Microphones Best All Rounder?

REMEMBER TO TAKE PART IN THE VOTE! (hit the "i" button above) and that the order of the blind mics A,B,C,D is not the same as the order of the mics with the original performances. ALSO!!! I screwed up the subtitling on the accordion A,B,C,D in that order despite how I have labelled it! Thanks again to ESV for inspiring this movie: www.eastwoodso...

[@brittanyambrose1137]

That C12 on the violin.... golden, amazing, beautiful :')

[@jamiesims7370]

To be completely honest Christian, I stopped looking at which mic was being used, as I was lost in Laura, Tom, Megan and Kaitlins absolute talent at the start. I'll stick my neck out and say 'C', as it seemed to be the only mic to pick up the detail of the musicians as well as the sound, ie breathing and movement, which made it come alive. (Although I presume the second B on the accordion is the C). The detail and construction of your vlogs astound me, they are truly fantastic. Thank you Christian. And i presume those lovely looking parcels in the background are going to have a future ''ooohhhhh' opening soon. New Toys!!

[@harisjaved1379]

Forget the mics I want to learn how to play the violin and flute like these gifted artists!! Bravo!

[@coffeeciggspodcast2864]

lol came for the mic reviews and stayed for the organ piper. that's some majestic music

[@the-architect7789]

My favorite mic was U67 since I think it had a fuller sound- lows and highs as well as mids. I vote for C (violin), D (flute), D (accordion), B (vocal).

[@Eastwoodsoundandvision_esv]

Hey Christian, great video review. Thank you so much for your lovely kind words. Much appreciated

[@chrisb.1699]

After several months, I came back just to hear that M149 on the accordion again. It grabs the low end so well. Fantastic musicians.

[@richfieldkirthan]

Dear Christian, I'm an undergrad doing Music Sound and technology at London. I have used various mic that my university had from SM57/58, Coles 4038, Earthworks SR25, Aston Sprirt, KM183,184, KMi83, U87, TLM 67 and Schoeps MK4. As a pianist and recording classical concerts, I fell in love with Schoeps MK4. Its Cardioid but I love the way it records the warmth of a piano to that shimmer of a violin. I have also experimented with drum OH's with an ORTF technique and its picked up the right amount of kit which can be tweaked later. I would probably use a pair of Schoeps MK4 for any recording. Hope this helps. All your videos are amazing. Thank you for all your videos. They are really helpful.

That U67… my god every time.

[@chriscampbellmtb]

The only thing I didn’t think the U67 won on was the accordion.

[@IrvingAguirre77]

@@chriscampbellmtb It was my same reaction! m149 sounded great but u67 didn't shine. All great mics though!

[@CLdwyer]

You know, I didn’t love the U67 solo but when imagining a pop/cinematic mix, it’s gonna put that element up front every time. The way it tames the mid range gives you chest and clarity (with space for other elements)

[@miguelpessanha]

The winner is hands down the 149. It sounded best in every scenario, just so warm on the bottom and such silky smooth top.

[@WhoIsAlexElliott]

Its crazy how much the accordions tone and emotion changed between mic, Ive heard difference s in mics before but that was pretty drastic. WOW

[@lattetown]

This is a really focused and well thought out video! Thanks!

[@bartnettle]

Belated answers, C12 on the violin and flute, Accordian & voice. Silky top end .

[@davidbrockett]

Love the Neumann TLM 103 on vocals and acoustic guitar.

[@miguero]

Its crazy that the first three mics you mentioned are my top three mics. The SM57 being my favorite mic.

[@OJNo1]

I ran an experiment which showed that a listener of a full recording had no preference over a vocal recorded with a Rode NT2A and a Manley Reference in a blind test. Yes the microphones have different sonic qualities, but have we as gear enthusiasts just learnt the characteristics of a microphone with expensive parts and have decided that it's better?

[@AlejandroMironov]

I totally love the SM7B. It's interesting because is usually associated with vocals and speech, however I have used it on speaker cabinets, acoustic guitar, flute and Fender Rhodes' mechanics sounding awesome every time! Great video as always!

[@PeteCalandra]

I believe the entire Woodstock album was recorded with an sm57 type of mike!

[@enigmasounds]

The vocalists, a voice to die for ... through the Neumann U67.. fab u lous!

