Another "X" Mic Vs. "Y" Mic, for "Z" Application - TLM49 & AK47

[Avening]

Hey fellow Slutz,

I know, I know ... these threads get boring and are incredibly subjective, but I'm honestly in a bit of a pickle.

I'm looking for a great, modern (not by timbre), and versatile "higher" end vocal microphone to handle the brunt of my business, and for use on my band's next album. Although I love the sound of my older vocal mics, I need something under warranty for day to day business ... repair bills and maintenance get to be a bit much and I'd like to retire some of my older mics to the "** denotes double rental" status if you know what I mean.

For band duty, our singer is incredibly powerful. Think Poison The Well, Strung Out, ect... I need a mic that can handle a strong voice, a gritty voice, and a scream without breaking up, or insane proximity effect. I need a mic that cuts. My "ideal" mic for our singer is the Manley Reference (which he sounds great on), but the budget this year just isn't there. This leaves me in the $1100-$1400 new or used sector. The two top contenders on opposite sides of the sound spectrum are the TLM 49, and AK47 ... in my eyes. I've used the TLM49 a few times and have been impressed ... but that was on Grand Piano in a huge room. Kind of hard not to get a good sound. The AK47 is a bit too new, and I don't know anyone with one to test. My pre's are very neutral (my fav - Focusrite ISA), which leaves a lot of duty on the mic and the performance.

For this sort of application, please tell me your thoughts on why I should go for one, or the other. Remember: versatility, SPL, mix "cut", less proximity effect on cardioid ...

Thanks dudes!

[sahiaman]

I like the TLM49 alot. Infact, I welcome it with open arms to many sessions on vocals where the vocals have to sit a bit on top in a dense mix. I worked with this singer songwriter a while ago and I used the TLM49 on all vocals through a GTQ2 preamp. Sounds wonderful, and you can hear a few songs here. Ronald Payne Uvfmusic.com

[Addni]

isn't AK47 a riffle ? :P

[PVAUDIO]

I've never used a tlm49 but I have a lot of experience with the ak47. Compared to a U87ai the ak47 is darker and I felt was missing something in the high end.

The AK47 is a great mic. I love it as a mono front of kick mic. I also really like it on guitars especially as a room mic. But for me it hasn't been overly useful for vocals.

[strewnshank]

I've used an AK47, and felt that it was "pre eq'd" in a way that was perfect for some things, but not great for others. It was great on a loud, well trained female vocalist, but fell short on a powerful male vocalist. My experience with a TLM49 has been limited to rappers, so I have zero useful things to say about it, other than I would love very minute of those sessions back (nothing against rap, just the rapper that I used the TLM49 on).

WAY below your budget, but an SM7b holds up real nice with the screamers, and is really useful when they are teetering on the edge of scream/sing. Great all around mics too, as I'm sure you know.

[Avening]

Originally Posted by sahiaman

I like the TLM49 alot. Infact, I welcome it with open arms to many sessions on vocals where the vocals have to sit a bit on top in a dense mix. I worked with this singer songwriter a while ago and I used the TLM49 on all vocals through a GTQ2 preamp. Sounds wonderful, and you can hear a few songs here. Ronald Payne Uvfmusic.com

Thanks very much for the links and input! Sounds great thumbsup

Originally Posted by strewnshank

I've used an AK47, and felt that it was "pre eq'd" in a way that was perfect for some things, but not great for others. It was great on a loud, well trained female vocalist, but fell short on a powerful male vocalist. My experience with a TLM49 has been limited to rappers, so I have zero useful things to say about it, other than I would love very minute of those sessions back (nothing against rap, just the rapper that I used the TLM49 on).

WAY below your budget, but an SM7b holds up real nice with the screamers, and is really useful when they are teetering on the edge of scream/sing. Great all around mics too, as I'm sure you know.

Thanks for you input thumbsup I agree with the SM7B recommendation. It is a great all-rounder and I use mine for tons of applications, but to my ears it still sounds like a dynamic mic (love it though). I find a lot of bands that have two singing styles (melodic, and screamers) tend to track with a LDC on melodic sections and switch over to a dynamic for screams ... the thing is ... that grey area when the voice gets gets pushed and starts to break up before a full out scream = $$$. If I can find a LDC that can do justice to both styles, and retain a full and natural image of the frequency spectrum while preserving the performance, I'm ahead of the game. Our singer tends to lean towards a tube LDC, but sounds equally as good on a mic like my U89. The SM7B didn't do much for his clean voice.

Originally Posted by PVAUDIO

I've never used a tlm49 but I have a lot of experience with the ak47. Compared to a U87ai the ak47 is darker and I felt was missing something in the high end.

The AK47 is a great mic. I love it as a mono front of kick mic. I also really like it on guitars especially as a room mic. But for me it hasn't been overly useful for vocals.

Thanks for your input!

Keep them coming!

[strewnshank]

Originally Posted by Avening

The SM7B didn't do much for his clean voice.

I hear that, and if you pair it with a clean preamp, sometimes the "sound" just isn't there. Good luck in the search!

[dudge]

I have both. The TLM49 is cleaner with more high mids, less low mids, and less airiness. The AK47 is more tube-y and more vintage sounding with fatter low mids, and more air on top with a little less of a high mid emphasis.

They are both nice mics. I think the TLM49 is more limited in application because of the reduced low end and a fixed tight cardioid pattern, but can be really nice on vocals and a few other things. Variable patterns make the AK47 much more versatile for a lot of uses other than vocals. This could be especially important if it is your only LDC.
If you are using with an ISA, the extra color of the AK may be nice.

Check out the Pearlman, and Peluso mics as well.

just my 2¢