always a matter of taste... and context...

Truly a matter of taste, vocal quality, certainly preamp and room. If we were open to the public, I'm sure our mic locker would include the Flea but when you can only keep a couple mics in this price range, it's usually an all day test session on lots of tunes. The Manley, the Lauten Eden/ or sometimes Atlantis, Blue Stage 2 w/B6 or VD67 have been our keepers. They all have a nice upper mid range that gives articulation and a touch of growl in our full band mixes.

Luckily, there a lots of mics to choose from these days for all our different voices and music styles. Again, if you can check out in advance or purchase from a great company like VKings with a return policy, you should be able to find one that fits. Listening to YouTube videos can only give you a taste of what a mic is capable of but good starting point. Watch the latest Produce Like a Pro/VK mic video to see how close they sound through this medium. I still have a brief 47 raw track comparison of the low voices on Soundcloud taken from the VK shootout from awhile back.

The 47 I had was such a beautiful, quality mic and I do really miss it dearly, but I need a bit more edge for what I do.
If I was recording Crooners with piano backing, I couldn't think of a better modern mic.
I really want to hear their C12 though, even though I'm a bit "meh" about the Campbell capsules I've used thus far compared to originals. I preferred Haun in that department.

I have a FLEA 47 and love it. What comes out of the mic already sounds "mixed". I have a feeling that we sometimes get caught up in technicalities. Sound is always a matter of taste, but to my ears this mic is magical.

I spent 2 days at Vintage King in LA to pick a tube mic. I must have auditioned 20 mics. The FLEA had that special sound. Some other reputable mics didn't blow me away at all, some more affordable ones surprised me how good they sounded (Mojavee MA-200!), but at the end of the day(s) I went for the FLEA 47 and will never regret it.

I love be my Tim Campbell C12 capsules!
And my flea 48.
My other main tracking mics are an AEA R44 and some vintage 87’s.
The Flea 48 is always getting used!! Such an incredible sounding mic.

I’ve been using Flea 47 about a year now. Such a clean and open sound with every preamp I’ve tried. Current vocal chain is 47 -> API 3124 - Distressor and there you have a finished vocal mix heh! It’s almost plug & play, always sounds super natural.

47 isn’t all - arounder but haven’t had any problems really, there’s so much detail so you can really shape the tone with eq and compression. And we have Royer etc. for vibey stuff. Also a great room mic, wish we had two!

Do you know, Ive been using my Flea 47 next with my API3124 over and above my Fearn VT, GR ME1NV, Pacifica... if I had a 1073 I might lean on that but I find the Flea and API a great combo, somewhat surprisingly.

Flea 47 - you can't go wrong.
If you want to save a bit, and you plan to use it mainly for vocals, you could get the one without the polar pattern selection.
Sounds the same.
It's one of the best purchases I've ever done.