I'm shopping for a versatile pair of mics. These would be used for solo acoustic instruments as well as small acoustic ensembles -- bluegrass and such. This pair would also be used to record electrified live shows from time to time.
I'm thinking that I'd use omni and card settings mostly. The multipattern DC-196 is really no more expensive than a lot of the better small diaphragm condensers, especially when multiple capsules are considered. It is, reportedly, excellent for acoustic instruments. The omni setting is said to be very nice, too. But how would these perform when recording live shows?