy to listen to. The next favorite is the Shure SM7. For the money, you can't beat the Shure. I would never spend $7K on a mic, but it does sound good.

[@LaidbackSounds]

it depends, i use the sm7b and for female rnb singers it always sound pretty bad with very low definition, i guess it works better for rock, i agre though there are superb mics in the market for around 500 bucks, 7000 would give me a panic attack haha but if he can do it why not :)

[@amp4105]

hey homie

[@CodeVenomSnakes]

Just get a Neumanm U87 with tube mic pre and you might get the same sound.

[@zeitakulobusta]

I'm 90sec in and it's goooorgeous. Stupendous. I've been through half the mics you mention you *could* buy instead but I'd still take this and basically forget the rest. Game over. That said the tlm49 was pretty dang good too wow!

[@JeroBagg]

I haven't used every Neumann but I've extensively used their starting line up. Vintage 67's and vintage 87's, 87Ai's, 103's, vintage and telefunken reissue 47s, and to me the 67 is the best of the bunch. It was beating every mic in the comparison test until you got to the 49. That sounded nice and when you switched back to the 67 I was a little disappointed. The 87 sounded like a slightly anemic version of the 67, and surprisingly the 103 sounded cheap in comparison. I prefer the 103 over the 87 but when you remove the 87's anemia (by using a 67) it bests the 103 in everything that makes the 103 good. But DAMN that 49 sounded good. And that Telefunken TF47 wasn't too shabby either. And the WA67's low end lacked finesse. I was hoping it was going to be good.

[@Adamsgotgame]

You make almost every mic sound great

[@blumearthouse9691]

Shoot that’s a gorgeous sounding mic! Recently got a king bee 2 and am enjoying it as an upgrade from an at2020 and yeti blue but definitely hope to upgrade to a Neumann down the line. Another great video.

[@tombuck]

Do they come in a two pack?

[@marmotenjoyer]

The microphone sounds just as good on the Scarlett as the UA. I can tell that the UA is maybe a little bit better but less than 1% difference honestly, seems like sound treatment and the microphone are almost everything.

[@darkestpointofficial]

I love the way the tlm 49 sounds to my liking

[@Behnam_Moghaddam]

these are going to be the wettest Chrismas ever! congrats for this piece of awesomeness! try to resist the temptation to put it on your pillow next to you Thanks for sharing

[@MeatDiva]

Great comparison, def should try it against a Josephson c705, I compared the reissue u67 to it and wow! Also the Vanguard V13 is definitely worth a test, greats vid as always.

[@marlcoore]

The moment before you mentioned "listen on speakers" I was thinking, "damn none of these sound different. Must be on my phone". You're psychic.

[@symdega]

This is my dream mic. Kudos, man

[@Podcastage]

Thanks so much for watching. I hope you're able to get your hands on your dream mic. You will not be disappointed.

[@EvanVincent.]

Sounds really good and that off access rejection is impressive.

[@LordStevie]

I was surprised you didn’t compare it to an AKG 414. If you want the Glyn Johns drum sound, you need two of those for the overhead and floor tom positions. I was listening to an interview with him yesterday, and he said he would only use the U67 for that!