C 414 EB P48

Yeah I think you’re right. The body of the mic looks too long to be a c12. But if it is an EB then does it have the brass or nylon capsule? Makes a big difference in the sound.

There are many 414 variants. The eb is the only one I really like. I think the Mojave ma300 is my current favorite new mic. I don’t even like the 103

C414, but only the XL2 or EB

FET 47, josephson only makes great stuff, old brass capsule 414 (I bet they’re ridiculously pricey now though)

It's an older c414 (80s?) people like the older ones that have different capsules made of different material. Less bright than normal ones I believe? These ones go for quite a bit more money.

What you are asking is a unicorn. At that budget you'll mostly get mid range gear. You could find the mic that suits your voice but it'd be luck mostly. Almost no one goes "what's that microphone" on a recording. Just because -1 if it sounds good it sounds good. -2 there is not only the microphone. Preamps will weight in the sound too. The room wil allow some microphones, some placement etc... It's not that one incredible mic that will make the change if the rest of the signal chain is sub part in terms of quality. For me you're doing it the wrong way. Think long term, find the microphone you like and see what you can build slowly towards it. If you can not buy twice it's always better. On your budget/situation, the sm7b (re20 if in the us) is a sturdy no nonsense mic. You'll need a cloudlifter, as the focusrite will be a bit short in gain. This mic is something you'll keep on the long run, and is in your budget. (At the moment I usualy record voices with a U87 and a SM7b, together they give a range of sound that is very interesting) In neumann range, I'd stay away frop the 102/103. For a good large membrane condenser, you'll need a 1200/1500 budget for a starter (the TLM 49 could be nice for you in that range) Then look around for preamps, learn the difference between lamp, transistor...learn the known sounds you will prefer. Then invest in a good one. Trust me, a good preamp will make a basic microphone shine. A good mic will reveal how good or bad is the rest of your chain. Then what are your monitors? If you can't hear it, it'll be luck trying to make it sound without gear that allows you to hear all of it... This is a rabbit hole, and you can't simply get that wow sound with a entry level correct microphone. And all that plug in emulation, as much as it can do the trick, a real hardware gear really shows the difference. Uad unissons are good with the mix of hardware/plug in but if you compare to the hardware unit, the hardware has more range and depth. (I could get to the sound of the 610 plug in with the 610 hardware, but not the other way around). Well... all that the say :p Look at it from a perspective of slowly building up where you want to go in the long run A good dynamic mic (sm7b/re20) seems like what you are able to afford right now, it is never a bad investment. If you learn phase problems, you'll even be able to use your actual mic to add a bit of air and top end, but keeping that mid/low thickness of the dynamic as a base for your sound. Akg C214 is extremely bright, I'd take a nt1 instead most of the time. Comparing both the 414 is more in the range of the nt1. It is bright but remains a workhorse. Probably not the best for what you want to achieve. Good luck to you, the way is long ;)

Akg 414 id say is a great work horse condenser. But it is not a budget friendly solution like the sm57.