WA-47

I've always had negative experiences with warm audio in a pro studio. Last time I heard a warm 87 and it was complete garbage, and most pro's I know scoff at the brand. That might just be the snob in me cuz I'm blessed to be able to work in pro studios with real vintage neumanns. I don't have much experience with Warm mics, tho, can y'all fill me in on what's up with them? Is this one mic just an outlier in their catalog? Or has my snobbiness just got the best of me? So this seasoned pro producer came into our studio, super smart guy, been doing records for decades, has an amazing ear & I trust his judgement a lot. He brought a Warm Audio tube U47. And we shot it out against every top tier mic we have. We've got a killer original vintage 87 (not the ai) that I love, and an original M49 that is one of the best mics I've ever heard. Also tried a Mojave MA300, and a Pearlman TM1 which is like a 47 clone. And this Warm47 was beating them all??! I've used original 47s in the studio before, so I know the sound signature. From my experience the originals sound a little darker and grittier than this Warm47. However, disregarding the fact that the sound signature is not 100% exact to the original, it's pretty damn good!! It's clean, has a robust low end, and a very smooth top. It's brighter than the original, but the brightness at the top end is very articulate in a pleasing way. We used it on drums and the cymbals were super clear and not harsh at all. So why does this mic sound so good if all I heard is negative things from the brand? My gut tells me that maybe this mic is an outlier in their catalog, or maybe their earlier releases were budget trash before they really figured it out. Not sure what the lore is here.

Tbh voice and room matter quite a bit more. I have recorded the same singer on a OG 251 in a professionally built, floated but mediocre sounding room (overly diffused by the designer) and a WA47 in a stellar sounding (also purpose built and designed, but much more modern design) room and it’s not even close. The stellar room with the mic that’s 5% the cost wins every day.

Got one when it was up for a Musician's Friend Stupid Deal Of The Day last year for $600. It's the only Warm product I own, tended to turn my nose up at the brand but curiosity got the better of me at that price. Honestly, love it. Vocals, AC guitar, mono overhead, it does the U47 thing. Prefer it to the Advance Audio CM47 in my day job studio's locker. When I rent a room that has a real tele/neumann one I use theirs, but the Warm is plenty good enough when I don't.

The 47 is the only mic ive liked from them. Def a outlier

You've heard them in person? The WA47 is the best clone I've heard, by a mile.

I agree with the other user, the WA47 is miles beyond other clones if you haven't tried it. Strangely, I've heard, the WA67 is actually closer than the 47. I may have that backwards as well.