[@GrantStinnett]

C seems to have the most “in your face” quality. Damn it Christian... you’re making me seriously want to go spend $7K on a mic now. I never knew what I was missing till this vid. Thanks for taking away my excuse for not having expensive mics. ;)

[@MediaManProductions]

I loved the 67. Was thrown at the squeezebox though. U67 had that body you want but the 414 really brought out that upper boxy detail. Lovely to combine them

[@TheCrowHillCo]

Media Man Productions yes the accordion is one of the hardest instruments to mic... something about bellows and phasing and that the moving part is where the sound comes from...

[@theRyanStrong]

The lighting in your studio talking head shot looks great! Nicely balanced. Well done.

[@edjefferson9175]

U67 has best dynamic response here. I bought a Sennheiser MKH50 for indoor dialog boom work. Turns out to be my personal favorite all around mic. Small and light weight too.

[@noordermaatstudios1551]

Lovely musicians, wonderfull music.

[@AynenMakino]

My favourite appears to be D. In the processed recordings earlier in the video, I liked the 414 the most. It had some kind of nostalgic character that I like. If I had to go abroad with only one mic... well, I already did that once, for a documentary. And I took a Zoom H2n with me.

[@nashvillehitmachine-offici7936]

on violin - M149 - A harsh 1.5-3k - Mic B -414 mid range and bow Mic C -C12 very articulate and would cut any mix - Mic D U67 Has a smokey texture strong mid range found this to be the same on all tracks. monitoring on Burl and Iz converters with ATC monitors. Hard to beat the 414 for the price range. C12 sounds amazing. Thanks Christian I love all your videos brother..

[@themebaby]

My favorite all rounder including the Shure SM57 (which is my second favorite all rounder) is... ....The AKG 414 XLS... It's basically a flat neutral mic with a little bit of top end that can be rolled off with a low pass filter (or EQ cut by taking out a few db's out of that small mic bump)...it takes EQ well...so you can shape it into what ever you want to shape it into...it's a condenser mic so it is very transient...which is very important to me...tube mics are a little more sluggish as well as FET mics (which are better for transients than tube mics)...and they play well with other sounds and other mics. In my opinion...the AKG 414 XLS...is the best all rounder of all the mics today with the Shure SM57 coming in second (exceptional all rounder as well). P.S. I worship flat mics...they're so versatile and take EQ well. I love other mics that aren't flat as well...but I really love a great flat mic when I can get one.

[@medusajapan]

beautiful

[@JRod37]

It's a good question! I think I'd have to say U87, and actually the newer ones - It will work, not the best at everything, but great at everything. That U67 sounds great though!

[@gearspace]

Great video! I produced some demo sessions in thr (now closed) EMI Records studios @ Manchester square London in the 80's. They had about 10 vintage U47's and the engineer there simply used one on everything - via the vintage Neve console - everything sounded glorious. When budget allowed I would rent a vintage v Neumann SM2 for drumkit overheads.

[@PhilipValdesMusic]

B was my favorite all around and I think that was the 67. Great video! Every other mic shootout I see just has vocals and acoustic guitar

[@DMKahn]

B was my favorite. I think it’s the 67. D was the C12

[@JustinBellingerTV]

That U67 is a beast, a subtle beast, but a beast nonetheless.

[@hirogarimusic]

Great video! Thanks so much for the set of well-engineered comparisons - wonderful to have a logically presented set of A/Bs to listen to. You mention the sound of the 414s as being kind of ‘square’ - I prefer to think that their character is more ‘they sound like whatever you put them in front of’. With stereotypical German clinical precision.

[@NeologicStudios]

Great mic shootout. I know you were trying to focus solely on mics with this topic, but I cannot help but insist (at least to myself) that the preamp paired with the microphone mics just as much of a sonic difference as the mic itself, and can totally change the timbre, response, and character of a given mic. For example, U87's are often typically sterile and cold when paired directly with a cheaper recording interface's built-in op-amp transistor preamp section (like those found in Antelope Audio or RME Audio interfaces). But, pair it with a UA 610 preamp, or Focusrite ISA, and the sonic character even between those two preamps are night and day! The way that preamps handle the signal can vary greatly in their design and thus the modulation they impart on the resulting output, and it's something I've been keen on experimenting with. I suppose in more of the sampling and orchestral recording domains, you might have more ample access to quality preamps that are uniform across a console board, and thus have little need for running through external preamps unless specifically desired. I may be fairly familiar with your studio setup, but perhaps just clarifying for everyone here what preamp(s) you ran the mics through so we can get a more solid idea of the signal chain you implemented for the shootout would put my mind at ease! :P

[@MarkyGoldstein]

Those are all 4 very good microphones.

