U47 Lovers

[soundgou]

[drew]

[T_R_S]

Originally Posted by soundgou

holy crap super freaky I am reading this thread while I am on hold and this guy is singing on my music on hold!

[DarkSky Media]

Originally Posted by drew

Cool!
.

[Drumsound]

[Rascal Audio]

I have a boatload of U47 pics, including many interior shots, capsules, etc. Is there an email I can send them to? If so, please post it or PM me, and I'll send them on.

I look forward to checking out your site.

Oh, also, might be cool to include Stephen Paul's excellent article on the U47 from Mix mag sometime back in '89, IIRC. I have that too if you're interested (though you might check with Tony to make sure that's cool).

Joel

[soundgou]

my mail is n.goudinakis at gmail.com you can send your photos here. I have already include Paul's article on my site, I have send him an invoice to ask his permission but never reply me. do you believe that is ok to use it?

[jono_3]

FWIW The Beatles rarely used a U-47, and in most pictures, including the one posted above, it is a U-48.

[doorknocker]

Originally Posted by soundgou

I have already include Paul's article on my site, I have send him an invoice to ask his permission but never reply me. do you believe that is ok to use it?

You might want to double-check the address. Unfortunately, Stephen Paul passed away in 2003.

[Rascal Audio]

Originally Posted by doorknocker

You might want to double-check the address. Unfortunately, Stephen Paul passed away in 2003.

Talk with Tony Merrill (sp?) who was Stephen's sidekick at SPA. I don't have a recent address for him, but you could probably find it, or someone here might have it.

Otherwise, I'd say use the article, citing its sources (Stephen AND Mix magazine), and just be ready to desist if asked to. Probably no harm done (and nothing but free advertising for the sources, so would be a bit silly to have you remove it).

Joel

PS - and yes, most any picture of the Beatles with a "U47" is likely a picture of the Beatles with one of the many U48's they used instead.

[hasbeen]

Originally Posted by jono_3

FWIW The Beatles rarely used a U-47, and in most pictures, including the one posted above, it is a U-48.

Prove it!

Really, I want to know on what you base this information?

Thanks.

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by hasbeen

Prove it!

Really, I want to know on what you base this information?

Thanks.

The previous poster is correct. The Beatles used the U48 in figure 8 mode when recording vocals... That info is straight from George Martin.

He also discusses it in the book "Recording the Beatles".

[hasbeen]

Originally Posted by TonyBelmont

The previous poster is correct. The Beatles used the U48 in figure 8 mode when recording vocals... That info is straight from George Martin.

He also discusses it in the book "Recording the Beatles".

Dankeschön

[soundgou]

question!!!! this photo is from a beatles session at abbey road, the U47 (probably U48) on photo is with telefunken budge. I was thought that the telefunken was the distributor only for USA. What about this?

[DarkSky Media]

Originally Posted by TonyBelmont

The previous poster is correct. The Beatles used the U48 in figure 8 mode when recording vocals... That info is straight from George Martin.

He also discusses it in the book "Recording the Beatles".

Actually, according to the book "Recording the Beatles", the prevalence of the U48 was only for the Beatles' earliest sessions, and subsequently the U47 and U48 saw equal use (p168).

The photo posted by Drumsound is from the Beatles' later days and since they are grouped on one side of the mic (U48's were used most frequently for figure-8 work) it may well have been a U47 on that session.

Also, FWIW, a number of the U48s at Abbey Road in the 60s were actually U47s that had been re-configured to offer a fig-8 pattern and were re-designated as "U47/48" and "U47/8" (also mentioned in RTB p168), so even if the mic was technically a "U48" at the time of the photo, it was probably also technically (ie *originally*) a U47.

Originally Posted by soundgou

question!!!! this photo is from a beatles session at abbey road, the U47 (probably U48) on photo is with telefunken budge. I was thought that the telefunken was the distributor only for USA. What about this?

According to RTB (p166), "Abbey Road never had any Telefunken-branded microphones - only Neumann", and that is confirmed by various other sources -- so it would be interesting to know the story behind that particular shot!

[Rascal Audio]

Yeah, EMI had their own electronics division that would often put their paws on any non-EMI gear to modify it as needed, so really, those mics could be pretty much anything.

The first 4 Beatles albums didn't use headphones, IIRC, but rather large, rolling, tannoy-equipped speaker cabinets called 'white elephants' that they would pump a track back through during vocal overdubs and then put a U48 in figure-8 mode at 90-degrees to this speaker with the singers on opposite sides of the mic. The off axis rejection of the pattern nulled the speaker (within reason) minimizing bleed during vocal overdubbing.

If I am not mistaken Rubber Soul was the first of their records to use headphones (which gives it a much more stark/separated sound than the earlier records).

