Topic: AKG 451's

[hzgone]

any good? does anyone use them any more?  found a couple sources with an ad20 but haven't listened to them yet

[TNJazz]

Still a standard in studios today, almost 40 years after they were released.

Good for taping?  Maybe.  It all depends on what you pair them with.  They can be fairly bright (which is why they were popular as drum overheads in the 70's and 80's).

One word of advice.  Get the old 451E or 451EB versions, because they have interchangeable capsules.  The new 451B is a fixed cardioid.

AKG no longer manufactures replacement parts for 451's, but they do offer capsule rebuilding services if necessary.

Dirk

[hzgone]

thanks for the info doesn't sound like putting them with a v3 would be a good thing.

What about the 480>v3 also bright?

[RebelRebel]

you cant go by peoples sound assessments(though Dirk is a wise man)...because his interpretation of bright might mean something entirely different from yours. The best only way is to audition them and see. JNorman calls the 480s "clean and detailed" but I hear nothing like that from them...so who knows really? Check em out on the archive. BTW, didnt you like the 4050s??I love those. I consider them to be a swiss army knife of a mic....

thanks for the info doesn't sound like putting them with a v3 would be a good thing.

What about the 480>v3 also bright?

[tonyvt]

AKG 451's are some sweet sounding microphones and I bet they will sound great running through a V3.  Have fun with them and let us know how they work out for you.

[TNJazz]

you cant go by peoples sound assessments(though Dirk is a wise man)...because his interpretation of bright might mean something entirely different from yours. The best only way is to audition them and see. JNorman calls the 480s "clean and detailed" but I hear nothing like that from them...so who knows really? Check em out on the archive. BTW, didnt you like the 4050s??I love those. I consider them to be a swiss army knife of a mic....

thanks for the info doesn't sound like putting them with a v3 would be a good thing.

What about the 480>v3 also bright?

Agreed.  You can read peoples opinions in a forum all day long - when it's all said and done the only thing you can trust is your own ears.

In the case of the 451's, the word "bright" is often the first word out of anyone's mouth.  The level of brightness is subjective, of course.

I have owned 2 pairs of 451's in the past.  They sounded better than the stock 460's and the 480's for what I was using them for (didn't beat the JWMods though...)  I'm sure that I will have another pair in the very near future too.  I just like the way they sound.

Dirk

[hzgone]

wow thanks for all the great info +T to all

[JasonSobel]

when I was first getting into taping, one of the first shows that I patched at, the guy was running a pair of 451's.
http://www.archive.org/details/aod2002-04-05.shnf - AKG 451/ck1 -> Aerco -> SBM-1 -> D8
with my very limited experience I'm not going to comment further, but check out that show.  solo acoustic first set and full band electric 2nd set, so you'll get some variety

[easy jim]

I have a newer pair: C 451 B/ST.  They have been great all-around mics for me. 

In most cases, the "brightness" factor has probably improved tapes I've made from "the section" toward the rear of boomy indoor venues.  They have an emphasis in the frequency range for cymbals, hence their use as overheads.  The newer ones are supposed to sound like the C 451 EB/CK-1 does, although I have never heard a side by side comparison.

I also like their sound better than the stock 460s, though not the JW Mods (thanks to terrapinj for letting me use his JW Mod. 461s this weekend).  For PA taping, they sound comparable to the 480/ck61s to my ears.

The only time I have really been disappointed is running them from far back from the PA outdoors; but then, who of us here would not be disappointed in that situation?

[poorlyconditioned]

One thing to remember is that there is a fair used market for 451's (for studio work??), so they may be overpriced.  I have not tried them, though.  I'm using 391/393 (CK91, CK93 caps with a self-made battery box, really) and like them.  These can often be had very cheap.  Soon I'll be trying CK63's (if I can "activate" them).

 Richard