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JZ Microphones Vintage V67

Cardioid Condenser Microphone

The second in JZ’s “Vintage” series, the V67 is designed to recreate the sound of the Neumann U67.

The mic, like the V47, is a transformerless FET condenser, with an amplifier circuit that has little in common with the tube-and-transformer design of the U67. This concept follows a recent trend in microphone manufacturing; see, for example, the 3-Zigma CHI system, which provides interchangeable capsules modeled after the U67 and other vintage reference microphones.

The V67 capsule is described as being “close to the original,” which we interpret to mean it is a dual-backplate, dual-diaphragm, center-terminated design. JZ publishes the diaphragm’s active diameter as 25mm; the capsule diameter is presumably ~32mm. It produces a fixed cardioid pickup pattern.

Like the V47’s capsule (pictured at right), the V67 capsule uses JZ’s proprietary “Golden Drops” variable sputtering technique, which employs discrete “drops,” rather than an edge-to-edge coating of metal on the polyester film of the diaphragm.

The V67 shares a body shape and many specifications with its sibling, the V47: sensitivity is 22 mV/Pa, output impedance is 50 Ohms. The mic’s self-noise rating of 6dBA places the V67 among the quietest microphones we’ve seen. Note, too, that JZ measures the self-noise of their microphones acoustically, with the capsule attached to the amplifier circuit.

Surprisingly, the V47 and V67 have nearly identical frequency-response charts.

The V67’s “flask” shape, with built-in swivel mount, facilitates positioning. Because the capsule is internally shockmounted, the mic needs no external shockmount.

MIX, 2010

The V67’s rich midrange repeatedly blew me away with its rendition of the instruments I tried it on. It excelled on guitar amps, over a drum kit, on tenor saxophone and with male vocals. It’s been a while since I’ve heard a mic that worked so well across a wide range of applications.

Resolution, 2011

It’s clear from everything I put in front of these microphones that JZ has done a very good job here. Perhaps most impressive is the fact that they seem to have delivered the musicality, warmth and colour so many people associate with their classic forebears while using modern, clean and very quiet electronic stages. Which must mean that those capsules really are delivering the goods.

The JZ Microphones Vintage V67 is also known as: V67.

The mic was released in 2010.

Specifications

Frequency Response - CardioidClick Graph to Compare!

Pickup Patterns	Pads & Filters
Cardioid (22 mV/Pa; 20 - 20,000 Hz)

Capsule Dimensions	Impedance	SPL/Noise
Diaphragm diameter: 25mm	50 Ohms (Low)	Max SPL: 134 dB Self-noise: 6.0 dB(A)

Weight	Length	Max Diameter	Interface(s)
n/a	155mm (6.10'')	n/a	3-pin XLR male (1)

Power Specifications
Requires phantom power

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