Soliloqueen's k87(k67) and k47 capsules

[soliloqueen]

Hey @soliloqueen . I sent you PM recently but I see no reply. I would really like to give a try to your k87(67). So please let me know is it possible to order or preorder.

Not available just yet. In production

 

[Murdock]

Got mine yesterday as well and today I had some time to play around with them.
One of the mics is a 49 style that had a dachman da-k47…his more expensive one. The other mic is a u47 ptp that had an original Neumann k47fet cardioid only ( one diaphragm gold sputtered).
My impression…wow, totally unexpected. This “flat” k47 sounds fantastic and more importantly..it has dimensionality and depth veeeery comparable to the Neumann k47, crazy.
My 47 clone actually sounds better with this capsule than the original so it stays in. The highs are really nice and extended like the Neumann ( most k47 clones roll off too much) and although it doesn’t have the big bump in the upper mids it still sounds present and defined there like a proper k47.
Good work soliloqueen, big fan.

This makes me even more impatient...
Soliloqueen, any ETA on when you will ship the capsule for the foreign buyers?

 

[JW]

Just wanted to bump my last question with this link. 34/35mm capsule mount

I have one of the Chinese (Skylar) U47 bodies. I'm trying to determine the correct height mount. Chunger has a bunch of options. Not sure which is right for the K47 size . . . .

 

[soliloqueen]

This makes me even more impatient...
Soliloqueen, any ETA on when you will ship the capsule for the foreign buyers?

they shipped monday. forgot to update. 2 orders were delayed to today and upgraded to ups expedited for free to equalize the delivery time out.

 

[soliloqueen]

Just wanted to bump my last question with this link. 34/35mm capsule mount

I have one of the Chinese (Skylar) U47 bodies. I'm trying to determine the correct height mount. Chunger has a bunch of options. Not sure which is right for the K47 size . . . .

for these capsules? wide with or without standoff

 

[tomas.borgstrom]

Excactly…but it’s tricky since the 600pf in 49s affect also the mids. In the 49 clone ( with 5718 tube) I used soliloqueens k47 without the 600pf cap. Since the mids are so smooth and there is no 10k rise it works wonderfully without this cap…not bright at all, just extended.

I agree, it sounds great without the cap but. The sound is a little bit more modern so it's just a matter of taste.

 

[Sidebstudio]

PMed about ordering capsules. Thanks

 

[soliloqueen]

a clip of @tomas.borgstrom's comparison between Neumann K47 and the flat K47 in an M49 clone with a Flea body. The flat k47 doesn't have the upwards lift through the upper mids that a traditional k47 has at all. By my reckoning at least, it only sounds like a k47 in pattern and proximity behavior and not in timbre. I hope this demonstrates what I meant by saying "this is a weird one." I think I succeeded in keeping keeping it pretty close to an M7 through the low mids to the lower treble, but the additional extension on both ends makes it sound very different from an M7 overall.

Also, on an unrelated note, here is the flat K47 vs the Dachman Series 2 (the catalogue capsule):


This FR graph is uncompensated, so that's why it's wonky looking. Red is the catalogue capsule and white is the flat k47. It's about 4-5dB down at 4.5K. A few people in DMs were asking "Well, what's the difference exactly? What changes did you make?" and I might as well be as transparent as possible. I understand some skepticism given that there are a lot of people who offer "tuned" capsules. The difference is genuinely pretty huge, so I've got nothing to hide. If you keep in mind the wonkiness, this graph is also pretty telling of how good of a k47 the catalogue capsule actually is. the mid lift is excellently done. That being said, the flat k47 is already a bass monster, so the stock capsule is just...a bit much. The high end is a little bit less refined too.

 

[Murdock]

a clip of @tomas.borgstrom's comparison between Neumann K47 and the flat K47 in an M49 clone with a Flea body. The flat k47 doesn't have the upwards lift through the upper mids that a traditional k47 has at all. By my reckoning at least, it only sounds like a k47 in pattern and proximity behavior and not in timbre. I hope this demonstrates what I meant by saying "this is a weird one." I think I succeeded in keeping keeping it pretty close to an M7 through the low mids to the lower treble, but the additional extension on both ends makes it sound very different from an M7 overall.

Also, on an unrelated note, here is the flat K47 vs the Dachman Series 2 (the catalogue capsule):
View attachment 100835

This FR graph is uncompensated, so that's why it's wonky looking. Red is the catalogue capsule and white is the flat k47. It's about 4-5dB down at 4.5K. A few people in DMs were asking "Well, what's the difference exactly? What changes did you make?" and I might as well be as transparent as possible. I understand some skepticism given that there are a lot of people who offer "tuned" capsules. The difference is genuinely pretty huge, so I've got nothing to hide. If you keep in mind the wonkiness, this graph is also pretty telling of how good of a k47 the catalogue capsule actually is. the mid lift is excellently done. That being said, the flat k47 is already a bass monster, so the stock capsule is just...a bit much. The high end is a little bit less refined too.

I can not listen to the files... If I click on them I get an error. It is also not downloadable for me as it seems to be an XML file.

 

[bremusound]

Same problem!

 

[oscarhuang]

Same problem!

 

[soliloqueen]

Looks like a bug with the forum... Let me put them somewhere else

 

[soliloqueen]

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1hCpUfKyaUbVozlnWyranN67LN5L5Go7u?usp=share_link

 

[Murdock]

Thanks!
Wow, didn't expect such a difference.
@tomas.borgstrom Did you try to be as close as possible between the two takes with placement?

But the description about the flat K47 having no mid presence bump but still beeing detailed pretty much nails it.
At first I preferred the Neumann. But after listening a bit more the flat K47 has it's own thing going.
Were the Neumann sometimes is a bit too much of that bite, the flat one handles it more effortless in my opinion.

Can't wait to test them!

Thanks for te recording!

 

[tomas.borgstrom]

Thanks!
Wow, didn't expect such a difference.
@tomas.borgstrom Did you try to be as close as possible between the two takes with placement?

The guitar is upright on a stand (I have to play as if it was a small double bass) so the distance to the microphone is exactly the same between the takes. I play these simple chords trying to replicate the dynamics as good as I can.

 

[soliloqueen]

quick question guys: should i tune these capsules as if new or "pre-age" them? i would prefer to tune them as new (that is to say, so that they sound like a NEW u87 or 67 at time of sale) so that they age properly...i don't want mics that use my capsules to sound 120 years old in 50 years...

but i am also afraid of people going "it doesn't SOUND right" in comparison to their 60 year old mics...

 

[C12VR]

They are going to say that anyway. No matter how correct something is, given the subjective and emotional character of audio as a whole, you simply cannot satisfy everyone. At least not without promises that you have the original neumann brass, plastic, and a little of Georg Neumann's dandruff.

 

[C12VR]

What effect does the tuning of the membrane have on the sound, anyway?

 

[Recording Engineer]

Of course, the answer is, offer both options! Unfortunately, I’m only half joking. Doh!

 

[soliloqueen]

What effect does the tuning of the membrane have on the sound, anyway?

it depends on the capsule. k87s are marginally less affected by membrane tuning than k47s in my experience. i think this has to do with the two diaphragms being decoupled by a chamber in the middle. i THINK the mids bump on the k47 is from constructive interference (or at least, changes in pressure) from the other side of the capsule that doesn't happen with the chamber in between, but i would very much appreciate being fact checked by someone smarter than me. the flat k47 achieves a 5dB reduction in this very specific region by membrane tuning and capacitance changes alone, something i am not 100% sure would be possible on a k87 due to the different way it works. it does various relatively mild things to the treble and bass response.