Are you going to put them up as a blind test for a while before revealing them? The
Barron Studios shoot out and poll is cool but the mic ID text file was posted at the same time as the audio files. I'm all for taking my lumps in a blind shoot out, tracking listener impressions
via a poll and revealing the mics later.
In my opinion, one of the values of U47 / OktavaMod shoot outs is they demonstrate what my clients have called the "Neumann-esque" quality of the OktavaMod MK-219 / 319 PE mics. And this "Neumann-esque" quality or voicing is something many people are looking for as an alternative to overly bright mics that often don't track well in the digital domain.
There are many qualities that recordists find important in microphones - one of these is spectral balance. While there are certainly going to be differences between a legendary mic with a legendary vacuum tube and a more modern FET mic, I believe there is a similarity in spectral response between these two mics - that is, the overall balance of bass / mid / top in an M7 capsule-equipped mic is similar to the MK-219 capsule used in the 219, 319 and
MK-101.
I've done quite a bit of spectral analysis of voices recorded simultaneously with various Neumann mics and the OktavaMod 219 or 319. Without giving away the specifics of the spectral differences before Omtayslick posts his files, I will say the differences are small enough that if you want an OktavaMod MK-219 / 319 to have a nearly identical spectral response to a
U47, a
UM-57 (scroll down) or
M 149 a touch of EQ will get you there. This is because 1). the basic spectral response of the 219 capsule has a "Neumann-esque" spectral response voicing and 2.) the OktavaMod mics have low phase and acoustical refraction distortion that allow them to take EQ almost as well as a ribbon mic.
Please understand that I'm not saying an OktavaMod MK-219 or 319 sounds like a Neumann U47. I am saying that a long term averaged spectral response comparison of these two mics exhibits a strong correlation - this leads to a short-term, subjective impression of voicing similarity.
But of course there are differences...
... a supremely well-executed tube mic like the U47 is going to have an almost indescribable "depth" or "harmonic complexity" that comes from its vacuum tube topology. This is a characteristic that can be listened for and distinguished separately from spectral balance.
But when evaluating other criteria - transient response and refraction artifacts (in other words integrity of "T", "F" and "S" sounds - low sibilance) many of my clients have indicated a preference for their MK-319 Floating Dome PE over the M 149 or U47. The single layer grille 319 Floating Dome headbasket is more acoustically open with less capsule / headbasket reflection than the multilayer Neumann headbasket. (which, as the late Stephen Paul first pointed out, not only functions as an EMI shield but a high frequency boost EQ as well. And like all EQ, it is going to impart some audible artifacts)
So bring on the audio and let the listeners voice their opinions!