Fast-forward to a session I'm working on right now, and I've recorded these guys before, and they're a nu-metal/industrial-metal-ish type band, and the singer alternates between actual singing & cookie monster vocals in most of their songs. I have plenty of other mics, and the meanwhile since, I've never found the occasion to pull it out. Anyway, so i try it out on my own voice just for a test & I'm more or less not all that impressed, but it didn't totally suck either - so i stick it back in the box & never use it for perhaps a year, thinking at some point it might find a home on the right track somewhere. OK, so i picked up this mic awhile back, and it was one of those NIB, closeout kinda deals where it was cheap enough to where i figured: 'WTF, if i don't like it I can always sell it for the same - or if not, only lose maybe a few bucks on it'. As with any valve mic, it takes a few minutes for the tube to reach its optimum temperature, and there is no output at all for the first 30 seconds or so.

They certainly have a subtly fuller and richer sound quality which is especially apparent when used close to a source, although the overall frequency response seems unchanged. The two valve microphones supplement the fine sound quality of the solid-state models with a nicely judged thermionic character.

As with all large-diaphragm mics, the variations in polar response with frequency and incident angle mean that small changes of position relative to the source can be used very effectively to tailor the captured sound. The GT57's switchable patterns make this a very flexible mic, but I suspect most people rarely use anything other than cardioid, so the GT55 is probably the better buy given that its performance is indistinguishable from that of the GT57 in cardioid mode. However, the mic is susceptible to mechanical noise through the mic stand and cable, and although the filter helps considerably I would definitely recommend purchasing the optional shockmount here. They both produce a rich, full, but generally well-balanced sound, which is clean, neutral and reasonably quiet. I started my listening and recording tests with the FET versions and found them to be well-behaved overall and with a typical large-diaphragm character. First impressions are that these are very nice mics and I enjoyed making use of them in a variety of applications, from recording a small choir and various orchestral string and wind ensembles, to a range of solo instruments, hand percussion and voices. However, the GT57 multi-pattern mic does not have the supercardioid switch found on the GT67 - only the three-way omni/cardioid/ figure-of-eight switch is present. Class-A FET electronics are used in place of the valve circuitry, driven by standard 48V phantom power, and construction is to the same high standards as the valve models, with almost identical performance specifications. A stand bracket (with thread adaptor again) is supplied as standard, this time equipped with a black plastic screw collar in place of the silver metal version supplied with the tube mics.

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