I read the Recording the Beatles book (which I got for Christmas a few years back) cover to cover. Got so detailed in some parts that it actually got boring, even to a tech geek like myself! I don't remember all of it (might be time to give it another read), but I do remember being fascinated by the use of the white elephants in the pre-headphone studio world!

Joel

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by DarkSky Media

Actually, according to the book "Recording the Beatles", the prevalence of the U48 was only for the Beatles' earliest sessions, and subsequently the U47 and U48 saw equal use (p168).

The photo posted by Drumsound is from the Beatles' later days and since they are grouped on one side of the mic (U48's were used most frequently for figure-8 work) it may well have been a U47 on that session.

It's quite possible. I've never had a chance to read the book... I was just relaying what George Martin told me in a conversation.

[ericsvizeny]

Originally Posted by TonyBelmont

The previous poster is correct. The Beatles used the U48 in figure 8 mode when recording vocals... That info is straight from George Martin.

He also discusses it in the book "Recording the Beatles".

Very cool!

[DarkSky Media]

Originally Posted by TonyBelmont

It's quite possible. I've never had a chance to read the book... I was just relaying what George Martin told me in a conversation.

Well, the statement is true as far as it goes - there is no disputing that the Beatles *did* "use the U48 in figure 8 mode when recording vocals..." - sometimes. But he (apparently) didn't say that they only ever used that mic in that pattern, which was the implication of your earlier post.

That aside, when they're both switched to Cardioid pickup position, the U48 and U48 are very close to being the same microphone. I know there are purists who would disagree, but the differences between models from different years (long body, short body etc) are arguably as great or greater.

[ciggi]

does the MTG um70 count too?

[DarkSky Media]

Originally Posted by ciggi

does the MTG um70 count too?

Nice one.

Irony aside, if it used the same tube, same housing, same headshell and basically the same circuit as well as the same capsule, then it might. But otherwise...

[legato]

That aside, when they're both switched to Cardioid pickup position, the U48 and U48 are very close to being the same microphone. I know there are purists who would disagree

I wouldn't.








Henk

[doorknocker]

Originally Posted by soundgou

question!!!! this photo is from a beatles session at abbey road, the U47 (probably U48) on photo is with telefunken budge. I was thought that the telefunken was the distributor only for USA. What about this?

Photoshop at its worst!

[jono_3]

I would have to check the "Recording the Beatles" again, but I remember seeing somewhere that all of Abbey Roads U47's were converted to U48's. The Abbey Road mic list has no mics listed as U47's or U48's, but as 47/48, which doesn't really help clarify.

Abbey Road - Microphones

Food for thought!

[DarkSky Media]

Originally Posted by jono_3

I would have to check the "Recording the Beatles" again, but I remember seeing somewhere that all of Abbey Roads U47's were converted to U48's...

See p168 of "Recording the Beatles", as noted in post #16 above.

[Ward Pike]

Recently, I saw a picture of a U47/48 from a Beatles' session set on cardioid, and seemed to be positioned for recording solo vocal... I'll try to dig it up unless someone else might be able to add it.

Edit: I think it's from this session...


Cheers, great thread!

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by DarkSky Media

Well, the statement is true as far as it goes - there is no disputing that the Beatles *did* "use the U48 in figure 8 mode when recording vocals..." - sometimes. But he (apparently) didn't say that they only ever used that mic in that pattern, which was the implication of your earlier post.

I was just confirming that they were used in that manner.

It would be ridiculous to imply that an artist would only be recorded with one vocal chain for their entire careers..

[DarkSky Media]

Originally Posted by TonyBelmont

I was just confirming that they were used in that manner.

It would be ridiculous to imply that an artist would only be recorded with one vocal chain for their entire careers..

Tony, what you actually said was "the previous poster was correct" - ratifying a comment from jono_3 in which s/he said "FWIW The Beatles rarely used a U-47, and in most pictures, including the one posted above, it is a U-48.".

However, according to the book you mentioned, it appears that the Beatles frequently used U47s and, as noted, were quite likely using one in the photo that jono_3 (and you) were referring to. So jono_3 was outright wrong on the first point and probably also wrong on the second.

You're a good guy, and I don't mean to offend you. Just trying to set the record straight.

[Pastor Obviedo]

Originally Posted by DarkSky Media

Tony, what you actually said was "the previous poster was correct" - ratifying a comment from jono_3 in which s/he said "FWIW The Beatles rarely used a U-47, and in most pictures, including the one posted above, it is a U-48.".

However, according to the book you mentioned, it appears that the Beatles frequently used U47s and, as noted, were quite likely using one in the photo that jono_3 (and you) were referring to. So jono_3 was outright wrong on the first point and probably also wrong on the second.

You're a good guy, and I don't mean to offend you. Just trying to set the record straight.

Then I have a diferent "Recording the beatles" book, because mine said that they frequently used U48s and that Neumman converted Abbey Road's U47's in to U48's.