hi bean - i'm late on this thread, but wanted to throw in my 2 pennies. i love both c480s and 414s, and on many applications really can hardly hear the differences in controlled studio applications. that said, the multiple patterns of the 414 can come in very handy on occasion.
both those things said, i have to add that IMHO, the difference in sound you are after may more likely be acheived by changing preamps. from my experience, the V3 is a rather brightish preamp compared to some others i have used. i have owned and used neumanns, schoeps cmc64s, DPA 4011s and 4006s and 4061s, AT4051s, gefell m300s, AKG C481s, amd a slew of others, and of those, the C481s are as smooth as anything i have ever used. on the other hand, when i auditioned the 481s through a pair of grace 101s, i was shocked at how bright they sounded. i then ran them trhough a vintech 1272 (neve clone), and they were VERY warm (almost like a bright ribbon mic). with a nice neutral preamp (i use a millennia media HV3D), they are about as good as mics can be. so, i might suggest trying something other than just mics if you are feeling like the 481s are a tad bright for you. have you tried the sonosax? or a great river?