James Christian, frontman with beloved hard rockers House of Lords, told us about his love for his Vintage AKG C 414 B-ULS.
James Christian: Being a singer most of my life, I’ve used pretty much every pro mic out there from Neumann, Telefunken, Manley, and many more. But for my voice the AKG C 414 B-ULS has always been the best mic to add the body and grit I’m looking for.
I think this microphone is definitely a great mic. To my ears it doesn’t have the harsh top end that the newer 414 models have and the bottom end is beautifully rich.
Here is an example, Bruno Mars has an unlimited budget for recording, yet he used the used an AKG C 414 B-ULS for his second album which went double platinum.
I recorded two songs, demos with House of Lords for the album Sahara. I used the AKG C 414 B-ULS for “Can’t Find My Way Home” and Remember My Name,” when it was time to do the vocals in A&M Studios.
For those two tracks, we ended up using the demo vocal I recorded. Our producer, David Thoener, made that decision because he loved the way it made my voice sound in the track. He also had all the incredible Outboard gear in A&M Studios to really make it shine. Those two tracks happen to be my favorite vocals in terms of performance and sound. Incredibly this mic cost a little over $1,000.
Recently my AKG stopped working So I decided to try the newest AKG Model. My mic is 27 years old and thought it might be time to retire the old man. After a few takes with the new AKG for the New House Of Lords CD Full Tilt Overdrive. I called my repairman in Nashville, TN and asked him to refurbish my Vintage AKG. He did so and I’m so glad that I did. Richard Land at Land Audio told me never to sell that mic because the quality of the newer AKG mics is not as good by a long shot.
If you own a vintage AKG, keep it in your arsenal. You will always have a use for this versatile gem.
House of Lords' album Full Tilt Overdrive is out in October. The "Crowded Room" single is out now.
