The Neumann U87
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- Опубликовано: 31 июл 2024
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00:00 - Introduction
00:58 - 02:08 - A History Lesson
02:09 - 05:47 - The Recording Process
05:48 - 07:17 - Getting Separation
07:18 - 09:09 - Performance Mode
I have a pair of U87's and I have been using them for many years now. The most remarkable thing about them is when you use them on a lead vocal in a song with multiple instruments and then go to mix. The vocal recorded on the U87 just seems to "fits" in the mix perfectly, requires minimal processing (if any) and sounds like a record. When you listen to the U87 on a solo vocal by itself, it may not sound remarkable. In fact, solo vocals on many less expensive condenser mics might sound better by themselves, but when you go to mix that vocal in with everything else, that's when the U87 really shines. That cheaper condenser mic now usually sounds harsh, and will require equalization to sound good, but the U87 will sound fine, as is, with nothing else needed. That allows you to work faster and is why professionals love the U87. If you buy a used one, my advice is to be sure it contains a genuine Neumann capsule and not a 3rd party "reskinned" capsule as those never sound the same.
Very interesting seeing your recording process, and great hearing your guitar and voice through these classic mics. Thank you for sharing Mary. Keep up the fantastic work.
Whoa, he visits ALL corners of the earth! :)
Plus, it’s not the microphone which is important, but the performance. A ten zillion bucks microphone will never enhance a bad performance.
woah it's him
I bought a pair [consecutive serial numbers] of U87s from Neumann in 1976. They have worked to perfection 47 years and remain my favorite vocal microphone ever. So, to the poster claiming they are overpriced, he may not be aware of that characteristic of Neumann microphones. 47 years of heavy use; live on stage, hung as MS pairs, 80 hour weeks in the studio; nothing has ever changed. I take good care of them but many a cheaper microphone, including my C414s, 412s, etc, have needed repairs numerous times. If this sounds like it would make you happy, it’s something to consider.
1976?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!
I loved your candid way to share this experience. I take from watching it that I need to be way more patient, handle the preparations and testing as a craftsman does, no rushing or skipping steps, checking more details that I usually do. Thank you!
A beautiful microphone. The memories I have of singing into a U87 and U67 are really special. Great work Mary!
Bring back memories of working in the professional sound recording studio before the days of digital. At the end of a session the Neuman's, and Sennheiser's always went back into the cases. Then the cases into the vault.
One of the greatest gifts is passing on knowledge and experience...Thank you!!!!!
I've been in the process of self recording my next album for the last year and a half, and this video was invaluable for the information it gave me on mic setup for me and my acoustic. Thank you!
Super informative. I like the behind the scenes how you create the content. Thanks.
beautiful video, beautiful exploration, beautiful result, makes it all wortwhile.
Mary, aside from your amazing guitar playing and singing, your video editing keeps me always on the lookout for your next post! You are so talented!!!
Wonderful sound from that Epiphone! It reminds me of my old Swedish Levin guitar 😍
And of course, your voice and the microphone just glues everything together 💯
Love to see more of this 🙏
Beautiful clear sound
Your journey in the music path is always an inspirational and educational,thank you
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The FINAL Performance - ruclips.net/video/qgBq5ixQdiQ/видео.html
i loved this video, Mary. It's always great to see you on your journey, as you continually refine your craft, expand and broaden your horizons and share useful insights on all of it with us.
Your improv test recording was delightful :-).
The U87s have been on my wish list forever. Someday. May end up picking up a pair of Warm Audio WA87s and calling it a day.
Thanks again for posting!
I enjoyed the performance. And then, seeing how you set up to do it, that was cool. Every interesting. Thanks for showing that.
amazing separation!!! I am impressed!
Thank you for sharing your process. I love the sound you were able to achieve.
Mary you are a true artist. I’m so envious of your finger style playing. I’m a 77 yr young newbie hacking away at basic cords & a few pentatonic scales but just cannot get the coordination for finger style. I really like the effect that it displays. It appears that your using your thumb on a down stroke and upstroke picking with your first, second & third fingers, yes/no? I’m just exploring my way attempting to land on a method that I feel comfortable with and can progress further along in my musical journey. I’m have an acoustic & an electric Telecaster. You’re amazing 😊
Detailed technical insight into a process. The guitar,in the accompanying video, sings with a lovely clarity. Your voice would sound good anywhere,recorded on anything, engineered by anyone.