[@BwanaJesuasifiwe]

A is the AKG 414 (warm) B is the Neumann M149 ( thin, open sound) C is the Neumann U67 (open sound with a swirly oscillation background noise) D is the Flea C12 (very bright sound) Please confirm my choices. I listened with very sensitive Electrostatic headphones. If Im right. I can tell you right now the AKG is the best mic you have. imo

[@musicgarth1]

I've just bought a Lewitt 440 Pure ....... a budget mic, but I love the results despite it's low price. It's quality really is amazing considering where it sits compared to other budget mics. It would be interesting for you to do a similar test for those starting out that are in the sub £300 market.

[@NasserSharaf]

Fun video Christian. If I had only one choice, it would hands down be a Classic Neumann TLM170. Yes there are other mics with more character and better suited for certain duties, but the TLM170 (older version) is a great all rounder and always delivers. Listening here in my studio on Barefoot MM27's and Mytek converter's, I was actually surprised that the differences among the mics was not as much as I would have expected - they were there, but not as massively different as I would have thought. Which leads me to conclude that I could make do with any one of them.... but my favorite was the U67 and the one I liked the least was the C12. Horses for courses I guess. Regards from Jordan, Cheers!

[@ARCMusic97]

Christian is definitely right about the 414's, seems to block out the crisper frequencies that give all the instruments more character. I thought the mic with the most sonic artefacts was the C12, particularly present in the overtones from the narration and the flute (assuming that there was no change to the EQ's in the post). Neumann's have always been my my preferred microphones to turn to whilst at uni and it both of the mics in this video are a cut above in terms of most accurate recording. The warmth from the tube on the M149 puts it above the U67 for me personally, especially for the accordion. However the crispness of the U67 works best with the vocals. All that said, the blind test has completely threw me and I think I'd have to watch it about 20 times before being conclusive. I've been lucky enough over the past three years at my university to have access to a plethora of microphones including but not limited to: U87s, KM100, M149, RE320/20/27, 414s, Rode NT2000, NT5s, sE4's, 2200s, 4400s, X1 T, MD420s, and of course the classic D120, SM57/58. After 3 years my personal favourites were NOT the Neumann's, they were in fact the Schoeps mk2 pair with interchangeable capsules. They were always faultless as room mics, overheads, and worked beautifully with the Steinway Piano at the university. Sadly I have just graduated and now have a microphone collection which consists of a half broken sE2200 and a Tascam DR22. Any employment opportunity or microphone hand-me-downs welcome aha!

[@FabioEloi]

I'm not Shure. So C=67. And your videos are so freaking awesome.

[@mariosthemistocleous7391]

My best guesses are A=414, B=C12, C=U67, D=M149. I am probably wrong on the mic identification, but your voice sounds best with the U67. And my favourite microphone at that moment is that Mojave MA1000. I would always take in mind what I'm recording and where. In my opinion, there isn't a perfect mic that works best on everything and generally, mics that work well on multiple sources tend to have no character and sound a bit 'flat'. On the other hand mics with a strong character might not always work well on different sources. I once used a pair of STC 4038 (coles) as drum overhead mics in a very dry/dead room and felt that they didn't sound great for that specific application within that particular environment. Take the same instrument and put it in a different space, say a more spacious and reverberant space with the same mic position and it's going to sound amazing. Regarding the U67 I wouldn't use it on a female voice because it could potentially sound nasally whereas in a very aggressive rock male voice it sounds superb. I have used the U67 for close micing guitar and cello and it didn't disappoint. The 414 to me always tends to work well on multiple sources, but always seems to lack depth as it never picks up the little nuances that the C12 would pick up. That being said I wouldn't use the C12 as a close mic for a violin especially in a dry room as it could sound scratchy and pick up a lot of the sounds that aren't what I am after. I would use it in let's say Air studios to capture the overall sound of a space + the ens that is being played. I hope I didn't rumble for too long! Thank you so much for doing this was great fun!

