Thanks for this video as I've been looking for this comparison between an older model and a II version. I have an old black model from the early 80's approx, and I've just bought two II's, but haven't tried any tests as yet. As I suspected, to my ears the II has a more pronounced mid, with a quite a narrow Q compared to the U4, making the acoustic sound a little 'pinched' in that frequency area. The U4 sounds more mellow overall, better balanced perhaps. Initially, the II could lead you to think it's more dynamic and exciting, with that pronounced mid area creating what i call 'The Magpie' effect! The II's curve sits well on the heavy guitars though I must say. I would be curious to know if you had to wind on more pre-amp gain for the II as that's a common problem with most new re-issue models compared to originals. If so, I recommend the Cloudlifter CL-1 to add 25dB before the pre-amp stage. Cheers K
great video !!!the difference is very clear . After seeing your test I bought an MD421-U4, but I am very surprised by the output level of the U4 which is much lower than the MD421II and provides much less bass. Have you noticed this too?
Thanks for this video as I've been looking for this comparison between an older model and a II version. I have an old black model from the early 80's approx, and I've just bought two II's, but haven't tried any tests as yet. As I suspected, to my ears the II has a more pronounced mid, with a quite a narrow Q compared to the U4, making the acoustic sound a little 'pinched' in that frequency area. The U4 sounds more mellow overall, better balanced perhaps. Initially, the II could lead you to think it's more dynamic and exciting, with that pronounced mid area creating what i call 'The Magpie' effect! The II's curve sits well on the heavy guitars though I must say. I would be curious to know if you had to wind on more pre-amp gain for the II as that's a common problem with most new re-issue models compared to originals. If so, I recommend the Cloudlifter CL-1 to add 25dB before the pre-amp stage. Cheers K
great video !!!the difference is very clear .
After seeing your test I bought an MD421-U4, but I am very surprised by the output level of the U4 which is much lower than the MD421II and provides much less bass. Have you noticed this too?
Hi, be careful because usually when a 421 doesn’t provide enough bottom end it needs maintenance.
@@juanka78 Thank you for your feedback.
I think there's a problem with the microphone I bought.