Warm Audio WA-47jr - Detailed Review and Microphone Comparisons

[@museum1401]

This is really helpful and very well done, thanks for putting this together!

[@askdrtk]

Much appreciated and I am glad it helped out!

[@christhembones8244]

Would have loved to hear it paired with the SM57. Cheers for being the first demo I could find with high gain guitar with the WA-47jr.

[@askdrtk]

The 47jr paired with a 57 is a pleasing combination (I've used it on an upright bass and bongos before). Many of us tend to pair SDC's with the 57 a lot, but the slightly reduced precision and rounder tone of a LDC can be very nice on many sources imo. I'm always interested in new ideas to include in microphone reviews, thanks for sharing the 57 pairing idea. Glad I could share the guitar and bass recordings with you.

[@jacobsmith3329]

Great review, thank you! I’m trying to decide between this mic or the CAD M179 for drums… any recommendations on which one I should go for?

[@nathandaniels4823]

Happy to say I nailed the mic comparisons. The balance between the upper midrange and the treble on the WA-47jr sounded more linear than all the other mics; most of them sounded just a little “pinched” by comparison (as if the upper midrange was just slightly scooped, making the treble sound a tad brighter). The only exception was the SM57, which sounded different than all the others. Anyway, thanks for the review! I almost wish I’d picked up one of these instead of my (too bright) Electro Voice RE320.

[@askdrtk]

I hear what you are saying, no pun intended. The 47jr has a pure tone that I like on many instruments and vocals. I compare the "pinched" sound on so many microphones to the less than optimal crossover implementation on many monitors. That said, it is all about the sound you are trying to achieve. I often like pure and linear, but sometimes coloration, especially from some nice transformers in the mic or preamp, is the way I go. Mics that sound over boosted or scooped are generally not for me.

[@nathandaniels4823]

@@askdrtk I also hear what you're saying! When picking an audio interface, I could hear in audio samples that the Focusrite sounded the cleanest and most linear out of all the entry-level interfaces, but the M Audio air had a very slight boost in the low end that pleasantly reminded me of a live sound. I ended up buying it and I'm still happy about it

[@askdrtk]

Great to hear! M Audio makes some nice gear. I have one of their midi keyboard controllers that has served me well for some time.

[@frankymino8773]

Top review! In the market for a vocal mic and am impressed with this WA-47jr as a result of your review. The high end is just right in my opinion and doesn't seem harsh. In fact I found it smooth. I think this WA-47jr will compliment my SPL Channel One tube mic pre really nicely. Thanks for the review!

[@askdrtk]

Much appreciated and glad to help out! The 47jr is one of those microphones that has quietly gathered a strong following for everything from home to pro studio use - one of the best performers in the under (and even over) $1k range imo.

[@sankalpmusicofficial]

You are amazing..!!! I appreciate your efforts..

[@farosonico]

I just bought that mic after watching several reviews. However after 2 days of testing i decided to send it back. Its not a bad microphone, but really it lacks clarity and has a kind of resonance in the mids that i find unpleasant. for close vocals its ok and i like that its not sibilant, but musical instruments sound bland. And when using figure of eight it sounds like it has some phase issue. I compared with all kinds of mics, and even the cheaper Neat King bee sounded a lot better for music applications at least. Thanks for the review!

[@askdrtk]

My pleasure and thanks for sharing your experience with the WA-47jr! I agree it is a very neutral microphone that doesn't add significant coloration. In the studio I use it with a UA 710 preamp and I find female vocalists often like it. I also use it on a number of wind instruments (nice on flute) plus for some percussion (shakers, tambourines, cabasa). I haven't noticed a mid resonance with mine, but I will test it out next time I have alto sax or clarinet to record. Another mic in the locker to get the right sound for specific tracks.

[@ivannio8519]

Great review. Thank you :)

[@askdrtk]

My pleasure - glad to help out!

[@GavinAtkin]

On spoken word and listening with AKG K702s, I thought the P170 SDC was surprisingly close to the 47jr.

[@askdrtk]

Thanks for bringing this up! To my ears, both microphones do provide a considerable amount of detail…

[@bohuslavrapos]

Prečo skrátili tú peknú relamu ?

[@JesusSanchez-pz1ii]

Warm warrior❤

[@mrcool5821]

I feel the guitars using the WA-47J sounds really warm where as the SM57 sounds a little more trebbly, the bass however with the WA-47J sounds a little muddy but with the SM57 sounds a bit more clear and defined.

[@askdrtk]

I agree and I hear it too. I use the 57 as a point of reference many of us are familiar with, but in practice I try not to think about what is "always used" and instead look at the mic locker as another tool to help find the tonality that best fits the moment. I find experimenting half the fun... Thanks for sharing your take on the 47jr.

[@DWHarper62]

The problem is that the 57 does not have much energy below 50 hz...