This is a no non-sense small diaphragm microphone from Microtech-Gefell---it is the hyper-cardioid version of their M300 microphone. What I mean is, there are no pad switches, no high pass or low pass filter switches, the capsule is NOT removable or any of that sort of thing. You plug this is, wait for the phantom power to settle and go about your business.
You go about your business with this mic if your business is capturing great audio! goof The Gefell M310 is very strong on discerning detail and nuance without ever, ever, ever being harsh or nasal or sibilant in any stretch of the imagination. It is just smooth and rich sounding. Folks who have spent a lot of years listening to detail will appreciate the M310. A novice listener might think the top end on the M310 sounds dull simply because it is not overly bright. But the sounds are all there with the M310, just not hyped. In fact another word to describe how the M310 captures sound is controlled.
My primary use for the M310 is boom work for film and video production. I looked over all the usual suspects like a Scheops CMC6 with MK41 capsule, the Sennheiser MKH8050 and MKH50, and I also looked at the Neumann KM185, AKG CK93, Gefell M210 and Beyerdynamic MC950, some Audio-Technica mics and lastly the Gefell M310. Size, weight, self-noise versus output, color (no one wants a red mic on the end of a boom pole, for example), and of course quality of sound were all considerations for me in my search. Cost is always a consideration, but to be honest, it was my last consideration.
The only vendor I was able to find for the Gefell M310 is Vintage King. It had to be special ordered and it took a lot longer than normal for the mic to come in from Germany. It is believed the M310 was made especially for my order, which just makes me smile a little bit. Now I know serial numbers do not always reflect how many of an item is manufactured, but the serial number on my mic is 0142 and I like to believe there are less than 150 of these mics in the world right now.
In performance, the M310 exceeded my expectations. I knew it would have good off-axis rejection and it does. I knew what to expect from its frequency response and I am pleased to report Gefell's published results sound very true to my ears. The output of the mic's level versus its self noise are very useful for my needs.
The things that exceeded my expectations include how smooth the off-axis sound is and simply how musical the mic is.
For off-axis sounds, typically we expect there to be frequency shifts off-axis. In the case of the M310, it is more like things evenly fall away, just like sound does with our ears, with sound simply becoming more quiet rather than some frequencies sounding bumped versus other sounding quiet. This is a GREAT thing for a boom mic, let me tell you! The off-axis sounds are exactly what one would hope for, similar to a Sanken CS-3E. For what it is worth, the published specs from Gefell are spot on (to my ears) in regards to the off-axis sounds as well. Check them out on the website link.
And as I mentioned, the final surprise was how musical this mic sounds. While I do mainly film and video production audio, I still record music when the opportunity presents itself. I recently had the opportunity to compare the M310 in a studio to another small diaphragm condenser the facility uses. I decided to place the M310 along side the other mic in a position that I would never expect to see it used: as a single drum over head mic. The M310 is a hyper, so why would I want to use it here, right? I just wanted to listen to how it performed. Oddly enough, the M310 sounded smoother in the high frequencies, stronger in the low frequencies, with better real detail across the spectrum and with more pleasing off-axis sound than the other mic. What a surprise! I would LOVE to have a pair of the M310 mics to use for stereo work, which I would never have guessed before that listening experience.
To conclude, the M310 is obviously a real under-the-radar sort of microphone if there are indeed less than 150 of these in the world. If you are searching for a hyper-cardioid microphone, but are scared of the potential harsh off-axis sounds exhibited by some mics and are put off by the high frequency peaks by many other mics of this type, look carefully at the M310. I expect the Sennehiser MKH50, MKH8050 (or MKH40/MKH8040 by endorsement from Glenn Trew at Trew Audio) and the Scheops MK41 would all be just as fabulous to work with, placing the M310 in very good company.
You go about your business with this mic if your business is capturing great audio! goof The Gefell M310 is very strong on discerning detail and nuance without ever, ever, ever being harsh or nasal or sibilant in any stretch of the imagination. It is just smooth and rich sounding. Folks who have spent a lot of years listening to detail will appreciate the M310. A novice listener might think the top end on the M310 sounds dull simply because it is not overly bright. But the sounds are all there with the M310, just not hyped. In fact another word to describe how the M310 captures sound is controlled.
My primary use for the M310 is boom work for film and video production. I looked over all the usual suspects like a Scheops CMC6 with MK41 capsule, the Sennheiser MKH8050 and MKH50, and I also looked at the Neumann KM185, AKG CK93, Gefell M210 and Beyerdynamic MC950, some Audio-Technica mics and lastly the Gefell M310. Size, weight, self-noise versus output, color (no one wants a red mic on the end of a boom pole, for example), and of course quality of sound were all considerations for me in my search. Cost is always a consideration, but to be honest, it was my last consideration.
The only vendor I was able to find for the Gefell M310 is Vintage King. It had to be special ordered and it took a lot longer than normal for the mic to come in from Germany. It is believed the M310 was made especially for my order, which just makes me smile a little bit. Now I know serial numbers do not always reflect how many of an item is manufactured, but the serial number on my mic is 0142 and I like to believe there are less than 150 of these mics in the world right now.
In performance, the M310 exceeded my expectations. I knew it would have good off-axis rejection and it does. I knew what to expect from its frequency response and I am pleased to report Gefell's published results sound very true to my ears. The output of the mic's level versus its self noise are very useful for my needs.
The things that exceeded my expectations include how smooth the off-axis sound is and simply how musical the mic is.
For off-axis sounds, typically we expect there to be frequency shifts off-axis. In the case of the M310, it is more like things evenly fall away, just like sound does with our ears, with sound simply becoming more quiet rather than some frequencies sounding bumped versus other sounding quiet. This is a GREAT thing for a boom mic, let me tell you! The off-axis sounds are exactly what one would hope for, similar to a Sanken CS-3E. For what it is worth, the published specs from Gefell are spot on (to my ears) in regards to the off-axis sounds as well. Check them out on the website link.
And as I mentioned, the final surprise was how musical this mic sounds. While I do mainly film and video production audio, I still record music when the opportunity presents itself. I recently had the opportunity to compare the M310 in a studio to another small diaphragm condenser the facility uses. I decided to place the M310 along side the other mic in a position that I would never expect to see it used: as a single drum over head mic. The M310 is a hyper, so why would I want to use it here, right? I just wanted to listen to how it performed. Oddly enough, the M310 sounded smoother in the high frequencies, stronger in the low frequencies, with better real detail across the spectrum and with more pleasing off-axis sound than the other mic. What a surprise! I would LOVE to have a pair of the M310 mics to use for stereo work, which I would never have guessed before that listening experience.
To conclude, the M310 is obviously a real under-the-radar sort of microphone if there are indeed less than 150 of these in the world. If you are searching for a hyper-cardioid microphone, but are scared of the potential harsh off-axis sounds exhibited by some mics and are put off by the high frequency peaks by many other mics of this type, look carefully at the M310. I expect the Sennehiser MKH50, MKH8050 (or MKH40/MKH8040 by endorsement from Glenn Trew at Trew Audio) and the Scheops MK41 would all be just as fabulous to work with, placing the M310 in very good company.
Microtech Gefell M310
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