sE Electronics - WA-47F

Can second the W47F it’s my go-to kick out mic

I don't love it on acoustic guitar but yes, otherwise it is a real workhorse. I've been wanting to swap mine in for a matched stereo pair for drum overheads but goddamn does it work well as a center/mono overhead

Not really an unknown gem, but I got the warm audio fet47jr for £80 in the uk and it sounds really great I don’t have complaints about that mic even Red 5 audio make a cheap dynamic mic for £30 that sounds as good as any. Soup can mic is just a piezo in a tin, really great for distorted lo-fi.

I misnamed it, that’s what I have

All I can say is that I had a WA47 in my studio for several years, and got it in my head that I needed to build the significantly more expensive D-EF47 from vintagemicpcb to replace it. After many many many hours of soldering and tweaking, and a lot of money spent, I set them up for a shootout and both the vocalist and I both thought the same thing - "shit...they kinda sound the same." To be fair, every vintage u47 I've been around sounds a little different, and there are so many different capsules out there. In my mind a good u47 should make a vocalist sound "larger than life", and the WA47 certainly checks that box. Not all WA stuff is good, but some of it is. If you haven't looked into their RCA 44 clone, you should. I will say that my D-EF47 does have a lower noise floor, but that might just be the better PSU. I have also settled on Adrienne Audio’s Flat 47 capsule, which makes it sound a bit more like a M49, which I think is what most people actually want when they want a u47 haha. It’s a less colored sound than the WA47 which is helpful for mixing later, and I don’t miss that 5K bump which I never like on female vocalists.

Just to clarify what's going on here: * Blue Yetis are *not* recommended microphones for voice work. From experience, they have a really mixed reliability rating for the electronics (death by overheating), and they're really just designed to be plug-and-play USB mics with a built-in preamp. The capsules cannot really handle a wide range of volume, and the early versions only supported 16-bit audio, so you get digital clipping and distortion really quickly. * Be prepared to spend between $200-$500 for a quality microphone, and $200-$500 for a quality audio interface, depending on how many inputs / outputs you need. If you know what you're looking for, you can find deals on demo models and B-stock (Sweetwater is great for this). * The other half of this is your mic technique. If you're staying at the same distance from the mic and then ramping up into yelling from your normal speaking voice, yeah, it's gonna clip! You need to learn how to pull back and/or away to the side to tame volume jumps like that. Work with a teacher or coach to refine this. * A good voice director / engineer should identify lines with volume for you, so you can avoid straining your voice by jumping between levels, and get the "loud" takes done as separate lines, though some volume jumps are unavoidable. Your setup should be something like this: * A quality XLR, 48v phantom powered condenser microphone. No onboard electronics, preamps, interfaces, or USB anything. They may have switches to select polar patterns (sensitivity / which side), and to engage built-in -10db pads and low cut filters to reduce bass rumble, etc. * A "spider" shockmount for the microphone, which attaches to your mic stand or mic arm. This isolates it from vibrations that might pass through the desk. * A pop filter for the microphone, that deflects air from the mic capsule on plosives (P, B, T, etc.) to tame peaks. * A quality audio interface that provides an XLR connection and switchable 48v phantom power for your mic, has a good amount of clean gain, at least one pair of line outputs if you have studio monitors, and a good full-sized 1/4" headphone output. * Some sort of tamed space for recording - if you don't have a booth, something like a small bedroom with carpets and curtains, or a deep coat closet (with coats!) works. Plenty of DIY booth plans out there that you can make with moving blankets and PVC pipe. My recommended gear for a serious beginner: * Mics: Rode NT1 or NT2A; Aston Spirit; Warm Audio WA47 or WA87 (good clones of Neumanns); Audio-Technica AT2050. I recommend these because they're all reputable brands, the prices are reasonable but not dirt cheap, and if necessary they retain their retail value. * Interfaces: Audient iD4 (single input, perfect for VO, great quality); MOTU M2 (2-in, high quality); Focusrite Scarlett Solo (single input, very popular). * Shockmount: Sometimes there are ones of the same brand that come with the mics in a bundle, which is fine, I also recommend the Rycote USM InVision universal shock mount. * Pop Filter: The industry standard is the Stedman, a metal screen with a patented design that deflects air at an angle. But any decent one will do! But again: quality gear will help, technique will take you the rest of the way. Check the Helpful Resources sidebar section here for guides!

