I owned a sizeable collection of high end microphones and preamps and among those, 6 DPAs, four of which were 130V. They are clean and they handle high SPL easily, but they are dull mics. Invariably we would try the DPAs on instruments, and would always prefer the sound of our Schoeps, AKGs and Neumanns. Even an SM57 is livelier and more engaging. I think that the problem is the small capsule. Don't get me wrong ; I'm not into colouration... but given a fairly neutral, noise-free and low distortion mic, there is a huge difference in how sympathetically a mic's capsule engages with the sound radiating from a voice or instrument, and it always seemed to me that DPAs strip away all vibrancy from instruments.
I owned a sizeable collection of high end microphones and preamps and among those, 6 DPAs, four of which were 130V. They are clean and they handle high SPL easily, but they are dull mics. Invariably we would try the DPAs on instruments, and would always prefer the sound of our Schoeps, AKGs and Neumanns. Even an SM57 is livelier and more engaging. I think that the problem is the small capsule. Don't get me wrong ; I'm not into colouration... but given a fairly neutral, noise-free and low distortion mic, there is a huge difference in how sympathetically a mic's capsule engages with the sound radiating from a voice or instrument, and it always seemed to me that DPAs strip away all vibrancy from instruments.