The C-42's addition to the Mercenary Audio offering of items came as the culmination of several coincidences converging at once. Joshepson Engineering had long been known in high end microphone circles for their fine, hand crafted product. David Josephson gave us a call and mentioned that they were actually about to start building a "production model" [in other words, a mic that was produced in quantity as opposed to the "one off" builds they had been doing for years]. It was at this time that Mercenary had dropped the Neumann line of mics. While the Neumann KM-184 was a pale substitute for the original KM-84 it did have its place. When the folks at Josephson Engineering sent over the C-42 to try we very quickly forgot about the KM-184 and fell in love with the C-42. While the "vintage" KM-84 has a thickness to it the KM-184 didn't. The C-42 does. It also has a bit of extra sparkle on the top end which makes it perfect for High Hats, Drum Overheads, Acoustic Guitar, Cello, and even Piano. If you're just thinking of using for say High Hat then get the single unit... if you're thinking of using it for Piano, Drum Overheads, etc... then the C-42 MP [matched pair] is for you.
josephson c42 features
Series Four electronics feature a selected discrete FET driving a fully balanced symmetrical transformerless discrete class-A output stage. The output impedance is low enough that very long cable runs may be used without signal degradation. Although the microphone is specified for full P48 phantom power, it will function with phantom power as low as 24 volts, with some limitation in maximum SPL.
I had heard the name “David Josephson” for many years. He is the man that builds the CK-12esque capsules for the Manley “Gold Reference” microphones, which has always been a favorite mic in my world. I don’t recall exactly when we met but we did, and of course got to chatting. He asked me if there was anything I was looking for in the realm of microphones that I didn’t have and I responded in the affirmative.
I was looking for something small, about the size of a KM-84i that had a nice clear top but without the brashness of the Neumann KM-184 offering. A few weeks later he called me up and said he had something he thought I would like and sent over a microphone called a "C42".
I fell instantly in love!! Here was a mic that I could use on High Hat that would give me the ‘silk’ I generally want from H/H’s without the brash/brittle nature I found from the KM-184. Shortly after that initial trial I was hired as the drum tech for the Thursday album “War All the Time” which was being cut by my good friend “Rumblemix” at Big Blue Meenie studios in Jersey City, NJ.
Tim (Rumblemix) Gilles and I had known each other for years and so I brought a bunch of microphones for him to try out while I was down there tuning drums for the Thursday album. On one of the two drum kits we set up we used a matched pair of C-42’s for the overheads and we were both instantly hooked.
I have found the C42 to have a wealth of other applications besides things like H/H’s and drum overheads. I’ve used the mic on fiddle, acoustic guitar, congas, snare drum, loud guitars (it can really give a rather “Angus Young” feel to a loud guitar sound!!), and a bunch of other stuff.
The small profile and reasonable cost of the unit really makes this microphone a sure winner!!
SPECIFICATIONS
- Output Level, mV/Pa: 8.5
- Frequency Response (at 60 cm): 40Hz - 20kHz ±2dB from curve
- Equivalent Noise Level, A-weighted: ≤21dB
- Maximum SPL (with P48 power): 135dB
- Power Reauirements: 48V Phantom Power, 4.5 mA
- Temperature Range: -10 to +50° C
- Dimensions: 21mm diameter, 98mm long
- Connector: 3-pin XLR tyle, pin 2 postive polarity
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