Neumann U48 #656 (Vintage)

Applications: Although primarily used as a vocal mic, the U48 is sometimes used for drum overheads, pianos, stringed instruments or guitar cabs. 
 

History:

The Neumann U 47 is the granddaddy of large diaphragm condensers, with a justifiably legendary sound. It was the first post-war mic produced by Georg Neumann GmbH in West Berlin. Built around a World War II military radio tube with a capsule design from 1929, it became a benchmark mic in the early fifties. Engineers found out quickly that the sensitivity of the U47 greatly enhanced the detail of their recordings. And the combination of head grille, diaphragm, tube and output transformer created a magical tone that has reproduced the vocals of virtually every famous singer in recent music history.

The U48 is essentially the same as the U47, except that it does cardioid and figure-of-eight patterns. The figure-eight capability of the U48 made it a favorite mic for recording the vocals of the Beatles. In many cases, John and Paul would both sing simultaneously into opposite sides of the same mic. This may have made it easier to be sparing with the use of mic inputs to the console, but it also forced the duo to match each other vocally, as their voices could not be separated afterward. As we all know, they easily rose to this challenge. 

The single-mic technique became so prevalent on Beatles recordings, that Abbey Road sent several U47 mics back to Neumann to have them retrofitted as a U48, (since the U47 could only do cardioid and omnidirectional). These mics were famously branded as U47/48's

The U48 also saw a great deal of use for the recording of acoustic and electric guitars on the Beatles sessions until the Revolver-era saw a switch to the Neumann U67.

Click here to learn more about the history of the Neumann U47 / U48