pohaku
New member
It is true most home recordists are unlikely to have a U47 or even a U87 in their studios.
But many people write to me and describe their home studio mic needs by expressing a desire to get something like the sound they've gotten when they used Neumann mics in professional studios. For these people - musicians and engineers looking for affordable microphones that have a timbral resemblance to the "Neumann voicing" - shootouts between OktavaMod mics and Neumann mics are valuable.
Other people have written who have never used one of the iconic Neumann microphones. But they too are interested in knowing how an OktavaMod performs relative to these icons. For these people, shootouts between OktavaMod mics and Neumann mics are valuable.
For people who just want to hear how my OktavaMod process improves a stock mic, I have very carefully recorded before / after mod acoustic guitar samples at my site: http://www.oktavamod.com/audio.html (second test from the bottom of the page).
But as I've said before, I'm not running a shoot-out business. I'm busy improving microphones to enhance the recording experiences of my clients. I'm thankful that clients do take the time to make and share their A / B tests with the world.
Some here may continue to debate the validity and methodology of OktavaMod / Neumann comparisons - you're welcome to.
But three groups of people have told me these comparisons are valid - 1.) those looking for a "Neumann-esque" sound, 2.) those for whom Neumann is a gold standard of performance and 3.) very happy clients from around the world who wish to express to me, and recordists like themselves, their happiness with my work through their own A / B comparisons.
Nice post Michael. I'd agree in that one of the most frequent posts on any audio forum is "What less expensive LD mic can I buy that will sound like a U-47 (U-87, etc.)." For a variety of reasons (some nonsensical and arcane), the U-47/U-87 (other older neumann) has been perceived to be the "gold standard" by which all other LD mics are measured. Even though many recordists will never own (or maybe even use) a U-47 or U-87, many aspire to that sound (or what they believe to be that sound) and thus have a legitimate interest in other microphones that might get them in the ballpark.