what is similar to the u87?

[tiger vomitt]

there's a lot of great things about a u87. i would like something like it for a couple of upcoming vocal sessions (hiphop) but i dont have that much $$.

what do you like that is sorta similar to the u87 but maybe about $500-700 used?


(btw, i used the rode nt2 a lot and hate it so lets not even bother with that one. im open to anything else.)


weird question, i know. it's late



thanks!!!

[tiger vomitt]

any opinions on this odd looking jobber?


http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... gory=41466

[joel hamilton]

Not that these are LIKE the 87, but I would try:

AT4050, AT4033.

I have used those on hip hop sessions even with lots of other stuff to choose from, including an 87.

[Rodgre]

I just did a shootout last week where I put up a bunch of mics on a female vocal to see which one was her mic:

Neumann 147, Neumann U87, that very Geffell you linked to, AT 4033 and something else I'm forgetting.

They were all going straight into an SSL on adjacent channels.

The U87 won hands down. The tone was warm and clear and made her sound like she was in the room. The Geffell was a close second, but wasn't chosen because it seemed to pick up way more background noise than any of the other mics. You could hear the A/C rumbling and you could hear other studios down the hall. I never liked the 4033. I don't know why, but it usually sounds small and thin to me. The 147 wasn't bad, but it was dull compared to the 87.

Roger

[AstroDan]

There are better sounding vocal mic's than the TLM-103, but the capsule is supposed to be based on the u87's. Around $500 used.

[tiger vomitt]

that's pretty cool about the gefell, Rogere. i guess being that the body design of the mic is so different that its polar pattern is just as dissimilar. btw, i saw a neumann with the same body shape as that gefell yesterday too. AND, ive always hated the 4033 too

but the 4050 looks very interesting. i understand it sounds nothing like a 4033, is that correct Joel?


thanks all,

evan

[joel hamilton]

4033: Cheap condenser worth owning. put it where you wouldnt put your real mics.
The 57 of condensers in my opinion. dont expect a lot, just expect:"works."

4050: Not as cheap condenser, worth owning. Use on (non critical) vocal.

I have a lot of really nice mic's, and these stay on stands more than you would think. I dont care what logo is on a mic.

If georg Neumann could have made a 4050 in 1971 he would have.

There arent any pictures of ringo with a 4050 though, i guess that affects how it sounds.

But seriously,

With the right pre, I have had great results on bass with a 4033,(again, I have lots of more "traditional" choices) and heavy guitar, along side a BK5.

For a hip hop session, I would probably not haul out something super delicate. Have you listened to any real hip hop?

All the guys I have recorded like the sound of some "grit."

A 4050 through a V76 and an La2a or a 4033 through a sytek blasted into a spectra sonics 610 always seem to make the fellaz Holla!

This aint no opera, yo!

[Rodgre]

4033: Cheap condenser worth owning. put it where you wouldnt put your real mics.
The 57 of condensers in my opinion. dont expect a lot, just expect:"works."

I feel that way about the KSM32 (I know I'm getting off-topic)
I think the KSM32 is a very good "use it anywhere and you won't be unhappy" mic. It's not the out-and-out winner in all applications, but it never really steers me wrong.

The 4033, on the other hand.... I've liked it on one or two voices, and one on guitar amp track in the last five or six years. The key with that mic is that it needs to hit a really good preamp. I started to like it more once a Great River MP2-NV entered the studio.

That Geffell sounded really really good in the shootout, but like I said, there seemed to be a little more bottom end which was just picking up A/C noise and ambient sounds from outside the room. In a quiet environment, I would have loved it.

I was most surprised by the 147 (actually, it might have been an older FET47, but I'm not certain.) I expected it to sound more interesting.

I tend to like things to sound a little on the dark and warm side. I don't seek out sounds for crystal top end. The 4033 might be great to others. To me, it doesn't seem to have the "depth" that I rely on to blend in my mixes.

Roger

[tiger vomitt]

Have you listened to any real hip hop?
All the guys I have recorded like the sound of some "grit."

have i listened to any real hip hop? duhhhhh, no ive never heard it before. actually ive been listening since about 1982. so yeah, i think ive heard some "real" hip hop, whatever the hell that means...

i dont know of any non-tube condenser mics that offer any grit to speak of. the grit always come from the pre or compressor, etc

anyways, thanks to all for your thoughts on the U87 alternatives!


peace,

TV

[joel hamilton]

Sorry tigervomit, I didnt mean it that way...

I was more trying to state the grit factor in modern hip hop in a dramatic and obtuse way. I was not specifically asking you.

I wish I was a better writer. WTF we are all audio nerds here, not english professors...


I dont know what gefell you are talking about?

Which one?

[Randall]

Soundelux U97 is supposed to be a copy of the 87,,mine is pretty amazing

[brian beattie]

I don't know what an 87 sounds like, but the geffel um-70 was my first good mic. I've never heard it sound wrong on a vocal when I was aiming for a "natural" sound. It has a lovely silky smooth bump at the top. Large and clear.
I paid 1500 for a pair of um-70's ten years ago and I've loved them ever since. The guy who sold them to me has always regretted it. hahaha.
brian

[black ark]

since about 1982

man, i always wondered what the "grit" on rakim's voice was... gotta be cheaper than a 4033...

"ch ch ch ch check out my melody..."

-paul m