Neumann U67

Towards the end of the 1950’s Telefunken, was ceasing production of the VF14 thermionic valve used in the flagship @neumann.berlin U47 microphone.

Realising that without this unique steel valve, production of the U47 couldn’t continue, Neumann began to go about designing a new microphone. In 1960 they released the #U67 based on the much more commonly used EF86 glass pentode and although the U47 and the U67 were released side by side for a short while the U67 effectively became the successor to the U47.

When the U47 was first introduced it was common practice to place mics at something of a distance to the sound source. By the late 50’s close-micing techniques were becoming the norm and the new k67 capsule in the U67 lends itself to these applications.

With close-micing in mind the U67 also featured a high-pass switch which rolls off some of the low frequencies which get accentuated when placing a cardioid microphone in close proximity to the sound source. It also has a pad switch which reduces sensitivity by 10dB allowing the mic to be placed closely to sources with high SPL.

Although no mic has ever surpassed the U47 the U67 became a huge success in its own right and in actual fact the sound is really quite different to its ancestor. Unsurprisingly so, given that it has a different capsule, transformer and impedance conversion circuit.

Unlike the U47, the U67 is a fairly complicated design which uses the K67 capsule, an inherently bright capsule which captures a lot of high frequencies. These high frequencies are then de-emphasised in the preamp circuitry which in turn provides the benefit of reducing the noise floor of the mic.

The U67 following in the footsteps of its sibling the KM56 offered three polar patterns, adding figure of 8 to the U47s cardioid and omni. The K67 capsule was made with two separate backplates which meant that each diaphragm could be tuned separately and also reduced production costs.

Production of the U67 ceased in 1971 when it was replaced by its FET counterpart the #U87 but demand remained high. In the early 90’s Neumann found a stash of EF86 valves and the original transformers and released a limited edition reissue.

In 2018 with the EF86 valve still in production and demand still high Neumann decided to reissue the U67 and by all accounts have done an excellent job, although prices for originals remain very high.

The U67 is extremely versatile and is one of the few mics I have that I would have no problem recording every element of a whole album with. From vocals to guitar amps to percussion to strings to bass, it gets used on everything with great results. And with fans such as The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan and Nirvana it has earned its reputation as one of the world’s most sought-after mics.