Thanks for sharing your method and process. Sounds great
A very helpful, well produced video. In the last month I recorded myself with solo guitar for the first time. I have recorded others before but I recorded myself with original songs for the first time. I have been recorded while playing in a band before but I found the "red light fever" was much worse when recording myself solo (but I got through it). I found (for me) it was more difficult than it looks.
I've always loved your music and recordings and after my experience, I appreciate them even more. Thanks!
Very well made video on an interesting subject with a wonderfully talented artist.
I’m a fan, a new fan. You go Mary.
U87 can be so magical! I mostly record classical/jazz/acoustic music and find myself using an old one like yours quite a bit, though it’s not my first reach. I’m very partial to nice small diaphragm condensers, because in addition to the sweet sound, they tend to render the room (or any other instruments in it) in a very uniform way. Schoeps mk4 or 5, DPA 4011, all great choices. Vintage Neumann KM54 *chefs kiss*
Very interesting, Mary. I play guitar (mostly electric), but I'm not even a real musician, so I enjoy seeing how this sort of thing is done by someone who knows what they're doing. Thanks for the "behind the scenes" look.
Enjoyed your video. Love the history lesson in the beginning. What a lovely Guitar and your sing beautifully.
When you get it right Mary it sounds amazing and even when you do not it still sounds amazing. You are that damn good.
Vintage U87 mics comes with sprinkles of magic great choice
Enjoyed seeing your recording process especially for vocals/guitar in one pass.
I always loved being able to use U87s back in my engineering days. Seeing you use them made me wish I could have used them on more sessions, but the studio I worked at wasn't busy enough for me to be able to pay the bills.
Amazing! I am celebrating 2,000 original songs and now focus on stripped back acoustic guitar and vocals 💙🖤🎵
Thanks for thes elegant videos.
Glad to hear that lovely guitar again! 👍
you're so talented and such an awesome person!
thanks for showing us behind the scenes
Great video Mary!
“Hours will just disappear.” I love that you shared that. 😎
Thank you for sharing this.
Don't know anything about making music. I only absolutely love it, keeps me alive in my work! Love to support you - ❤️
Hello Mary, enjoy all your videos
That was a good buy. Sounds awesome. Much better than a Reissue.
That was really good that!
Nice hearing ! Awesome old guitar.
Nice video. Interesting to see and hear. We are all always learning I guess! If it sounds good, then it is good!
All the jealous. I've wanted to play with U87's for as long as I've been recording. Sounds amazing!
Nice! I'm baffled microphones from that age sound so precise! I can hear a lot of details from the guitar with my T5p headphones.
I see you remember geometry: with mikes perpendicular to each other and sources directed towards them, you get the best separation. Maybe not the best comfort, but an engineer always finds a good compromise.
LOL... Mary, you just did what I have always wanted to do, like since I ever started playing. With my ear down as a kid on the bout of my Gibson. I was "in" the guitar hearing otherworldly beauty. Thanks. Great Video. The great Mic of my childhood was the Telefunken U47.
And, I may never sing... but, never say never! Great Video and so encouraging!
Another fab video 😃🎸
Mary Spender living up to her name.
I sropped measuring time when I am recording. I just look out the window and see if the sun is coming up yet.....it always does. Love the comfey jumper.
Your voice is so soothing, even when you talk ❤️
Thanks for doing this, I struggle quite a bit when it comes to any music tech. Love to perform but soon as I try to record I hit a wall a lot of the time,. Simply getting the devices to work is more challenging than ya think. But this inspired me to push onward when technical difficulties arise, cant just get frustrated and bail. No shortcuts, gotta troubleshoot if the aim is gaining better comfort recording.
If I understand this, the mics are one of the most important parts of production. Your presentation really makes it, though. More than anything else.
Gorgeous Epiphone, gorgeous voice both singing and talking, don't know the first thing about microphones 😊 Loved the German marching music idea too!
