C 414 B-ULS

I hope my B-ULS never dies, I wanted an EB "bras kapsel" but couldn't snag it

414s on toms sound amazing.

It's a decent mic, but it doesn't sound great for every vocalist. Some people now believe that it is a GOATed microphone but it can sound muddy on some voices. It also doesn't have very much proximity effect which can be a downside. The point being that it is a good microphone but not a holy grail microphone. For example, the 414, while twice as expensive, has about 10x as much range and utility imo

We can agree to disagree, but you're misunderstanding my perspective so I would like to set the record straight. It's not at all that I revere the classics. I don't care about that (although, it may be as argued that many classics are classic for a reason.) All the mics I've praised are strictly for good experiences I've personally had recording with them. There are also newer ribbon mics that are excellent. Take the R88. Yes, it's large and it's heavy. Does that make it impractical? Many ribbons are... That doesn't mean it isn't a great mic. As far as the Cohls, they're not all that heavy. Again, many ribbon mics are fairly robust, so I don't think it's fair to ding them for that. Using the adapter doesn't strike me as a huge inconvenience either since it comes with the mic AFAIK. Most importantly, the mic sounds good, which is arguably all that matters... Again, classic has nothing to do with it. I like how they sound 🤷🏻‍♀️ Edited to add: Yes, I'm a fan of the 414 BUL-S. Why? Because I've gotten amazing sounds out of it. The last drum tracking session I did, I used those as well as Josephson e22s on toms. The artist loved the tom sound and mentioned that repeatedly. These experiences reinforce my positive feelings toward those microphones. The E22s while perhaps a modern classic I would argue, would not be revered in the same way as classic Neumanns etc. I slightly take offense to this suggestion that I "revere" certain mics because they've "been used many times." Every opinion I expressed was based solely on my own experience with those microphones.

If you can afford a used AKG C414 I think that is one of the most versatile mics ever.

Rightfully so. Everyone lies about it being Jackson’s mic. The B didn’t come out until years later. Most over rated mic ever. So bad they had to put a pop starts name on it just to sell it. A Beta 58 sounds WAY better on more voices. The SM7b is just so voice specific and not really any voices I work with. It does loud male vocals okay, I still prefer a Beta 58 if we’re going dynamic in the studio (live tracking or loud, loud, vocals that would otherwise distort a condenser) I had one for about 6 months. Sold it as quickly as I could. I use my RE20 and my md421 wayyyy more. Just picked up a Telefunken 251 clone by Advanced Audio for my “warm” condenser and a Warm 414 for my “bright”condenser. I’ve got tons of other stuff too but these seem to be my daily drivers. Between those, I feel like I can track most vocals and give them options that are clearly different from each other.

I’ve got 3 B-ULS and I still can’t believe how often I use them. They’re also much more repairable than any of the newer ones. Still keeping an eye out for a deal on an EB myself as well.

I haven't seen any of the JZ stuff mentioned. I have a pair of Amethysts and the JZ47 and they're both awesome on just about anything. With that said, I second all the 414 B-ULS votes.