Recording - October 2015 - 30

B Y PA U L V N U K J R .

ADK

A legendary sound in your choice of flavors-tube or solid-state

Custom Shop Z-MOD Z-251 and T-FET Cremona 251-T
All of this has culminated in ADK's Custom
Shop mics. For years now, it's been possible
to order off-the-shelf ADK models and have
them upgraded with specialized parts of
your choice. Moving one logical step further,
now ADK offers preconfigured custom models in the tube-based Z-MOD series and the
solid-state T-FET series. These mics can even
be further customized to taste. No, I'm not
kidding... at ADK you can customize the
already customized custom mics!

ADK is an American microphone company helmed by collector, connoisseur, and
mic expert Larry Villella. Back in 1998,
ADK was one of the first companies to introduce great-sounding low-cost import microphones into the mic market, which in turn
fueled the home studio revolution.
ADK quickly left behind its entirelyimport designs and moved into a hybrid
approach to design and construction.
High-quality globally sourced parts are
married to Asian-made capsules and bodies, which are then assembled, tweaked,
and quality-controlled in the USA. ADK
has been at the forefront of this trend as
well, not only sourcing upgraded parts
worldwide, but also scanning the globe
for the best designs and designers.
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RECORDING October 2015

Z-MOD and T-FET
We first looked at these two new ADK
series back in our May 2014 issue. Just
to illustrate how global sourcing works,
microphones in both series may contain
the following:
~ Capsules designed over a 5-year period
by the ADK/3 Zigma team, centered in the
US with contributors in other countries;
~ Circuit and amplifier designs from the
USA and Belgium;
~ Transformers built in the UK,
Sweden, and the USA, based on
design tweaks chosen through
consultation with famed engineers
like Chuck Ainlay and Michael
Shipley;
~ High-end components such as
Wima Capacitors and resistors
costing up to $6 each;
~ Asian metalwork.
Finally, all microphones in both
of these product lines are handassembled and tested at ADK's
Custom Shop in Tacoma, WA, by
master technician Kevin Dale.
Larry has been outspoken for
years about focusing on quality
and performance over bling. Until
last year, all ADK mics came in
simple black or silver finishes.
With the advent of the Z-MOD
and T-FET series, however, the
mics now come in a gorgeous
selection of powdercoat finishes
adorned with a black and silver
3Zigma badge. They are beyond
solidly built, and have I mentioned
they look stunning?

There are five models in each series, each
inspired by one of the five most famous mics
of times past. The models are: the Z-47 and
Berlin 47-T (Cream), the Z-251 and
Cremona 251-T (Yellow), the Z-12 and
Vienna 12-T (Ruby), the Z-67 and Hamburg
67-T (Powder Blue), and the Z-49 and
Frankfurt 49-T (Black). We reviewed the Z-67
and Hamburg 67-T in our May 2014 issue.
The whole package
All Z-MOD models come with the following:
~ Aluminum flight case
~ Velvet lined, wood microphone case
~ Elastic large thread shock mount
~ Low-profile large thread hard mount
~ Foam windscreen
~ Gooseneck style corrugated pop filter
~ Power supply
~ 5 meter Accusound Silver Studio Pro 7Pin mic cable (mic to power supply)
~ 5 meter Accusound Silver Studio Pro 3Pin XLR mic cable (power supply
to preamp)
~ three bonus tubes (usually
Mullard, Tungsol, JJ Audio, or
Electro-Harmonix, depending on
availability).
The T-FET mics come in a similar package, scaled down a bit
as there is no need to provide
spare tubes or a dedicated power
supply. The aluminum flight case
contains the mic, shock mount,
hard mount, foam windscreen, a
nylon-style pop filter, and a 5
meter Accusound OFC MX-4
Quad 3-Pin XLR cable.
Meet the 251 family
This month we are focusing on
the 251-flavored mics in each
series, inspired by the original
Telefunken ELA-M 251.
Back in the late 1940s and
1950s, Telefunken was the US distributor of the famous Neumann U
47. Most USA U 47 mics from that
era feature a Telefunken badge
rather than a Neumann one.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - October 2015