[@loicdesjardinsmusic]

Prefered mics : C,D,D,C Guess (not sure) : A=C414,B=M189,C=U67,D=C12 If I'd go to North Korea, I'd probably try to buy something out there. I'm sure they have funny stuff. My luxury go-to mic would be probably U87 (though I've heard the best about Aston Spirit but didn't try yet). On a hazardous trip, I'd pick SM57 (built like a tank).

[@ralfnolte174]

Neumann KMS 104. Sounds good, is light and roadproof. Neat allrounder, apart from being quite directional.

[@frubo_ssg]

My favorite "boy" to take with on my jobs (voice) - specially concerning price - is the Sontronics Orpheus. But my U87 Ai, the OC18, the TLM 107 are great too.

[@henrikskauge1521]

Was reading up on the various models of c414. Quick summary: there is a lot of variation between models throughout its production. By the looks of the design , you have the C414B-XLS which is meant to be one of the more neutral of the current c414 range. While the C414B-XL II apparently has more upper mids than its cheaper brother. Have been using the latter for choral recordings lately. I was kinda surprised by how well they did compared with the Schoeps and DPA mics I had rented as well.

[@michelepostpischl7124]

Sorry if I'm late...my mic for Korea will be the DPA 4011.

[@ratdogsoundhouse8999]

B was instantly my favourite and I think it's the U67 :)

[@ericfischer5605]

For the first three seconds of each segment I had definite opinions about the mic sound. Ten seconds later in every case the exact sound of the mic was not particularly important. I was expecting to geek out on the shootout, but came away thinking that with any decent mic, when a performance like that is recorded, who would comment on the mic used upon listening to the finished song? Like, "what a brilliant performance, too bad they didn't have a U87!" As opposed to "Ah, another mediocre performance saved by a U87!" Anyhow, I went into the shootout with one expectation and came out not caring what I went into it with :-). But that said, maybe it's even more fun to geek out, knowing that with a good performance you're probably not going to go wrong. So if you can afford it, what the fuck, get the fancy mics. And if you're broke, know that your $100 mic will do fine, just don't record crap :-) So, on my (forced) trip to NoKo, I would just borrow one of Kim's SM87s because that is one mic you could pound him into the ground like an evil fence post with and still have a great sounding mic for anything. Try that with a U87 - just sayin.

[@tonisruestes5208]

Here is my taste: Violin D Flute B1 Accordion B2, Vocals B

[@jeanchile9117]

As always, great video. I gotta’ say... as a recent purchaser and user of the Slate VMS, it’s definitely worth a look. I don’t own ALL of the mics it models so I can’t compare them all but... it’s pretty legit and worth investigating if you only have the budget for one microphone.

[@michaeltamburello]

I concur with the U-67 for a myriad of applications. For the budget-minded, beyond the shadow of a doubt, an MJE-47 modified (OktavaMod) Rode NT1a would be my go-to mike to North Korea. Besides, I wouldn't want to risk having the more costly Neumann with me in such a high-risk place anyway! Love ya, man!

[@KenFlanagan]

Christian thanks so much for the test and in fact all your vlogging. I never comment on these things videos but thought I should given the efforts you make in creating such excellent content and to engage. You are always hugely watchable and entertaining. I particularly like your in transit editing. You are always incredibly well humoured, enthusiast and considered and you deal with super pertinent issues. Thank you. The ultimate all round mic is something we all seem to be looking for and thanks for addressing it. However I think that I agree with a previous comment that all these mics are of a high enough standard as to be comparable and although each will have different lifts and responses to a degree, they can all basically be made to sound the same with some eq?? That said I think that I would have found making a comparison much easier without any reverb???. Also its probably more an issue with my ears but ABCDing anything does seem to make the exercise specifically relative given how I judged things relative to what I had just heard. Double blind test?? Who has the time??. Of course its all so subject and its meant to be so I get that and thank you. However its such a pertinent question for most independent composers and given how expensive mics are, choosing a specific all rounder is usually down to value for money, how useful it is to have variable pattern configurations and being relatively neutral but of decent quality. It's very much like the issue with monitors which I find equally as baffling. Why are there so many high quality monitors? It doesn't make any sense to me as once you get to a certain level, they should all be fantastic and honest. In much the same way you could do a monitor shoot off. I have always favoured Dynaudio maybe because their range scales so well but suddenly there seems to be an obsession with Barefoot, but I hardly ever hear anyone talking about the concept behind their design??? They just seem to look cool and are fashionable?? It feels the same with high end mic. BTW Would love to know what you use as monitors but maybe you have done that in another vlog. I remember your headphone choice being pretty on it. I thought your initial comment about the Neumann Coles partnership was totally on the money and given how the Coles seemed to be a favourite amongst some of the other Spitfire team, was there a reason why they didn't feature? Any way much too long a comment. Apologies. Just I don't get out enough and I need to buy a mic. Like most people I am looking for a magic bullet that I know is a relative concept given that you generally get what you pay for. Thanks so much again and keep up the excellent work. Always a pleasure never a chore. Best K

