This is not a PMI product; this is a Stephen Paul product, built by Stephen Paul Audio (now run by Tony Merrill), and distributed by PMI. I'm quite sure I will be thrilled to own any of the SPA units made. Tony will insure that these mics are all representative of Stephen's vision. And Stephen didn't build the prototype, Tony did, under Stephen's direction.
Tony Merrill has been Stephen's hands for the last ten years, and I trust Tony as much as I trusted Stephen to do the best work possible. But this won't be a Tony Merrill mic; it won't be an Alan Hyatt or Brent Casey or PMI mic - it is, and always will be, a Stephen Paul mic. It will use a unique SPA capsule and 3 micron SPA diaphragm, AFAIK. It is NOT a PMI product - it is funded and distributed by PMI.
It will not be made in China, or use Chinese parts.
Finally, let me clear up the Sennheiser/Neumann diaphragm misunderstanding: About 10 years ago, Stephen was in discussion with them about coming out with a SPA/Neumann microphone. He proposed some ideas but nothing came of the discussions, and the project was abandoned.
Some of the new mic's features incorporate some of the ideas discussed during that period. Stephen was alluding to the fact that Sennheiser/Neumann passed on the capsule, believing it was impossible to build.
That's the total sum of Stephen's remarks and what he meant when he said it would use a discarded Sennheiser capsule; he meant that the SPA mic would use some of the concepts that he proposed 10 years ago to them, thought impossible at the time.
One more item. There is a lag time between the prototype of anything and the actual production, while outside vendors are building tools and molds to produce quantities of a special part design, like a unique switch, or a cast part. That's why the SPA mic is "finished", but not yet in production.
As far as details, I'm not in the loop, except as a friend, so I can't divulge even a few of the ground-breaking and revolutionary features of the new mic. Some of them are "Duh, that's so obvious - why don't other manufacturers do that?" and other features are "Shit, is that even possible?". That's why there's such a tight security lid on the mic features.
And finally, finally; if it weren't for Alan support of Stephen's vision, this mic would never see the light of day. Only Alan Hyatt had the balls to step up to the plate and say, "Let's do it, Stephen!". All of Stephen's friends owe Alan big time for all his help in making the mic a reality.
You can ascribe any petty motives you want to Alan, DJL - all of Stephen's real friends know the real truth.
And DJL, I returned ALL of the Studio Projects mics to Alan (except for the B1, which I've misplaced and I'm still looking for). I do not own (nor was I given) any SP microphones, although there are several SP models I do plan to buy when I can afford them.