Very well recorded ! You can hear all the details of your voice and guitar . I only use Neumann nothing else .
Would love more videos like this ❤
I recorded much of my last album through a vintage Neumann U-47, valued circa 20K US. It. Was. Magnificent!
I watched your Green Day cover the other day and enjoyed it very much. Seeing this video - how you set everything up for that video is great. Also great is seeing you putting everything together, trying to limit the bleeding of voice into guitar mic & vice versa since that's something I've struggled with a lot.
I watch a lot of Joe Gilder videos - his catch phrase is GIRATS (get it right at the start). So seeing Josh Turner's hat and your mention of "Fix it in Pre" was another take on that theme. As they (and you) would say it's much easier to get things right in recording than trying to fix them at the mixing stage.
Fantastic microphone.
Sounds great Mary. 2 figure 8s completely sideways on the same axis would be the most isolated, but would not necessarily sound the best. Sometimes a bit of bleed is good!
Back when I went to audio engineering school... uh... jeez almost 20 years ago... we had the opportunity to use these mics a number of times. Always sounded great. I never really embraced engineering as an profession but still record frequently, with lesser mics. Maybe I'll get my hands on a beat up pair of these again someday.
Hi Mary,
the U87 has always been my dream-mike but I am not rich enough for two of them (I always wanted to have a pair for recording stereo). So three years ago I bought two TLM 107's for half the price of one U87. They have the same diaphragms as the U87 but due to the missing transformer (TLM=TransformerLessMicrophone) they have quite a lower output. But if you compensate in the preamp, you can't hear a difference. I compared it in a studio.
As always a beautiful video - thank you!
Thomas
I found this setup to be one of the most tricky things to record because of phase issues (which become more obvious with compression added in post) - I didn't have the time to try it yet but next time I'll record vocals & acoustic I'll keep both U87 head to head horizontally oriented, ca. 90 degree twisted: one pointing at the guitar, one at the singer. This way there shouldn't be phase issues for the off-axis spill... Beautiful guitar!
Bizarrely your presenting style reminds me of Steven Bridges, the magician chap. Entertaining video.
Mary, it's great that you've invested in the two U-87s, as they are expensive, and I know you want to have one for vocal and one for guitar, but honestly, I would use two smaller diaphragm mics (such as a Bruel & Kjaer pair or Schoeps, or two AKG C-451s) on the guitar simultaneously with the U-87 on vocal.
I noticed you scratched placing the guitar for the microphone near the f-holes and moving it near the neck! Much brighter sound and I like it! I did a studio session in Washington, D.C using a 1976 Ovation guitar I had and they actually miked the sound hole and near the neck both to blend the two and came up with a nice sound for a very bright sounding guitar!
We had those in the voice over booth and other places at the TV station I use to work for. As close to real sound as it gets.
Hi - Thanx for posting this insight to your experimentarium. So many traps'n'treasures to meet, avoid and enjoy.
Quite demanding to record alone, isn't it. At the same time also very free almost weightless. .
Have Fun
Heps from Copenhagen
the best indicator during creative endeavours that I am indeed onto something - I lose track of time. I think I've been writing for half an hour, but two hours are gone. I decide to paint for an hour and four hours evaporate. it feels really good...
You’re the best Mary
Of course without testing, can't say for sure, but I would hazard a guess and say the vocal mic was picking up a reflected sound from a table or whatever you might have had in front of you when you did your mic level testing. The vocal mic backside is pointing towards the floor or table or whatever, vs the guitar mic backside is pointing towards the ceiling.
I know nothing about microphones. This is a great tutorial! Thanks for the knowledge. Did not know how much a microphone could cost.
I believe the original U87 had the Telefunken Valve Preamp within - they discontinued production and they then converted the Mic to a FET Transistor Amp.
You even experimented with parting your hair differently too! 😯😄. That I had never seen before
Beautiful
Thanks for sharing your experience with these mics! Some caveats, the Neumann's are expensive! However, an entry level large diaphragm condenser mic can be had for under 100 and well worth it, since it will probably outperform your dynamic mic, in the same price range. A mixer/preamp with phantom power is necessary, and not hard to find. These mics are so sensitive, you cannot really use them with PA due to feedback, they are only for recording. Definitely try a Mid/Side mic (M/S) configuration with two mics! Position the mics together such that the response lobes are perpendicular, then use your mixer or post software to adjust the stereo separation, balance, and pan. Positioning with that technique would probably be easier, sound better, and provide more flexibility in editing!
