Royer Labs SF-12 Small-Element Stereo Ribbon Microphone, Matte

I've had mine from before Royer got involved; mine was built by the original designer, the late Bob Speiden, in the early 90s. It was recalibrated by Bob a few years after I got it, then updated by Royer Labs. I've pretty much retired from recording now but I still use it from time to time. I did mostly classical music and found it superb on just about anything I put it in front of- choral, piano, brass, etc. It's also very highly regarded as an overhead drum mic for jazz. I've also used it over percussion like marimbas and xylophones. It does require good mic preamps (I have Millennia Media with 2 dedicated ribbon inputs) but given good pres and of course good source material it is superb- smooth, natural and detailed without harshness and of course the imaging is razor sharp. For larger ensembles, the sound can be opened up with a pair of flanking omnis. (To be fair, I also have some Schoeps condensers and there s nothing wrong with them, either.)At this price, it's certainly not a "project studio" mic but a first-class professional tool. But if you can pony up the cash, it will not disappoint.