Neuman Geffel UM57

[Chris H]

I'm thinking of getting a UM57, price seems to be around $2000 on eBay.
What are others opinions about these mics performance/price wise and value for money wise. Are there better options that others use in the Geffel range. One of the things that attracts me to the Neuman Geffel is the heritage factor and the direct link to Neuman vintage.
Thanks in advance.

[rick]

the um 57 was built around the time of the u67 but on the other side of the wall
it looks much more basic inside , actually is kind of agricultual ( its a bit like of a cross between a u47 and a ... c12 ? ie glass tube not steel and simple point to point wiring but with a geffel k47 capsule )
well anyway is not certainly not a 67 !
nor is it a poor mans u 47.


it sounds like a zingy 47 ( a slight boost in the mids ) but without all the proximity boost that i love about a 47 which makes it amazing on toms
but does not cut it on my own voice.(soft and deep)
that said if you are not chasing an exact u-47
fully restored they are a serious contender for the never buy a vocal mic again club.


so in brief - great microphone if you get them working right but because they are from the other side of neumann there are not many people to turn to.

guntar wagner will be your man for that , i restored 3 um57s for garry beers many years ago , then guntar ermm... re restored them , he
managed to adjust the power supplies to get the exact plate voltage (1/2 a volt resolution) to each mic, it turned out essential for the noise floor and clarity of the top end
it was interesting to have 3 mics to work on at once as each power supply came from a different maker . and untill guntar got to them they all sounded different, when he was done they were pretty close in level but one with a russian power supply was still a little brighter.
what i am getting at here is with this mic it is essential the power supply be up to the job

so see if you can source one with the correct original geffel power supply. its best tube mic for $2000 your going to get i would say.

oh yeah
if you believe the hype geffel still make this mic

errrm dont believe the hype

[Chris H]

Thanks Rick. Plenty of first hand info.

Nothing beats an educated palette