[@andreicenan]

Any chance to know the name of the song played by Megan MacDonald on accordion?

[@MrTomitas]

I desperately need to know that too! Christian help!

[@tom_campbell_music]

The first one is Loch Duich, and the second one is a new tune written by Catriona Hawksworth and is played in her new band 'Heisk'. It's in the title track 'Virr' - there's a video of this. Cheers

[@KenMiddletonUkulele]

Interesting what you say about the 414. I need to buy a pair of mics for instrumental sampling and recording. A pair of 414s are the right price. Yes, they are as ugly as sin and maybe a bit boring, but if you had to choose again, would you pick the XLii, with its boosted treble, or the XLS, with its flatter response?

[@ytb917]

very good test. but the test would benefit from a comparison with u87, which is the industry standard for an all-purpose microphone.

[@MikeLindup42]

I should add that when I was recording my first solo album "Changes" with Calum Malcolm at Castlesound, we used a Bruel & Kjaer for most of my vocals, as well as a stereo pair on the piano!

[@shreyandrewsingh8114]

Is It Just Me Or The AKG 414 Performed Soo Well On The Flute

[@ManchesterMusic]

Christian’s first Fresco. Well done.

[@nydabeats]

Violin: Flea, cut like a knife... Flute: akg 414... Acordian: Flea... Female Vocal: U67 but the akg sounded real even and I liked it...

[@hounDogmusic]

I am going to say C is the Neumann 149... which was my favourite mic in the labelled tests...

[@jessetaylor6789]

My Favourite was Microphone C or D - What Microphones were they!? I liked B on vocals the best

[@BwanaJesuasifiwe]

I listened through very sensitive electrostatic headphones. and I must say I am really impressed with the AKG414 and how it compliments the singer, I did not expect this and im honestly really impressed. they had the most body and compliment the singer just so well if not perfect. the emotion was really carried through, with a pin drop black background. im really impressed. U67 was neutral, very extended and likeable, but had a noisy oscillating background sound going on. which took away from the performance. M149 clearly sounds thin/lacks body/dip in lower mids. leaves a bad feeling because of this. C12 is horribly sibilant/too bright/ has a rough treble peak. and a very audible noise floor probably because of the treble peak sensitivity. or a fan was going on when you recorded. like it was recording on a windy day outside. all sorts of noise going on. it was horrible. not on the same league as the others AKG the winner for leaving me closest to the singer and only the singer, U67 was good but also kind of picking up to much of the environment also but not as annoying as the flea. the first guy reviewing his north korea microphone had a horrible microphone making a flickering noise to do the video. even the second guy's smart phone microphone was better than his. LOL

[@ryancarrico813]

In the first examples you had a ton of reverb on each mic which you can tell, after listening to them dry, covered up a lot of the lack of proper room acoustics for a test like this as well as some of the more nuanced characteristics of each mic. I bring this up because on the second test I thought mic D had some comb filtering going on and quickly realized that it was just picking up more of the room than the others. Also, ounce you said "boxy" in your description of 414 that's all I could hear. Also the 414XLS's you have are the "reference" 414's ( IMHO ) and it would have been nice to here them in the wide cardioid, cardioid, and hypercardioid polar patterns ( or even omni or figure-8) to see if that made it sound less "boxy". You should have gotten the 414XLII's which sound more like a U 87 ( to me at least ) are only $50 more and all this depends on what pre amp you have them going into. I A/B'd a 414XLII and a U 87 through an API 3124 4 channel pre and I couldn't tell the difference. You put the same two mics through a Manley Vox Box or an Avalon 737 and I bet their individual characteristics become more apparent. And as we all now you could have put that sm57 in front of those talented musicians and it would still sound amazing. I do agree though that while all Neumanns tend to sound the same that the new U67 while not at smooth as the first is an amazing mic.

