With its green shell and gold-plated grill, the Marshall V67G is one classy looking microphone. Very reminiscent of the AKG C-12, many of my clients think it's the most expensive mic in my collection. It's not, but I'll never tell! It comes in a black version as well. The black version of the V67 is identical in construction and sound, as far as I can tell. The consistency from mic to mic seems to be better than some of the other budget mics. I've heard a few V67 mics and they all sound pretty close.
The V67G is a Chinese-made large diaphragm condenser microphone. It has a one-inch gold sputtered diaphragm and a fixed cardioid pickup pattern. The body shell is made of brass and seems sturdy and well fitting for a mic in this price range. The 200 Ohm output impedance is transformer balanced and frequency response is stated as 30Hz-20KHz. Included is a somewhat flimsy plastic stand mount (mine broke) and a carrying pouch.
I’ve had this mic for about 18 months and have used it primarily for vocals. It's become one of my first choices for warming up a harsher female voice. The V67 excels at taking the edge off of any singer that may be a little strident in the upper midrange area. In side-by-side testing, it has beat out a Rode Classic, an AT 4033 and a Gefell UM-70S on several different singers. On others it hasn't, but every home recordist should be aware that no single mic will work well on every source. And, they should also understand you get what you pay for and the V67 is no exception.
The V67 has quite a wide pickup pattern, which works nicely with vocalists who tend to move around when they sing. You won't hear any drastic tonal or level changes if they go a few inches one way or another. It's also quite free from overloading, unless you've got a real shouter. I tend to keep the singers about six inches off the mic by using a pop filter.
The overall sonic characteristic of the mic is one of warmth and body. It will give you a fairly big vocal sound that works well in a pop or country ballad setting. I wouldn't recommend it for tracking a vocal that needs to cut through a dense rock mix. It doesn't have the high frequency detail and definition that you would find in $1,000 and higher mics -- the upper mids are a little cloudy but hey, what do you expect in a budget mic?
I've only had a few occasions to try the V67 on other sources. Once on a pesky floor tom, where it didn't really do the trick -- an AKG D112 sounded nicer. The Marshall didn't really have the attack or body I was looking for. On drum overheads it fared much better, sounding full and realistic. Makes me wish I had a pair. In general, I'll just grab the V67 for vocal work, as that's what it is really designed for. I'm fortunate enough to have a fairly decent selection of mics that are more appropriate for other sources.
The Bottom Line: A budget vocal condenser mic with warmth and body for the home studio. Prices under $100.
Link relating to this review: MXL
Marc Gifford is the author of "The Interactive Guide to Home Recording" from Pomona Productions.
