A Legend Reborn
It’s official. Neumann have just announced an M49 re-issue – the Neumann M49 V! First created in 1949 (hence the name), and introduced to the wider public in 1951, the Neumann M49 would become one of the most highly revered mics of all time, imparting its silky, smooth and present sound across countless iconic jazz and soul hit records throughout the 50s and 60s. Its continuously variable, remote-switchable polar pattern was a major breakthrough at the time, allowing engineers to adjust and experiment with the pickup sound without ever needing to leave the control room, and whilst the M49 has had its fair share of clones and reproductions over the years, nothing comes close to an original. This official re-issue from Neumann promises to be the real-deal, with each microphone painstakingly hand-crafted to original spec.
At a Glance
- Reissue of the legendary M 49 with detail improvements
- Superb vocal microphone for male and female voices
- Versatile microphone for all types of instruments
- Classic tube circuit with output transformer
- Continuously variable polar pattern, remote controlled
- Made to original specifications using archived documentation
- New pattern control unit automatically adapts to mains voltage
- Handmade and hand soldered in Germany
- Handmade vintage case manufactured in Germany
An original advert for the Neumann M49 :
“The M-49b is the ultimate microphone used by all the major recording and film studios in this country to attain the degree of perfection which their first class products demand.”
“Its most enviable feature is the ability of the engineer to control its directional characteristic by means of a fader located on the power supply (which may be as much as 300 ft. from the microphone). All basic patterns, omni- directional, bi-directional and cardioid, and any intermediate position is possible (U. S. Pat. No. 2,678,967). With this remote control the M-49b is ideally suited to suspension in concert halls and auditoriums, where the optimum directional pattern can be determined from the control room after the microphone has been hung in place. The switch-over if noise-free and can be made even during recording.”
Everything and More
The objective itself was grand: in the early 1950s, a reference microphone was developed in cooperation with the Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk (Northwest German Broadcasting) that was to replace all previous ones. Instead of having to replace the capsule in order to change the directional characteristic, the M 49 allowed remote controlling the polar pattern from the power supply – continuously. With its balanced frequency response in all directional patterns from omnidirectional to cardioid to figure-8, including intermediate settings, the M 49 is a truly universal microphone: be it orchestra, piano, trumpet, or vocals, the M 49 is suitable for recordings of all kinds to the highest standard. As a result, the M 49 was, and still is, in great demand. No other Neumann microphone of the tube age was manufactured for a longer period: from 1951 to 1971. Countless legendary recordings from cool jazz to present day pop bear its elegant sound signature. The M 49 is an inseparable part of the Neumann DNA.