U 87 is hands down top microphone I've ever worked with - I had been privileged to borrow it several times for my studio sessions. I have a music studio and I used to produce bands and I had a friend who was borrowing me a stereo pair of U 87s no less. I have bought the TLM 193 which is significantly cheaper - I got it in 2011 for about 800 eur + 50 for a rip off of a Neuman shock absorber and even the TLM has served me fantastic although the U 87 has no comparison on the high end. If your budget allows you, you can not go wrong with this microphone. The only thing then is if perhaps it does not suit your particular voice. Some people like to experiment and try different microphones on singers and determine which suits them best.
U87 is far from the best studio mic! Even 40 years ago it wasn’t
Two of those captured the whole sound from John Bonham's drums on "Physical Graffiti". I'll be the last to complain on how they delivered :) Nice video.
Any machinist worth a chip, or any truly expert watchmaker, would say that the time needed for setup
is often much longer than that required to perform the desired task.
Good job, Mary.
love an light
Oh my gosh that is a lot of gear to record. Sounds and looks good!
You should like that one. No brainer. Legendary mic.
Hi Mary, Great sound, the U87 is a beautiful sounding mic.... another setup you could try is to use the 2 U87's in an XY configuration one inverted on top of the other, one facing the guitar sound hole the other at a 45 degree angle to recorded the guitar and use a 3rd mic with a pop shield to record the vocal but bring it closer into you for a more intimate sound. the XY setup can then be panned to widen the guitar sound. your setup is great this would be different.
Mary you are a BIG SPENDER
Seriously the best microphone! 😆 now you know what your favorite vocal performance was recorded with! 🤙😜
Have you tried the trick with 2 figure 8 mics? Position them head to head, on end such that they’re horizontal, but rotate them 90 degrees so the patterns both interact & cover more.
I've been reading interviews with audio engineers for years now to try to learn a bit about how this or that recording was made, and it's noticeable how seldom the U87 (or its modern counterpart, the U87ai) is mentioned. It's a well made and famous mic, and definitely it has been the vocal mic used on various hit recordings - although perhaps not on some of your favourites. It's a great mic, a workhorse as they say, but many audio engineers will bypass it when it comes to vocals if there are other decent options available.
Wow, cool 🙂
Congrats on reaching 650K.
Nice video Mary. I would record vocals and guitar with a higher input level, at least for what I saw from your Logic screen. Acoustic sounds (vocals included) are better recorded with a higher signal to noise ratio.
And it's not set in stone, whatever works, works. 👍🏻🎵
I record using a variety of condenser, dynamic, ribbon mics including Neumann, Rode, EV, Shure the “dirty little secret” is it always depends on what you are doing and what you want. don’t forget the preamp factor in your experiments. Buy what you can afford and trust your ears not someone else’s opinion
What a beauty - and the microphone..Well done Mary.
Professional engineer here! Hey, I don't hear any phasing and that's the most important thing lol. You certainly could have moved the vocal mic forward a bit and tilted it up some more but I give your mic placement a solid 8/10! Not many ways to get much better than that. I make my living in Logic Pro, cool to see you using it. Great DAW!
This mic ohhhhhhyeeeaaaaah 💪 nice😍
That is a very expensive and gorgeous Microphone 🎤 ..... It's going to be your next Musical Inspiration & Energy to compose your next beautiful song 🎵 ❤️
Bought my first U87 in the late 70s, when $800.00 seemed like a huge amount of money. I think I paid a little over 450.00 for a C414 around the same time. Something about that mic that seems to work for many clients, sort of like an old p bass!
I`ve got one old U87 (not XLR out but Tuchel connector, I have to replace it) and it`s killer mic ! Mine looks like veteran but sounds amazing. It works on polish language, wich got a lot of sibilants. only Chandler TG Mic do the same ;-)