Originally posted by Ed Kinsella:
Hi guys,

Firstly thanks to those of you who advised on a big band recording I had to do with limeted mics, was a great sucess, thanks! :p )

Budget will stretch to buying a U87 or an M147 for this purpose.

I am inclined to go for the M147, but would much appreciate any views on this.

Thanks :cool:

well, they're both good mics. And they're differrent. I'd say, ask the dealer you plan to buy one of them from to let you have both as a demo on the first day of recording your singer, pick which one sounds best on him and get that one.

There's a lot of mixed feelings out there about the M147. You may find it only works well on certain voices. Does it have to be either or? If you have the bucks for a U87, I would definitely consider the Lawson L47MP (which I think blows the U87 away for less money) and check out some of the Soundelux line.

Thanks Littledog.

Am not only considering the U87 and M147 for any reason other than they seemed to be the best (safest) bet for the money.

I like the look of that Lawson mic, but there don't seem to many places that stock it, certainly not here in England. Will look around though, seems to be a nice piece of kit.

Cheers for the suggestions.

Ed

Whoops! is sold direct from factory only :o

okay, my mistake, have seen some very good reviews out there, will be giving it some serious thought.

Is a similar price to the M147, but some people think its up there with the likes of the U47, can this be? :eek:

My only concern is that it seems from the various reviews that a fair amount of experimentation with the variable patterns is required. That does sound fun, but at the moment I need a mic that I know will deliver good (even if not 'WOW!') results consitantly without too much messing around. Am I asking too much for this budget?

Will certainly consider the Lawson though, looks luvely!

There's lots of good mic's out there which might not have the Neumann name but are worth checking out. Soundelux, Lawson, Brauner.

Personally I did not like the M147. (i like the M149 but not the price), Just try some for yourself, check this group, check RAP etc. Final choise is yours.

I own 3 M147s and they're great mics, but like any mic, they work on certain voices and really don't on others. The reviews either say they're great or they suck, the bad reviews are an example of how they weren't the right mic for the particular voice or applications they tried when reviewing, in my opinion. On the right voice this mic is great.

A U87 is another animal all together, again a great mic, but I don't think it's worth the money and really works best with a tube mod which takes the price up even higher.

Lawson, Soundelux and Blue are where I'd do some real listening if I were you. All three of these companies offer outstanding mics built on the designs of the vintage mics with modern technology.

Nuemann has made, and still makes some incredible mics, but the premium you pay for the name is pretty high.

Ed,

Gene Lawson is pretty good about letting you return the mic after a trial period. You can buy it, and then compare it to a couple of others for a week or so, and if you don't like it you can return it.

Don't let the infinite pattern discourage you. Think of it as an option you don't have to use. You can always just leave it in cardioid (which usually sounds damn good) and forget it. But, when the time comes when you need an omni... you're all set. Also can act as the equivalent of a gentle EQ, but nothing says you have to pay any attention to it.

I think I am pretty much sold on the Lawson L47MP but before I get it I was wondering what Lawson's 251 is supposed to be about? It apparantly has more air. Does this mean it is a female vocal mic? Of course the L47 is patterned after the U47, which is the vintage male vocal mic a la the Beatles.

I think the L47 would be cool as the single, overhead drum mic in Fletcher's 3-mic system. The U47 was put over Charlie Watts head on Brown Sugar. I doubt that the 251 would be as fat here.

Any comments about the 251 sound (original and Lawson) would be appreciated. Thanks.

Thanks very much fellas,

Some definate food for thought there. I see what you mean about the whole 'paying a bit extra for the name' thing, is surely true.

Am gonna shop around more I think (well, as much as one can in the UK, most test booths in music shops, even in london just seem to have a 414, a solid tube and a few Rode mics (maybe a Tlm103) but none of these ones we are discussing. still, will look around.

Phew, this is turning out to be like buying a work of art, you pic a picture, some like it some hate it, some are indifferent, I guess what counts is that I like it and I don't get ripped off! :D

Thanks very much once again.

PS Any thoughts on the C414 as a Vox mic? I have an EB and a couple of B-ULS mics (incidentally, counter to a fair bit of 414 'bashing' that seems to get written in this forum, I still find these to be FANTASTIC drum overheads, anyway, if they are good enough for Vinne Coliuta, the're good enough for me :cool:
Anyway, perhaps the 414 TLII? has the C12 capsule apparently?

Hey Littledog...I also think of the L47 pattern knob as an eq...just give it a little twist till it sounds best and have a nice day!