Pearlman TM 1 Microphone - European Glass Tube Version TM-1

See below for details on TUBE OPTIONS!*

Pearlman TM 1 Microphone - European Glass Tube Version

The Pearlman TM 1 Microphone was designed by and is hand made by Dave Pearlman of ROTUND RASCAL RECORDING STUDIO.  It is a high quality microphone made for professional studio use but priced for the home recordist.  Many studios using digital recording, (Pro Tools, etc.), need a front end system to warm up their recordings.  This mic is for you!

A large diaphragm, 6 micron, gold sputtered capsule sends the incoming signal to a New Old Stock WWII Vintage Telefunken metal tube (electrically identical, except for the heater voltage, to the very expensive Telefunken VF14  used in the famous Neumann U47) to the hand-wired circuit which includes selected WIMA polypropylene coupling capacitors to a state of the art output transformer custom designed (to match the German Steel Tube output impedance) by either the wonderful folks at CINEMAG Transformers in Los Angeles or by the Tamura Transformer Company.  (The mic can also be made with the American Tube Equivalent for a slightly lower price.)

        This is NOT an assembly line microphone; each unit is hand-wired, point to point, and voltage tuned for maximum performance.  The microphones were originally built to fill the need for more high quality tube microphones and are now in demand by everyone who has heard them.

        If you’re looking for a tube microphone with characteristics similar to the venerable Neumann U47 but at a tenth of the cost, then you will love this mic!

        Every set includes:  The Pearlman TM 1 Microphone, custom built power supply, custom tube microphone cable with Neutrik and Mogami, a heavy duty shockmount and aluminum shipping case.

 
From Barry Rudolph (Mix Magazine, Music Connection, etc ):

"I'm pretty particular when selecting microphones for recording different sources. I found the Pearlman TM 1 more versatile than other large capsule tube microphones I've used in the past.

When recording acoustic guitars, I usually go with a small capsule mic such as a AKG C-451, a DPA 4011 or a Schoeps CCM4 L ST100. One time I tried the TM 1 on acoustic just for a change. I was surprised how clear it sounded and also how insensitive it was to my player's movements in and around the front of the mic. I also liked that all the sound of the guitar was captured by the TM 1 even though I was a little close in at about ten inches above the 12th fret.

On vocals is where the TM 1 hits its stride. Female or male vocals sound big and full even on singers with a strident-sounding upper vocal range. With obvious comparisons to the famed Neumann U47, the TM 1 is a first class instrument that is my "go to,"  first choice when recording lead vocals. I'm keeping mine forever!"

Here is what Dave told me the differences are in the 3 Tubes options for the TM-1:

I have stopped making the EF14 (German) version for a few different reasons.  One is that the new body won't accept the size of the tube without difficulty ( I will make the mic as a custom version for a couple of extra hundred bucks), two is that the tubes are getting more and more difficult to find and are going so sky high in price (sometimes up to $300 apiece) that I can't in good conscience sell the mic to someone knowing that sometime in the future they'll have to replace it and dig deep into their pocketbooks.

    The European tube that I'm using in the TM-1 is the EF80 (6BX6 or 6BW7).  It is a pentode wired in the mic as a triode just like the EF14.  It is a replacement for the metal EF14 and sounds so similar that sometimes I can't tell the difference. It has more of a high-mid-forward sound that made the EF14 so desirable.  A great sounding mic.

    The American tube replacement for the EF14 is the 6AC7.  I have a few thousand of these and again, it sounds so close to the original that it is hard to tell the difference. It might be in some circumstances a bit softer sounding than the EF80.  One can also use as a replacement without any change in this socket the 6SJ7 and 5693, both of which are readily available and in massive supply. There are Russian military spec versions of all three of these tubes that are amazing as well.  These are great sounding mics, too.

    Just to add to the confusion I have also made the mic with the EF86 ( used in the U67) and EF804 (V72 tube).  Both these models are a bit more 'boutique" but really have very similar sounds to the other versions. These tubes are not easily found and can tend to be expensive at times ( not over $50 usually).