Just curios have you heard the WA47? It's actually a pretty good mic. I'm running one into my Great River ME1NV and then to my Black Lion Audio Bluey. And I get outstanding vocal takes.

Save for the Warm Audio WA47. It’s worth it. I hate Amazon but you could take advantage of their financing. I noticed if you have Prime and in good standing they will offer it to you without a credit check and not through any third party financing company, and no interest I think. That’s what I would do anyways.

Hi! I’m a YouTuber who reviews gear and am in the small percentage of users who don’t suck Warm Audios cock when it comes to praise as most of their stuff is completely mark missing. The general consensus is that most stuff by them is great and sounds amazing. Which is simply not true. It sounds just okay. It works. It’s budget entry level gear that does “mask” as something else while it isn’t. What I mean is they sell the Opto Comp as an LA2A clone but it’s not even close. They would’ve been so much better off marketing it as something else. It distorts too quickly and sounds very gritty tinny and overly forced to color a sound rather than do what an LA2A does. Maybe someone wants this but that “mask” made people buy it under the idea it was an LA2A clone. Therefore disappointment. The same goes with their most recent Tube Screamer combo pedal the TS9, TS808, andTS10, all in the same pedal. In a shootout between the real deal I noticed the EQ curve on their pedal boosted the mid range in a totally different mid frequency. It sounded similar. It was closeish but on certain guitars it was too honky, harmonically shrill and too similar amongst modes that felt more gimmicky. In my opinion. Just buy a used Ibanez TS808 and call it a day. Now mics. I’ve used every mic that warm makes in a studio setting. This is is the one thing warm got right. The mics in the high end department. The cx24, fentone, wa44, wa8000g (new tube makes it even better), wa47, cx12, and the 251. All really solid and all worth buying and using on big projects even. Truthfully the tube swap on any of the tube mics makes it the sound even better but on the 8000g it’s absolutely stunning. Sure their is a little change in eq curve and presence from the og mics; if you are trying to imitate the classics exactly, but these small changes can be fixed with a good signal chain and some post-eq. Seriously plug that bitch in and let it sing because all these mics sound killer and just work like the classics for a fraction of the price.

Honestly haven't used any of the mics you've listed. I mostly use AKG (C414 XL) and Warm Audio (WA47) for vocal sessions. So not much help with your short list.

Warm Audio. If you were anywhere nearby I'd say come by and check it out. It's a beast. AKG is my all around go to for orchestra sections, choirs and solo instruments like cello, f horn etc. I use the WA47 on full percussion sections with timpani etc. For solo vocals the WA47 has not disappointed. It's almost a perfect score on Sweetwater with 89 reviews.

I remember very well my first demo with the WA47 after picking one up. It really does punch way above its price point, I was honestly in shock how much I preferred the sound of this mic over some more pricey ones. I had a friend come over and do a track, and he went out and bought one for himself not too long afterwards.

I honestly couldn’t agree more. I have a U47 clone and think I think it’s 10x the U87 haha. Obviously this is personal preference and I’m biased, but I remember when I first started recording, over a decade ago in pro studios, I was DREAMING of being able to sing into a u87 and see one for the first time. We did A/B takes with the 87 and other mic’s and I chose the other mic every time over the 87 haha. I’ve used it in various situations and of course it’s a good mic but I just generally don’t like how they fit with my voice or style at all and have stayed away from them ever since 😅

I’ve been using the WA-47 (not the fet, the big boy) and I love it so much