It’s been over 45 years since the original U 47 FET was last built and Neumann has decided to bring back the microphone in a special collector’s edition format. Following exact schematics and original production documents, Neumann has revived the U 47 fet and will be packaging it in a high-quality wooden case with a certificate featuring the microphone’s serial number.

After stopping production on the tube-based U 47 microphones in the mid 1960s, Neumann’s team of technicians began developing the same microphone with transistors. The resulting mic, the U 47 FET, utilized the same capsule as the original (K47), but could better handle high sound pressure levels without affecting the resulting recording. Thus, a new tradition of putting Neumanns directly in front of loud amps was born.

The U 47 FET is a condenser mic with FET 80 circuitry and a cardiod directional characteristic. Employing a K47 capsule, the microphone is a double large-diaphragm capsule that will have a slight boost above 2kHz. The mic features a low-cut filter that is switchable and can reduce the cutoff frequency from 40Hz to 140Hz, while the attenuation switch can lower transmission levels by 10dB. In an effort to stop overloading, the output signal can also be lowered, thanks to a switch on the bottom of the microphone.

• Acoustical op. principle: Pressure gradient transducer
• Dirctional pattern: Cardioid
• Frequency range: 40 Hz to 16 kHz
• Sensitivity at 1 kHz into 1 kohm: 8 mV/Pa
• Rated impedance: 150 ohms
• Rated load impedance: 1000 ohms
• Signal-to-noise ratio, CCIR (rel. 94 dB SPL): 69 dB
• Signal-to-noise ratio, A-weighted (rel. 94 dB SPL): 76 dB
• Equivalent noise level, CCIR: 25 dB
• Equivalent noise level, A-weighted: 18 dB-A
• Max. SPL for THD < 0.5 %: 137 dB
• With preattenuation: 147 dB
• Max. output voltage for THD < 0.5 %: -3.3 dBu
• Power Supply (P48, IEC 61938): 48 V ± 4 V
• Current consumption (P48, IEC 61938): 0.5 mA
• Weight: 710 g
• Dimensions: 63 x 160 mm