Hello, and welcome back to the blog! It’s week 3 of our focus on the Vintage Series Breakdown, and we’ll be taking a strong look at the 2 most purchased Vintage Series microphones within our line-up today; the V67 and the Amethyst.
It’ll come as no surprise for a lot of you, the many ways I have to describe these 2 microphones, but I think the fact that that is the case gives me even more reason to break them and their sonic signature further for anyone who may not know how they sound quite yet.
Let’s dive in!
Why They’re Our Best Sellers
The V67 and Amethyst have one thing in common which the rest of our entire line don’t have - their capsules. They have identical capsules, meaning they have near identical sound profiles, however, there is a difference between them still despite that similarity. The difference in sound comes from the form factor of the microphones; their body design is starkly different from each other resulting in some interesting differences and even more interesting reasons for those differences.
The thing that makes the difference audible is something called acoustic shadow. In short, acoustic shadow is the time the sound you’re trying to record with the microphone to reach the rear of the capsule; this affects the polar pattern and in turn, affects the frequency response of the capsule. It’s not a major change when the capsules are identical, but it’s still an audible difference resulting in a slight shift of the lower frequencies and the presence of the upper frequencies moving up slightly higher for the Amethyst comparatively to the V67.
Regardless of this fact, they both sound incredibly rich and warm, with the top end sparkle commonly associated with typical vintage microphones throughout the years. For many Grammy winners who use these 2 microphones, most of them say it is their go-to microphone for vocals, drum overheads, acoustic guitars, and much more. Because both mics are able to record anything they’re put in front of with such grace and ease, with results the often don’t need any further processing more than minor touch ups in compression or filtering; over time, both the V67 and Amethyst have without a doubt, become just as well known as the microphones hey were inspired by.
So How Do They Sound?
For me personally, I have always leant in the preference of the Amethyst due to it having a slightly tighter low-end and the upper presence shift compared to the V67 is more appealing to my ears. However, 99% of the people I know use these 2 microphones just as much as I do always say they prefer the V67 - and for reference, those people include Thom Russo, Marc Uriselli, Dave Eringa, Adam Getgood, Dana Neilsen, and more… I think we can all agree that that bunch, each has a decent pair of ears. These microphones were inspired by the vintage U87 sound from the 60’s as many microphones have been, but unlike the newer models of that same microphone, we wanted ours to have the warmth associated with the originals and so that’s exactly what we aimed for when designing the capsule. Take a listen below and you’ll hear exactly what I mean:
The biggest thing for us, was to preserve the sound of the instrument or source being recorded, without coloring it too much or taking away from the organic feel of the instrument - something the original that inspired these microphones did very well. The main issue for many who love the originals like we did, however, is the fact that for one, they are incredibly rare and most are now broken or have owners too scared to use them due to the age of the microphone, and secondly, the ones that are in working order are insanely expensive and completely unattainable for most engineers to even think of purchasing. So, with designing the V67 and Amethyst, you now have a chance to have that incredible sound in your mic locker, for a fraction of the price and with far better build quality!