[@circlemover]

U67 has the detail. As for the blind test I would say violin C which i think is the U67, Flute D which i think is the U67, Accordion D which has U67 all over it and finally on the vox I would say, B has the detail so I go with U67 here...despite the limits of the utube codec ....

[@thesteelydane]

My North Korea mic would have to be the Line Audio CM3 - it sounds like a Schoeps at 1/10 the price, so you could afford to lose it, and it sounds good on absolutely everything. Weak output though, so you need a good clean low noise preamp. I used two of them to record that little sample library freebie I did.

[@ernestbuckley8671]

For all around mic, I have to go with the AT4050 which I've been using now for 22 years from pop/rock/opera vocals on females/males, rap vocals, drum overheads, guitar amps, solo orchestral instruments, even orchestral recordings. I'm not sure what it cannot do so for my $$$, its the 4050.

[@jode_steele]

The U67 is a beast - "C" in the blind test perhaps? The Flea C12 is great but quite top heavy, almost overpowering and resonant in the high mids; especially with that touch of verb in the first demos. I haven't had LOADS of hands on experience with many of these, so this was a great video for hearing the character and differences of some of the top drawer mics.

[@chromaticsamples7788]

What is the Tune that Megan, the accordion plays? So wonderful!!!

[@ChristopherByrumHarris]

Honestly, I love the U87. I think it works well with just about anything you put in front of it so that would be what I take to NK if I could afford it. Nuanced is right though, each instrument and sound generating apparatus has it's own character that you need to know what mic is best for it.

[@adamgibsonsound6043]

I would probably take a Blue Kiwi or just a C414 tbh. Although i do love the old Oktavas for anything like overheads or stereo pairs

[@BandBrandon]

I love the Flea

[@brooksball7611]

Definitely love that u67. I think it's letter C

[@markrussell6813]

Great test thank you. My current fave all-rounder is Mojave ma-1000 - amazing on vocals and strings. For years i only used a schoeps m222 with mk4 capsule - still great but not on vocals. I also love my Royer SF24 stereo ribbon - but if i could only take one it would be the Mojave. Those are all expensive mics - i was surprised recently when a singer did a remote record for me. When he sent me the stems they sounded amazing. I thought blimey that's an expensive, velvety sounding mic - it was an Aston Spirit, around £300. So you don't have to spend a fortune to get a great sounding studio mic.

[@WyldeThingsMusic]

To be honest I've tried dozens of mics, including some very expensive, exotic ones but my new favourite go to mic is the Aston Spirit. Sounds great on everything and it sounds as good as mics costing 5 times the price.

[@RiveraComposer]

In order my Favorite was B - then A - then D - then C - (C was ALWAYS too bright for me)

[@kazpermusic]

Hey thanks for the videos Chris couldn't have run into this at a better time. I'm actually shopping for a condenser, lol. I have a Neumann TLM49 which is my first professional condenser mic and also my only mic. I love it. No complaints about it but I feel like I should have at least 2 just in case. I had my eyes on the Neumann M49 and coincidentally the AKG C12 VR which I read from other people that it was really bright (but that flute and the C12 was made for each other). As far as the U67, it's $2,000 more than the M49. That may take a while, lol. Thanks.

[@ErickMcNerney]

I think the mic you're using for your voiceover is a pretty good all around mic. The RE320 is pretty good, too.

[@TimShoebridge]

Great vid. To my ears the AKG gave the all round most usable output across all instruments and vocals... a bit Meh maybe but very safe. My personal choice would be Oktava... bloody amazing given the price because I think price really wasn’t considered very much in this video. But when I say Oktava I mean a real one and not a crappy Chinese clone :)

[@stevedagostino8674]

Try the DPA 2006a or almost any DPA microphone, much more versatile than you might think and they sound fantastic.

[@IrvingAguirre77]

My swiss army knife mic is the Sennheiser mkh 800!! I am going to take a shot at it and say that A=67, B=414, C=149, and D=12. Would like to know!

Wow, The Flea sound amazing on strings! Violin C, Flute D, Accordéon D, Vocals B?

[@AynenMakino]

Is it just my imagination or does the AKG 414 have a kind of vintage sound to it, with an emphesis on the mid and low end that you don't see as much as you used to? (I could just be imagining things)

[@gorillabraudcast474]

It seemed to definitely pick up more high and mid high range. All of the mics were amazing but I like the Neumann at the end of the lady singing. Great video!

[@nogoogleplus]

Who were the musicians? They were wonderful and imo deserve to be credited...did I miss it?

[@aefv.eliane]

If I have to going in North Korea, I am not sure to travel with my mics; I afraid to lost them at the border checkin! So, probably, I will take a couple of DPA 4099 for cello, they are discret in suitcase, less weight, not so visible on location, in fact, like a minimal setup for Field Recording! In double Monophonic or Stereo Couple (Ortf, XY, A B,... ...) the result is intersting. You get a kind of wild range of sound spectrum with a kind of " flavour " inside natural bass frequency. Have a nice day

[@ATastyEnd]

The flea sounded very nice on violin and added a nice but maybe a bit displeasing on the accordion. But the u87 is obviously the most clear sounding and captures the sound very nicely. the akg does sound pretty flat. Sounds great on electric guitar tho

[@lc-b352]

Could you please, Christian, make a similar video about mic preamps ?

[@MarcusWarnerMusic]

Who are the local talent? Violin - B Flute - the first B Accordion - Whatever letter the last one was Voice - D

[@sarahcampbell9288]

Fiddle - Laura Wilkie, Flute - Tom Campbell - Paine, Accordion - Megan MacDonald, Vocals - Kaitlin Ross.

[@vividphotography]

The Neumann M149 then A Mic also Christian how did you route the mics through your studio system.

[@IgnacioGomezPrats]

I loved B in voice

[@tam_ryan1036]

Orses fer corses ... the Flea is gorgeous but U67 has the detail and warmth for me. I also still reach for the TLM103, not so natural but always seems to add a bit of what I need.

[@CLdwyer]

And the accordion sounded almost like a synth through the U67

[@andreasgilgenberg5588]

Thanks a lot for your effort to bring us the sound from this awesome mics.! like the C12 very much, it is much to bright, but it has so lovely details, so i would combine it with a preamp that balance the brightness. The U67 is wonderful but it misses a little bit the detail from the C12 , maybe easier to make a C12 warmer than to make a U67 crisper. But i think the U67 is has the most balanced sound. You should try the Gefell UM 92.....yes no need........ because you have al these jewels already (-:

[@drewlerdal4971]

Excellent vlog Christian! Incredibly informative. IMHO the best all around is the Shure SM7. Vocals, guitars, snare, hell I've even used it on kick drum. I'm also a big fan of Earthworks microphones on strings and acoustic instruments. What was the reverb on the mic shootout? Bricasti?

[@ScottMcDavid-Music]

End test: I like the "A" mic best for all of those instruments/vox. I'm guessing its one of the Neumans

[@DMKahn]

I think that’s the C414

[@DacianGradaMusic]

since the SM58 is out of the question, I think I'll go for my trusty Shure KSM32, not too expensive but really well-rounded sound!

[@SarahKchannel]

none - empty suit case to bring back all the exotic ones I would find there :-) Plus is it not part of the fun, to be challenged by things we don't know ?

[@scottunrein4178]

What brand are the mesh rack blanks you have with the Bricasti? As far as the mics go, I guess I feel better about my 'meh' 414s having heard all of these together. There's a difference, but I guess I'm with Harry Gregson-Williams, I care more about content than having a perfect mic in my personal space. I'll let the music studios furnish me with $5k mics when the big sessions happen. Pretty sure B on the vocal was the U67.

[@MusicalWizardryMarcoIannello]

I am afraid I will never be allowed entry to North Korea, as I own an SM58 only, that I am extremely proud of (got to use it for recording vocals and make fire on my upcoming debut record). However, I really love the Neumann U67, it might not be an all-rounder, but it would be interesting to try it with anything, honestly. Last, I would say that C s what I would pick out of the blind test